A Primer on Brunei Classical Literature

If you have been a regular reader of this blogsite and of my column in Brunei Times, you would notice that I have several constant or regular references which I always refer to. This includes the Syair Awang Semaun and the Batu Tarsilah or Genealogical Stone Tablet. Sometimes I refer to other classical works. I don't know about you all but I personally have been curious whether out there lies

The Tale of the Unfilial Son

[Note: An edited version of this article was published in The Golden Legacy column in Brunei's national newspaper, The Brunei Times dated 31st March 2007.]There was this tale of a local boy, who went away to better his and his family’s lot in life. After many years, he achieved success and wealth, married a a noblewoman and became the owner of a huge ship, forgetting his humble roots in the

Bersunat - Then and Now

Before my son underwent his circumcision, he was curious about what will happen. When I related my own experience, I realized mine was different from his. Since then I discovered that in the older days, there were variations to the ceremonies but also variations to which bits to remove.In the earlier days, bersunat is considered as the mark of a true Muslim. Immediately just before the

Circumcision in Old Brunei

In Brunei and in Indonesia, circumcision is known as bersunat but in Malaysia, berkhatan. In the earlier days, bersunat is considered as the mark of a true Muslim. Immediately just before the circumcision, the boy would be asked to recite the ‘kalimah sahadat’ which is the recitation every Muslims or would be Muslims undertake to declare themselves as Muslims – thus by saying it just before the

Modern Circumcision in Brunei

My just turned 7 years old son was circumcised during the school holidays. He was scheduled to have done it together with a few of his cousins and anak buah last December but missed it as we were on holiday in KL. So this March, we had ample time to prepare. There is normally a fairly long queue at RIPAS, so it is best to book a time early. There are also a couple of private clinics which offer

Memukun - Brunei's Unique Tradition

I was staring at the computer last night raking my brain for today's topic when I heard someone being interviewed about 'memukun' on Rangkaian Nasional. Rangkaian Nasional has a program where people can actually sing through their telephones - a duet with another singer in the studio. I remembered in the 1980s when 'memukun' first appeared on national radio. A number of people who were trading at

Languages in Brunei

I haven't done a Brunei book review for quite a while. I thought I will do one on the many books that have arrived over the last couple of months.This book 'Language Use and Language Change in Brunei Darussalam' I thought was particularly interesting to people who study languages in Brunei. We take our languages for granted but apparently according to language researches, our beloved country

Origin of Tasek Merimbun

Tasek Merimbun is probably one of the more internationally known park in Brunei. It is the only one in the country to be declared an ASEAN National Heritage Site way back in 1984. The park has a total area of about 8,000 hectares. Two rivers flowed through to the lake named Sungai Meluncur and Sungai Bang Oncom. If you have ever been to Tasek Merimbun, the waters from the two rivers are fairly

Serban Turban Lessons

If you have ever been on the haj, one of the things you would learn if you are a male, is how to tie the turban or better known in Brunei as serbans. Tying the turbans or as the Bruneians call it is to 'menambat serban'. Serban is that traditional headgear worn by Arabs but has more or less been accepted as an Islamic head dress. Wearing a turban usually signifies that the person has been on the

The Local Brunei Writing Scene

I find it ironic that for Brunei Malays or Brunei Chinese that we are proud of whatever race we belong to, we speak the languages but surprisingly if I was to ask the Malays - do you read Malay books and the Chinese - do you read Chinese books - the answer I get is often the negative. Not many of us read books in our native languages yet we all race to the next best selling English novels. Some

You can't do that!

Last year, I was attracted to a book called "Don't sit on this book" written by Philip Cheong. It was an interesting book as it is a collection of Chinese taboos and superstitions. The things the Chinese can or cannot do. Philip Cheong is a Master at the Fung Shui Academy in Malaysia. He pointed out that one of the interesting things about taboos is that as they are passed down from generations

The Ambuyat

The other night, our agency was hosting a bunch of international people here in Brunei. During dinner, I overheard one of my colleagues trying to explain to them about Brunei’s local food – the ambuyat – how it was prepared and where it came from. I realized that even though most of us Bruneians know what ambuyat is, and probably know a little bit of how it is prepared, some of us might know a

Collection of Jong Sarat

I spent the whole day at Rizqun yesterday at the Mall in Gadong. No, I am not on leave. I was attending an executive forum on central banks’ reserve management. The speakers were from the World Bank Treasury. It was full of phrases like ‘strategic asset allocation’, ‘standard deviation of volatility’, ‘asset classes’ and ‘efficient frontiers’ – sounds interesting? Ya, if you are into it. Reminds

Ahuta Sar Mata Seri Buhana

When I raided my dad's collection of books last weekend, I found one which I think should be read by those who are very interested in Brunei culture and which I really really hope that Dewan Bahasa will reproduce or reprint or whatever but at least make it available to the public again.The book is entitled "Ikhtisar Budaya" which was first published by DBP in 1976 and have been reprinted in 1982