Fragrant red rice - food of the gods

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Thu, 10/26/2006 9:21 AM  |  Life

Trisha Sertori, Contributor, Jatiluwih

A small village nestled at the feet of three south central Balinese mountains has managed to do what governments and conservation agencies spend millions of dollars on annually, with little real results.

Gunung Sari village in the nominated world heritage area of Jatiluwih has for centuries organically farmed fragrant red rice, a rice strain that is found growing only on the fertile sister slopes of Mount Batukaru, Mount Sanghyang and Mount Poohen in Bali.

The strain, which takes almost a year to mature and grows to more than one and a half meters tall, dates back into the mists of time and has remained free of the manipulations of man and science.

A pure red rice strain that locals believe is a gift from the rice goddess herself, Dewi Sri.

And it is due to this believed direct connection with Dewi Sri that ensures the traditional farming methods are still used today.

According to head of security and cultural law in Gunung Sari, Agus Ketut Nuarta Jaya, every element of red rice farming is natural, following the cultural and religious laws laid down by the ancestors hundreds of years ago.

""This food... food of the gods comes from nature's gifts. The power, the light of the sun that evaporates sea water over the Indian Ocean to the south, the winds that carry the clouds north west to the mountains, and the plants on the mountains that filter the rain water, forming nutrient rich waters that irrigate our red rice,"" Agus said.

He added the red rice grows in a closed environment. A self sustaining microcosm covering 303 hectares where the cycle of life is allowed to continue without the blundering interference of man.

Frogs, birds, snakes and eels are welcome elements of the red rice ecology and protected under the Jatiluwih people's cultural laws, according to Agus, who points out that animals and insects play a vital role in the health of the soils and red rice crops.

""The frogs and birds eat the insects, the snakes eat the rats and the frogs, and the eels turn the soil as they travel through the rice fields, like miniature ploughmen. If we killed the snakes we would have too many rats and frogs. If we kill the frogs our crops are at the mercy of insects. Everything is in balance,"" said Agus, in one word answering many of the questions in conservation efforts.

Even rats are dealt with naturally, says Agus, with dragonflies glued to rice stalks as the plants mature and head with seed.

""Our traditional method of getting rid of rats is to glue dragonflies onto the rice stalks. The dragonflies have a tiny tincture of poison that sends the rats mad and they flee from the area. In this way we can clear a 20 kilometers radius of rats without disturbing the natural cycle of the environment,"" said Agus

This balance of nature and constant spring water flows allowed the red rice strain of Jatiluwih to survive a devastating rice disease that wiped out red rice farming throughout Tabanan regency in the 1970's, forcing farmers in that regency to change crops to the thrice annual crop of Green Revolution rice. A white rice strain with substantially lower nutrient value than the red rice.

""Up until about 1970, farmers in Tabanan grew this red rice. The area was known for padi tahun which means rice that takes a year to grow. But there was a plague of disease in much of the regency and the farmers lost their crops of red rice. Now they grow white rice,"" Agus said.

Nature and worship are inextricably entwined for the people of Jatiluwih and it is the area's cultural connections with red rice that nominated Jatiluwih on UNESCO's world heritage cultural listing.

The first, and smallest, of the ceremonies is the taking down of the seeds from the rice storage barns, in preparation for planting.

Taro, turmeric, leaves, cotton, coconut oil, flowers, ginger, salt and garlic and the splintered ribs of coconut fronds are gathered together in offering for a good season.

The turmeric represents a golden harvest, the taro symbolizes hopes for a healthy growing season and the coconut-frond split ribs mirror the strong and tall stems of the rice crop.

Every element of farming the red rice is prescribed by religious doctrine as directed by local holy men; from the date set for planting to the date for harvest, and every step has its own ceremony calling for a healthy growing season and harvest.

These dates are also informed by the natural world, according to Agus, who explains the holy men read naturally occurring signs such as the movements of ants that speak of coming rains and the color of new coconut palm fronds that denotes the ph (acidity) levels in the soils; a natural litmus test.

The decision of the Jatiluwih people to follow their traditions and plant red rice, rather than changing to white rice, which was an economically more viable cash crop, caused financial hardships until the recent introduction of a modern rice mill.

An accidental visit to Jatiluwih by Grace Tarjoto back in 1989 set her on the unexpected course of establishing the modern rice mill almost 20 years later.

""It was my first day in Bali. I had a met a chap in Jakarta who said to call if my husband and I ever came to Bali. We did and he picked us up at the airport. It was then I discovered he was the King of Denpasar. Later that day a holy man took us for a drive and we ended up in Jatiluwih. It was paradise,"" said Tarjoto, an engineer, of her first introduction to Bali's spiritual, cultural and agricultural world.

In 2003 Grace and her husband purchased land in Gunung Sari, Jatiluwih. The land had always been the home of the local mill, which had fallen into disrepair.

""I could see how important this fragrant red rice and its cultural history was,"" said Tarjoto. ""We decided to build the mill -- which must have the only air conditioned rice storage space of any mill in Indonesia -- and began marketing the rice. At that time the red rice was only earning farmers Rp 3,500 per kilo, well below the price white rice was attracting.

""This was mainly due to the milling. Locals did not have access to a modern mill so there was not the consistency of product needed to market the rice more widely. Now the farmers are earning three times that per kilo and the fragrant red rice is in demand,"" Tarjoto said.

She added that nutrient levels in fragrant red rice are high with proteins, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, copper, manganese, selenium and B-group vitamins.

""I eat red rice every day and I make a tea from it also. I met so many people in Jatiluwih that were in their 80's and 90's -- one women is well over 100 years old -- and they are all so healthy and still working their rice fields.

""The 100 year-old woman still dances and still teaches dance. These people all drink red rice tea each morning and the rice is their staple diet. It's a real health food that you could just about live on,"" said Tarjoto.

Demand for fragrant red rice is expected to explode with a documentary on Jatiluwih's red rice culture aired on the German Discovery channel earlier this year, and a CNN documentary following the rituals associated with each step of the planting and harvesting currently in progress, to be aired in America in 2007.

And with just 1500 tons of fragrant red rice grown each year, there is a finite supply which means the red rice will become more and more valuable as people discover its high food value and flavor.

For the people of Jatiluwih this is good news, which allows them to continue growing their traditional food in tune with their natural and religious world.

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