To qualify a man to take part in this mixed system of symbolism and deceit, a form of initiative ceremony is gone through by other witch-doctors, in the course of which he is supposed to learn the secrets of his mystic calling. The aspirant to the office of manang must first commit to memory a certain amount of Dyak traditional lore, to enable him to take part in the incantations in company with other witch-doctors. But in addition to this, before he can accomplish the more important parts, such as pretending to catch the soul of a sick man, he must be publicly initiated by one or more of the following ceremonies:
1. The first is called Besudi, which means “feeling,” or “touching.” The aspirant sits in the veranda of the Dyak house, and a number of witch-doctors walk round him singing incantations the whole night. The ceremony performed over him is the same as that done for a sick man (Pelian). This is supposed to endow him with the power to touch and feel the maladies of the body, and apply the requisite cure. It admits to the lowest grade, called manang mata (unripe manang), and is obtainable for the lowest fees.
2. If a manang wishes to attain a higher grade, he goes through a second ceremony, which is called Bekliti, or “opening.” A whole night’s incantation is again gone through by the other manangs, and in the early morning the great function of initiation is carried out. The witch-doctors lead the aspirant into an apartment curtained off from public gaze by large sheets of native woven cloth. There they assert they cut his head open, and take out his brains and wash and restore them. This is to give him a clear mind to penetrate into the mysteries of disease and to circumvent the wiles of the unseen spirits. They insert gold-dust into his eyes to give him keenness and strength of sight, so that he may be able to see the soul wherever it may have wandered. They plant barbed hooks in the tips of his fingers to enable him to seize the struggling soul and hold it fast, and, lastly, they pierce his heart with an arrow to make him tender-hearted and full of sympathy with the sick and suffering. Needless to say, none of these things are done. A few symbolic actions representing them are all that are gone through. A cocoanut is placed on the head of the man and split open instead of the head, and so on. After this second ceremony the man is a fully-qualified manang—a manang mansau (a ripe manang)—competent to practise all parts of his deceitful craft.
3. There is, however, a third and highest grade, which is attainable only by ambitious candidates who are rich enough to make the necessary outlay. They may become manang bangun, manang enjun (manangs waved upon, manangs trampled upon). As in other cases, this involves a whole night’s ceremony, in which many of the older witch-doctors take part. They begin by walking round and round the aspirant to this high honour, and wave over him bunches of betel-nut blossom. This is the bangun (the waving upon). Then in the middle of the veranda a large jar is placed having a short ladder fastened on each side and connected at the top. At various intervals during the night the manangs, leading the new candidate, march him up one ladder and down the other, but what this is supposed to symbolize is not clear. As a finish to this play at mysteries, the man lays himself flat on the floor and the others walk over him and trample upon him. In some mysterious way this action is supposed to impart to him the supernatural power they themselves possess. This is the enjun, the “trampling upon.” The fees necessary to obtain this highest grade among witch-doctors are high, and therefore few are able to afford it. One who has been through this ceremony will often be heard to boast that he is no ordinary spirit-controller or soul-catcher, but something far superior—a manang bangun, manang enjun.
There is a yet higher grade which some manangs attain to—that is, when he becomes a manang bali. Bali means “changed,” and a manang bali is one who is supposed to have changed his sex, and become a woman.
Sometimes a male manang assumes female attire. He does this, it is said, because he has had a supernatural command conveyed to him in dreams on three separate occasions. To disregard such a command would mean death. He prepares a feast, and sacrifices a pig or two to avert evil consequences to the tribe, and then assumes female costume. Thenceforth he is treated like a woman, and occupies himself in female pursuits. His chief aim in life is to copy female manners and habits as accurately as possible.
A manang bali is paid much higher fees than an ordinary manang, and is often called in when others have been unable to effect a cure. I do not think there is ever a case of a young man becoming a manang bali. Generally it is an old and childless man who uses this means of earning a livelihood.
The only occasion on which I have met a manang bali was in the upper part of the Krian River. He seemed a poor sort of creature, and appeared to me to be looked down upon by the Dyaks, though they were glad enough to ask his help in cases of illness. He had a “husband,” a lazy good-for-nothing, who lived on the earnings of the manang bali.
Women as well as men may become manangs, though it is not usual to meet many such nowadays. I have only come across one woman manang, and that was at Temudok, though I have heard of several others in different parts of the country.
The fact that the manang claims to be able to hold communion with the spirit-world would lead one to suppose that he is the priest of the Dyak system of worship. But in practice the manang is more a doctor than a priest. His aid is always called in case of illness, but not necessarily at the great religious functions of the Dyaks—the sacrifice of propitiation to Pulang Gana, the god of the earth, or the sacrificial feast to Singalang Burong, the god of war. Generally, other Dyaks are the officiating ministers on these occasions, the only requisite qualification being the ability to chant the invocation and incantations which accompany the offering and ceremonies. Also at marriages or at burials the manang is not the officiant, but some old man of standing, who has a reputation for being fortunate in his undertakings. A manang may be the officiant, not by virtue of his office, but for other reasons.