A Case for Si Tanggang ?

(1) 3 posts a day ? Man i must have a lot of real time, the truth is actually i just love to post new blogs at my new "lawn" area, its just nice to write blogs while listening to bbcnews at background and enjoying the stars and the cold night air at my "lawn"

(2) The issue on the mind at hand right now is Sit Tanggang, a friend of mine jokingly brought it up. And on the eve of this raya nonsense, what better way to celebrate raya than to re-examine the belief system we have on raya and family loyalty.

(3) To those who never had the pleasure ( or pain ) to know who is tanggang, he is in a nutshell, a kampong dude who was kidnapped when he was small while fetching water from the river by merchants sailing in a ship, he became a ship hand, eventually becoming well off, had his own ship, married a pretty girl and well lived happily ever after. One day when he was sailing downriver he met some ulu people who was shouting estatically at him, it turned out to be his parents, to cut a long Bollywood story short, yada yada, he refuses to acknowledge them, they cry cry cry. The parents got broken hearted, yada yada yada. Cursed him and turned him and the whole ship into stone...sheesh...talk about collateral damage...dont the parents think about the OTHER sailors who have kids and wives to go back to..

(4) No, I am not going to retell the whole story, the case i am going to argue is regarding Tanggang, and his conviction of not acknowledging his parents. We all were brought up to believe that Tanggang is an arrogant fellow who had forgotten his roots. It was because those reasons that he was cursed into stone. Poor fellow.

(5) Did it ever occurred to anyone that Tanggang was probably doing what he thought was right ?, It is the fundamental principle of humans and this was even acknowledged by the writer of the excellent book Awaken the Giant Within , Anthony Robbins that humans operate on the principle of “ AVOIDING PAIN and TOWARDS COMFORT”. What if Tanggang knew that by going back he would be going back to a whole world of pain ? and this knowing the family and parochial system in place it would mean that he would once again be a servant to his family and tribe once again. Would you want to become a servant again after working so hard for your freedom and worth. Bear in mind that Tanggang came from one of those tribes where you are expected to pay tribute to the head villager at least once a year ( not that it is much different from the malay village, a tribute will have to be given one way or the other via sedekah, or belanja or whatever you call it nowadays). If he had acknowledge the parents back, he would have to be under that stifling system again. Would you want to be a servant again after working so hard for your freedom ?

(6) Suppose its not the village head or the parochial system that made him refuse to acknowledge his parents and lineage, but it was his parents ? Did it ever occurred to anyone that he may have a good reason not to acknowledge them?, Maybe he was abused as a child? Abuse need not mean sexually, it could also mean that he was tasked to bring water from the river to the house 50 times a day. Who would on his right mind go back to such a life ? We are not talking a life with air conditions and Astro and Streamyx here, we’re talking a hard tribesman life circa 1800. Also he may have not been the favourite in the family and was constantly bullied by his siblings and friends. What better way to give the thumb than by moving on from such oppressive life. What i am trying to say is that maybe life was harsh for him and he made a conscious decision not to have such oppressive life. Shouldnt we respect his decision ?

(7) Maybe if Tanggang were to admit his parents there and then there would be a mutiny on the ship, Maybe the sailors could not accept that their captain was a orang Asli from a backwater village. Try imagine a American galleon captain in the 1800s admit that he has Negro blood. His sailors would tie him to a log and throw him overboard. Knowing the mentality of people at that time they would certainly do so. They would rather be captained by a talking parrot than a half Negro captain. Not that i have anything against a Negro but i am just stating the mindset of the people living at that time.

(8) My last point, when he was turned into stone, he had a ship and also a wife, that would mean he was a man of his own already, The parents should have been happy to see that their son had turned out to be better than them, not drag him back to their backwater meandering ways, Even if he didn’t acknowledge them maybe it is for the best of things. Maybe such lineage should be forgotten in order for him and his generations to live better.

(9) It is near raya, Maybe it is time turn the stone into man, Failure to look at it differently it would mean that the stone is set in our hearts instead.