BANYUWANGI, EAST JAVA — Eid al-Adha entered the second day of Tasyrik and the spirit of spreading qurbani animals still echoed to remote areas. On Wednesday (19/06/2024), Dompet Dhuafa distributed 18 doka to the Osing indigenous people who mostly work as farm laborers. The distribution was located at the foot of Mount Ijen, precisely in Tamansuruh Village, Gladag District, Banyuwangi.
With a smile on each face, the villagers were ready to share their tasks. The men were in charge of cleaning the qurbani animals and cutting them into pieces to be distributed to local residents’ houses. Mothers were preparing to process the meat into delicious Osing dishes. While the children started playing the gamelan and dancing as a form of gratitude that day, which has become their routine to preserve the original Osing culture.
Previously, Tamansuruh was also a village assisted by Dompet Dhuafa in a socio-cultural program. The commitment to preserving Osing culture is shown by fulfilling traditional musical instrument facilities and establishing a Cultural Porch there. Head of the Tamansuruh Village Community Learning Center (PKMB), Agus, said that since 2022 his party has been working with Dompet Dhuafa.
“Playing gamelan, singing traditional songs, and dancing, has become our daily life. Osing culture is still very thick here. Unfortunately it was only done by the previous parents. The limited tools make children only able to sing using sound. After Dompet Dhuafa helped facilitate new tools, children come here almost every day to play. They are self-taught, I only supervise,” Agus explained.
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Amidst the traditional music that filled the whole village, Mrs. Andiyah (50)-one of the residents of Tamansuruh Village-told us that after receiving the qurbani meat, the Osing people usually do not cook everything immediately. Some of it is stored using the fermentation preservation method.
They store the meat in pottery using the salting method. Occasionally, they dry it in the sun, then put the meat back into the pottery. That way, the meat is preserved for up to a year or two. The fermented meat is called Bekamal. When it is 2-3 days old, Bekamal gives off an unpleasant aroma. But when it is weeks old, the unpleasant aroma no longer appears.
“We want to store meat for a long time, so we have to preserve it. It’s like this (preservation) because of our difficulty in getting meat. Therefore, preservation is the best way to manage meat, so that it can be consumed even after a long time. This is the characteristic of Bekamal. At first it smells bad, but after a few weeks, the smell will disappear. We use salt, sugar and acid to make the curing perfect,” Andiyah explains.
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Darmiko (55)-one of the qurbani meat recipients-was touched when he received the meat. This was his first year receiving qurbani meat. Since two years ago, he has been suffering from a stroke on the right side of his body, making him unable to work anymore. Now, she lives alone and relies on her neighbors for her daily needs.
“I have a stroke on the right side of my body, from top to bottom, so I limp. Every day, the neighbors help me by giving me food and coffee. Today receiving qurbani from Dompet Dhuafa touched me. I have given it to my neighbor in front of my house to be processed. I can’t eat a lot of mutton. So just eat a little. At least I lightened the burden on my neighbors. I have no parents, my wife has died, and I have no children and relatives. Now I am resigned, I can’t do anything, I just worship Allah,” Darmiko explained with a hoarse voice and teary eyes.
Alhamdulillah, thanks to your qurbani, the Osing people can taste meat on Eid al-Adha. Not only that, through Bekamal’s preservation process, they can also fulfill their long-term meat supply. Together with Dompet Dhuafa, your qurbani will be delivered to remote areas of the country. (Dompet Dhuafa)
Text and photo: Hany Fatihah Ahmad
Editor: Ronna