Lematang's Animism

For 24 years, Sriwijaya was the center of world civilization in the past. And they admit that their descendants are from Majapahit, even Kediri & Singosari. Apart from that, they also recognize the lineage of Sekandar Alam / Iskandar Alam in Siguntang Hill.

This confession was also written in the Babad Tanah Djawi which said that the people of Batanghari Sembilan were very influenced by Majapahit stories, especially the legend of Ario Dama. The people in that area are still in a primitive state and adhere to the beliefs of animism and dynamism. In the traditions of the Lematang tribe, there are various types of items that are considered to have magical powers.

For example, ceremonies for opening rice fields, believing in the spirits of ancestors, etc. The people around Gudang Buncit believe that the Antu Banyu Kingdom is near Gudang Boentcjit. To ask for his help, they take a holy bath followed by bathing at exactly 12 o'clock in the middle of the night, to cleanse their inner and outer bodies for the sake of God.

Some other animist & dynamistic beliefs/traditions that people still practice include wearing amulet bracelets. It is a form of social concern for the people of Palembang, especially at wedding ceremonies involving 2 extended families of the bride & groom. The tradition of amulet bracelets for babies was formed, which has been carried out since the time of our ancestors and is still carried out today by the people of Lubuk Tampui Village.

Then, offerings are used as a medium for human communication with the spirit world using golden bananas. In this form of offering, there are many images such as providing food & there is also a form of slaughtering animals to ask the genies/ancestors not to be disturbed/do no disaster. Then, since ancient times, life guidelines have been passed down from generation to generation by their ancestors orally through traditional ceremonies and verbal conversations.

In the case of perejung & pesenjang, monitoring actions take a long time, such as the activities of perejung who train the rejung art of ibu darma wanita in Pagaralam City, and the training and monitoring process is carried out for months until ibu darma wanita can perform well in front of the public in Pagaralam City. The mantra section describes elements of animism & dynamism as a form of original belief of the Malay people. Furthermore, many cases of people being possessed by spirits/jinn can only be resolved by smart people.

They are Malays whose job is to preserve the local culture inherited from their ancestors. The ability of smart people in Lebak Beriang village to influence the residents was so great that the village head put him in a seat not far from him during village meetings because he was afraid that his voice could influence the village residents to oppose the village head. This book, a collection of his speeches, documents his speeches from his inauguration on 10-1-1968 until the end of his term of office in 1974.

Shirk according to the KBBI means associating partners with God. In Iliran the ideology of monotheism replaced the pre-Islamic elements which worshiped natural forces, Gods, and spirits. This indicates that belief in objects & spirits existed before Islam entered Malay society.

This theory is ingrained in the history of Islam in the archipelago. One attempt to understand the Islamization process is through the study of local historiography because the local Muslim community has a collective awareness of the Islamization process that is taking place & is recorded in various manuscripts, ancestral relics & tombstones/tombs of scholars/figures who propagated the Islamic religion. Free clerics who were not bound by the Kingdom came from Aceh via sea and river to the inland/uluan areas.

By having high knowledge, they opened up the wilderness, created new villages, introduced Islam to the local population & finally created clans to form a kepuyangan system which the residents believed was their ancestor. This origin is attached to the concept of kepuyangan, puyang as the origin of their ancestors. These figures are considered ancestors and descendants who have the character and charisma of religious figures in the village.

Puyang Kedhom is considered an elder/chief ancestor, if they have a vow & are successful some have the intention to give serabi and arbor alm at the grave of Puyang Kedhom. According to one of the descendants of Puyang Kedhom who still lives in the ancestral residence, Puyang Kedhom was a cleric who spread Islamic teachings around 4 Lawang. Puyang Kedhom relics are considered sacred, one of the discoveries we found was the Koran Kumbang, Qodhim Mosque, a stick for giving lectures at the mosque pulpit which is still used by people when giving lectures at the pulpit.

In this case, it can be concluded that Islam had entered the interior on a massive scale around the 15th & 16th centuries. Directly, metaphors in oral literature are part of the rich cultural treasures of the Malay Islamic community of South Sumatra. Tadut is the oral art of reading Islamic poetry in Besemah.

However, original beliefs, such as animism, are still quite strong & often practiced. Remaining beliefs in animism & dynamism, beliefs in the unity of God, often become impure because they are mixed with objects that are considered to have magical powers, both inanimate and animate objects. Therefore, certain prayer readings turn into mantras, and holy Koran verses/Arabic letters become rajahan which are believed to have very significant value, not from the meaning contained in the verse but from its magical power.

In this way, something that is truly real, actual & can uncover things that are sometimes invisible to the researcher's eyes will be seen. This school/ideology that opposes the workings of anthropology behind a desk has become known as the school/ideology of functionalism, with its characters Bronislaw Malinowski & AR Radcliffe Brown and coincidentally this trend emerged & developed in England / British Anthropology. The conclusion of this research is that the background to the establishment of the Muhammadiyah branch in Karang Agung Village, Abab District, Penukal Abab Lematang Ilir PALI Regency in 1965 - 2014 was due to the conditions of religious life in the community which were still influenced by the beliefs of their ancestors and the influence of Hindu - Buddhist teachings.