The religious belief of the ''Datuk Keramat'' worship can be found in

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

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and along the

Strait of Malacca The Strait of Malacca is a narrow stretch of water, 500 mi (800 km) long and from 40 to 155 mi (65–250 km) wide, between the Malay Peninsula (Peninsular Malaysia) to the northeast and the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southwest, conn ...

. It is a fusion of Malaysian folk religion,

Sufism Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...

, and Chinese folk religion in Southeast Asia. In Malay, means a village chief, a grandfather, or person in a high position and is an

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walte ...

loanword associated with Sufism that means "sacred, holy, blessed, mystical, supernatural, highly respected". Worshippers usually offer flowers, fruits, rice and vegetable to the shrines. Benzoin is also burnt to emit a smoky fragrant smell as part of the ritual.

Origins

According to local legends, all were once humans who had a standing in society either for their position or special attributes. They could have been an important leader, a renowned healer, a warrior, a landlord, a pious man or even a respectable , or . Upon their death, locals and their followers would sometimes offer prayers at their gravestones, in line with the concept of . In several cases, a large anthill structure was present on the grave. With the arrival of Chinese immigrants who carried along with them the Confucian belief of Ancestral Worship and their respect for Nature, both practices converged and formed a new micro-culture as observed today. Datuks, referred to in Chinese as

Na Tuk Kong Na Tuk Gong are local guardian spirits worshipped by overseas Chinese communities in Malaysia, Singapore and parts of Indonesia, especially Sumatra. An alternate more generic name for the cult is Datuk Gong, uniting Dato or Datuk from the local ...

, is considered a localised form in worship of the spirit of the land, along with Tu Di Gong (Earth Deities).

Shrines

''Keramat'' is a small yellow-coloured painted shrines that can be found along sidewalks or under trees in Malaysia. These shrines are usually worshipped by residents living nearby. The shrines are normally of a fusion Chinese-Malay design, with

Islamic Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or ''Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the main ...

elements such as the crescent moon decorations. Inside the shrine, a small, decorated statue or a piece of stone (wrapped in yellow cloth) is venerated, representing the . Offerings are brought and placed around the , or sometimes on a small altar in front of it.

Types

One belief is that there are a total of nine types of , and that each of them were once great warriors and expert in Malay local martial arts, the except for the last . They were also known to possess great magical powers. Worshippers usually pray to for protection, good health, and good luck, and sometimes seek divine help to overcome their problems. Below are the nine from the eldest to the youngest: 1. ''Datuk Panglima Ali'' (Ali)
2. ''Datuk Panglima Hitam'' (Black)
3. ''Datuk Panglima Harimau'' (Tiger)
4. ''Datuk Panglima Hijau'' (Green)
5. ''Datuk Panglima Kuning'' (Yellow)
6. ''Datuk Panglima Putih'' (White)
7. ''Datuk Panglima Bisu'' (Mute)
8. ''Datuk Panglima Merah'' (Red)
9. ''Datuk Panglima Bongsu'' (Youngest) The structure of worship is diversified according to localities. For example, in the old quarters of Georgetown, the presence of The Seven Brothers or ''Tujuh Beradik' 'is common while in the royal town of Klang in Selangor, most of the spirits worshipped are believed to be members of the royal court (sultans, officers, warriors etc.), each with their own unique identity.

Worship ritual

Worshippers usually offer fresh flowers, (betelnuts), (local hand rolled cigarettes), sliced (areca nuts) and local fruits. An important part of the praying ritual is also to burn some (benzoin, made from a local gum tree, when burnt emit a smoky fragrant smell). If their prayers are answered, the worshippers usually return to the shrine and make offerings or hold a (feast). Another common practise is for individuals to renovate the shrines to create a better looking shrine for the . In most places where there is a heavy presence of spirits, it is common to see shrines becoming larger over time, especially if individuals consider the to be 'powerful'. The items usually consist of yellow saffron rice, lamb or chicken curries, vegetables, (bananas), young coconuts, rose syrup, (local cigars) and local fruits. Pork items are considered impure and are therefore forbidden in shrines; visitors are also asked to not show disrespect when inside or around a shrine.

Literature

* M. Kamal Hassan (Editor), Ghazali Bin Basri. "Religions and Beliefs" in ''Encyclopedia of Malaysia''. Archipelago Press, Singapore. (2006). * Abdul Wahab Bin Hussein Abdullah. “A Sociological Study of Keramat Beliefs in Singapore”. B.A Honours Academic Exercise, Department of Sociology, National University of Singapore, 2000. * Cheu, Hock Tong. “The Datuk Gong Spirit Cult Movement in Penang: Being and Belonging in Multi-ethnic Malaysia”. Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, vol. 23, no. 1 (September), 381–404. * Cheu, Hock Tong. “Malay keramat, Chinese worshippers: The Sinicization of Malay Keramats in Malaysia”. Seminar paper, Department of Malay Studies, National University of Singapore, 1994. * Cheo, Kim Ban and Muriel Speeden, ''Baba Folk Beliefs and Superstitions''. Singapore: Landmark Books, 1998. * Clammer, John ed. ''Studies in Chinese folk religion in Singapore and Malaysia''. Singapore: Contributions to Southeast Asian ethnography, 1983. * Elliott, Alan J.A. ''Chinese Spirit-Medium cult in Singapore''. Singapore: Donald Moore, 1964. * Lessa, William A. et al., ''Reader in Comparative Religion: An Anthropological Approach''. New York, Harper and Row, 1965. * Mohd Taib Osman, ''Malay folk beliefs: An integration of disparate elements''. Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 1989. * Ng, Siew Hua, “The Sam Poh Neo Neo Keramat: A Study of a Baba Chinese Temple”. Contributions to Southeast Asian Ethnography, vol. 25, pt. 1, 1983, 175–177. * Skeat, W.W. ''Malay Magic''. London: MacMillan, 1900. * Tan, Chee Beng. ''The Baba of Melaka''. Selangor, Pelanduk Publications, 1988. * Tjandra, Lukas. ''Folk religion among the Chinese in Singapore and Malaysia'' (Ann Arbour, Michigan: University Microfilms International, 1990), 48. * ''The Straits Times'', "Johor Committee submits report on Houses of Worship," 29 Dec 1989. * ''The Straits Times'', "Stop Use of Muslim Signs, Chinese temples Told," 25 June 1987.

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