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Healing Practices
One of the most notable Malay medical manuscripts translated into English is Ismail Munshi’s The Medical Book of Malayan Medicine. Originally written in Jawi (c. 1850), it contains over 550 remedies for maladies ranging from migraines to depression, bloatedness and leprosy.</p> <table>

  <tr>
<td> Method</td>
<td>Pound all ingredients together and mix with honey to form into tablets. Patient to take tablets until course of treatment is complete.</td>
<td>Grind finely. Place the pulp on a piece of cloth. Squeeze the juice into the patient’s eyes for three days.</td>
	<td>Reduce both ingredients to fine pulp. Apply to patient’s head.</td>

</tr> </table> REFERENCE

Burkill, I.H., & Ismail Munshi. (1930). The medical book of Malayan medicine. Singapore: Botanic Gardens. (Call no.: RCLOS 615.3209595 MED)

HUMOURAL THEORY AND MALAY MEDICINE

Humoural theory, which is one of the oldest theories of medicine, is organised around the four humours – blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile – and is associated with the four elements of earth (flesh), water (phlegm), air/wind (temperament), and fire (blood). The four elements are in turn paired up with the four qualities of cold, hot, moist and dry. Each individual has a particular humoural makeup, or “constitution”. As optimal health is attained when the humours are in harmonious balance, any imbalance of the humours may result in disease and sickness.

In one of the earliest Malayan accounts of humoural theory, English scholar Thomas J. Newbold describes Malay medicine as being based on the fundamental “principle of ‘preserving the balance of power’ within the four elements, specifically, air, fire, water and earth”.[^21] This ranges from the consumption of certain hot or cold foods (such as meat and fruit respectively), hot and cold temperatures, wind, micro-organisms and supernatural forces. Dry chills and dizzy spells arise when the “earth” element is too strong and from ailments such as cholera and dysentery, which are caused by excessive heat and moisture from the “air”.[^22] Consuming large amounts of food that contain “air” may cause feebleness in some. The plants and herbs prescribed by Malay healers help to revitalise and restore these imbalances in the human body.

PAWANG, BOMOH AND BIDAN

Traditional Malay healers are the main providers of Malay medicine. To achieve the necessary credentials, some have resorted to living in solitude, spending their time meditating, fasting or putting themselves through strict dietary regimens – all in the name of spiritual cleansing. Healers are also expected to have an extensive knowledge of botany and nature so that they can classify and identify the right plants and herbs as well as their healing properties, and prescribe the correct remedies.

PAWANG

A pawang is commonly defined as a shaman or general practitioner of magic who incorporates incantations into his craft. He is usually involved in conducting agricultural rituals and divination ceremonies to sanctify the village. Pawangs have also been referred to as “wizards” by scholars such as Richard J. Wilkinson for their ability to manipulate the course of nature through the use of incantations and divination practices.

DUKUN/BOMOH

A dukun or bomoh is a general practitioner who treats fevers, headaches, broken bones, spirit possession and various ailments. The skills and reputation of a dukun/bomoh stem from the person’s knowledge of humoural medicine, the healing properties of local flora and fauna as well as syncretic ritual incantations. Some were well known for their treatment of victims of sorcery. The bomoh akar kayu (the latter words meaning “roots” in Malay) is known for his expertise in gathering and preparing ubat-ubatan from plants and herbs. In his book, A Descriptive Dictionary of British Malaya (1894), Nicholas B. Dennys compares the dukun to “being on par with witch doctors of history”. Although the dukun has been generally described in disparaging terms by Western scholars, a small minority saw the merits of these traditional healers. Percy N. Gerrard defines the “doctor” as a bomoh, dukun or pawang in his dictionary, A Vocabulary of Malay Medical Terms (1905).

BIDAN

Also known as “Mak Bidan” or “dukun beranak”, these midwives specialise in women’s health matters, including fecundity, midwifery and contraception, along with a variety of beauty-related disorders. Up till the 1950s, it was common for mothers in Singapore to deliver their babies at home with the help of village midwives. Today, the role of these women is limited to providing antenatal and postnatal care, such as confinement services for new mothers or general massage therapies.

REFERENCES

Dennys, N.B. (1894). A descriptive dictionary of British Malaya (p. 104). London: London and China Telegraph. (Retrieved from BookSG; Accession no.: B02984605A)

Gerrard, P.N. (1905). A vocabulary of Malay medical terms (p. 24). Singapore: Kelly & Walsh. (Call no.: RRARE 610.39928 GER; Microfilm no.: NL27512)

Skeat, W.W. (1900). Malay magic: Being an introduction to the folklore and popular religion of the Malay Peninsula (pp. 424–425). London: Macmillan and Co., Limited. (Retrieved from BookSG; Accession no.: B02930611K)

Wilkinson, R.J. (1908–10). Papers on Malay subjects. [First series, 4], Life and customs (p. 1). Kuala Lumpur: Printed at the F.M.S. Govt. Press. (Retrieved from BookSG; Microfilm no.: NL263)

Nadirah Norruddin is an Associate Librarian with the National Library, Singapore. Her main responsibility lies in managing and developing the Singapore and Southeast Asian collections.

REFERENCES

Bala, A. (Ed.) (2013). Asia, Europe, and the emergence of modern science: Knowledge crossing boundaries. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. (Call no.: RSEA 509.5 ASI)

Haliza Mohd Riji. (2000). Prinsip dan amalan dalam perubatan Melayu. Kuala Lumpur: Penerbit Universiti Malaya. (Call no.: Malay RSEA 615.88209595 HAL)

Harun Mat Piah. (2006). Kitab tib: Ilmu perubatan Melayu. Kuala Lumpur: Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia: Kementerian Kebudayaan, Kesenian, dan Warisan Malaysia. (Call no.: Malay R 615.880899928 HAR)

Manderson, L. (1996). Sickness and the state: Health and illness in colonial Malaya, 1870–1940. New York: Cambridge University Press. (Call no.: RSEA 362.1095951 MAN)

Matheson, V., & Hooker, M. (1988). Jawi literature in Patani: The maintenance of an Islamic tradition. Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, 61(1)(254), 1–86. Retrieved from JSTOR via NLB’s eResources website.

McHugh, J.N. (1955). Hantu hantu: An account of ghost belief in modern Malaya. Singapore: Donald Moore. (Call no.: RCLOS 398.47 MAC-[RFL])

Mohd. Affendi Mohd.Shafri & Intan Azura Shahdan. (Eds.). (2017). Malay medical manuscripts: Heritage from the garden of healing. Kajang, Selangor, Malaysia: Akademi Jawi Malaysia. (Call no.: RSEA 610.95 INT)

Mohd. Taib Osman. (1989). Malay folk beliefs: An integration of disparate elements. Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia. (Call no.: RSEA 398.4109595 MOH)

Muhamad Zakaria & Mustafa Ali Mohd. (1992). Tumbuhan dan perubatan tradisional. Kuala Lumpur: Fajar Bakti. (Call no.: Malay RSING 615.88209595 MUH)

Ong, H.T. (Ed.). (2011). To heal the sick: The story of healthcare and doctors in Penang. Georgetown: Penang Medical Practitioners’ Society. (Call no.: RSEA 362.1095951 TO)

Owen, N. G. (Eds.). (1987). Death and disease in Southeast Asia : explorations in social, medical and demographic history. Singapore: Oxford University Press. (Call no.: 301.3220959 DEA)

Tuminah Sapawi. (1997, January 8). Bidan kampung now offers massage and other rituals. The Straits Times, p. 17. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.

Wilkinson, R.J. (1908–10). Papers on Malay subjects. [First series, 4], Life and customs (p. 1). Kuala Lumpur: Printed at the F.M.S. Govt. Press. (Retrieved from BookSG; Microfilm no.: NL263)