Maras Taun
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Maras Taun is a thanksgiving festival and harvest festival celebrated by Malays in Belitung Island and its surrounding smaller islands.
Maras in Malay Belitung dialect means "cutting" and taun means "year." Maras Taun occurs once a year after the harvest of rice from dry-field paddy fields (padi ladang or Oryza montana).
Rites
The festival is opened with a farmer dance. They sing a Maras Taun song together to accompany the dance. After the dance ends, a village chief (a Muslim leader) appears and leads the people in prayer. The chief burns a piece of agarwood which causes a fragrant smell; then, he says the prayers and blesses two pieces of sacred leaves called daun hati-hati or daun kesalan, a variety of medicinal mint also known as Asian oregano. Afterward, the sacred leaves are given to the people. The islanders spread the leaves around their homes and boats because they believe that the sacred leaves bring luck.
