Some Notes on Coconut Pearls.
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THE SARAWAK MUSEUM JOURNAL |
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Title :
Some Notes on Coconut Pearls. |
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Author :
Wong To Hoo |
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Abstract:
1.1 As a young lad still schooling in Sarawak in the early twenties and thirties I had often heard passing references to a mysterious pearl referred to as coconut pearl. The local population whether, Malay, Iban or Chinese often refer to it as “Batu Kelapa” — that is, coconut stone. Some villagers merely mention “Buta” meaning blind in reference to the popular belief that coconut pearls are exclusively found in blind coconuts. Later in the forties, fifties and sixties while I was in the employ of the Sarawak Medical Department as a Medical-officer, I had further opportunities of close contacts with the various local population. Again this mystery of the coconut pearls was mentioned now and again. According to local belief many magical benefits are attached to the owner of such pearls, such as it can be used as a wheedle charm, in business dealings or even in court cases in the owner’s favour. It is equally a charm to make one strong and confident, or a general-protective to keep either oneself or one’s family from spells cast by one’s adversary or from serious sickness. But above all it has the reputation of a supreme quality that it has power to protect the wearer from offensive weapons such as spear, sword, kris and even bullets, and popularly referred to as “Jimah Kebal”. This last belief is persistant and is extremely wide-spread, thus proving that this legend of the coconut pearl is indeed deep-rooted in ancient history.
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| DOI: XXXX |
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How to cite:
Hoo, W. T. (1984). Some Notes on Coconut Pearls. The Sarawak Museum Journal, XXXIII (54): 235-244 |
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References
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