ofthe SAME TREE

from the latter half of the fourteenth century the Javanese regarded the Batak
areas as part of the Malayu world.
Involvement in international trade encouraged Batak responsiveness to
political and economic shifts that had a direct impact on their livelihood.
While Sriwijaya was still the dominant entrepot in the Straits of Melaka, the
Batak used routes from the camphor and benzoin forests to the northwest
and southeast of Lake Toba southward to Padang Lawas, then onward to the
Batang Hari and eventually to Sriwijaya on the Musi River in Palembang.
When Sriwijaya was conquered by the rival Chola dynasty, the Batak sought
other outlets for their products. The rise of Kota Cina on the east coast and the
re-emergence of Barus on the west coast as ports for the export of camphor
and benzoin drew the Batak toward both coasts. Though Kota Cina disappeared
sometime in the fourteenth century, in later centuries other east coast
kingdoms came to provide an outlet for the export of Batak forest resins and
rice. Batak groups sought to profit from international trade by following these
routes and settling within proximity of these export centers. Another major
economic stimulus to Batak migrations was the growing demand for rice
among pepper growers in Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula beginning in the
fifteenth century. To meet this new demand, there were migrations from the
Toba region in search of new rice lands to the south and east of Lake Toba.
Crucial to the success of Batak involvement in international trade was their
religious institutions. Candi and ancestral tombs were judiciously erected along
major trade routes to assure spiritual protection and success for Batak traders.
With the increasing tempo of trade and the dispersal of Batak communities
from the Lake Toba region, there was a need for some form of mediating
power among the scattered communities. This was provided by the institution
of the high priest, which originated in the Toba lands but gained support
in the other Batak areas. Through their claims of supernatural powers, access
to agricultural deities, and creation of a network of officials and markets, the
high priests were instrumental in the promotion of Batak trade until their
demise in the early twentieth century. The activities of the datu/guru helped
to assure ongoing support for the high priests among the Batak in the precolonial
period.
As different ethnic groups became increasingly competitive in international
trade, particularly between the fifteenth and the eighteenth centuries,
every avenue was explored to gain advantage over others, including ethnicization.
The Batak became “ethnicized” by stressing cultural discontinuities with
their neighbors, particularly the Malayu. A Batak acknowledged origins in
the Toba highlands, a belief in Perbegu/Pemena, compliance with the authority
of the high priests, and reliance on the knowledge and spiritual powers
of the datu/guru and their pustaha. In the early modern period the option
170 Chapter 5