Kumang Kidundung by Sunga
Tom’s Note: This tale comes from the Bidayuh in the Serian district. Kumang, in the Dayak world, are spirits among the people. This story tells an interaction between one of those spirits, Antu Puah, and a Dayak named Kidungdung.
Kumang Kidundung
One day Kaleng went out to the jungle to shoot birds with a blowpipe. He shot a bird called Gura. He went on and on, following the bird and trying to kill it. He followed the whole day until evening but still could not get the bird. Presently he saw a small hut in the jungle. The hut belonged to Antu (ghost) Pauh and Kumang Kidundung. It was night when Kaleng came to the hut. He asked them with a song:
“Which of you is the mother, and which is the daughter?”
Antu Pauh (who wished to marry Kaleng) said, I am ‘the daughter, and she is my mother.” But Kaleng thought it not fair for her to say that she was the daughter and that the younger one was the mother. So he married Kumang Kidundung without loss of time.
After marriage, they worked in the forest, making a padi field. All time Kumang Kidundung had a pet fish called Kalui. She loved her pet so much, and she sang every day as she fed it. Her song went:
“My brother, Kalui, come up above the water and eat your food.”
She had fed her Kalui, and it always came to eat the food; but this time, it did not come. Kumang Kidundurig began to wonder why. So she went to look in every watering place to find Kalui. She realised that her Kalui had been killed and eaten by Antu Pauh but kept quiet about it. She knew Antu Pauh was angry because Kaleng would not marry her.
Many months after this, Kumang Kidundung gave birth to a child—a boy which Kaleng named Sinting Gumuram. Antu Pauh sometimes helped Kumang Kidundung nurse the child.
Four days after the child was born, Antu Pauh said to Kumang Kidundun^’ “I think you need a wash in the river to clean yourself, for you have not had a bath for a long time.” So Antu Pauh boiled some buah langir skin in a bamboo container, and when it was ready, she said to Kumang Kidundung, “Let us go bathing.” Kumang Kidundung followed her, bringing with her a red hat and such things as a Land Dayak uses after birth: some smelling leaves (namai) and dry coconut (upoli), which were burnt and brought to the bathing place.
Soon they came to the bathing place. Antu Pauh poured some of the langir water on Kumang Kidundung and washed her head- Antu Pauh washed it hard—she washed for a long time. Kumang Kidundung, who was still weak after giving birth, fainted and fell. Antu Pauh lifted her and put her on the grass beside the river bank.
Antu Pauh then dressed in Kumang Kidundung’s dress and returned to nurse Kumang Kidundung’s child- Kaleng did not notice what had happened; he thought that Antu Pauh was Kumang Kidundung. Aatu Pauh nursed the child and fed the child with her breasts. But the child felt that there was no milk, and he cried- Antu Pauh said, “Why is it this child does not want to suck my breasts these last few days.” Kaleng was puzzled too.
Meanwhile, Kumang Kidundung was still lying in the grass by the river bank. It happened there came a bright and sunny morning. Babai (pig) Kali’mudug was up in the sky, warming himself in the sun. He saw Kumang Kidundung from above, lying, fainted. He said to Selintang Jawa (Java), “Selintang Jawa? Will You go and get that girl and give her medicine so she can live?
So Selintang Jawa, who had wings, flew down, brought Kumang Kidundung up and gave her medicine. Soon she was better.
As she was in the sky, Selintang Jawa asked to be engaged with her. Kumang Kidundung agreed on the condition that she was given four days to get her child from the earth below.
So next night, she went down from the sky, through a box lowered by a big rope. When she came to the house, she called her brother-in-law with a song:
Dih dih Selangkong ‘Tabu buka pintu jalaik ku lalu Sinting Gumuram.
My brother-in-law Selangkong Tabu opened the door so that I could go in to feed my child Sinting Gumuram.
Selangkong Tabu opened the door, and Kumang Kidundung went in and fed her child and applied good perfume to the child. After she had done this, she laid the child nicely in bed. She then lifted Antu Puah and put her by the fireside. After that, she jumped into the box and was pulled up to the sky.
Early the next morning, Kaleng’s mother went to prepare food. She went to the fireplace and stepped on Antu Pauh, and said, “Dear me, who is this sleeping by the fireside? Antu Pauh woke up and said that her head was spinning and she had fallen asleep there. (which was not true)
On the second night, Kumang Kidundung went down again by the same means. Again she lifted Antu Pauh and put her near the fireside. Antu Pauh pretended as before, and Kumang Kidundung went up in her box to the sky.
On the third night, Kuman Kidundung came down as usual. This time she lifted Antu Pauh and put her by the door. This time she was stepped over by Selangkong Tabu when he woke up early to have his bath Antu Pauh again pretended that she was too sleepy to look after the child and had fallen by the door. She did not know that Kunang Kidundung had lifted her.
Before she left, Kumang Kidundung told her brother-im-law Selangkong Tabu that he must tell Kaleng: that if he still loved her, he should climb the yellow coconut tree and wash his eyes with its water so that he would not be sleepy the next night. Afterwards, she jumped into her box and was pulled up to the sky.”
On the fourth night, Kumang Kidundung again descended from the sky to feed her child. Kaleng stood by the door, for he wanted to catch Kumang Kidundun as he still loved her very much.
When Kumang Kidundung had done all for her child, she lifted Antu Pauh and put her by the steps of the bachelor quarters. She then went out by the door. But while she was stepping into the box with her child, Kaleng went out with his knife and cut the rope. Kumang Kidundung could not now go up- Selintang Jawa pulled the rope; but Kumang Kidundung could not go up. He pulled on the rope, but Kumang Kidundung could not go up. He let another box down; Kaleng also cut it off.
At last Selintang Jawa sang,-
My sister Kumang Kidundung, come up my sister, come up and return to your master.
Kumang Kidundung sang in answer:
I cannot go up. Many ropes tie my feet, and many cords tie my back.
They sang all night until the following day. All the people came to hear them sing.
At last, they stopped; then Kaleng brought his wife inside the house, and they re-married again.
Kumang Kidundung said to Kaleng: You have slept with Antu Pauh. You must now wash for seven days and seven nights. You will stay in the water to clean every part of your body because you have mixed yourself with a dirty girl— Antu Pauh.”
Kaleng followed Kumang Kidundung’s instructions. Kumang Kidundung then got hold of Antu Pauh, pulling her here and there until she finally killed her and cut her body into pieces. She threw them everywhere, on land and in the water.
Even in pieces, Antu Pauh could speak; “My pieces will become sharp grass and will cut Kidundungs Kidundung’s feet and body. My pieces will also become big leeches to suck Kumang Kidungdungs blood.”
So it is until today that the sharp grass cuts people’s feet, while the land and water leeches suck people’s blood. After killing Antu Pauh, Kumang Kidundung was happy.
Meanwhile, Kaleng was very cold, standing in the water for seven days and seven nights. Even when eating, he had to stand the water. When seven days had passed, Kumang Kidundung herself helped Kaleng to wash his body. After that, they have fully married again.
Some weeks after their second marriage, there was bad weather. The clouds got darker, but it did not rain. This was caused by Selintang Jawa, who had gathered all his men in the sky, preparing to go down to the earth. When his party came down, the sky became bright again.
They came close to Kaleng’s village. Some of the village boys saw them coming. They ran back and told Kaleng they were Selintang Jawa and his friends, not the enemy.
Kumang Kidundung told Kaleng to spread all the best-coloured mats and put out pikaseh (kindness) medicine( pitundok (the medicine which could knock people down), and every sort of drug which Kaleng had. Kaleng did as he was told. For Kumang Kidundung had already told him, they came to talk about them. Sclintang Jawa and his party were then invited to sit on the mats.
Kaleng and all his village people were busy feeding the strangers. After their meal, Selintang Jawa told Kaleng about the matter they would discuss that night. So Kaleng called his headmen and the older men of the village to attend the meeting.
When they were ready, Babai Kali’mudug, who was at Selintang Jawa’s side, said: The case, as you all know, is a case concerning Kaleng and Selintang Jawa: Selintang Jawa wished to steal Kumang Kidundung, for he said he had taken Kumang Kidundung from the river bank and saved her life. So it is fair that he marry Kumang Kidundung.”
The headman of Kaleng’s village said: “It is fair the way you say it! But Kaleng was the first man to marry Kumang Kidundung, and they already had one child. So how can it be fair for Selintang Jawa to marry Kumang Kidundung? If Kumang Kidundung had no husband and was without a child, we could arrange for her to marry Selintang Jawa. However, Kumang Kidundung wants to re-marry her former husband because she already had a child with him.”
Selintang Jawa’s people were puzzled. They could not do anything further. At last, Kaleng’s headman said: “Now, I think, as Selintang Jawa saved Kumang Kidundung’s life, Kaleng should compensate Selintang Jawa.
Kaleng’s headman then asked Selintang Jawa’s party if that was the right way to settle the matter. They said: “We think it is quite right and fair for Selintang Jawa to be compensated for saving Kumang Kidundung.”
According to Dayak custom, the reward(banda kati panding), for saving a stranger’s life consisted of seven jars (one large, six small), one big earthenware plate, and four bowls (trangkuk. batu) and one live fowl. These were compensation from Kalengto Selintang Jawa, who received them and returned them to the sky. Kumang Kidundung and Kaleng then lived together without further trouble.
Sunga, Kumang Kidundung in the Sarawak Museum Journal vol 6 no 6 1955
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