Reba (As Ngadanese Thanksgiving Celebration)

VOXRATEWATI.Com. By Wara Cypriano

Reba

Reba was one of the most important harvest ceremonies that held annually in Ngadanese culture. It was to express gratitude towards the ancestors for the past year and asking for a fortune of the new-year. In the villages, the people usually were preparing the sacrifices. The Reba ceremony used to evaluate everything about life of the society in the previous year is that have been undertaken by the Ngadanese local culture. The community asked the suggestions to the religious and the traditional leaders to be able to live better in the new -year. 

Reba was scheduled and executed according to the local calendar. Therefore, it did not have a great time in the national calendar. Reba was usually held around the month; such as in Sada was held in early of December, in Doka, 25 km from Bajawa go on middle of December and also in Bena-Tiworiwu, Aimere. On January is held in Nage-Dariwali and also in Aimere, Wogo – Ratogesa, Golewa, Langa or Beiposo-Wawowae and also held in Bajawa. Reba ceremony also conducted in February were in Nenowea in Jerebu’u, Mangulewa or Turekisa Sobo in Golewa, and also in Gisi-  Golewa. The Reba ceremony started with “Bhui Loka”. It was as the initial part of the Reba ceremony, where a scared place in the village was ritually cleansed and sacrifice animals were given to the ancestors. For the ceremony, all the families such as the family members (Ana Sa’o), tribe members (Ana Suku), village members (Ulu Eko) have gathered in the main village as the traditional village.  

The ceremony held on three days in this village with houses representing of each clan. Several sacrifices of pigs and chickens are carried out at the many ancestral shrines in the village. After “Bhui Loka” every family returned to their clan’s house to conduct some ceremonies. The families got together in the inner part of house where they cooked meals in their daily life. At that moment, the family members discussed and plan for the next year agenda such as, whether any renovations have to be done on the house, the cleaning and maintenance ancestral shrines, or even upcoming weddings. After sunset, the village elder meets by a tall bamboo pole where they will perform the ritual of “Dheke Reba” until the crack of dawn. 

In Dheke Reba time, all guests came and joined into their family. The dancers and the ceremony participants who had to go on until the morning hours in was a good spirit. The local liquor was served as well as three additional meals. These meals also initiated “Ka Maki Reba”, it was the mass fast, which was to last until the next night. The ceremony includes ritual practices, dance and perform the traditional music and singing called (O Uwi). The dancing was seen as a means to connect to the earth through feet pounding on and on and express the people’s longing for the best harvest. At the end the third day all the rituals are sealed by “Dhoi” is a farewell ceremony for the families that must returned to their village, so ancestors could protected them on the way home. So that was the series of the Reba ceremony were ended. 

(Adapted from idahnyaflores.blogspot.co.id)