Every year in Tenganan Pegringsingan Village, a Tradition called Usaba Sambah is held. This tradition aims to welcome the puberty of young men and women in the village. Usaba Sambah implementation consists of several series of rituals that usually last for several days. Pandanus War became one of the rites held in Usaba Sambah. In addition to the famous Pandan War, there is also a unique ritual that must be carried out in this tradition, namely, Metimpugan.

Metimpugan Rituals

The Metimpugan ritual is part of a procession of maturity that must be followed by native children from Tenganan Pegringsingan Village. In its implementation, Daha or prospective young women and Teruna or prospective young men are required to use gringsing cloth and bring buffalo feces mixed with mud and watermelon fruit and rotted jackfruit.

This tradition is held during the day at noon, when the sun is overhead or after the procession of another ceremony is finished. The Metimpugan procession lasted for 2.5 hours and was carried out in three places, namely the Asrama Ganti Wayah, Buka Nengah, and Buka Nyoman. Tiga Daha will enter the Changing Wayah and sit on Bale with their back to Teruna. They are prohibited from carrying any items in Bale Ganti Wayah except cloth to cover their head and back.

Once it’s ready, the procession of Metimpugan or throwing begins. Teruna will throw mud mixed with dirt on Daha's back. The number of Teruna who throws mud is around 6 people. After all the parts of the head to the back of Daha are confirmed to have been full of mud, then the throw is stopped and the Metimpugan Rite is declared complete.

This procession was held three times on different days. Although the body is filled with smelly mud, the unique thing is that Daha and Teruna actually smell the fragrance aroma. Because the fragrance is believed to originate from oneself. Now, before the Metimpugan ritual is held, the Daha and Teruna candidates have been cleansed on a sekala and niskala (scale and noetic) basis. Both spiritually and physically. They were quarantined for one year. That is, during that time they were scouted and educated by pemangku adat. After that, they will stay in the dormitory until the implementation of Usaba Sambah arrives. Before Metimpugan is held, the hair of prospective Teruna will be shaved. After that, candidates for Daha and Teruna followed a temple ceremony led by Krama Adat in Tenganan Pegringsingan.

The Metimpugan procession means the search for identity from Daha and Teruna candidates. Throwing mud means getting rid of all the bad qualities and eliminating doubts that can hinder these teenagers in determining future life choices. Many things have to be prepared by a young teenager when it comes time to move into adulthood. They must know that life is not always smooth, and they will often hit by storms.