Lubuk Larangan in Lubuk Landur River – Nature and Me WE78

Hello everyone and The Weekend Community, how are you? I hope all of you are always healthy and happy, especially this weekend. This article is dedicated to WE78: Nature and You, I want to share my experiences in nature and learn one of the best ways to protect nature and the environment from the places I visited.

I have a unique attachment to nature, because a few years ago I worked for a non-government organization engaged in forest conservation and community economic development in a village directly adjacent to a protected forest. I have had many opportunities and moments that brought me close to nature, I have been to coffee plantations in Mount Kerinci, diving and seeing coral reefs in Bunaken, studying in mangrove debt, or camping in tropical forests to catch illegal loggers.

However, I had one moment in my life about spending time in nature, and that experience changed my perspective on how local wisdom can prevent nature from being damaged by humans.

In 2016, my colleagues and I at the Non-Government Organization went to the Lubuk Landur river in Aur Kuning village, West Pasaman District – West Sumatra. This area is one of the historical locations, because it is considered the first place for the spread of Islam in West Pasaman, West Sumatra.

Lubuk Landur River has an area which is named Lubuk Larangan. Lubuk Larangan is a term in Indonesia about a river area filled with various fish (river fish) for various purposes. We can understand Lubuk Larangan as a river area which is naturally a place for fish and other river ecosystems to thrive. The river area that is designated as the bottom of the prohibition is designated as a prohibited area for fishing activities or taking fish in the river in any way, let alone destroying nature and the environment.

Lubuk Larangan is considered to have mystical and spiritual elements. Like Lubuk Larangan, the Lubuk Landur River has an interesting history and story. According to local residents, I got info about Lubuk Larang here. The story is that in the 1850s there was an Islamic religious leader in this area, named Tuanku Khalifah Sutan Saidina Syech Basyir (Syeh Basyhir) who built a mosque beside the river.

At that time, he was very worried about the quality and purity of the water in the Lubuk Landur River, because the river water was also used for ablution (the process of cleaning oneself before praying in Islam). Syeh Basyhir prayed and asked God for guidance and then got "guidance" for raising fish in one of the river areas. The fish are kept with the aim of filtering dirt and keeping the river water clean. Villagers are not allowed to take fish in the Lubuk Larangan area, and if anyone is determined to take it, they will experience disaster or illness.

Lubuk Larangan is the reason for us to go to this place, we want to learn how to make an area like this in our place. We have a problem about keeping the river in the conservation area because the villagers are very fond of taking fish using poison and its effect is damaging the natural ecosystem.

For almost 200 years Lubuk Larangan in the Lubuk Landur River is still awake, and the fish are still in the area. If you ask why the fish do not leave the area? Believe it or not, when someone makes a forbidden pit area, the area will be prayed for and given a magical spell so that the fish do not leave even though there is a flood, and this is also what makes the fish not to be stolen, because if it is stolen it will get disease.

However, the "key" of Lubuk Larangan can be opened by the one who casts the spell, and unfortunately the person who made the spell in Lubuk Larangan on the Lubuk Landur River has died and made this river area still filled with fish as it is today.

Consciously or not, although Lubuk Larangan has mystical or spiritual elements, this method has a positive impact on the environment such as preventing environmental damage around the river, restoring the environment and water ecosystems, and repairing river damage. Perhaps, this is one of the best ways to protect nature because it involves magic and spirituality, especially for Indonesian people who still believe in it.