Author : Dr Nik Norma Nik Hasan (Pusat Pengajian Komunikasi Universiti Sains Malaysia)
*This article was presented at the International Webinars “Building and Strengthening Networks of Social Scientists in Tanah Melayu” on March 15, 2023, at the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Universitas Islam Negeri Raden Ftah Palembang.
‘Takkan Melayu Hilang di Dunia’….kata Hang Tuah
This phrase from Hang Tuah can literally be translated as: Malays will not disappear from the world.
Who are the Malays? I am not an expert to define who a Malay is. As a Malay myself, who was born and raised in Malaysia, for me Malays are those who use the Malay language daily, they are Muslim, they practice Malay customs and are physically tanned. Although sometimes some friends of mine claim they are Javanese, but to me they are still Malay. This situation may be different in Indonesia.
In Malaysia, Malays can consist of Javanese, Minang, Bugis, Acehnese, Banjar, Rawa, Mandailing, and some other Indonesian ethnics who migrated to Tanah Melayu before the existence of political borders. They are known as Melayu Dagang. Another group of Malays are called Pribumi or Native Malays. They are the indigenous people of Malaysia who occupy areas such as Kelantan, Terengganu, and Perak. While Melayu Campur are Malays who marry other races such as Chinese and Indian.
Although the definition of Malay may differ between Malaysia and Indonesia, the cultural connection is close. This is based on the existence of an area known as Nusantara Melayu or Rantau Melayu. In fact, the extent of this region is said to stretch from Madagascar to the Philippines. The Malays themselves are said to be the builders of the civilization of this vast region.
The history of this civilization proves the greatness of the Malay people. Nevertheless, cultural connection among the Malays has not been explored much by its own people or even by social science researchers in Rantau Melayu. The discussion about cultural relations, for example, among the Malays in Nusantara is still small.
Thus, this article tries to give an overview of the Malays in Malaysia, their culture and how the two elements relate to nature. Within this scope of discussion, it is my aim to explore collaboration opportunities in term of research, publications, and dialogues among social scientists from the Malay countries in Nusantara Melayu.
Premise of Discussion
This article is discussed based on the below premise:
Nature binds the Malays and their culture
Hence, the discussion will be argued based on three important concepts which are nature, the Malays, and their culture.
The Malays’ relationship with nature is very close. Their daily lives depending very much on their surroundings. Consciously or not, Malays communicate about nature in their life.
In term of culture, I chose to discuss its meaning from an Eastern perspective. Hence, culture includes ways of acting, thinking and behaving as well as the results of actions taken by a society.
In specific, culture is a matter of virtue (budi) and power (daya). Budi is understood as original, first and considered perfect. It is also meant as fitness of the mind and intellect in overcoming problems by finding the right solutions. Whereas, daya or power is reasoning, way of thinking and creation. It refers to the strength of energy and power used to generate thoughts to deal with a problem (Sangar 2011, Syed Ismail & Ahmad Subki, 2010; Rohana Yusof, 2010). Malay culture can be explained through the forms of thoughts, artefacts, art, and value of life.
So, if the solution taken from the result of the thought is accepted and can be used as a common practice, it is then accepted as a culture.
Let us take nature as an example. Nature is not an entity separate from the lives of the Malays but it is part of it. Batik, sarong and songket of the Malays use flower, leaf, and bamboo shoot as motifs. Actually, bamboo shoots have their own philosophy in the Malay culture in term of educating children. Bamboo shoot is easy to bend and shape. Similarly, children must be educated from an early age about religion, customs, and manners so that when they grow up, they are able to value the good and the bad in life.
The Malays also have some ‘Teori Alam’ or ‘Theories of Nature’ that are practiced even though there is no scientific evidence to confirm this. Rice washing water, for example, is not thrown away but used to water flower plants. The ‘Theories of Nature’ makes them believe that the rice washing water has nutrients to nourish flower plants. The underlying wisdom behind this practice is about valuing water as a precious natural resource.
It is also forbidden to climb durian trees for the ripe fruits. It must be fall on its own. Climbing durian tree can cause it to stop bearing fruit. Again, there is no scientific proof to this. But this tradition is practised as a way to take care of durian buds. This is a traditional way to ensure the sustainability of the trees.
Malay people are very shy people. They avoid to speak frankly. They use rhymes figuratively to express their feelings such as poem or pantun. Pantun has a very close connection with the Malay minds. Through pantun, the Malays are trained to think deeply and creatively as it uses many metaphors. Elements of nature are mostly used as metaphors to tell what they want to say. For example, the ocean is often used in pantun because it can influence people’s lives, feelings, and thoughts as the Malays mostly live around beaches and rivers to make living.
Another example on how nature can be related to culture is by looking at the Malay houses. Malay houses have tall roofs and pillars for wind passage. It cools the house naturally. The wisdom of the Malays to identify the direction of the wind and build the house according to the north-south direction cannot be denied. The front of the house is often positioned facing the kiblat to make it easier for them to pray.
Local knowledge is an interesting Malay practice to explore. Here, I take for example burning of fields to fertilize the soil. It is a norm for the Malays. But it cannot be done over limit. Widespread burning has an impact on humans themselves. Haze issue, for instance, has made two Malay countries Malaysia-Indonesia relationship turned sour. Both countries perhaps can collaboratively use local knowledge to solve this environmental issue.
Conclusion & Suggestions
This discussion only revolves around the Malays, they culture and its connection with nature in Malaysia. But is this situation similarly happening in other Malay countries such as Indonesia? How can nature strengthen the Malay relations within Nusantara?
Based on the two questions above, I would like to make some suggestions for collaboration. The dynamism of the Malays in Rantau Melayu can be started of with a dialogue among the Malay countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapura and Brunei. Common issues should be identified. For example, how Malay language and culture can be preserved and what are the challenges?
The next phase would be making known of the collaboration through research, publications (books, journals, or popular write-up in the media). Collaboration can also be done via students and lecturers’ exchange. This can enhance understanding about Malays in other countries.
In term of research, a few topics are crucial to work on such as an exploration of nature as a tool to preserve the Malay culture in Rantau Melayu; developing environmental strategic communication based on local knowledge to mitigate haze issue between Malaysia and Indonesia; the dynamism of Malay language within the Malay region and how religion helps Malays identify their identity.
In fact, religion could be an interesting research exploration for social scientists to work on as historically the Malay civilization was very strong at the time they accepted Islam as Hang Tuah’s saying.
Some Malay scholars in Malaysia argue that Hang Tuah’s proverb does not stop at the first stanza. But it is followed by another stanza that links Islam as the basis of Malay civilization which reads:
Takkan Melayu hilang di dunia, selagi Melayu berpegang pada agama
Malays will not disappear in the world, if Malays adhere to religion
In a small conclusion, the premise of this discussion is acceptable with an addition to religion.
Finally, I close the discussion with below poem (pantun). It shows the close relationship between Malacca and Java centuries ago. The gist is as follows – If the Islamic kingdom of Malacca collapses, new power will be built in Jawa. This spirit must continue.
Kalau roboh Kota Melaka, Papan di Jawa saya dirikan, Kalau sungguh bagai dikata,
Badan dan nyawa saya serahkan.
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