Pesemah's Animism

The Pesemah tribe generally lives around the area of ​​the active volcano, Mount Dempo. The name, namely be / pe, means will & semah comes from the name of a fish which has a big meaning. The source of oral tradition comes from the statement of Ahad, juraytue puyang Kedung Gunung Samat in Rempasay, who stated that before the arrival of Atung Bungsu, several ethnic groups had arrived in waves, such as Jeme Kamkam, Nik, Nuk, Ducung, Aking, Rebakau, Sebakas, Rejang & Berige.

This wave is estimated to have occurred in 300 BC, which is called Deutro Melayu. There is other evidence written by Ekorusyono on the culture of this tribe which quotes Abdullah Siddik, the ajai listed in Tembo Pesemah approximately 900 years from the 5th - 14th centuries AD, there is no information whatsoever regarding the condition of this tribe. Atung Bungsu himself went further inland, establishing himself in the fertile valley of Passumah.

He married the daughter of Ratu Benua Keling, named Senantan Buih. In general, the stories about Atung Bungsu have similarities, in that this character comes from the Majapahit Kingdom and his two sons, Bujang Jawe and Riye Rekian. Puyang Kunduran created Masambulau Village & later his children and grandchildren created Gunungkerte Village, including Sumbay Besak, Puyang Keriye Beraim created Gunungkaye & Sumur Village.

Then Keriye Beraim's children and grandchildren created Talangtinggi & Muarajauh Villages, Puyang Belirang created Semahpure Village & his children and grandchildren also moved to create a village in Ulu Manak. Puyang Raje Nyawe also moved to create Perdipe, Tantani & Pajarbulan Village. Now they occupy 4 Lawang which is a new district that has expanded from Lahat District.

Meanwhile, Muara Enim, which is also the territory of the Basemah tribe, is the area around Semendo, approximately 50 km from the city of Muara Enim. Many of these ethnic groups have also migrated to areas in Bengkulu province. Cultural identity as a legacy from the ancestors of the Basemah community in Pagar Alam must of course continue to be passed on to the next generation.

One of the impacts of this momentum is the movement to return to the ancestral cultural roots of the Besemah people so that it becomes a spirit to continue to maintain & care for cultural identity and at the same time provide a meaning of identity with a better perspective than before. Animism is a religion that teaches that every object, both animate and inanimate, has a spirit. One example is the habit of some people who believe in & respect the existence of their ancestors.

One of the impacts of this momentum is the movement to return to the ancestral cultural roots of the Besemah people so that it becomes a spirit to continue to maintain & care for cultural identity and at the same time provide a meaning of identity with a better perspective than before. Animism is a religion that teaches that every object, both animate and inanimate, has a spirit. One example is the habit of some people who believe in & respect the existence of their ancestors.

One of the impacts of this momentum is the movement to return to the ancestral cultural roots of the Besemah people so that it becomes a spirit to continue to maintain & care for cultural identity and at the same time provide a meaning of identity with a better perspective than before. Animism is a religion that teaches that every object, both animate and inanimate, has a spirit. One example is the habit of some people who believe in & respect the existence of their ancestors.

One example is the spirit of an ancestor called Empu Hyang in Pagar Alam. Another example of the existence of animism is the existence of an agreement between humans and the spirits of their ancestors regarding taking land and animals in the forest. The aim of religion in animism is to have a good relationship with spirits who are feared and respected by always trying to please them.

However, this results in humans having to always worship the spirits of their ancestors. The next phase emerged during the Hindu-Buddhist era until the early emergence of the Islamic Kingdom. Furthermore, the Kapur City inscription contains the story of the Siriwijaya troops' attack on Java.

The inscription written in Palawa letters is dated 605 Saka. The Malay Kingdom was then conquered by the Sriwijaya Kingdom in 692 AD, as is known, the area of ​​this Kingdom almost controlled the entire Mojopahit Kingdom in its heyday. Thus, it is clear that the Pesemah tribe was under the auspices of the Srivijaya Kingdom until the rise of the Phamalayu Kingdom in 1275 AD, because of the Phamalayu expedition carried out by King Kertanegara & Singasari.

According to Collins, Malay was originally used as a medium for spreading Sumatran Hinduism and Buddhism. However, this script is used as a real identity for the Pagaralam area. At its peak in the 16th century, Malay had become the language of science, trade, diplomacy & religion.

This village has been established for more than 400 years. Malay then became a modern language in the 18th century. However, other sources state that in the 1860s there were approximately 152 villages with a population of around 3000 people.

At the peak of the development of the Malay language, it has become a modern language, which is attached to the modern lifestyle & educated people at the beginning of the 20th century. In various literature regarding the history of Islam in Indonesia, more precisely in this province, it is stated that Gujarati theory is more famous than other theories, especially pioneered by experts from the Netherlands. It is important to note, according to Arnold, Coromandel & Malabar are not the only places where Islam was brought, but also from Arabia.

In his view, Arab traders spread Islam when they controlled West-East trade since the early Hijriah century / 7th & 8th century AD. The first door, through Mount Bungkuk, was brought by an Acehnese cleric named Tengku Malim Muhidin in 1417 AD. The second door is through the arrival of Queen Agung from Banten who became King of the Sungai Serut Kingdom.

The third door, through the marriage of Sultan Mudzaffar Syah, King of the Indrapura Kingdom with Princess Serindang Bulan, Princess Rio Mawang from the Lebong Kingdom. At that time, Queen Agung was no longer in power & had been replaced by her son, Anak Dalam. Then, Sri Bagindo Maharajo was appointed king of the Sungai Lemau Kingdom and then converted to Islam.

This is a change in the beliefs of the people of the archipelago who previously adhered to the teachings of animism, dynamism, Hinduism & Buddhism. After the rapid development of Islam in the village, Haji Umar decided to look for traces of his ancestors, the place where Puyang Awak first set foot on the land of Besemah, namely in Pardipe village. Throughout its history, it can be seen how Islam as a religion comes in various forms of articulation, can provide the spirit of Islam, process & change, renew, and in certain cases, it is often even colored by local culture.

Johan Hanafiah also stated that initially the general public, especially Europeans, did not recognize who the Pasemah people really were. Another statement states that when the agreement process took place between the British and the Inland & Old King, they assured him by taking an oath on the holy book Koran. Until now, in the Basemah community, there are still many Pagar Alam people who adhere to animist beliefs.

We can find animism & dynamism in almost every corner of the country, as well as in the Pagar Alam area, especially in Pelang Kenidai Village, some people still believe in this even though they are religious. Because they are afraid that the spirits of their ancestors will be angry with them, people who have converted to Islam still end up following various rituals. Next, process after process was passed until finally the culture of animism as a culture that was inherent in the Besemah community faded with the spread of Islam to all communities, both in remote villages and in cities.

Around the 1900s, modern society that had embraced Islam began to abandon the animist tradition. With the spread of Islam to remote areas, the worship of ancestral spirits has begun to diminish & be replaced by following Islamic teachings. However, this belief in animism still exists today among a small portion of the people of Pagar Alam City.