BATU NABAU AT ENGKILILI

Engkilili, Sarawak..

The existence of a boulder shaped like a huge snake is nothing new to the residents of Nyalau Muang longhouse. The boulder known as Batu Nabau is located in Bukong which is about 50 metres from the longhouse.

The Batu Nabau measures more than nine metres in length and two metres in diameter. It straddles Sungai Bukong at a place called Batu Lintang. The tale regarding Batu Nabau resurfaces after a Siamese man from Kuala Lumpur made a claim on the existence of a huge snake that turned into stone as he doubled his efforts to locate it. With the assistance of the local residents in the Sri Aman District, he located Batu Nabau as dreamt. Together with the local residents, he painted the boulder and cleared the areas around it.The man’s tale was published in the local newspaper.The tale did not end there as Jawi-like alphabets were said to have been found in the central portion of Batu Nabau. The alleged Jawi alphabets of alif, lam, nun, mim and sinwere said to have been arranged in a reverse order and separated from one another.

The discovery was made by one of the local residents who had visited the area after reading an article about Batu Nabau in the local newspaper. As Batu Nabau has become a public attraction, the Lubok Antu District Council (MDLA) plans to develop the area as one of the tourist destinations. It also proposes to conduct a detailed study on the existence of Batu Nabau which will be documented for public information.