Sacred pool attracting attention as word of ‘magical powers’ spread

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‘Teresang’, built by those making their offerings to the goddess, encircle the pool.

KANOWIT: The presence of ‘teresang’ (conical bamboo offering baskets) encircling a small pool by the roadside of Bukit Melapi, along Nanga Ngemah/Nanga Ngungun Road near here, is now a common sight to locals and passers-by.

Local longhouse chief Ayong Ujan said the pool is considered sacred among the longhouse residents in the area who believe it is the bathing place of the Iban goddess Kumang.

“The pool is believed to have magical powers and has existed for more than 50 years.

“It has caught the attention of outsiders from as far as Julau and Kapit, who come to make wishes and offerings to the goddess,” he said when contacted yesterday, adding visitors frequent the site almost every week after news of its ‘magical powers’ spread.

Ayong also revealed that the pool, located midway up Bukit Melapi, is inhabited by a pair of Toman (snakehead) fish roughly the size of an adult human’s arm.

The fish can be petted and local sometimes feed them by hand, while the pool never dries up even during drought season despite its small size, he added.

“In the past, longhouse residents hunting for wild animals at Bukit Melapi area would often see a pair of white mouse-deer bathing in the pool.

“The animals were also often spotted in the morning after a logging track was built from Nanga Ngemah to Nanga Bat through Nanga Ngungun, but were never seen again after the road was upgraded in 2010.”

A few years back, Ayong said a longhouse chief from Nanga Ngungun found a tortoise near the pool that he brought back and performed a ‘miring’ ritual for.

Coins thrown by visitors into the pool after having made their wish.

He said the chief’s wish was granted after he won four-digit lottery a few times last year and this year, and he sacrificed three pigs as a symbol of appreciation to the goddess for granting his wish.

“However, not every wish will be granted as it would depend on the person making the wish,” cautioned Ayong.

Another such pool located in Sibu, called ‘telaga Kumang’, can be found at Bukit Aup Jubilee Park.

Known as ‘Nagabari Pool’, it is located midway up the hill and is believed to have magical powers, especially for childless couples who wish to conceive.

It is also said that if one is lucky, he or she can see ‘Kumang’ bathing in the pool in early hours of the morning.