'Bagandang Nyiru' Looking for the Missing Child

Kal-sel (South Kalimantan, Banjarmasin) has a variety of local traditions and cultures that may not be shared by other regions in Indonesia. One of them is the tradition of 'Bagandang Nyiru'.

'Bagandang Nyiru' is sometime still used by people who usually live in remote areas or remote villages in South Kalimantan. This tradition is done to find the missing child who supposedly was hidden by the spirits. But sometime it is still used by the urban community although very rare.

The lost child, usually happen at dusk, is believed to be falling asleep under the influence of the spirits. So to regain their awareness needs to be built with 'Bagandang Nyiru'.

My father used to tell a story of when he was a child, when there was a lost child, they will perform the tradition of 'Bagandang Nyiru' made of a group of people ranging from old to young.

They hit the back of the nyiru like hitting a drum while praying and calling the name of the missing child or not coming home.

It sounds absurd, but since in the old days, rural people were still closely related to nature, these mystical things were still believed. But dad says the missing child will be found on a tree with body full of mucus. (That was the indication that a child was really kidnapped by those spirits) But if the child can not be found within a certain time, then the chances of the boy came back would be almost impossible.

Banjarmasin, Kal-sel's artist and cultural observer Y.S Agus Suseno revealed, tradition 'Bagandang Nyiru' in the villages in South Kalimantan is still used. Meaning, the subtle people (That were believed to spirited the person away) are afraid to hear the sounds caused and would release the person they were carrying.

As times progressed, this tradition has become rare occurrence, especially in urban areas. However, this tradition is still alive and used by the people of South Kalimantan in the countryside, because it is believed to be effective to scare and expel the spirits also to find those who were spirited away.