Di Bawah Lindungan Kaabah

PROLOGUE

The original's cover of the novel, as I remember it.
Taken from Idris Talu's blog wo permission,
with apology

It is one of Dr Hamka's darkest novel, much darker than Tenggelamnya Kapal van der Wijck, or any of the short stories in Di Dalam Lembah Kehidupan.

And it is the most expensive movie in Indonesia.

I read the novel when I was in primary school - heck, I read most of Dr Hamka's novels by then, so in a sense, when I was young, I lived and breath all his sad, and most melancholic of stories. Mind you, not all, were love stories, if you know what I mean. His story lines were more diverse than typical Malaysian novels, nowadays especially.

I tried looking for the novel in my library, but somehow I could not find it. It is not the thickest of Bapak Hamka's novel. In fact it is one of the thinnest, so it could be the reason I have difficulty in locating the movel. In my mind too, I believe I could finish the novel in less than one hour, and thought I should pen my thought for this entry after I had re-read the novel.

To me, while I was captured by the twist of fate of Tenggelamnya Kapal van der Wijck, I thought the fate of the two lovers in DBLK were worst off. While I was captivated by the described beauty of Sitti Nurbaya (by Marah Rusli, and her suffering in her forced marriage the old but rich Datuk Meringgih, I thought that Zainab suffered the most through her marriage to a man deemed more suitable than Hamid by her parents.

I am not sure why to be honest, just the way the stories was told from the two lovers' perspectives. May be because the two were too fragile in characters, that we have no choice but to drown our sorrow with them.

As I have mentioned, the novel is a bit too short for one to develop the characters and give it more depth - not unlike those of short stories, but then again it had developed to such an extend that I was aggrieved when Hamid was banished.

You should read the (love) letters between them - it is sad, and melancholy and they had basically given up on living. She had become a 'walking skeleton', someone devoid of life.

At least, that's how I remember her and the ending of her life.

I may be wrong, but without going through the novel, after 40 years, I can still imagine her agony. And I don't want to relive them, or in a sense, I even dread re-reading them!

Di Bawah Lindungan Kaabah - The Movie

Apparently, it was released in Indonesia last Lebaran and that it went to No 1 for 3 weeks. I would not have known about it had I not read the Jakarta's edition of The Straits Times. Apparently, it has been released in Singapore yesterday.

Apparently too, it is the most expensive Indonesian movie.

I guess I am not into movies nowadays and hence this escapes me.

So I am all excited and at the same time too, I have mixed feeling. I remember all too well reading the Count of Monte Cristo (Alexander Dumas) when I was in F2, and yet disappointed with the TV series, starring one Richard Chamberlain and totally disappointed with the movie version. I think somehow one can beat the novel version of TCMC - we were all left to our imagination then and I can many stories are best left to the imagination.

I can imagine him in prison trying to chisel open the wall in order to escape, and his friendship with Abe Faria. My heart beat faster as he sneaks in into the casket of his best friend, and escaped. I can only imagine the beauty of the girl who stole his heart, whom he eventually lost out due to his vengeful bitterness at the end of the novel.

How sad, I thought.

So I am all excited and at the same time too, I have mixed feeling. I remember all too well reading the Count of Monte Cristo (Alexander Dumas) when I was in F2, and yet disappointed with the TV series, starring one Richard Chamberlain and totally disappointed with the movie version. Yes, the TV version was a better one, and I thought Richard Chamberlain did a great job as Edmond Dante, but still it lacks the emotional punch from reading a novel. I think somehow one can beat the novel version of TCMC - we were all left to our imagination then and I can many stories are best left to the imagination.

We can only imagine the beauty of the leading girls in the novels (Sitti Nurbaya, Zainab and Mercedes), I don't think the leading girls in the movies would live up to my standard (of imagination). If they are beautiful in life, I thought that the girls in the novels are a hundred time more beautiful than the actresses in the movies.

But I am told that the sets for the movie (DBLK) are lavish, if not spectacular; from the authentic Minang  roofs in the village to the water-wheels, and the uniforms worn by the train operators in 1920s Sumatra. It should be real enough to me, and I hope to see a replica of the grand mosque in those era.

This movie can only live on in that era. Anything else would make a mockery of the novel by Buya Hamka.

It looks like movie set of an epic to me, to be honest, and for that reason alone, I would love to see the movie.

1920s Minang town. Love the scene, though it looks
like a bit unreal to me.

I wish they would leave the set behind and make living museum out of it.

A real working waterwheels in a Minang setting

Zainab - of course when I was younger, I thought
the Zainab in the novel is more beautiful than this actress. Sorry,
Laudya Cynthia Bella - you are pretty but you can't live up to Sitti Nurbaya's beauty for sure.

I am prepared to be disappointed in term of character development - I have to feel their pain for me to be totally absorbed in the story line and feel the pleasure of watching this movie - any movie, for that matter; and I do know many can't lived up to my standard,  but I think the set may make it for me - just may be.

Sitti Nurbaya's Padang: A Reflection Amid the Devastation

Updated 1049 6 Oct Got news from Kampung that everybody is ok. Alhamdulillah.

Updated 1542 hours 3 Oct - 618 from one kampong buried alive. 400 attending a weddingfeast dead. It is getting grim in Padang.

Updated 1626 hours 2 Oct - Good news from Padang. Alhamdulillah keluarga Kak Yus selamat. Epicentre was in Pariaman, North of Padang, meaning it is near Tasik Maninjau (Tok Adam's kampung), meaning it is not too far from Kampung Haraban (Nenek Bulan's). Perhaps equidistant to Padang and Padang is reeling in the aftermath of the earthquake. Keeping my fingers' crossed, and praying hard.

Updated 2238 hours 1 Oct - All lines leading to Padang have been cut off. No communication is possible. Awaiting updates from Krinchi. - Latiff.

And alas, Zul's contact given is his email and I am sure email communication is totally cut off at this stage.)

I was stunned tonight when I saw the devastation in Padang.

The children crying excessively in the news clip during Buletin Utama was just too much for me to bear sitting alone in my house while Akmal was away at the surau. They were in such distress.

I felt so lonely and alone.

And suddenly I found myself wiping out tears rolling down my cheek.

I didn't bat an eyelid the night before when news trickled in that Sumatra was hit by another earthquake. I mean we have had that kind of news for years. In fact it was the tsunami in Samoa that caught my attention more than the earthquake in Sumatra.

Then I didn't know it was Padang itself which was hit.

I first saw Padang from the air during a flight from Palembang to Medan 15 years ago during a business trip. From the air, Tasik Maninjau and Singkarak, and the mountains surrounding it, including Bukit Barisan looks so serene and beautiful. From there on, I knew I have to return to Padang one day.

But it took me another five years before I was able to go and enjoy Padang - it was Jejak Kasih trip for my bro and I in our quest to find the kampong of our Nenek Bulan in Bukit Tinggi. I extended the trip to include Padang as a Menjejak Sitti Nurbaya trip.

The news says that a hotel in Ambacang collapsed. Our trip took us to Ambacang (a suburb of Padang) to Sekolah Ambacang since it was suppossedly the school Sitti Nurbaya went to in the 1920s. There we were welcomed by the principal Cikgu Yus (Kak yus) who would later become a family friend to us. To be honest, I am not sure if it was this school that Nurbaya went to, but in the end it didn't matter. I have done what I wanted to do when I read that novel; at least I was there in spirit. I had traced back all her steps as described in the novel.

We also went to Gunung Padang where Sitti Nurbaya's grave reside. But there was only one grave, whereas in the novel it describes (at the end of the chapter) that there are three graves there including Syamsul's. This was also the place where Nurbaya, Syamsul and friends used to picnic when they were kids.

And Teluk Bayur. Aaah, we would never forget that song by Ernie Djohan, a song that was popular during our days in Lenggong. This is at that rumah kayu in front of JKR where Cikgu Aziz's house is now.

I am not sure how many friends and relatives that we have residing in Padang. I would think quite a few. I hope Kampung Haraban which is may over 100 kilometres North of Padang and BukitTinggi would not be affected.

And I do hope that Pagar Ruyung would be spared. Pagar Ruyung is such a treasure. If it is lost, half of the Minangkabau/Malay civilization would be lost!

Now that I have lost my phone and contact info, I would not be able to contact them to see if they are alright. I can't even contact my own siblings and would have to wait from them to hear any news. Aboy, if you are reading this, do call me and let me know if everybody is ok there in Padang please.

I do pray things will be ok for everybody in Padang - I mean everybody, and not just our friends and relatives. The children crying as shown on telly tonight was just too much to bear for me.

We have to do something to help. I know I should. The question is to find the right avenue to make sure whatever little things we could do would reach them.

Ya Allah, berikan lah kekuatan kepada mereka dalam menghadapi ujianMu.

EPILOGUE

Sitti Nurbaya is the central character - the heroine if you must, in a novel - Sitti Nurbaya - Kasih Tak Sampai - written by Marah Rusli. And if you were to engross yourself in this novel, she would be real to you. Serious. That novel and the character will have that effect on you. You will feel her warmth, her joy and her love and you will share her pain and agony.

It was a beautiful love story set in 1920s' Padang amidst the colonial Dutch and the very traditional Minang setting. You should be reading this novel if you have not. It is a must read for all Indonesian student ie part of their curricullum. I can almost guarantee it that you will have tears in your eyes.The novel is so beautifully written. You would be taken by the love affair between Nurbaya and Syamsu, and you would feel like killing Datuk Meringgih when Nurbaya decided to accept his marriage proposal. Or you would think that your world is coming to an end yourself, as if you were Syamsulf! Damn!

I read this perhaps when I was a kid, but I re-read that when I stumbled upon the book in a bookshop in Palembang (or was it Lhokseumawe?) and got mesmerized and enchanted by her all over again. My sis told me that she had read the book too when she was a kid and would cry herself silly - so to speak. Girls! ;-) Just joking my dear sis.

If I have a daughter, I would name her Nurbaya, but then again, I don't have one, so I would stick with Arif and Akmal! ;-) (Put off that smirk Aya, you are not winning this son-daughter battle with me!)

Teluk Bayur is to Padang what Port Klang is to Kuala Lumpur.

While I was writing this, my bro called and mentioned that he saw the area affected by the earthquake is in the area where Kak Yus lives. I have lost all numbers and avenue for me to call anyone in Padang, and I am feeling helpless at this moment. Hang on, I think Zul did contact me through this blog more than a year ago. All I need to do is search the comment section.

Padang (Sumatra Barat) to the uninitiated is the craddle of Malay literature. I mean beyond the tonnes of novels and literary masterpieces that originate from this area (Hamka, Marah Rusli, and many others), Pulau Pandan, which is an important island in the psyche of the Malays, is an island off the coast of Padang. So is Pulau Angsa Dua.

You should know the pantun well. It reads like this:

PUlau Pandan jauh ketengah
Dibalik Pulau Angsa Dua
Hancur badan dikandung tanah
Budi yang baik dikenang jua

I do know that the Minangs are resilient people. I know they will be alright. I hope they will be alright.