Gawai Dayak Festival

West Kalimantan

Gawai, or the harvest festival, is celebrated in late May-early June in all settlements of West Kalimantan, which is home to the island's largest ethnic group, the Dayak people. Gawai typically lasts two or three days and includes a whole series of traditional ceremonies. The celebration I attended took place in a small West Kalimantan village that was located rather far from any large towns. 

The most exciting dancing part of the holiday took place after the offerings to local deities and a celebratory dinner. First, men performed solo dances to the accompaniment of mostly percussion instruments. These were variations of the ancient Dayak ngajat dance, which demonstrates the strength and courage of a headhunting warrior. It is not by accident that in their performances the dancers used elements of martial arts. Some men flaunted military outfits that included skulls—though these skulls belonged not to humans but to animals.

Next in the Gawai came a particular dance that involved six or seven participants. In the middle of the longhouse there was a pile made of various daily objects that apparently symbolized the wellbeing and prosperity of a Dayak household. These included rice grains, the local alcoholic beverage tuak, articles of clothing, even a small ornamental box with some kinds of valuables. Women and men would take an article from the pile and dance with it. Afterward all the guests without fail were treated to some tuak.