The Belimau bath is a

Malay Indonesian Malay Indonesians (Malay language, Malay/Indonesian language, Indonesian: ''Orang Melayu Indonesia''; Jawi script, Jawi: ) are Malays (ethnic group), ethnic Malays living throughout Indonesia. They are one of the indigenous peoples of the country ...

tradition, observed in order to welcome the month of

Ramadan Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. It is observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting (''Fasting in Islam, sawm''), communal prayer (salah), reflection, and community. It is also the month in which the Quran is believed ...

, especially in

Bangka Belitung The Bangka Belitung Islands (; Jawi: ) is a province of Indonesia. Situated off the southeastern coast of Sumatra, the province comprises two main land masses — the islands of Bangka and Belitung — and numerous smaller islands. Bangka B ...

and

Riau Riau (Jawi script, Jawi: ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia. It is located on the central eastern coast of the island of Sumatra, and extends from the eastern slopes of the Barisan Mountains to the Malacca Strait, including s ...

provinces. The tradition has been carried down for generations among the

Minangkabau people Minangkabau people (; ; ) are an Austronesian people, Austronesian ethnic group native to the Minangkabau Highlands of West Sumatra, Western Sumatra region on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The Minangkabau's West Sumatera homelands was th ...

before Islam arrived in Indonesia, as they were praciticing

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

, whereby this ceremony could have been inspired by

Makara Sankranti Makar(a) Sankrānti (), () also referred to as Uttarāyana, Makara, or simply Sankrānti, is a Hindu observance and a mid-winter harvest festival in India and Nepal. It is typically celebrated on 14 January annually (15 January on a leap yea ...

. Belimau consists of washing or bathing for physical and spiritual purification using limau water. In the Pacific Islands, the Belimau tradition ended about 300 years ago, but it was revived around 2006. Since then, local governments have promoted the Belimau bath tradition as a part of

religious tourism Religious tourism, spiritual tourism, sacred tourism, or faith tourism, is a type of tourism with two main subtypes: pilgrimage, meaning travel for religious or spiritual purposes, and the viewing of religious monuments and artefacts, a branch o ...

. The Belimau Bath ceremony is held once a year, one week before Ramadan.

References

Malay culture {{Islam-stub

See also

References