Page 55 - EBOOK_Jamu: The Ancient Indonesian Art of Herbal Healing

Rituals that Govern Jamu
As with many traditions, jamu has its fair share of superstitions that must be
addressed to eliminate potential dangers or to ensure the he aling properties of
the medicine. Many of these beliefs stem from practical considerations: some are
long since lost, others are easier to recognize. It is not just a question of adding
an extra ingredient or the angle you face when taking a potion: it is what might
happen if you do not. For instance, it is believed that if a woman breaks her
grinding stone, disaster will befall her household. To prevent this, she must then
walk around the house, naked, seven times. For the Javanese household, jamu is

vital and if a wife breaks her tools, there is no way to protect against ills.
Likewise, no self-respecting housewife will leave her pestle and mortar on the
doorstep because her husband, coming home after a day’s work in the rice fields,
could trip over it, break his neck and be unable to support his family.
Another superstition states that quantities of an ingredient have to be twice
“the number of the day when born”. This presents an unusual problem nowadays
as the Javanese calendar is based on the five-day week. The normal seven-day