The two men are preparing the offering for the Gawai Ritual for the night. The rice that is cooked in bamboo is cut into small pieces, while other foods are wrapped in leaves. It is not that they couldn’t afford to provide plate or bowl for the foods, it is the old tradition. Imagine that the foods are served on the ‘Falcon’ dinnerware, won’t it be like celebrating the ritual at the five star restaurant.
The skulls are hanged on the roof of the Dayak Communal Hall 'The Baruk'. In the olden days, the Dayak used to hunt for head as part of the ritual for the young boys to be men, to gain the respect of the elderly and to charm the young ladies of the village. I guess it would be whole lot easier for the young boys nowadays to gain respect and charm the ladies as they only need to have thick wallet filled with money and a 'Proton Inspira'. Back then, they might be considered a hero if they managed to bring back the head, now they would be considered a sadistic murderer which is similar to Jack the Ripper and deserve to be outcasted from the village.
The musicians are seen kept in the cage. The villagers do not want them to disappear during the offering ritual ceremony. They are forced to practice on their musical instruments until its’ perfect. Otherwise, they would be burnt alive inside it.
People are seen attracted and curious to know what the villagers put inside the ritual hut. Some of them posed beside the sliced pork, assuming that would it be nice if the pork be brought back for BBQ. Some look distorted and curious. The hut supposed to be the place for the Dayak Priests to gather around during the Offering Ritual Ceremony, not a site for photoshooting~ i****.
The lady priest is seen waiting patiently for the rest of the crews to hop in and be prepared for their Ceremony.
The cooked and wrapped foods are seen displayed on the verandah of the Baruk, ready to be moved into the Ritual Hut. Hope the foods would still be around when the time comes. The lady priest looked pretty hungry to me.
The offerings are placed in the hut together with the earlier offerings. The offerings are actually part of the ritual in feeding the spirit of the ‘padi’, so the villagers will get better harvests next year. Then again, I'm not certain that it would be relevant nowadays as most of the villagers are no more farmers. Maybe next year they should make offerings for better employment and more work opportunities for the village folks. Sramat Ari Gawai, Kaban!
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