Badung
The Center of Tourism
Meaning
of Sugar Cane in Ngaben Rituals
Leading to the Truth Path
Sugar cane is a
perennial grass of some 1.5-3 meters.
Its stem is shaped like a jointed cylinder
and has a sprout on every joint, but no
branches. It features a single leaf and
lanceted stem with a sharp point, flat
and harsh side, parallel rib at the length
of 50-150 cm and width of 8-12 cm. It
also has composite flower heads consisting
of numerous florets of some 30-90 cm in
length.
Sugar
cane grows in the lowlands (less than
500 m above sea level) in all types of
soil. There are some kinds of sugar cane
that are used as ingredients for offerings,
namely (white) ordinary, ireng, rejuna,
princess and twisted sugar cane.
Ordinary sugar cane (Saccharum officinarum
L.) has a light green trunk, grows vertically
and tastes sweet. The stem of this sugar
cane is used for the offerings of prayastita,
catur, canang sari and suci. Ireng sugar
cane has a black color, grows vertically
and tastes very sweet. The stem of the
last sugar cane is also used for prayastita,
catur, canang sari and suci.
Rejuna sugar cane has a small trunk, yellow
color with green line, sweet taste, 50-100
cm length and 5-8 cm width of leaf. It
is used for offerings like peras, sodan,
catur, canang sari, suci and pedangelan.
Princess sugar cane has a slightly bigger
trunk, yellow color with green line, grows
vertically and tastes sweet, too. Its
stem is used for bebangkit and catur offerings.
While, twisted sugar cane has a small
stem, yellow color, green line, grows
vertically, single
green leaf at 50-100 cm length, 5-8 cm
width. The stem functions as an ingredient
for penglukatan or purificatory offerings.
In Badung regency, many sugar cane can
be found, even some people collect the
cane specifically. Amongst them is I Wayan
Kuada from Sengguan Sanding Hamlet. Two
others are I Made Subrata from Gulingan
Village, Mengwi and Mrs. Rampyig, Teges
Kaler hamlet, Gulingan Village, Badung.
According to Jero Mangku Ramia, sugar
cane is always used as ingredients of
offerings of Hindu devotees in Bali. “Every
performing ritual, either Deva Yajna,
Rsi Yajna, Manushya Yajna, Pitri Yajna
or Bhuta Yajna, there must be sugar cane,”
said the holy priest who lives in Sedahan
hamlet, Gulingan village, Mengwi.
She said that the sugar cane’s stem
along with leaves is used for salaran
accompanied by other ingredients of offering
like tubers and fruits. “Sugar cane
is also used for carrying poles at wedding
ceremonies. Two stems of sugarcane along
with leaf (some 2 meters long) are taken
on mejejauman rites. These carrying poles
are brought in marching formation (some
2 meters long), and nowadays the two canes
are set on the couple’s car. Two
stems of the sugar cane are placed on
the right and left sides,” she explained.
In Pitra Yajna ritual (Ngaben), sugar
cane is used as a pestle to grind the
remains of cremated corpse. First of all,
the sugar cane is peeled, and then cut
as long as 10 cm. Sugar cane mentioned
above is combined with a magic dapdap
twig (Erythrina subumbrans) that is called
escort sugar cane. This sugar cane is
used with dapdap twig, spear/tulup (bamboo
shooter), coconut, half-steamed rice and
complete daksina. “Escort sugar cane
signifies direction that leads to the
truth path,” she described.
She also added, sugar cane was also used
as pedangel, namely buffer for the mouth
when one’s tooth is filed. The sugar
cane is peeled then cut as long as one
finger joint, or some 2 cm. It is also
used as pillars of tetandingan taman pulagembal
that measures seasta musti. Seasta approximately
equals to the length of a forearm, and
amusti is as high as a hand fist. In short,
sugar cane has multifunction purposes
in rituals. (BTN/015)
