Villagers uphold sharing tradition

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Mon, 10/22/2007 4:11 PM  |  Life

The Jakarta Post, Tegal, Central Java

Eva sat on her veranda, holding a plastic bag full of coins and giving them to passing children the night before Idul Fitri.

""Come here kid! Take the money,"" she cried out to one of the youngsters in her village of Tegalwangi in Talang regency.

As her neighbors chanted ""Allahu akbar"" (God is great), Eva prepared Rp 50,000 (US$5.40) in 500 rupiah coins and gave Rp 1,000 to each child.

Lutfi, her 5-year-old son, also walked around the neighborhood to collect coins, even though his mother disapproves of children asking, let alone begging, for money.

Eva said she was carrying on a local custom to distribute money to the young, and told Lutfi to behave himself.

""But he argued that he did it just to have fun with his friends,"" said Eva, whose husband runs a food stall and grocery shop in Tegal bus terminal.

In Tegalwangi village, giving coins to children is considered zakat (alms) and it is one of three well-preserved traditions here.

The others are ambengan and anonim. Ambengan is exchanging and sharing food blessed at the mushola (worship place) or mosque before the start of Ramadhan and after the Idul Fitri prayer. Anonim is the tradition of exchanging and sharing food right from the kitchen.

Soon after the Idul Fitri prayers, the men brought trays full of rice, tofu, tempeh and vegetables to the mosque. After they asked for God's blessings, they gave them to their needy neighbors.

""We also prepare food for ambengan to respect our ancestors who introduced the ritual,"" said Eva's sister, Islamiarti.

Then follows the anonim ritual. Carrying trays full of rice, sticky rice or chicken cooked in coconut milk, young people knock on doors and offer the food.

This tradition allows people to give or exchange food to anyone in their neighborhood.

""But each family usually prepares food for 10 families,"" said Islamiarti.

She said while giving coins to children and the ambengan ritual were ""compulsory"", there is no obligation to perform the anonim ritual.

""These sharing traditions have been maintained for decades,"" she said. (15)

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