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Page 11

Lok Tang, Kong T'au and Nasi Wap

Part II

of Raymond Kwok's series on Nyonya Superstitions

THE NYONYAS also had great faith in séances - the lok-ten and often consulted temple mediums to find out what the departed ones required in the 'other world'. To the Nyonya certain unexplained phenomena could be attributed to the fact that the ‘other side’ was trying to establish 'contact'. The temple medium or priest would then hold a séance and explain what the departed needed to appease his spirit.

The Nyonya also had absolute faith in the hoo, obtained from temples. These strips of yellow paper were burnt and the ashes allowed to fall or collect in a cupful of water. Those who were sick or in shock would be asked to drink a few mouthfuls of the 'blessed water' - a panacea for all ills.

Neatly folded into a convenient size,tied with a yellow or red string and kept in a wallet or silver locket (‘tangkai long’), the yellow paper served as a talisman with protective power.

Armed with such detailed knowledge pertaining to various religious rites, customs and traditions, the Nyonya of the Straits Settlements thus ironically became unlikely keepers of ancient, archaic customs and traditions which were long ago discarded in mainland China itself.

A betel nut offering

With the passage of time, the Nyonya found herself having the need to adapt herself to modern changes. Try as she might to uphold her role as matriarch the Nyonya mother-in-law found herself unable to impose or enforce her control over her modern daughter-in-law. Young married couples often moved out of the ancestral home and with married women having careers of their own, inevitably less time could be devoted to domestics. Gradually the observance of traditional beliefs, practices and customs were abandoned, though not altogether.

White Frog, Albino Snake

Being an animist, the Nyonya believed that trees, rocks, an ant hill or even new strange places had a semangat or ‘soul’ that must be respected and not abused. Young Babas were often advised to utter a short prayer of forgiveness first before they urinated or defecated in private behind rocks and trees. And of course, they must not forget to take along their talisman with protective powers.

Only Baba households in Penang worshipped the ‘God of Prosperity’ - Tua Pek Kong. To the Nyonya and Baba, the sighting of an apparition of an old man dressed, completely in white and with flowing white beard was considered a very good omen - akin to seeing the God of Prosperity and naturally, it was hoped that good luck would follow soon. Similarly the sighting of a white frog,

Crocodile, albino snake or a stray butterfly inside the house was associated with good tidings and one was not supposed to harm them (for fear of retribution). Even today, this belief has led many to release not only poisonous snakes but also unusually large creatures (scorpions, spiders, centipedes etc.) back into their natural habitat unharmed.

While the colour black might be considered fashionable today, it was certainly a taboo colour to the Nyonya. Black was reserved for mourning and often regarded as soay (of ill omen). Hence, during the mourning period (from 49 days to 3 years) the bereaved family often avoided visiting relatives or friends for fear they might pantang that ill-luck might befall them. Visitors at funerals were not supposed to wear brightly-coloured clothes, but dull-coloured clothes such as blue, black or grey were suitable for the occasion. Close friends and relatives often accompanied the funeral cortege to the cemetery for burial or the crematorium. As each guest left the house of the deceased he or she would be given a piece of red thread tied to two sweets (to be eaten). The red thread was supposed to bring good luck and prevent demons from causing harm.

Lok Tang, K'an Bong

For weddings and birthdays, those wearing black (in mourning) were often not invited and if invited, would politely decline the invitation (even though the host repeatedly asserted that he did not mind - no pantang). Those in mourning should never visit a home where there was a child below the age of one. The child might fall seriously ill as if in shock (ch’iong teok).

Tiger tooth talisman to be worn round the neck

The Nyonya lived in constant fear of evil charms or kong t’au cast by her husband’s kept mistress. Though often unfounded, the Nyonya feared that the mistress would cast a spell on her to make her gila or mad so that the latter might usurp her as matriarch. Ever fearful or cautious of the evil charms that her husband’s mistress might do her in (cho kong t’au),the services of a temple medium or bomoh to provide her with a protective talisman or tangkai were sought.

For the Nyonya who was really desperate to prevent her husband from taking mistresses, the advise was to take the dimension or size of her husband's male organ, obtain the stem of a yam plant and chant prayers over it so that the husband's penis would be ineffective or go limp when he tried to make love with other women. Should the husband continue with his philandering ways, what the enraged Nyonya would do was to utter a wicked charm before planting the yam plant in the ground with the belief that since the yam stem would rot, so would her husband's! Well, in those days, she never thought of delivering the Lorena Bobbit cut on her husband!

Nasi Kangkang

The Mistress, on the other hand would do her utmost to retain her charms to entice the other woman's husband and share him for as long as she could. She would sometimes resort to implanting a small piece of 'charmed gold foil' in her forehead or even around her female genitalia (a process known as susuk). That was supposed to make her look perpetually beautiful in the eyes of men. However, once the magical spell was broken (when the charm-maker/bomoh died), the mistress would turn into a hideous witch. This practice was believed to have originated from the Malays or Siamese who practiced the black arts.

In some desperate cases, confiding in and acting on the advice of some experienced elderly ladies, the Mistress would disrobe herself completely, stand naked with her legs wide open and while the pot of rice was still steaming, she allowed her sweat to trickle down into the steaming pot - a process commonly known as nasi wap or nasi kangkang. It was believed that after eating the cooked rice, the man was bound to abide entirely by her wishes.

To rid yourself of your enemy completely was to devise a very cruel, tortuous method known as santau, believed to be most deadly if learnt from the Thais. The concoction of magic charms, poisonous lethal substances - grounded glass, bamboo needles plus a host of other minute substances including human hair and finger nails - often introduced into an innocent cup of black coffee - proved deadly to the victim. The symptoms included vomiting and passing out blood repeatedly without any apparent reason – a slow, excruciating death was assured. It seemed that only a bomoh could extract the deadly poison if he acted without delay.

Magic potions to make people ill, fall in love, go mad and eventually die or go bankrupt could be obtained from the oil stolen from oil lamps at funeral wakes and 'accidentally' rubbed on the intended victim. More bizarre cases would involve the collection of body fluids (oils) oozing out of a rotting corpse. The concoction of magic charms, oil and personal effects, stolen from the intended victim often proved very potent if not, deadly. #

(to be continued)

Raymond Kwok

Phone: at 604 656 9550, email dkwok@tm.net.my

The Penang File Issue 12

Home Books Comment Concerns Concordance Heritage News People Page 11

HERITAGE Home Books Comment Concerns Concordance Heritage News People Page 11	Lok Tang, Kong T'au and Nasi Wap Part II of Raymond Kwok's series on Nyonya Superstitions THE NYONYAS also had great faith in séances - the lok-ten and often consulted temple mediums to find out what the departed ones required in the 'other world'. To the Nyonya certain unexplained phenomena could be attributed to the fact that the ‘other side’ was trying to establish 'contact'. The temple medium or priest would then hold a séance and explain what the departed needed to appease his spirit. The Nyonya also had absolute faith in the hoo, obtained from temples. These strips of yellow paper were burnt and the ashes allowed to fall or collect in a cupful of water. Those who were sick or in shock would be asked to drink a few mouthfuls of the 'blessed water' - a panacea for all ills. Neatly folded into a convenient size,tied with a yellow or red string and kept in a wallet or silver locket (‘tangkai long’), the yellow paper served as a talisman with protective power. Armed with such detailed knowledge pertaining to various religious rites, customs and traditions, the Nyonya of the Straits Settlements thus ironically became unlikely keepers of ancient, archaic customs and traditions which were long ago discarded in mainland China itself. A betel nut offering With the passage of time, the Nyonya found herself having the need to adapt herself to modern changes. Try as she might to uphold her role as matriarch the Nyonya mother-in-law found herself unable to impose or enforce her control over her modern daughter-in-law. Young married couples often moved out of the ancestral home and with married women having careers of their own, inevitably less time could be devoted to domestics. Gradually the observance of traditional beliefs, practices and customs were abandoned, though not altogether.
White Frog, Albino Snake	Being an animist, the Nyonya believed that trees, rocks, an ant hill or even new strange places had a semangat or ‘soul’ that must be respected and not abused. Young Babas were often advised to utter a short prayer of forgiveness first before they urinated or defecated in private behind rocks and trees. And of course, they must not forget to take along their talisman with protective powers. Only Baba households in Penang worshipped the ‘God of Prosperity’ - Tua Pek Kong. To the Nyonya and Baba, the sighting of an apparition of an old man dressed, completely in white and with flowing white beard was considered a very good omen - akin to seeing the God of Prosperity and naturally, it was hoped that good luck would follow soon. Similarly the sighting of a white frog, Crocodile, albino snake or a stray butterfly inside the house was associated with good tidings and one was not supposed to harm them (for fear of retribution). Even today, this belief has led many to release not only poisonous snakes but also unusually large creatures (scorpions, spiders, centipedes etc.) back into their natural habitat unharmed. While the colour black might be considered fashionable today, it was certainly a taboo colour to the Nyonya. Black was reserved for mourning and often regarded as soay (of ill omen). Hence, during the mourning period (from 49 days to 3 years) the bereaved family often avoided visiting relatives or friends for fear they might pantang that ill-luck might befall them. Visitors at funerals were not supposed to wear brightly-coloured clothes, but dull-coloured clothes such as blue, black or grey were suitable for the occasion. Close friends and relatives often accompanied the funeral cortege to the cemetery for burial or the crematorium. As each guest left the house of the deceased he or she would be given a piece of red thread tied to two sweets (to be eaten). The red thread was supposed to bring good luck and prevent demons from causing harm.
Lok Tang, K'an Bong	For weddings and birthdays, those wearing black (in mourning) were often not invited and if invited, would politely decline the invitation (even though the host repeatedly asserted that he did not mind - no pantang). Those in mourning should never visit a home where there was a child below the age of one. The child might fall seriously ill as if in shock (ch’iong teok). Tiger tooth talisman to be worn round the neck The Nyonya lived in constant fear of evil charms or kong t’au cast by her husband’s kept mistress. Though often unfounded, the Nyonya feared that the mistress would cast a spell on her to make her gila or mad so that the latter might usurp her as matriarch. Ever fearful or cautious of the evil charms that her husband’s mistress might do her in (cho kong t’au),the services of a temple medium or bomoh to provide her with a protective talisman or tangkai were sought. For the Nyonya who was really desperate to prevent her husband from taking mistresses, the advise was to take the dimension or size of her husband's male organ, obtain the stem of a yam plant and chant prayers over it so that the husband's penis would be ineffective or go limp when he tried to make love with other women. Should the husband continue with his philandering ways, what the enraged Nyonya would do was to utter a wicked charm before planting the yam plant in the ground with the belief that since the yam stem would rot, so would her husband's! Well, in those days, she never thought of delivering the Lorena Bobbit cut on her husband!
Nasi Kangkang	The Mistress, on the other hand would do her utmost to retain her charms to entice the other woman's husband and share him for as long as she could. She would sometimes resort to implanting a small piece of 'charmed gold foil' in her forehead or even around her female genitalia (a process known as susuk). That was supposed to make her look perpetually beautiful in the eyes of men. However, once the magical spell was broken (when the charm-maker/bomoh died), the mistress would turn into a hideous witch. This practice was believed to have originated from the Malays or Siamese who practiced the black arts. In some desperate cases, confiding in and acting on the advice of some experienced elderly ladies, the Mistress would disrobe herself completely, stand naked with her legs wide open and while the pot of rice was still steaming, she allowed her sweat to trickle down into the steaming pot - a process commonly known as nasi wap or nasi kangkang. It was believed that after eating the cooked rice, the man was bound to abide entirely by her wishes. To rid yourself of your enemy completely was to devise a very cruel, tortuous method known as santau, believed to be most deadly if learnt from the Thais. The concoction of magic charms, poisonous lethal substances - grounded glass, bamboo needles plus a host of other minute substances including human hair and finger nails - often introduced into an innocent cup of black coffee - proved deadly to the victim. The symptoms included vomiting and passing out blood repeatedly without any apparent reason – a slow, excruciating death was assured. It seemed that only a bomoh could extract the deadly poison if he acted without delay. Magic potions to make people ill, fall in love, go mad and eventually die or go bankrupt could be obtained from the oil stolen from oil lamps at funeral wakes and 'accidentally' rubbed on the intended victim. More bizarre cases would involve the collection of body fluids (oils) oozing out of a rotting corpse. The concoction of magic charms, oil and personal effects, stolen from the intended victim often proved very potent if not, deadly. # (to be continued)
Raymond Kwok	Phone: at 604 656 9550, email dkwok@tm.net.my
The Penang File Issue 12	Home Books Comment Concerns Concordance Heritage News People Page 11