RUMOURS AND REALITIES OF MARRIAGE PRACTICES IN CONTEMPORARY SAMlN SOCIETY

Since the mid 19"h century the Samin people have made a contribution to resisting the Dutch colonial rule in rural Java through their non-violence movement and passive resistance (lijdeiijk verset). History also notes that they have a unique culture and system of values which reflect their own local wisdom. However, many negative rumours have become widespread regarding this community. This article explores the marriage practices in Samin society and investigates how this society gives meaning to these marriage practices. It also examines whether the practice of 'virginity tests' and 'stray marriages' exist in contemporary Samin qociety.

people can conclude that they are living together out of wedlock.Furthermore, these marriages usually are not reported officially to the govemment, so that most ofthem are iltegal (not certified).As a mnseqwnce, the multing ch4dfBi-1 do not have birth certificates.The rumour about the 'virginity test' has become Mespreiad, as evidenced by jokes like: 'If you want to "get married under a tme" (iltegdlyt without any mnseqm17~8s) and want to gett "frse" *in& just go to the Sarrtin, you can leave the woman whenever you want, even just one day after having sex.' A number of studies have been conducted on M n society from dierent perspectives.For example, there are those that examine the Samin movement in terms of the causes and origins of the movement2, the nature of their religion3, the patron-client relationships around their movemenv, the uniqueness of their language5, and how they survived the Dutch colonial period by creating a special architectural design in their dwelling system6.However, little information regarding marriage practices in Samin society is available.The study of mamage practices in this community is therefm crucial because it mcems the status and treatment of women.
Marriage can be defined as ' a life-long union of a man and a woman for the purpose of establishing a family'.'Thegoals of marriage are to provide opportunities for sexual intimacy, companionship, family continuity, establishment of parenthood, legitimate reprodudion, emotional fulfilment, and widening of inter-personal relati~ns.~Through marriage, humans can build a family and strengthen their kinship In his worklo, M u l l a h discusses marriage p m d e s in Samin society.He dassifies marriage practices in Samin society as endogamous.
Endogmy refers to a system where group members find spouses from within the group.He ar~ues that endogamous marriage has been Sbrry martiage, acoweling to Shiraishi, is a ritual in which a man has to ask a woman, not his intended wife, to many him without any coeraon or tricks.After sleeping together, only once, and after leaving the woman, he can return to his wife.I4 However, even though he described the 'stray marriage'

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Another study related to the marriage j practices in Samin society is that of Murnfangati.15She mentions that their marriages are usually performed by parents and are not reported officially to the govemment, so that most of the resulting children do not have birth certificates.However, her study is too superF6cfal and lacks focus, endeavouring as it does to aover too many aspects of the Samin society.
To understand the m a w system in the Samin community we need to understand their belief system.In relation t~  This means that thydo not d i i i m t e against people on the basis of physical appearance or status.
Mamiage in Samin community is performed without government involvement.They refuse kawin coro twgum (marriage by govmment rubs).In the Samin M(lopoduwur community today, whieh can be cxmklered as ribre tmdm than other Samin communities such as BomtKmg, Balong and Tanduran, after their marriage, a newly married cuuple report thdr marriage to the government to get a marriage certificate.In the past, Samin psaple in Klopoduwur did not report their marriages.As a consequence, their offspring did not have birth certifmtes or identity cards.They argued that if they registered their marriage, thaJ gcwwmmt would record them as the fdkwers of one of the six state religion^.^This wcnol d m a n they would be betraying Agama Adam as their belief system. Adat in the Samin community divides the mamiage process into several stages.These stages have been examined by R o ~y i d ~~.However, Rosyid's work is descriptive and does not analyse the meaning of marriage practices in Samin society.According to Rosyid, the first stage is nyuwuk (asking a woman's marib!status).In this stage, a man who is ready to marry asks about the status of a woman he wants to marry.Nyuwuk -can be done by the man or by his parents.If her status is m a W , then the man will withdraw the woman is still woman's parents will ask she consents or not to the p agrees with the proposal, the man a n the woman's house to continuer fbr s stage, that is ngawulo ('appmn woman's house).However, in n ) l m k I h woman has a right to accept or to refuse the marriage proposal.The man has to accept whether st-le agrees r x d h g m .This stmws that in Samin marriage bacfitkwr, a wonm has freedom to chose her hu8band witha$ m y coercion from others;.This difftam fmm t b Javanese adat, where most maMages am arranged by the parents of the coupk.=For some people in Samin communities, nyuwuk is then followed by nywito (the groom's family applies for In this stage, they will and g d a n i g setangkep"as part ofthe The gambjr and sirih is believed spirits away, while gedang symbolises a relationship between the bridegroom and bride that will continue hpptty until the end of their lives.At this &tag&, the parents of the groom eatrrrst their w n fa Ms many cases where after view the nyuwito tmdiiion a s mmty a pro$lem of selem (taste).The groam's pslaene usual& (bride prim).this is because Samin people believe that this system has more disadvantages than advantages.For example, if the groom is from a poor st@tw a8 hwmn beings) so that ef~t B dbtrJrb5ng to the Samin W to stay in the parents-in-law's house and workg forthem as a peasant in sawah or tqal (wet or dry rice fields), or as a shepherd of mffle.In this stage, he does not rec~ive afiy payment, but all of his needs wiU be for by his parents-in-law.In this stage is regarded as a family member and is to sleep with his YisnM.The length af the ngawulo stage is relative and depends on the situation.For bridegrooms who are already mature, it may not take a long time.It m i d be a week or two.But for those who ape still young, it could reach up to two years.In this coptext, the marriage will be considered 'lawful' if the bride's parents have approved their relations.
After ngawulo, the next stage is kondo (reporting to the woman's parents) that they have done sikep rabi31 (sexual intercourse) as proof that they really pod0 senenge (love each other).Samin people believe that marriage has to be based on love and this has to be proven by having sexual intercourse during the ngawulo stage.
The last stage in the Samin marriage process is diseksekno (witness ceremony).In this stage, the groom will testify that he has done sikep rabi with the bride.The bride's parents wilt witness that the bridegroom has passed the process well.It is thus shown that they tumbuh katresnan (realty love each Qther) and are mkun (harmonious).Based on isdat, the task of the bride's mother is oqmbing t M ca;rmmony (to make them mkun).The task of the We's father is to giw agresrrrent to fkdr relaf-ion$hSp.The period far dimk~ekno is apik'(the faster the better).The last argument against the idea of 'virginity tests' in Samin society is based on their bel' mf that 'Bojo siji kanggo s8Iawasca' (one wife farewer).This means that when a rnan has sex with a woman, he is effectively making a pegat mati oath?He and his wife seek to keep their oath and try to niteni (always be introspective and remember the oath).That is why Samin KIopoduwur prefers to be called mngpcsnitt+n (pecpie who are niteno.After having sexual intercourse, a couple will not &wee until one dear that A ~A ~ of 'virginity tests' and polyandry in the Samh community seems b be myths.

'STRAY MARRIAGES'
Another rurnour about the Samin m u n i t y is that they encourage a practice of 'stray marriage'.According to Dangir's Testimony, if Samin men commit adultery, they have to purify their body through a 'stray marriage'.In a 'stray rrraniage' a man should look for a m n (apart from his own wife) to 'marry'.This ritual shoutd be done without coercion or deception, and &so As a result women can piay roles in both the dm&ic and public spheres b e l i i that women can heaven but not to hell hi ghl y untikely that the support a practice as degrading to women as ofwMchistouusa patiently; if insulted mmams~~1TQfWf-ormonsyorfoodfrom anyone; but ifmykine asks for food or money from you, give it freely.'45In Agama Adam they disasters, accidents, failed harvests, social believe that sin cannot be absolved.If a sin isolation or gossiping by others.The could be absolved then people would sin more.consequence of sin after salin sandangan" Samin people also believe in in which (death) is more horrifying as they will be someone who does sin will suffer either in this reincarnated as animals.Related to this, world or the next.In this world, for example, Saministssay: they might face some bad experiences like On the basis of my fieldwork, 1 betierwe 'virginity tests' and 'stray marriwes' are just myths.In contrast, the Sarnin w m u n i Q through their maniage s p t m show 8 wodd full of respect for women, a world which is egalitarian.This flows from A g m a Adam beliefs.To maintain this system, social sanctions are created for those who have broken the rules.These rules seek to mate a society which values women, a society which is harmonious, tolerant, and egalitarian.In this context, the myths of 'virginity tests' and 'stray marriages' do not seem at all credible.
The Samin Klopoduwur marriage practice system seems to show a high level of respect for women.The rumours about the 'virginity tests' and the 'stray marriages' have made Samin people vulnerable and marginalised.Those who were rnostty insulted by the rumours were women.To reveal the reasons behind the rumours, it is necessary to look at and to understand the social and political context surrounding Samin.Understanding the history of Samin society will help in answering why the rumours exist.

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custom in Samin society, he was interested in the social and political context surrounding the i Samin movement and his data was based only on an old document, 'Dangir's testimony', which 4 comprises the notes that the patih (vice regent) i i of the Regency of Pati made after he intermgated I Dangir, a Samin villager of Genengmulyo who 1 was arrested on November 26,1928.

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customary law) which requires endogamy.Samin pmpk can many outside the Samin commwfityanty people b e e a m Samin. is meant to mainbin the min community.Samin bib &at marriage is s a d as it is awq+ to adsieve magnanimity and to produce .. ... ?/ Picture 1. Proud to be Samin: A Sarnin ' ~~' W m r , Blom.good descendants.M a w e is based on love without coercion by others.They have a belief that 'Kabeh lmang ganteng, kabeh W o k ayu' (all men are handsome, a11 women beautiful).
) rarely happens.713'1 ##am fmrn the Javanese adat, which has many ceretnonies and demands high costs.SBIn nyuwuk or nyuwo, there is no as& fubn or m s kawin

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& m i i n peopk do not irmdve the w v m m & .This h because g m r r r m authority is not seen a$ superior to parents' authority (gowrnmnt is made up d human beings who are not su are just as human).That is wh considered 'legal' even th only by parents.By contrast, they rept#t to Sesepuh Samin (a Samin ekler), who attmds the ceremony.This d i i r s from the txdirwry Javanese custom in which marriages are performed by naib or penghulu (a b a d Islamic religious representative).*Diseksekfio is marked by adang a k W . i In diskwkm, the g r m h a to say the j Sadat (The Samin profession of kith).The Sadat contains a statement that the g m acknowledges the bride as b t u r urip ( M d for life) and promises to stay together and nukulke wlji sejati (give descmdanb).Hem is the Sadat that is said by the groom: haBefofly your maniage will produce goorl d m d a n b .'

Ratu Adil or Hem T j (Jugt King). The literature mkw k s shorwn 4hat mmy scholars have been intembd in &dying the
people also call them Samfn-s~mhan or nyamin, which means pretending to be M n people).
women on centre stage; (3) even though there are studies related to the M a g e pradkm in Samin sxkty, the analysis of the practices in these studies is supe-1, and has a lack of focus, notseeking an i -t t on dthe amspt paper poses the following questions:SAMIN KLOPODUWURA study of the Geger Sattrin (Sanin movement) in rural Java during the Dutch cdonial era cannot be separated f m the life of Soemntiko amin, the founding father of this m m & .Sfman& Samb~ was boFn in lW%l as Raden K ~h a r .~ n K&ar changed his name to Soemtiko ita~skto sodalke with 0relinau)c people.Many saum~ menth that P b Kedbn Bkm was bdmed to be the hometown of S08mko."most peopte in PIoss W h do not to b e t h e c a s e ." P e o p l e i n R m ~E r w him as a simple and konest gaodattitudeandwasweb u f t h i s , h e w a s w e l l ~. ~n U k t ) popular in his neighbourhod when he reskstd new image of him as a hero, At the time, generation to sprehld Sammism around 191f. w sons and Kajen Pati, and EngW (a mnEn;korM of Soerantiko), who spread Sarninisrn in m , ~.310ra.#ErlgtaP$c&minim in -due wmgw'(a hmnwhoWv6F)IgOM)mm and saMi, which means he had s u m & and magical power).However, after Surosentiko d i d , Saminism was split into five groups: SBmfn Lugw, a m i n SangM, ~m i n h p i ~m m r p i n g , Ssmin Gogd and&&--, Samblq~ucomprisesthe of §uemn&a Salwln who stressed do not really know about the Samin beliefs but nevertheless dam t h mas Samin people (Singosamin, Mint0 and Sahmo.With hi can'k, Engkrek babat alas, i.e., he deared an area for settlement at Karang Pace.This area was given to his catfk and Karang Pace became the headquarter for the Samin people in Klopodhuwur.Through rnaniageswiththe localwwnen, Engkmk and his cantrik became inmasingly popular in this village.After discovering that Engkrekwas a saktiperson, almost all village rnernbew became his followers and he became well-known to people in other villages.Many people, m i n J y coming from Pati, Kudus and Jepara, came to the area to study aminism.In his efforts to seek followam, Engkrek @n gave kas8MBnsuch 9s f FMn-1-~~ A Samin in THE STAGES OF MARRfAOE The marriage practice in the Samin community differs from that in the common Javanese tradition.Matiage is carried out only between the Barnin members base-el on adat The other reason why the 'virginity test' is nat mmgnised in the Samin community is

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has to be b 'Stray marriage' does ncd rn to exist in the Samin Klopoduwur mmwrMy, This k due to the belief that a woman's status in the community is higher than that of8 man.This is based on the reality that m can ad as mothers, and therefore have signifiaa~t d t because of smh mles as giving birth, b w 8 t feeding, & i , caring and teaching OtaHdten.Thsmfum, mothgr is the qmbd of Thb b illustmbd by the