Tigers are naturally too fierce to be tracked by the Malays, and are usually caught in specially constructed traps (pĕnjara rimau), or killed by a self-acting gun or spear-trap (b’lantek s’napang, b’lantek tĕrbang, b’lantek parap, etc.); but even in this case the Pawang explains to the tiger that it was not he but Muhammad who set the trap. There are, however, as might be expected, a great number of charms intended to protect the devotee in various ways from the tiger’s claws and teeth. Of these I will give one or two typical specimens.
Sometimes a charm is used to keep the tiger at a distance (pĕnjauh rimau):—
“Ho, Bĕrsĕnu! Ho, Bĕrkaih!
I know the origin from which you sprang;
(It was) Sheikh Abuniah Lahah Abu Kasap.
Your navel originated from the centre of your crown,
Your breasts are [to be seen] in [the spoor of] your fore-feet.[91]
May you go wide (of me) as the Seven Tiers of Heaven,
May you go wide (of me) as the Seven Tiers of Earth;
If you do not go wide,