'MELABUH AJUNG': SIGNIFIKASI KEPERCAYAAN KOSMOLOGI DALAM PEMBENTUKAN IDENTITI TEATER TRADISIONAL ETNIK PANTAI TIMUR SABAH

Abstract

ABSTRAKMelabuh ajung merupakan satu amalan tradisional etnik-etnik tertentu di pantai timur Sabah. Istilah melabuh ajung merujuk kepada amalan sembahan jamuan yang diberikan kepada semangat, penjaga dan roh nenek moyang. Kebiasaannya, ajung dilabuh ke dalam air melalui persembahan ritual pengubatan bagi memastikan penyakit dan musibah yang dihadapi dapat disembuhkan.Melabuh ajung merupakan amalan yang mempunyai kaitan rapat dengan kepercayaan tradisional etnik terhadap alam persekitaran mereka. Hal yang demikian menjadikan amalan tersebut sebagai satu amalan tradisi yang penting dan dipersembahkan dengan tertib adat tertentu. Namun, amalan ini juga sudah semakin ditinggalkan selari dengan pemodenan budaya kehidupan dan kepercayaan etnik pengamal. Walaupun Sabah merupakan negeri yang terdiri daripada masyarakat multietnik dan mempunyai kepelbagaian kepercayaan serta budaya, kehadiran teater tradisional Sabah sering dipertikaikan dalam kajian bidang ilmu persembahan di Malaysia. Permasalahan kewibawaan amalan persembahan ritual sebagai sebuah teater tradisional, stuktur, nilai estetika dan identiti merupakan persoalan yang sering diutarakan dalam membincangkan teater tradisional Sabah. Melalui kajian etnografi, artikel ini akan menghuraikan hubungan antara kepercayaan masyarakat etnik pantai timur Sabah terhadap unsur kosmos di persekitaran mereka dengan persembahan amalan melabuh ajung, dan seterusnya berfokus kepada pembentukan identiti teater tradisional etnik pantai timur Sabah melalui amalan tradisi tersebut. ABSTRACT‘Melabuh Ajung’ is a traditional practice of offering food to the Gods by Sabah East coast ethnic. The term ‘melabuh ajung’ refers to the practice of food offering to the guardians and ancestral spirits. The ‘Ajung’ or boat is sailed into the open water in the ritual to ensure that illnesses and disasters encountered can be treated. ‘Melabuh ajung’ is a practice that closely associated with the healing rituals in the traditional belief that is related to their environments. Hence the practice has become a very important tradition and is observed with great reverence of propriety according to customs. However, this practice has significantly decreased due to modernization, changes in lifestyle and the beliefs of the ethnic communities. Although, Sabah is a state of multi-ethnic society rich in cultural diversity and beliefs; Sabah traditional theater is often left behind in the study of traditional performances in Malaysia. The practice of ritual performances as a traditional theater; the performance structures; the aesthetic values and the identity reflected in these performances are more than enough to establish the presence of Sabah traditional theater. Through an ethnographic approach, this paper will reveal the relationship between the Sabah east coast ethnic communities belief- towards the elements of their cosmic spaces using the ‘Melabuh Ajung’ ritual practice as an example of Sabah traditional theatre performance.

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