azim.zainudin photography™ » photo documentary

02-27-12

photo documentary – ari muyang

It’s astounding how much of the Malaysian culture is hidden from the public eye. Although I used to travel a lot outside malaysia, this is my 1st time to

experienced my own local indigenous culture by mah meri tribe. mah meri tribe are one of the tribe that used to live in Carey Island, situated about 140km

from kuala lumpur. Carey Island is a large palm oil estate that is owned and operated by the Malaysian palm oil conglomerate Golden Hope Plantation. If you

were hoping by the name that Carey Island was a white sanded beach with miles upon miles of clear blue waters, then you’d be sadly mistaken.=)

The main appeal of Carey Island is the indigenous tribe, the Mah Meri. This small tribe has managed to sustain its existence for almost a century. While the

world around it grows with skyscrapers and shopping malls, the Mah Meri has kept its unique traditions of wood carvings and self sustainable living off the

land. Though not adverse to changes, the Mah Meri are well versed in local Bahasa Malaysia and some of them can even speak English.

every year, mah meri tribe celebrates ‘Ari Muyang’, a unique celebration for them giving thanks to the spirits for all the good things that had been bestowed

upon the villagers. On this special day, they will have a ritual ceremony where a shaman uses rice powder based solutions, mixed with flowers and leaves to

mark the foreheads and forearms. After the ritual caremony, some of them will perform a traditional dance called ‘main Jo-oh’. the dance will be accompanied

by a ritual traditional songs and music perfomed by the older generation of the tribe using bamboo, viola, drum and guitar.

It’s astounding how much of the Malaysian culture is hidden from the public eye. Although I used to travel a lot outside malaysia, this is my 1st time to experienced my own local indigenous culture by Mah Meri tribe. Mah Meri tribe are one of the tribe that used to live in Carey Island, situated about 140km from Kuala Lumpur. Carey Island is a large palm oil estate that is owned and operated by the Malaysian palm oil conglomerate Golden Hope Plantation. If you were hoping by the name that Carey Island was a white sanded beach with miles upon miles of clear blue waters, then you’d be sadly mistaken. =)

The main appeal of Carey Island is the indigenous tribe, the Mah Meri. This small tribe has managed to sustain its existence for almost a century. While the world around it grows with skyscrapers and shopping malls, the Mah Meri has kept its unique traditions of wood carvings and self sustainable living off the land. Though not adverse to changes, the Mah Meri are well versed in local Bahasa Malaysia and some of them can even speak English.

Every year, Mah Meri tribe celebrates ‘Ari Muyang’, a unique celebration for them giving thanks to the spirits for all the good things that had been bestowed upon the villagers. On this special day, they will have a ritual ceremony where a shaman uses rice powder based solutions, mixed with flowers and leaves to mark the foreheads and forearms. After the ritual ceremony, some of them will perform a traditional dance called ‘main Jo-oh’. the dance will be accompanied

by a ritual traditional songs and music perfomed by the older generation of the tribe using bamboo, viola, drum and guitar.