THE DANCING FEAST 117 



One man held an upright stick between the legs of the 

 animal, while another opened the artery of the neck with 

 one thrust of his knife. The pig was next lifted up by the 

 carrying-pole so that the blood might run into a vessel, 

 which was handed to a man who climbed the kapatong 

 and smeared blood on the image of a human being at the 

 top. This indicated that the feast was for the benefit 

 of the soul of that ironwood statue, because it is an in- 

 variable custom for the blood of a sacrificed animal to be 

 smeared on the principals of any feast or ceremony, and 

 this is also done when attempting to cure or ward off ill- 

 ness. The same custom obtains in the case of those about 

 to be married ; or, if children are to be named, if a move is 

 made to a new home, blood is first daubed on the house. 



The pig was then carried a little farther away, where 

 the space was more favourable for dancing, which soon 

 began to our edification. It was the same type of dance 

 that is universal among the Dayaks wherever I have been, 

 although other varieties are seen in Borneo. This princi- 

 pal one consists of moving in a circle around the sacrificial 

 offering, which is lying at the foot of an upright rod to the 

 top of which a piece of cloth is tied, or at the base of a 

 sacred jar (blanga). The participants join hands, and 

 the movement is slow because an essential feature con- 

 sists in bending the knees — heels together — down and up 

 again, slowly and in time; then, moving one step to the 

 left and bringing right heel to left, the kneeling is re- 

 peated, and so on. The men danced for a long time, at 

 first by themselves, then the women by themselves, but 

 most of the time the circle was made up of alternate men 



