Gawai 2008 would be a memorable one for me. Why? Around the season, I managed to throw away the “wall flower” mentality and behaviour during these gatherings. Helping out where I can as ‘co-host’ and relative was fun. More importantly, despite how much I would like to deny it – I’m getting to know more family members closer and getting in touch with my Iban roots. I guess the realisation comes after taking my heritage for granted for all so long.
Miring, or offerings/sacrifices, are usually made and prepared for important functions and celebrations by the Iban community. You can be certain that some sort of miring will be done before the Gawai Dayak, or the Dayak New Year cum Harvest Festival. This ceremony varies in degree of elaboration – the more grand the festivities are organised, the more elaborate and bigger the miring may be. The size of the household or longhouse, too, comes to play. The traditional purpose of the miring is to offer sacrifices and offerings to the Gods and souls of past. Back then, appeasing the various Gods and spirits as well as the departed was necessary to ensure the undertaking flow smoothly. This practice, however, began to loose out on the modern Ibans.
This Gawai, I had the opportunity to learn a bit of the ceremony on two occassions: once in Betong followed by in Kuching. The number and size of offerings differ based on the factors I wrote before engaging in theological debate. When I say size, it means the number of offering per plate. What do I mean by number of offering per plate? It’s indicated by the portion on one plate. The portion comes odd numbers of three, five, seven or nine. Three being the smallest and nine being the greatest. Whether it’s three, five, seven or nine, you need to know what the offerings was intended for and why. The preparations and conditions for each size differ as well. So far, I have tried my hands on the piring 5, or offerings of 5. The number of the offerings, on the other hand, depends on the size of the household or longshouse and the venue. Geographical and historical factors also comes into the picture here. The Dewan Tan Sri Datuk Amar Stephen Kalong Ningkan, or Stephen Kalong Ningkan Hall, in Betong as an example is located in the Tanah Antu Gerasi or the Giant Spirit’s Land. Thus at least one should be made for this spirit.
Miring, or offerings/sacrifices, are usually made and prepared for important functions and celebrations by the Iban community. You can be certain that some sort of miring will be done before the Gawai Dayak, or the Dayak New Year cum Harvest Festival. This ceremony varies in degree of elaboration – the more grand the festivities are organised, the more elaborate and bigger the miring may be. The size of the household or longhouse, too, comes to play. The traditional purpose of the miring is to offer sacrifices and offerings to the Gods and souls of past. Back then, appeasing the various Gods and spirits as well as the departed was necessary to ensure the undertaking flow smoothly. This practice, however, began to loose out on the modern Ibans.
This Gawai, I had the opportunity to learn a bit of the ceremony on two occassions: once in Betong followed by in Kuching. The number and size of offerings differ based on the factors I wrote before engaging in theological debate. When I say size, it means the number of offering per plate. What do I mean by number of offering per plate? It’s indicated by the portion on one plate. The portion comes odd numbers of three, five, seven or nine. Three being the smallest and nine being the greatest. Whether it’s three, five, seven or nine, you need to know what the offerings was intended for and why. The preparations and conditions for each size differ as well. So far, I have tried my hands on the piring 5, or offerings of 5. The number of the offerings, on the other hand, depends on the size of the household or longshouse and the venue. Geographical and historical factors also comes into the picture here. The Dewan Tan Sri Datuk Amar Stephen Kalong Ningkan, or Stephen Kalong Ningkan Hall, in Betong as an example is located in the Tanah Antu Gerasi or the Giant Spirit’s Land. Thus at least one should be made for this spirit.
tichak tuchuk
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