From sacred to secular: Baruk architecture on secular buildings in Sarawak

Abstract

The Bidayuh people of Sarawak are known for their baruks. A baruk is often observed as having a round form with a conical roof that has various functions such as a courthouse, a meeting place and a residence for the male adolescents. These are all secular purposes built around its religious functions, constructed based on their traditional beliefs that qualify it to be considered as a sacred building. Recently, the pursuit for fulfilling political and commercial objectives has made the architecture of baruks to be copied onto various secular buildings in Sarawak, ranging from a visitor centre to a governmental building. Despite much have been praised as an attempt to revive this endangered architecture, applying its language onto contemporary secular buildings sparks a debate whether the sacredness of the original baruks are respected or is it just a cultural commodification. This paper attempts to justify the adaptation of baruk architecture into secular buildings. It is discussed through a grounded theory approach, with the methods used were in the form of literature review and on-site observations. This paper suggests the extent of applying baruk sacred architecture into secular buildings should be observed, allowing more potential discussions in the academia pertaining adaptation of sacred indigenous architecture in contemporary buildings.