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Tok batin Mabot Sela (centre) is the first orang asli in Johor to receive an appreciation award

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They also have a Shaman, a spiritual leader, who takes care of anything in ritualistic nature. He is the one who in charge for partaking in any religion rituals and anything that has to do with their religion.

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From the social structural and organization aspects, the Orang Asli community still preserve the importance of co-operation in their daily life.  They have a leader that is called “Batin” (Chieftain) that is in charge of keeping the order and peace within the community.

Batin :

·         has the authority over all issues in the village including martial affairs and death, as head of            customs and administrative of the village’s socioeconomic activities.

·         look after and safeguard the well-being of his tribesmen

·         the contact person with the outside world

(as a liaison person with government agencies and neighbouring villages)

·         determine regulations for his tribe and impose punishment on those who have made                          mistakes or offences.

Batin’s appointment can be accomplished through heredity or by the individual’s ability and personality through villagers election, selected by management team member or the will of previous Batin.

In every Orang Asli group, Batin is highly respected. Villagers will obey his instructions because he has the highest authority.

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●GENETIC FACTORS
-Weak in health
-Weak memory and low IQ

●INFLUENCE FROM OWN LOCAL CULTURES
-Informal education: arts, ritual, folk
- which are not fit the syllabus
- force to learn something new that they never encounter
- forced to learn 2nd language which may interfere their native language.

●SCHOOL SYSTEM'S FAILURE
-JAKOA is a government department to implement the education of orang asli.
- Factors of failure:
1.Lack of teacher who has trained for their culture and tradition
2. insufficient financial aid.

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Although they are small minority groups in Malaysia, the fact remains that they are the original people of this land. Therefore, they deserved the right for every educational opportunity as they are our future generation too.

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● FAMILY BACKGROUND
- Most of Orang Asli parents do not have basic academic knoelwdge.
- Their children are not exposed to the basic education from parents.
- Unfamiliar with the provided education in short of sudden.

● LOCATION OF SCHOOL
-Far, river transportation

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● FAMILY EARNINGS
- Most of parents have low income ( RM600- RM1000)
- Unable to support larger size of family
- Have burden to send their children to school
- Face the financial stress like transportation, clothing, books and stationery.
-Because of poverty.

● ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT
- Academic performance is weak
- Orang asli is unconfident, incapable of thinking and always depend on others.

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>> 50% aborigines drop out studies after year 6 of primary school.
>>  39.1% aborigines finished year 6 of primary school and did not    registered a secondary school.
>>  ONLY 30% aborigines finished secondary school.
>> Less than 10 persons who continue tertiary education.

*The dropout rate is very high !!!!

>> A majority of the aborigines do not emphasis the importance of education.
*Most of aborigines do not obtain proper education.

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When There is Death informed
● All work such as farming, hunting or building house will be stopped immediately.

Reason: According to the Orang Asli belief, anyone who continues to work after being informed of a death will fall sick or meet with a disaster.

● All the children will smear their ears with chalk cast with spell.  Charcoal is swept at the eye brows, chest and soles of the feet.
Reason: In this way, all the ghosts and devils believed to have killed the deceased will not disturb the children who have put on the “pengandang”. The “pengandang” is very important especially  during night time.

1. The body of the deceased will be accompanied by a large number of the villagers to the burial ground.

2. After burial is completed, the family of the deceased will bring food and set a fire at the side of the grave every day for 6 days.

3. At the same time, a small fire underneath the house of the deceased will be set.  Fine sand cast with spell will be thrown all around the walls of the house, hoping that these will get into the eyes of any ghost that may still remain in the house. This practice will also go on for 6 days because the spirit of the deceased is believed to be still in the house and the grave during this period.

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● The wedding ceremony (nikah) differs from tribe to tribe.
For example, for the Orang Asli in Selangor, both bride and groom must listen to the advice given by whoever present at the ceremony, especially the elders.  Such advice is mainly on the responsibilities of husband and wife and may last for hours.

● Seldom issue a formal invitation to the wedding reception.  Everyone in the village and those from nearby villages will attend without a formal invitation.

● Rice and food will be served to all the guests until the food runs out.

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1. A husband will inform his neighbours immediately when his wife is in labour pain.

2. The women folk will go to his house to help.

● Orang Asli does not like visitors who praise his newborn baby.
Reason: the words will be heard by ghosts nearby who will come and take the baby away.  This is proven if the baby falls sick or has a fever.

● The husband must not go fishing by using the net.

● Both husband and wife are also not allowed to eat deer meat.

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●Purpose:

1. to chit chat

2. to listen to old stories that will bring back sweet memories

3. learning curse spells.

● Visits to Orang Asli houses are recommended in the afternoon
Day time: time for doing work
Afternoon & Evening time: time for rest and relaxing
The host's having dinner time: invited to join in and it is considered rude if a guest refuses to eat food served by the host.

● When the guests arrive, they should wait at the side of the house and pretend to cough to attract the attention of the host. Normally the guests will call out the name of the host’s eldest child. For example, if the name of the eldest child is “Alang”, then the guests will ask: “Is Alang’s father at home ?”

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What is Taboo?
● A social or religious custom prohibiting practice

Why aborigines adhered to Taboo?
● simply because the adherents believed in them
● in the effects of the wrath and anger of the spirits should they be violated
● ensuring good individual behavior

Topics to be discussed
Taboo in Visit, Birth, Marriage and Death
http://www.jkkn.gov.my/en/orang-asli-community-0

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Blow Pipe

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The traditional forms of forest utilization (farming, gathering and hunting)

Orang asli uses dart tu hunt down an animal

To earn a living, Orang Asli also used woods and rotan and craft into basket and then sell it to a middle man whom resell them in the markets

Orang Asli living in remote forest areas engaged in some trading with the Malays, with jungle produce being exchanged for salt, knives and metal axe-heads.

Modern  agricultural development (especially rubber and oil palm) generates higher and regular incomes than the traditional agricultural activities.

Average monthly household income was higher while incidence of poverty was lower for aborigines participating in the development schemes compared to those who did not.

Better education, income and interaction with members of society at large have also resulted in this group of aborigines becoming more confident and less dependent.

For eg: FELDA program

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Mah Meri

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- Christianity
- Islam

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· Believe that dreams are able to foretell the future and used to control the social behavior.

· Everyone in the tribe is encouraged to share their dreams, which are then interpreted by experts.

· Children are encouraged to mention their dreams to their fathers.

· Acts as a social control whereby a dream bestows obligations on its dreamer to warn his or her friends of any forthcoming danger.

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·Shamans are ritual specialists who have the gift of going into a trance.

·Acts as intermediary between humans and the world of spirits, combating evil spirits, curing illnesses and strengthening the morale of the group.

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Children from the Semai tribe wearing traditional headpieces 

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Children from the Semai tribe wearing traditional headpieces 

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Female dancers with their traditional costumes

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Female dancers with their traditional costumes

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●The dancers were dressed in the traditional Mah Meri clothing – beaten tree bark from “Terap” tree and weaved “nipah” fronds.

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Masked male dancer named Diaman, with his ancestral mask called “Manjus”

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Masked male dancer named Diaman, with his ancestral mask called “Manjus”

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● The men usually dance outside the circle of women with their special wooden masks. These masks are believed to represent their ancestors’ spirits, and can only be passed down from fathers to sons.

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Orang Asli's masks used in rituals, performances and special occasions

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Orang Asli's masks used in rituals, performances and special occasions

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- Animism
· Believe that there are spirits that dwell in inanimate objects like trees and rocks.

· Apart from that, they also believe that the spirits exist in natural phenomena like the thunder, lightning and earthquake.
· Each living things or creature possesses a soul of its own.
· From the religious point of view, both the Semai and Temiar share similar traditional belief system. Both groups believe in the existence of a ultimate supra-natural being responsible for the creation of the world and all of its inhabitants: plants, the seas, the
mountains, trees, animals, and above all, mankind.

· The Semai referred to it as Jenang or Nyenang, while the Temiar referred to it as Tak Pedn

· Both these groups believe in the presence of a thunder god known as Engkuʼ by the Semai and Karei by the Temiar.

· The Thunder God is a supra-natural being that controls human behaviour, punishing those who misbehave against their own cultural norms and social mores as well as other natural laws. In addition, they also believe in other gods (known as nyaniik in Semai and chinoi in Temiar) who become the foundation of supernatural sanctions, such as bad luck, illness and other disasters.

· Many significant events in their lives such as birth, illness, death and agricultural rituals have much animistic symbolism.

· Their priests practice magic, foresee the future, and cure illness. They would use Capnomancy (divination by smoke) to decide whether a camp is safe for the night. Their priests are said to be “shaman” in that they are someone who acts as a medium between the visible world and an invisible spirit world.

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● There is a good diversity in their attire.
● Being traditionally forest dwellers, the clothing of deep jungle Orang Asli from past ages are made from natural materials.
● For example, their clothes are made from bark of trees such as terap as well as grass skirts.
● Ornaments include headbands woven from leaf fronds skillfully made in intricate patterns.

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-Most Orang Aslis are fluent in the Malay language
-Linguistically, orang asli is divided into two groups

1. Austronesian Language Family
-speak Aboriginal Malay languages
-include the Jakun and Temuan languages

2. Austroasiatic Language Family
-speak Aslian languages

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Chentong
- Made up from bamboos of various sizes so that it produces different sounds
-Falls under category "Idiofon"
-Usually played by Semai and Temiar sub-tribe during Sewang Dance.
Biola
- Falls under category "Kordofon"
-Adapted from western violin, it has 4 strings
- Strings used to be made of cow fur, later changed to nylon strings
-Usually played during wedding ceromony

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Randai is a folk theater tradition which incorporates music, singing, dance, drama and the silat martial art. It is usually performed for traditional ceremonies and festivals.

The traditional dances of the Peninsular Malaysia's Orang Asli are strongly rooted in their spiritual beliefs. Dances are commonly used by witch-doctors as rituals to communicate with the spirit world. Such dances include Genggulang of the Mahmeri tribe, Berjerom of the Jah-Hut tribe and the Sewang of the Semai and Temiar tribes.

Sewang Dance
Sewang is a traditional dance performed by the Orang Asli. Originally the dance was performed to treat the sick or wounded, now it is also used to entertain foreign travelers. It involves dancing in a circle to music produced from bamboo.

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Simple cooking using very little ingredients: Fish, animal meat and vegetables.

Does not use spices or chili

Cooked in crude methods: Wood fire and bamboo logs -slow cooking

Healthy and authentic in nature

origin of some of the dishes trace back to countries such as Indonesian (ketupat) and India.

Ubi kayu kennem – It is grated tapioca that is soaked in water till it starts to ferment. The fermented tapioca is then cooked as fritters. It is a popular breakfast or snack option.
Lemang – Lemang is glutinous rice that is wrapped in banana leaf and filled into bamboo logs. It takes good amount of practice to cook the rice to perfection. It is eaten along with meat curry.
Ketupat – They are rice cakes that are cooked in coconut leaves. The coconut leaves are weaved together to form little pockets. The pockets are filled with rice and steamed, till the rice puffs up and fills the coconut pocket.

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● Orang Asli are the indigenous peoples of Peninsular Malaysia who are also known as aborigines.

● There are 3 main categories of Orang Asli which are the Negrito, Senoi and Melayu Proto Subtribe

Senoi
-The Senoi (also spelled Sengoi and Sng'oi).
-Distributed at the central region of Peninsular Malaysia
-Their ancestors are believed to have arrived from southern Thailand about 4,500 years ago.
Negrito
-Distributed at the northern region of peninsular Malaysia
Proto-Malay
-Distributed at southern region of Peninsular Malaysia