ofthe SAME TREE

A major theme of this and many of the Orang Rimba dongen is the maintenance
of a separate adat from that of the Malayu. In the stories of the creation
of the people, the forests, and the animals that inhabit them, a strong
underlying theme is the uniqueness of the Orang Rimba and the sacred duty
to maintain their chosen way of life. These stories are constructed deliberately
in opposition to the dominant downstream Malayu culture. Distinctions are
clearly drawn between the forest and the village dweller: their homes are constructed
of different materials and their diet consists of domesticated animals
for the Malayu and wild forest animals for the Orang Rimba. The forest is said
to be inhabited by many dangerous spirits, the most powerful of which is the
“Mato Merego,” the Tiger God spirit. But none of the spirits would ever harm
an Orang Rimba who adheres strictly to his or her own customary laws, with
their unique beliefs, dietary restrictions, housing requirements, technology,
and religion. According to tradition, the laws of the Malayu and the Orang
Rimba were given by two different angels and sanctioned by a curse. Contravening
the adat or ignoring the separation between the realm of the forest and
that of the village would cause the deities to abandon the Orang Rimba and
end their life in the forest. Maintenance of Orang Rimba customary practices
is of the greatest importance and rigidly enforced by supernatural sanction. 123
Although the tales speak of a primordial unity of the Orang Asli/Suku
Tera sing and the Malayu, which is eventually broken to form two distinct
groups, intermarriage helps to maintain the relationship. In the above Semai
chermor collected by Edo, after the Malayu leave Mengkah to join their
younger siblings, the Orang Asli, they land first in Sumatra and occupy the
entire island. After many years they move to Melaka. The royal shaman then
advises the prince to marry an Orang Asli woman from Gunung Ledang who
is said to be the bearer of luck and fortune (bertuah). He follows this advice
and acquires the support of the Orang Asli in the establishment of Melaka. 124
The chermor continues and describes an episode involving a Johor prince, Tok
Betangkuk (or Nakhoda Kassim according to others), who marries a Semang
girl with white blood and establishes the kingdom of Perak. 125
While most commentators on Malayu–Orang Asli relationships have
emphasized intermarriage and trade, Marina Roseman has also highlighted
ritual practice. She convincingly argues that the color “white” among the
Orang Asli was associated with the sacred forces of nature, the supernatural,
and the heavens. The tale of the Semang girl with white blood marrying
a Johor prince can therefore be regarded as “one of the vessels imbuing the
Malay royalty with divine qualities.” 126 The direct link between the whiteblooded
Semang girl and royalty may have a Bugis origin. Among the Bugis in
South Sulawesi, white-blooded beings descend (tomanurung) from the upper
world and become the progenitors of the royal houses. 127 In 1766, Raja Lumu,
228 Chapter 7