Pantun berbudi
I was launched into the pantun mood last night. Can't get over it still. Do you think we -- the Screenshots readers community and I -- could do something to promote pantun among thinking adults like us?
I remember, during the pre-Merdeka days, Onn Jaafar and Tan Cheng Lock used to settle their political squabbles by trading pantuns late into the night. Yes, you jual and beli pantun until a deal is struck!
Penang in the yesteryears used to celebrate Chap Goh Mei with the Babas and Nyonyas (the Peranakan or Straits Chinese) coming in throngs to sing in Dondang Sayang on roving buses! Admittedly, I was too young to see this in person, but there are many pictures in the cultural museum depicting this bygone galore. (In fact, The NSTP Photo Exhibition for this year's Merdeka has one huge picture like this!)
Coming back to pantun, I particularly like the pantun empat baris over other variants. Perhaps you should try to get a hand on it.
The common ones have the most basic form of even-numbered lines based on an a-b-a-b rhyming scheme. As a rule of thumb, a 'perfect' pantun that does not deviate from the rhythm will have between 8 and 12 syllables in every line. For example:
Buah cempedak di luar pagar,
Ambil galah tolong jolokkan;
Saya budak baru belajar,
Kalau salah tolong tunjukkan.
You can see the pantun above was written in quatrains, following an a-b-a-b rhyme scheme.
Hence, the ending of the 1st line (pagar) rhymes with the ending of the 3rd line (belajar); while the ending of the 2nd line (jolokkan) rhymes with the ending of the 4th line (tunjukkan).
If you count the syllables, the first line has 10, the 2nd and 3rd lines have 9 each, the 4th has 10. Perfect.
Asa norm, the last-salvo message of a pantun is contained int he last two lines, hence these two lines are calld the 'maksud'. In contrast, first two lines of a pantun are regarded as 'pembayang maksud', which foreshadow and lead-in the actual message -- overt or covert -- that immediately follows.
Here are a couple of pantuns on the finesse understanding of budi. It's culled from the collection of Pantun Dondang Sayang Baba Kim Teck:
Ada seekor si anak beruk,
Suka bertenggek di kayu buruk;
Zahir ketara batin tersorok,
Budi yang baik hilang ditaruk.
Banyak orang di Bukit Cina,
Sayang Cik Ali menebang kayu;
Zaman sekarang ringgit berguna,
Budi yang baik terbuang lalu.
I would really appreciate it if you could share your collection of classic pantuns, or even your own compositions, in this blog of mine.
Comments
Dear Jeff,
Thanks for highlighting the beauty of pantuns in your blog. I find it such a shame that many of our younger generation are not even familiar with these national treasure of ours.
Below are my favourite classics:
Pulau Pandan jauh ke tengah,
Gunung Daik bercabang tiga;
Hancur badan dikandung tanah,
Budi yang baik dikenang jua.
Pisang emas bawa belayar,
Masak sebiji di atas peti;
Hutang emas boleh dibayar,
Hutang budi dibawa mati.
Kalau ada jarum yang patah,
Jangan disimpan di dalam peti;
Kalau ada silap dan salah,
Jangan disimpan di dalam hati.
Tinggi-tinggi si matahari,
Anak kerbau mati tertambat;
Sudah lama hamba mencari,
Baru sekarang hamba mendapat.
Dua, tiga kucing berlari,
Mana nak sama si kucing belang;
Dua, tiga boleh kucari,
Mana nak sama tuan seorang.
Kalau roboh kota Melaka,
Papan di Jawa hamba dirikan;
Kalau sungguh bagai dikata,
Jiwa dan raga hamba serahkan.
Posted by: miss elly
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September 26, 2006 09:19 AM
ahaks!
sorry, seems that some of the pantuns I've put here have already been included in your earlier post (i just noticed that!)
hope u guys will still enjoy them though!:-)
Posted by: miss elly
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September 26, 2006 09:26 AM
Asam kandis mari dihiris,
Manis sekali rasa isinya;
Dilihat manis dipandang manis,
Lebih manis hati budinya.
Bandar baru Seberang Perai,
Gunung Daik bercabang tiga;
Hancur badan tulang berkecai.
Budi yang baik dikenang juga.
Buah jambu disangka kandis,
Kandis dibeli di tepi jalan;
Air madu disangka manis,
Manis lagi senyuman tuan.
;-)
Posted by: Gurindam Jiwa
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September 26, 2006 09:33 AM
OOooh what a lovely post! I love pantuns. I'm warmed each time I pass by the sign that says this...
Kapal dagang dari seberang
Sarat muatan kayu meranti
Dari jauh tuan/puan datang
Kami di Melaka sedia menanti
Posted by: cheng_leng
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September 26, 2006 09:46 AM
Puasa masuk hari ketiga,
Jeff buka gelanggang pantun,
Mari kita menduga minda,
mencorak bahasa bersopan santun.
Membeli karipap di pasar Ramadhan,
pelbagai juadah sepanjang jalan,
Bulan yang mulia marilah amalkan,
sedekah kepada yg amat memerlukan.
RMK9 sudah diumumkan,
Projek pembangunan untuk masyarakat,
Mengapa ekonomi masih bersendirian,
Tanpa hala tuju dan matlamat.
Adat perkahwinan menyerikan pengantin,
Dari merenjis hingga bersanding,
Tahniah kerajaan kerana prihatin,
Hapuskan "bank charges" yg menyebabkan pening.
Posted by: zaryl
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September 26, 2006 10:01 AM
Wonderful! Wonderful!
Posted by: CI
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September 26, 2006 10:28 AM
Lovely, Lovely.
Keep them coming guys.
Salute to you Jeff.
Posted by: ayah_mie
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September 26, 2006 11:42 AM
It cannot be denied that the Malay Language of yesteryears is a very beautiful language and it carries with it a certain status within the culture of many races. It is melodious to hear and easy to understand the hidden message without being too forward.
Below is an original composition which hope to bring across the above opinion:-
Rendang ayam sungguh bagus
Hidangan untuk berbuka puasa
Warisan melayu sungguh halus
Begitu indah susunan bahasa
Kalau tuan pergi ke angkasa
Jangan lupa bawa dulang-dulang
Bahasa merdu mencorak bangsa
Kerana bahasa budaya cemerlang
Sekumtum bunga untuk tuan
Bunga mawar tajam durinya
Kesiannya kini tiada tujuan
Suatu bahasa tiada warisnya
Orang dulu banyak berkata
Kata-kata di sulam manis
Kalau mahu bukti nyata
Baca saja dalam chat SMS
Hope it makes justice to the Pantun Blog.
Posted by: Ghim
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September 26, 2006 11:51 AM
inche' jeff,
ada banjak pantoen-pantoen chantek jang disimpan oleh dr. ding choo ming dan kawan-kawannja di www.malaycivilization.com.
silahlah tengok.
salah satoenja ada pantoen baba njonja berboenji:
subang emas subang bergulung,
kuping mana ditaruhkan;
hujan panas dapat berlindung,
hidup miskin mana sorokkan.
JEFF OOI says: Pujangga mana yang menulis ni? This is good old Bahasa Indonesia!
Posted by: nb
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September 26, 2006 01:11 PM
inche' jeff,
ta' dapatla diseboet nama kita ini dengan nama poejangga. maloe `ah rasanja!
marila kita bersoeka hati sama pantoen-pantoen ini.
kita poen ada joempa satoe pantoen doeloe-doeloe jang baek dinjanjikan oleh itoe seniman Said Affendi:
ombak berdentoem di tengah lawoet,
disinar senja biroe warnanja;
diri sepantoen intan jang paut,
walaoe bercahja tiada berharga.
(ma' inang poelaoe kampai)
Posted by: nb
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September 26, 2006 01:30 PM
Tahniah Jeff,
This post of yours make my day in more ways than one.
Posted by: Hussin
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September 26, 2006 02:11 PM
Rafidah Aziz seorang menteri,
Pejabatnya cantik Bangunan MITI,
Hormat menghormati amalan terpuji,
Patut diteraskan pada yang muda mudi.
Samy Vellu seorang yg berjasa,
menaikkan taraf bangunan dan jalan,
Jika kita tidak buang masa,
Wawasan 2020 pasti dalam genggaman.
Nazri Aziz memanglah popular,
Didada akhbar dia bersahaja,
Mengapa kes ragut masih berleluasa,
Setiap hari ada saja orang dianiaya.
Tun Mahathir memang seronok bercerita,
Paklah pula seronok memerintah,
marilah kita cuti cuti Malaysia,
meninjau tempat tidak jauh selangkah.
Posted by: zaryl
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September 26, 2006 02:24 PM
I still remember when we had a Pantun 'war' in my class when I was in Standard 6 and Form 1. Mostly these fun (and budi) pantuns are recited and created during our Moral classes. Sadly that the Moral classes during my upper secondary are basically worthless.
I always remember this simple pantun which I've always been using (sometimes practices its values too):
Berakit-rakit ke hulu,
Berenang-renang ketepian;
Bersakit-sakit dahulu,
Bersenang-senang kemudian.
Thanks Jeff for reviving the Pantun spirit in all of us!
Posted by: szehoong
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September 26, 2006 03:52 PM
Saya budak universiti di Cyberjaya,
di mana penghuni sekalian bergelora di dunia maya,
Sepatutnya jaringan network sini hebat belaka
Tapi malangnya, talian "konnexion' Internet macam tak bermaya
JEFF OOI says: This is rubbish. Though I have summarised the beauty of pantun epitomised with 8 to 12 syllables per line, you have complete disregard for the sanctity of pantun which I must protect like unwed maiden. You are outrageous as far as the revere for pantun I may harbour in my heart.
Posted by: p0ts
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September 26, 2006 06:58 PM
Pemimpin Spore namanya Kuan Yew
Pemimpin kita pula namanya Pak Lah
Koh Tsu Koon dikata pinggirkan Melayu
Yang tak tahan cabut ke Kedah!
Posted by: PenangWang
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September 26, 2006 07:25 PM
Talian internet di Malaysia mahal belaka,
Kerajaan cakap nak meningkatkan penggunaan jalur lebar pun tak guna,
Syarikat monopoli cakap dah murah,
tapi perkhidmatan yang disediakan macam sampah.
Kita sering juga mengadu gila,
cakap syarikat telekom mata duitan,
tapi pengguna tempatan suka guna p2p macam gila,
berkelakuan macam syaitan
Untuk meningkatkan kualiti perkhidmatan,
Kenalah lebih banyak menimba ilmu pengetahuan,
membina komuniti dan perhubungan,
membantu sesama satu dan sekalian.
satu cara membina masyarakat adalah untuk memasukkan kandungan internet tempatan,
bukan sahaja dari syarikat korporat tetapi juga dari sektor kerajaan,
Selain itu rakyat tempatan juga boleh "blog" mengenai kehidupan harian,
sektor akademik mengenai penyelidikan,
dan yang lain lain supaya banyak pilihan.
Kehebatan infrastruktur jaringan internet baru terserlah,
jika tidak kita sering berbelah,
bila berborak mengenai jalur lebar,
kita sebagai pengguna internet tempatan bersemangat muhibbah,
sampah dan tabiat buruk kita nak berubah,
baru semangat Internet kita boleh berkobar.
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keywords: |
jalur lebar = broadband |
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hi guys, just my attempt at writing a pantun about our local internet connectivity and etc related stuff. Appreciate your constructive criticisms and feedback.
Posted by: p0ts
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September 26, 2006 07:27 PM
Dear Jeff, I do apologise if I have unwittingly disregarded the sanctity of your pantun.
I admit I wrote that in a hurry without much thought,
but I guess to give more constructive criticisms you ought,
I'm sure you have your share of rubbish on your blog,
so next time I will improve and take a note of that in my log.
Posted by: p0ts
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September 26, 2006 07:36 PM
Ha, ha, ... pantun? after away from malaysia for more than 30 years, I have problem even to read Bahasa Malaysia these days ... Where is my dictionary?
BUT it is a great idea to 'stir' up the spirits of 'creativity'.
I love the photo of those lovely sayong kepaya. It is ashame that we do not see much of them these days. Those lovely shapes, but most of all those wonderful embroidery (well, these days I think are all the work of machinese) ...
Malaysians have to look back on what we used to have to understand what mistakes they have made the past 50 years. Perhaps a history of Malaysia the past 100 years?
Posted by: cindy
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September 26, 2006 07:37 PM
... My last trip to Malaysia I could not even find decent batik.
Posted by: cindy
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September 26, 2006 07:38 PM
Jauh berlayar ke negri Jawa,
Bawa bersama si buah pinang,
Resah hatiku gering dijiwa,
Duri tercucuk darah bergenang,
Berlayar jauh bilakah sudah?,
Banyakkan bersabar sampai jua,
Dekat sekali gigi dan lidah
Lambat laun tergigit jua
Datang shahbandar datang menteri,
Turunlah Raja mencemar duli,
Sahabat sejati sukar tercari,
Seribu tahun hanya sekali,
Tunduk hormat tiada terkata,
Takut melihat panglima perkasa,
Takbur meraja hati dibuta,
Jari ditunding menang terasa,
Berdagang saudagar kayu jati,
Emas perak habis dicari,
Berkecai seribu retak dihati,
Redha Ilahi disini kucari
Posted by: keropok lekor
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September 26, 2006 07:38 PM
In times of sadness and losing direction - where we're heading towards after 49 years of Merdeka,
these pantuns really bring a lighter side to us of the rich beautiful culture we do have amidst us.
revive pantun!
Posted by: aku anak malaysia
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September 26, 2006 11:29 PM
In times of sadness and losing direction - where we're heading towards after 49 years of Merdeka,
these pantuns really bring a lighter side to us of the rich beautiful culture we do have amidst us.
revive pantun!
Posted by: aku anak malaysia
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September 26, 2006 11:30 PM
Let's pantun. Indeed it's beautiful how the expression can be so flowery.
For the bloggers, here's my first attempt for you guys:
Saudara Jeff Ooi blogger negara,
Pantun dijemput semua sekalian;
Jangan mengukit isu membara,
Jambatan siber beri perhatian.
For my neighbour few blocks away:
Dekad lima puluh rukun tetangga,
Suluh berpasangan samping berkata;
Dekad kini komuniti curiga,
Lampu ‘spotlight’ menerangi kereta.
For the hot, hot topic now:
Negara Malaysia negara merdeka,
Masyarakat majmuk hidup sekeluarga;
Pemimpin Singapura hanya bersuara,
Mendedahkan talian kaum keluarga.
Ah, now I'm happy that I gave my shot as a pantun writer.
Posted by: 3rd Generation
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September 27, 2006 12:16 AM