CHAPTER XV

DYAK RELIGION

Certain religious observances—_Petara_, or gods—Singalang Burong, the god of war—Pulang Gana, the god of the soil—Salampandai, the maker of men—_Mali_, or taboo—Spirits—Girgasi, the chief of evil spirits—The dogs of the spirits—Stories—Customs connected with the belief in spirits—Sacrifices—_Piring_ and _ginselan_—The victim of the sacrifice generally eaten, but not always—Material benefits expected by the Dyaks by their religious ceremonies—_Nampok_, a means of communicating with spirits—_Batu kudi_, “stones of wrath”—Belief in a future life—Conclusion.

The Dyaks have no special forms of worship, nor do they build temples in honour of their gods, and yet they certainly have a religion of their own. They believe in certain gods and spirits, who are supposed to rule over different departments of life, and they have certain religious observances which may be classed as follows:

1. The killing and eating of fowls and pigs offered in sacrifice, of which a portion is set aside for the gods.

2. The propitiation of gods and spirits by offerings of food.

3. The use of omens and augury.

4. The singing of long incantations to the gods and spirits on certain occasions.

The Dyaks have only one word, _Petara_, to denote the deity, and there is no literature to appeal to in order to explain this word. We have to depend upon what the Dyaks can tell us themselves, and also upon what we can gather from the different _pengap_—long incantations made on such semi-sacred occasions as the offering of sacrifices at feasts. These _pengap_ are handed down from generation to generation by word of mouth. Some Dyaks have good memories, and are able to learn and repeat them.

The general idea is that there are many _Petara_, but the whole subject is one upon which Dyaks have very hazy ideas. They cannot give a connected and lucid account of their belief. They all admit, however, that the _Petara_ are supernatural beings, who are invisible and have superior powers.

But their conception of gods is a very low one, and this is not to be wondered at, because, as is well known, the grosser the nature of a people, the grosser will be their conception of a deity or of deities. We can hardly expect a high and spiritual conception of gods from Dyaks in their present intellectual condition. Their _Petara_ are most human-like beings. They are represented as delighting in a “feast of rice, and pork, and venison, cakes and drink,” just as the Dyaks themselves do; and yet they are the beings who can bestow the highest blessings the Dyaks can desire!

Although the conception of _Petara_ is not an exalted one, yet he is a good being, and no evil is attributed to him. He is always on the side of justice and right. The ordeal of diving is an appeal to _Petara_ to help the innocent and overthrow the guilty. He is supposed to be angry at acts of wickedness, and I have often heard a Dyak say that he dare not commit some particular crime, because he fears the displeasure and punishment of _Petara_. He may be able to hide his wickedness from the eyes of man, but not from the _Petara_.

There are a large number of gods mentioned by name in the Dyak incantations, but the following are the most important deities:

Singalang Burong takes the highest position in honour and dignity, and is the ruler of the spirit-world. He stands at the head of the Dyak pedigree, and they trace their descent from him, for he is believed to have once lived on earth as a man. It is doubtful what the word _Singalang_ means, but _Burong_ means “bird,” and probably _Singalang Burong_ means “bird chief.” The Dyaks are great observers of omens, as is noticed in