A tale from the wild jungle

THE burgeoning jungle of Sarawak is a place full of mysteries for the people who work and live amidst the luxuriant undergrowth of northern Borneo.The forest is always more than a mere collection of trees: it is a miniature universe entirely filled with spirits of the mountains and the rivers.

Only the local populations are conversant with this folklore, handed down from generation to generation.

At one time, I used to be a frequent visitor to the rural community of Kampung Stutong.

Although it is a large village on the outskirts of Kuching city, the villagers of Kampung Stutong still live by their traditional values and ancient beliefs, which are a mixture of Christianity and animist practices.

In the evening, when the day’s farm work was done, the villagers would sit down to sip a touch of langkau and exchange news of the world around them.

I have heard many strange tales from around the fireplace at these evening gatherings but none was stranger than the tale of Datuk Kong.

The Datuk Kong is a traditional Malay deity who inhabits the jungle around the Kuching Division.

I have heard many first-hand accounts of his works from witnesses to his appearances.

Travellers in the Pueh area would walk hours in the jungle without being able to find their way out.

But all they had to do was to light a cigarette and offer it to Datuk Kong, then presto, they turned the corner and they saw the main road ahead of them.

The Datuk Kong is a common figure in local folklore.

Local sightings have reported Datuk Kong playing with his harem, frolicking somewhere on the beach or among the waves.

This was reported to me by a local fisherman who used to scour the waters for a catch near Lundu beach.

During one of these evening gatherings, our next door neighbour in the village, Achoo, happened to be among us.

Achoo was a Chinese man who had married into the village.

He could not speak Iban but could manage with his crude Malay.

One night, the topic of fireside conversation turned to the odd phenomenon surrounding the unusual goings-on around Datuk Kong.

Achoo jumped to his feet in great excitement and told us his first-hand personal contact with Datuk Kong.

“I used to go hunting for wild game in the forest areas around Kampung Pueh near Lundu.

You could still bag a wild boar if you were lucky, though too much hunting had gradually exhausted the game reserve and the wild boars were not so easily available.

Over the years, it got to be more difficult to hunt down a wild boar of good size.

“One day, I was on another hunting trip waiting patiently for my prey, in front of a jungle clearing, smoking my rokok apong patiently, and listening to the sounds all around me. It was late in the evening.

I must have passed many hours that way sitting on the tree.

“Suddenly, I sensed something strange. The forest, which had always been noisy, had suddenly fallen silent. The forest was never completely silent like that, and it gave me the creeps. Then, I heard a voice from somewhere behind me, ‘kawan, mintak rokok’. I almost peed in my pants. I was perched on top of the tree, so where could the voice have come from? Trembling profusely, I passed a rokok apong, without looking around, towards the general direction of the voice behind me and the cigarette was apparently taken.

“Just at that moment, the air was filled with the vicious barking of hunting dogs as if the Hound of the Baskervilles had descended upon the small clearing.

Amidst the confusion could be heard the grunting and snorting of a wild boar.

Presently, the animal came into sight ahead of me and I saw this huge wild boar being pursued into the clearing by two small hounds.

They were no bigger than half a foot in height each, but the volume of their barking was deafening.

It was enough to drive the devil away.

“My hunting instinct took over. I raised my rifle and opened fire, and the wild boar fell to the ground. I had killed the gigantic wild boar with one shot with the king-sized, footlong tusks.

“I turned to the spot where I had heard the male voice and there was only emptiness there. I did not know what to make of the strange happening, though when I recounted the story to my friends later on, they told me that the wild boar was a gift from the Datuk Kong to me personally.

“As is the tradition of the jungle, I offered the spirit of Datuk Kong another cigarette in gratitude for the prize boar that he had delivered to my hands.

In the jungle, one must always show appreciation and gratitude for any goodness that the forest has chosen to yield up to us humans.

“I turned around, and the spectre of the two fierce hunting dogs had disappeared also. The jungle had returned to its original state, leaving me alone with the giant carcass of a wild boar.”

At this point, the assembly in Kampung Stutong burst into loud exclamations of wonder, with many present trying to interject.

To the simple village folk, this was yet another confirmation of the power and the magnificence of the Datuk Kong and his bounty.

In the rural areas of Sarawak, such a tall tale would be accepted as gospel truth by all and sundry.

To our modern man of science and logic, such tales of the supernatural world are often dismissed as crass superstition and old wives tales.

But having lived and worked in Sarawak for the greater part of my life, and having heard many of the extraordinary tales that pervade the private fears of Malaysian society, I am not so cynical in my old age about the world of the occult.

All I know is the world is a big, wonderful place and we cannot explain away many of the odd happenings around us.

It is better to leave a little room for incredulous wonderment for the mystery of life around us.

(The author can be reached at kenyalang578@hotmail.com. All comments are welcomed).