Chapter Six - Life-Cycle Rituals: Praying from the Unborn to the Newborn and Becoming Muslim

Summary

This chapter examines the way the Muslims in Bima celebrate their life-cycle rituals according to Islamic teachings (Cummings, 2001: 563; Dessing, 2001 and Gulevich, 2004). I am equipped with the theological understanding of the Five Pillars of Islam, but the way local Muslims integrate these Five Pillars into life-cycle rituals is worth studying as they diverge from my theologically based understanding. Local life-cycle rituals are called rawi rasa (Bim.: rawi means ritual and rasa means village). Despite its common objectives, I suggest that rawi rasa encompasses a series of typical life-cycle rituals which convey different meanings and ritual behaviour in the Bima context. Interestingly, the differing views about the details of the rituals are also widespread, for example, between traditional birth attendants (TBAs) or sando nggana (Bim.: sando means healer and nggana means delivery) and bio-medically trained midwives (Ind.: bidan). Both are knowledgeable about health behaviour, pregnancy and delivery outcomes. But the former, who are always among the elders in the village, relate their knowledge to local belief and customs as well as associating their services with rituals prior to and after delivery, which are led by a Lebe or local Hajj pilgrim (Ind.: Haji). Hence, they are often associated with the practices of traditionalist Islam. The bidan are mostly graduates in midwifery from formal colleges or institutes in Bima or elsewhere. The owner of my rented house is a well-known midwife in the village. She graduated in midwifery from a Muhammadiyah college in Bima town in the late 1990s.

Life-cycle rituals in Bima are commonly understood as those in which all villagers are expected to get involved. No matter what your status in the village, your participation in any village ritual and festival is crucial. Since life-cycles mark a change in status from one life stage to another, all cultures and religions observe similar transitions in life, such as, birth, adolescence, adulthood, marriage and death. Not all cultures and religions, however, have the same details and understanding when they celebrate these events. ‘The meanings and uses of the concept are diverse and are occasionally matters of considerable dispute’ (Eldar 1978, Featherman 1983, Murphy 1987; cited from M. O’Rand and L. Krecker, 1990: 241).