Harvest tradition survives test of time

Mon, 08/18/2008 11:31 AM  |  Potpourri

The uniqueness of lengge, or rice barns, and associated harvest rituals attract visitors to Wawo village in Bima regency, West Nusa Tenggara.

On a recent afternoon dozens of women were taking the harvest to the lengge while others pounded the leftover sheaves.

The clothing the women wear as they work around the lengge complex maintains links to their ancestors' culture. All use the rempo, a headscarf like a jilbab made from sarong material.

The way the rempo is worn indicates a woman's marital status.

Married or engaged women use the rempo to cover their hair but their faces can be seen. Single women use the rempo to cover their faces so only their eyes are visible.

If there is a big ceremony, such as a circumcision or wedding, the process of handing down the rice from the lengge will usually be elaborate.

That's when all the women involved in the community's self-help program will perform a traditional dance backed up by the music of pounding rice pestles to boost their work morale.

Although the culture and spirit of community self-help are still maintained in Wawo, times are changing and technological advances in agriculture are adversely affecting the use of lengge.

"Some community members prefer to sell their harvest right away or to keep the harvested rice in their houses," said Jon Kari, head guard at the village's lengge complex.

Of the 96 lengge in the complex, dozens show wear and damage because they are no longer maintained by their owners.

Other sections of the barns have been modernized using tiles or iron sheeting for roofing. The modified roofs are called jompa.

Currently, 12 rice barns can rightfully be called lengge, while the other 84 are more properly called jompa.

Despite many changes, Jon expressed confidence lengge traditions will be preserved in Wawo.

The process of selecting lengge caretakers is a good example. The community chooses them once every three years. Each time three people are selected.

Not everyone is eligible. For instance, a potential caretaker should be someone believed to possess supernatural powers or good self-defense skills.

"We don't get a salary. The lengge owner will give us a little grain, rice or corn, from his food supply instead," Jon said.

If the caretakers understand and can talk about lengge history, they may receive additional income when tourists visit. Tourists usually give them tips after they explain about the buildings, local culture and history.

"Foreigners also come to study the architecture of the lengge. Maybe that's because they are interested in making houses along lengge lines since the style is natural and comfortable," said Jon.

Rice barns might be common in many parts of this agricultural country but the preservation and use of these buildings are waning.

Jon said he believed lengge traditions carry an important message from the ancestors, who passed down the practice of keeping food in rice barns.

"When the harvest failed, the community at least had a supply of food to live on."

-- JP/Panca Nugraha

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