Battle of North Borneo of World War II: Machine guns were no match to Iban tattoos

In an interview session, Maung, the last traditional Iban tattoo artist of Skrang, told Dr. Lars
Krutak, an American cultural anthropologist, his surreal account of the Japanese occupation. The
Japanese soldiers were up against only 55 Iban warriors. Despite being a battle of machine guns
versus primitive spears, it was the Iban that won. Of the 55, there was only one fatality. Maung
credited this miraculous feat not to their tactics or bravery, but to their tattoos. According to
Maung, the tattoos protected the warriors from danger and even said “The Japanese bullets just
went around and through me and I was never wounded”. One may say that it is the sheer,
unwavering faith in the power of the Iban tattoos that brought victory to the Iban people.
However, the intricate pattern inked on the body is transcendent of vanity and even protection.
Dr. Lars posited that the Iban tattoos represent identity and values in the community.

For the men of the Iban community, tattoo was tantamount to adulthood. It was a common
practice to get tattoos as rite of passage for different stages of the boy’s life. According to a
Sarawakian tattoo artist, Jeremy Lo said that as some may get ill after getting a tattoo, it was a
test of strength for the stronger ones to emerge as men. The first ever tattoo that a boy receives
is the ‘isi ginti’ (fish hook) tattooed on the calf to represent the capability to perform life skills
like catching fish. The second tattoo is the ‘pantang rekung’ (neck tattoo) that covers the Adam’s
apple. It is tattooed around puberty time so that the boy can be visible to his ancestors’ spirit.
The third tattoo, the ‘bunga terung’ (eggplant flower), is the most important tattoo of all as it
represents the readiness to ‘berjalai’ or start the adult journey of life. In the past, only those
with bunga terung can leave the village to explore and hunt as they were considered strong
enough to wander outside. Men without the tattoo would be shunned by the community as
they were regarded as ‘telanjai’ (not having any achievements). Having a bunga terung also
signifies that a man is sexually mature and is ready to find a wife to start a family.

Tattoos were not only important to men but women as well. The tattoo called ‘pala tumpa’
(head of bracelets) connotes the weaving ability of a woman as it was given to weavers of a
sacred blanket called ‘pua kumbu’, which were used to hold severed heads. Weaving ‘pua
kumbu’ was considered so dangerous that it was known as a woman’s war because it was
believed that the blood red dyes could attract evil spirits that brings harm. Since the ‘pala
tumbu’ resembles scorpions and centipedes, the tattoo was believed to provide protection to
the weaver.

Sources

https://www.theborneopost.com/2011/02/13/tattoo-quests/

https://www.malaymail.com/news/life/2017/08/08/tribal-tattoos-from-a-rite-of-passage-to-
trendy-body-art/1438127

https://sarawaktourism.com/story/fascinating-stories-behind-sarawakian-tribal-tattoos/

Deconstruction Of Traditional Bunga Terung Tattoo And Sequence Of Its Application On Iban
Males Of Sarawak And Kalimantan by Sonny Anak Jumpo & Dr Mohammad Puad bin Bebit