Getting to know Lombok personally

 

        Lombok is not only famous for its pristine beaches and stunning natural view, but it is also acknowledged for its inhabitants who until present still faithfully maintain their traditional culture.

        If you travel to Desa Sade in Lombok, don't miss the precious opportunity to interact with the friendly native inhabitants of Lombok called Sasak people who make up two-third of the total population aside from the Balinese people dwelling there since the past colonization of Majapahit kingdom. Sasak people belong to the Polynesian group and speak a combined language of Sasak, Bali and Sumbawa. 

Religion

 

The majority of Sasak people strongly adhere to Islamic principles although are still influenced by local traditions of animism and dynamism. There are two kinds of Islamic streams in Lombok, Wetu Telu and Wetu Lima. Wetu Telu is a unique belief of the minority of Sasak people with a strong influence of Hinduism and Buddhism mixed with the local traditions. Its followers conduct their shollat or prayer time only three times a day, which is different from the Wetu Lima believers who do a five-time shollat and dominate the entire population.

Residence

 

Preserving their culture, the Sasak people living in houses which roof made of straws and floor made of dried buffalo dung and clay. According to them, such floor is good to maintain room's temperature and keeps mosquitoes from entering the houses. Their houses face west or east instead of south or north for they strongly believe if their houses face to the south or north, disaster or calamity will fall upon them. The size of each house is also different according to their position in the society. The house of a tribe head is much bigger than the house of common people. Inside the house, there are three small staircases representing human life cycle of birth, growth and death.

Living in a natural and friendly environment, their houses are adjacent to each other with narrow lanes separating the cross sections. The lanes are also made of dried buffalo dung sticking one block of stone with another.

Along the lane, in some open huts, people sell local handicrafts and famous traditional hand weaving of Lombok which are of various motives and colors.

The prices for one weaving vary from Rp. 300.000 up to Rp. 2.000.000. Some places like Desa Sukarare also shows you the hand-making process of the weaving. Remain living traditionally, yet the Sasak people could adjust with modern development. Some of them even already use cell phone, television, and other modern technology products.

Marriage

In Jakarta and other big cities, if a man wants to marry a girl, he has to propose to his girlfriend and her family politely. However, funnily that way of marriage proposal is considered unpatriotic to the Sasak people. The most honorable way is kidnapping the bride-to-be and taking her to a relative’s house accompanied by close relatives and friends. This kind of marriage is called running marriage or merarik in Sasak language. 

After that, the man’s relatives should conduct nyelabar, which is notifying the girl's family that their daughter has stayed overnight in their house, without telling the exact place where the girl is. The next step is contacting the tribe head to obtain permission to hold a marriage celebration.

If you travel to Lombok, especially to Desa Sade, the Sasak people there are always ready to welcome you with their warm smiles and simplicity.

This article was published in one of lifestyle magazines in Jakarta in 2010.