Whatever You Do, Don’t Inhale After breakfast, a hunter offered to show us how to use a blowpipe. “The trick,” he said, “is to blow from your chest, not your mouth.” We, each in turn, grasped the pole and discovered that it wasn’t as easy as it looked. It swayed. Thwup! Our darts failed to reach the target. Iban hunters can hit a target 25 metres away. “If we want deer for dinner, we aim for the leg, so that we can cut out the poison before it taints the meat,” he explained. “The poison is ipoh tree sap. It can kill in three minutes. We know which jungle plants are antidotes.” Joseph introduced us to other medicinal plants during a jungle walk. With pants tucked into our socks, to protect our shins from leaches, we discovered that the jungle was not only a pharmacy, it was also a grocery and hardware store. “We use this rough leaf like sandpaper to smooth blowpipes. And see this large leaf? When hunters are in the jungle, they wrap rice inside and steam it. They also use the leaf as a plate.” Returning to the longhouse before our return trip to Kuching, we had to satisfy our curiosity about the skulls. “Who were they?” we asked. “Enemies,” replied Joseph. “The Ibans were headhunters until 1839. James Brooke – a British adventurer who became Rajah of Sarawak after quelling a tribal rebellion – put an end to headhunting. When the Japanese invaded during the Second World War, the practice resumed.” “Why did they sever the heads?” we asked. “They weren’t just trophies. Ibans believed that if they killed the enemy leader, they would capture his spirit and control it. By giving it offerings, the spirit would be happy and do what they wanted it to do.” Small baskets containing rice, eggs and meat hung from the longhouse ceiling like palm leafwrapped smoke detectors. “Why are some of the skulls black?” we inquired. “They smoked the skulls to dry them after removing the flesh,” replied Joseph. “Nowadays, we still light fires below the skulls to keep them warm. You must never let them get wet and shiver. I remember, as a boy, hearing the skulls grind their teeth when they got wet. It was scary!” Nor must you ever let the skulls go hungry. Judging by the numerous offering baskets in this longhouse, the Iban occupants extend their traditional hospitality to the severed heads, as well as to guests. Resources For more information, visit sarawaktourism.com and www.malaysia.travel or phone Tourism Malaysia in Vancouver at 604-689-8899. Barb & Ron Kroll publish the trip-planning website www.KrollTravel.com 1. Iban hunter demonstrates how to use a blowpipe 2. Small baskets containing rice, eggs and meat hang from the longhouse ceiling as offerings to the spirits of the headhunted 3. Headhunted human skull hanging from longhouse ceiling 4. Iban hunter with blowpipe returns to the longhouse 1 3 2 4 CSANews | FALL 2024 | 19 Travel
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