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TERNATE 170
THE TERNATESE LANGUAGE
good for us; we will only maintain those customs and ceremonies which are not forbidden by
the law, and in this way we will attain a state of purity.”
Then the Sultan and the notables and bobatos and the Lebe agreed that the
following regulations and customs should be amended as follows:
1. It is not permitted for the notables and bobatos to venerate and pay homage to
the dead body of the Sultan, as they did when he was alive.
2. The wives of the notables, bobatos, and ngofangares are not permitted to wear
sarongs of sagu leaves; neither are they permitted to dress in this manner when
following the body of the deceased Sultan to the graveyard.
3. Women are no longer allowed to wear large hats and balls of red cloth during the
procession. These items are to be worn by men when the dead body of a Ruler is
buried.
4. Singing of the lego-lego in the palace or near the grave is not allowed.
5. It is not permitted for a guard of honor with two bobatos to call for the father and
the [p. 244] mother of the deceased Ruler⎯actually a kimalaha from Marsaole and a
woman from Marsaole (who act as such); nor may (another) kimalaha from Marsaole
pay homage (to those persons); neither is it permitted for women from the kampong
of Marsaole to weep inside the palace or at the gravesite.
6. Covering the palanquin and the riding-horse of the deceased ruler with black
linen and having them follow the funeral procession is not allowed.
7. Making a kind of canopy in the palace after the burial is not permitted; neither is
it permitted for women wearing high hats and red balls to sing the lego-lego there.
Similarly, it is not allowed for any woman to accompany the dead body to the
graveyard; neither is it allowed to make a bier in the house.
As a result of these prohibitions, these invalid customs and ceremonies will not be
observed following the death of the Sultan’s younger brothers Captain-Laut Putra Abu
Maha and Prince Major Putra Ahmad, and his elder brother Captain-Laut Putra Muhamad
Daud.
The decision made by the Sultan, the notables, and the bobatos of Soahsio, Sangaji,
Heku, and Cim regarding the customs and ceremonies that fall under religious law, as
indicated in this document, is that they are not allowed to be followed in the palace and
that one should abide by the Book of God. Other customs and ceremonies remain valid and
are not abolished since they are not forbidden.
As proof of the authenticity of this arrangement, the Sultan will place his seal at the
top and all the headmen will place their signatures under it; furthermore, it will be
presented to our Father, the Resident of Ternate, who represents the Government, and he
will be requested to sanction this decision.
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