Married Because of Ijbar
Chapters 20. Maharani Baiq
Khayru arrived at an empty dirt courtyard filled with weeds all around her. His eyes continued to search while recalling the position of the place. Finally he breathed a sigh of relief after seeing a mound of earth surrounded by white ceramics that had been overgrown with green moss and covered with grass. Really unkempt.
He pulled out and removed the grass so as not to prevent it and squatted down. Groped and cleaned the tombstone that read the name of a woman then smiled while looking at Maula who was still standing beside her.
“This is whose tomb, Bang?” maula asked as she looked around and watched the nearby tomb.
“Baiq Asmarani,” Khayru replied making Maula more curious.
Baiq's name used to be embedded in front of Asmarani because she was a woman of noble descent. However, he had fought the custom of loving a man from the common people to decide to stay married to the man he loved and have a son.
The marriage did not last long. It only lasts until their child reaches the age of ten. Baiq Asmarani was not used to the lives of ordinary people until they decided to separate. Unfortunately, he was unable to return to the middle of his extended family due to the customary laws he had broken. It was even forbidden to come to his hamlet since he decided to marry a commoner.
She meets a man and decides to remarry until she has a daughter. Since then, there has been no news of him. While the ex-husband who was just an ordinary person pitted his fate to the capital bringing his only son with only the ability to weave sasak cloth which after that his business developed into a factory. In the hands of his son, the business grew rapidly to become the largest textile & garment factory in Indonesia to date.
Maula thought long enough to solve the puzzle.
“Can you guess who Baiq Asmarani is?” khayru asked while looking at him.
“What ... is she my grandmother?” his forehead was still furrowed as he was unsure of his own answer.
Khayru smiled as she rubbed the head of the girl beside her. “You're smart.”
“And the boy who continued his father's business .. he Papaku?”
Khayru nodded and smiled again. “Papa and our Grandpa are very great people, right?”
“During this time Brother tried to find Grandma and Papa's sister, because this is Papa's hope before he died. Unfortunately, Abang only found this tomb since a few years ago.”
Maula looked down while shedding tears. “Papa never told me anything about his family.”
“Because you were a kid back then.” Khayru embraced Maula's sobbing shoulder and rubbed it gently.
After a while there, Khayru came to a house not far from where he had been. He knocked on the door and said hello many times.
Out came a middle-aged man with his furrowed forehead still trying to remember the face of the guest before him.
"Sai ...?"
(Who ..?)
"Sir, remember Leq Tiang? Mauq pole kete wah pire kali wah"
(Daddy still remembers me? I have been to this place a few times)
The man was a beard.
"Epe Mr Zulfikar's son?"
(His son Zulfikar?)
"Excite, sir."
(Rubber, Sir)
Khayru was happy because it didn't take long, the man could remember. He did not refuse the homeowner's invitation to enter for a while into a simple building measuring no more than 100 square meters.
“In this house, Papa spent his childhood with Grandpa and Grandma,” he said as he gazed throughout the room. He could not imagine the condition of the old house. However, he had little imagination to imagine little Zulfikar playing and running around, then sitting laughing on his parents' lap. However, suddenly there was a scene of Zulfikar watching his parents quarrel until he came out of this house with his father in a state of tears.
Khayru rubbed her face violently, brushed off all the shadows present filling her head. He can't stay there for long. Just leave a business card, hoping to get to the hands of Zulfikar's sister if at any time he comes to this place.
"Sweep, some poles, niki lamun iye pade kete malik card,"
(Well, I'll give you this business card if they come here again) replied the man.
Khayru and Maula returned to the road that is currently turning into very crowded because there is a bridal motorcade that is carrying out traditional nongkolan
“What's the matter, Bang? Very rame.”
Khayru tried to ask the people there by capitalizing on the Sasak language that he learned from his father first.
“What the hell?”
“The bride's motorcade from the groom's house to the bride.”
“Which bride, Bang?”
“That's it.” Khayru pointed to a couple who were underage with typical grooming Sasak.
“What's wrong? That was a bogus bride of times, huh?” I can't believe there's such a small bride in this world.
“Terms. Lie time? You ask them yourself.” Khayru pointed to the natives who were watching along the way.
“Always get married at such an early age, Bang?” It's like I can't accept that something like this happened. He thinks it's unfair to them.
“To your knowledge, there is no age limit for marriage in the view of Islam.”
“I think it's a crime, Bang.” Maula did not stop shaking her head.
“The name is also customary law. They run it for generations. Maybe their goals and reasons are good, we never know so we don't blame them.”
“Explain to me, what good purpose and reason is it, Bang?” The curiosity kept making him want to ask.
“Avoiding adultery, perhaps one of them.”
“It is impossible for such a small child to commit adultery.” Maula grumbling.
“Don't get it wrong, Deck. Free association often makes them mature prematurely. So, do not blame you if from now on you forbid you to hang out with Ariel or any male friends.”
The maula pursed her lips. Suddenly his hand was pulled and his body forced into the car.
“We talk in car.”
“Udahlah. We don't talk about this anymore.” Maula turned her face towards the car window.
“You still remember the Quran letter Al isra verse 32?”
Maula shook her head lazily.
“If it doesn't sound wrong like this :
'And do not approach adultery; (zina) it is a wicked deed, and a bad path.'
“You understand right? Not only Zina but things that approach Zina are not allowed. After returning from here we ask directly to Pak Kyai and Umi Khadijah. We both learn again about which limits we should not bump into.”
Khayru looked at Maula's gloomy face and took her back out of the car when she saw a traditional Sasak clothing rental shop nearby. She rented a pair of custom wedding dresses just to take pictures and bring them for mementos.
They stand in front of the mirror. Look at the clothes they wear with a smile.
“You're not a minor anymore, Loh. Already fit to be a bride now.”
Maula laughed while hitting Khayru's arm.
“Abang is suitable to be your groom, right?” he asked while smiling and staring.
“So, when do we get to KUA?” candelessly. “Or we use custom nyongkolan just like the bride who was, how? Actually we can already honeymoon, loh, now,” murmured while tidying up some parts of Maula clothes.
“Abang aging for me. Find me a younger husband, Bang.”
“If your destiny turns out to have a husband as old as Brother, how? Just accept it, than Abang fell into the arms of Neneng.”
Maula laughed considering Neneng-ART in her house who always sought attention in front of Khayru.
__________
**Nyongkolan is the culmination of Sasak's traditional wedding ritual stages. This event is done with a procession (march) of the bride like a king and queen to the residence of the bride.
To be continue ....
