Ot Danum's Animism


The term Ot Danum means people living in a river's upper reaches. There are 4 tributaries & the Dohoi tribe inhabits a 180-mile-long river stretching from the Melawi River's upper reaches to the Barito River's upper reaches. Anyone in the village can claim land not planted for over 5 years.

In the past, the Dohoi people were persecuted by the Malaysian government which borders them, they lost much of their land due to attacks by beheaders. The Dohoi people are known to be Muslims who still strongly practice the power of animism. They believe in the existence of spirits around them. 

The customary law of the Uud Danum community is known in Sintang & its surroundings as a very heavy and harsh customary law. In addition to moral values, the customary law that applies in the Uud Danum community is also influenced by the existence of the highest spirit. As a result, the highest spirit can be angry & punish them. 

The Uud Danum people also believe that this highest spirit is the one who gave them nature as a place to live. The discussion below will focus on several traditional ceremonies that have a direct relationship with the existence of this spirit. For them, death is a kind of gate to enter Betang Abadi. 

The highest spirit in the Uud Danum community is called Tahala. In addition to the belief in the highest spirit, the Uud Danum people believe that there are still other spirits that also help the highest spirit to maintain their survival. In addition to Tahala, there are several other spirits whose levels are below Tahala. 

These spirits live in trees & rivers. These spirits both have good & evil powers within themselves. Two spirits that have great power according to the Uud Danum people are Gana & Lebata.

Gana is a spirit that, according to the Uud Danum people, lives in large trees such as banyan / lanjau. The difference is, that Lebata is a spirit that lives in water such as rivers/bays. In 2011, there was a young man in Serawai who suddenly had a seizure after bathing in the river.

In the nohka hajat ceremony, the leader of the ceremony summons the spirits that are the target of the bohajat. These spirits can be summoned by preparing offerings. According to the Uud Danum people, spirits do not want to accept offerings that are not intact.

They believe that spirits do not want to accept food using the right hand. One day before the balas hajat ceremony, the leader of the ceremony & the hajat executor must go to the residence of the spirit that is the target of the bohajat to provide offerings. In this event, the spirits will eat first by preparing a little food that will be eaten by all the people who participate & then placed on a tree/riverbank where the bohajat ceremony takes place.

Even though it is a little, the food given to the spirit must represent all the food & drinks that will be consumed by the family who participate. After the provision of food to the spirits is complete, all participants in the ceremony are free to eat & drink as much as they like.

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