2(5 



F0LKL0BE OF THE MALAYS. 



repeat the following sentence, with his teeth closed and without 

 drawing breath: " Kun kata Allah sapaya hun kata Muhammad 

 tab paku" ( " Kun saith God, so kun saith Muhammad ; nail be 

 fixed"). Other formulas are used during other stages of the pro- 

 ceedings. 



The deer (rusa) is sometimes believed to be the metamorphosed 

 body of a man who has died of an abscess in the leg (cliabuk), 

 because it has marks on the legs which are supposed to resemble 

 those caused by the disease mentioned. Of course, there are not 

 wanting men ready to declare that the body of a man who has died 

 of chabuk has been seen to rise from the grave and to go away into 

 the forest in the shape of a deer. 



It is lucky to keep cats. The essentially selfish nature of this 

 animal is recognised by the Malays, who say that it always longs 

 for the prosperity of its master, a consummation likely to give it a 

 larger and softer cushion to lie upon ! The dog, on the other hand, 

 is unlucky. He longs for the death of his master, an event which 

 will involve the slaying of animals at the funeral feast, when the 

 bones will fall to the dogs. When a dog is heard howling at night 

 he is supposed to be thinking of the broken bones (nidt handak 

 mengutib tulang patah). 



Many Malays refuse to eat the fresh-water fish called ilean bcli- 

 dah on the plea that it was originally a cat. They declare that it 

 squalls like a cat when harpooned, and that its bones are very 

 white and fine like a cat's hairs. Similarly, the ikan tumuli is 

 believed to be a human being who has been drowned in the river, 

 and the ikan kalul to be a monkey transformed. Some specially- 

 favoured observers have seen monkeys half through the process of 

 metamorphosis — half-monkey and half-fish ! 



Miscellaneous. 



To be long in getting up after a meal, is said to be a bad omen. 

 It means that the person, if unmarried, will meet with a bad recep- 

 tion from his or her parents-in-law hereafter. The Malay saying 

 in the vernacular is "Lambat bangket deri tampat makan, lambat 

 di-tegur mentmoak" 



Clothes which have been nibbled by rats or mice must not be 

 worn again. They are sure to bring misfortune, and are generally 

 given away in charity. 



