Jamu: The Ancient Indonesian Art of Herbal Healing. Susan-Jane Beers

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      Many Indonesians will drink jamu only in the form of finely chopped herbs, or powder mixed with water, because these are deemed closest to the natural herbal state and therefore more effective. For these adepts, traditional medicine in a pre-packed, ready-to-swallow form holds no attraction. They put up with the inconvenience of making these mixtures and accept their often bitter, unpalatable taste. The reluctant jamu taker will find that adding a pinch of salt to the glass lessens the shock to the tastebuds. A slice of lemon or a little honey is also recommended. Sieving the jamu through muslin gets rid of the indigestible, floating remains. A seasoned jamu drinker will down a glass in one, which reduces exposure to the, frankly, often disgusting taste. Eating a piece of fruit, especially a banana or papaya, is suggested to remove the aftertaste. Fresh and natural are the key words in these preparations.

      Commercial growth, however, has meant these old ways are not always practical, especially for city dwellers. To meet the demands of the urban market, larger producers process over 700 tons of ingredients into jamu pills and capsules each month. Modern manufacturing methods enable factories to produce sufficient quantities to make export a possibility. And while reluctance by the old school to share health and beauty secrets with outsiders hampered the industry in its infancy, this problem has now been overcome by the pressures of an expanding economy. The lure of overseas markets is proving stronger than the mysticism that once surrounded jamu. If the end product has a longer shelf life, the horizons for export are limitless.

      A GLOSSARY OF COMMON INDONESIAN TERMS

      Choosing and Drinking Jamu

      Whatever one’s needs, jamu can almost certainly supply an answer, but it may require experimentation to find the right manufacturer. Pegal Linu, for instance, concocted by one manufacturer to counteract rheumatism and tiredness, may make no difference to symptoms, whilst the same medicine produced by another company could bring instant relief. Experimentation with products from different companies is often necessary. Furthermore, manufacturers warn that jamu works slowly, on the basis of the body’s self-healing capabilities, and it may take up to two months before results are noticed.

      Then there is the problem of how to take the potion. Jamu is steeped in folklore that is respected but rarely explained. For example, why is jamu drunk standing up straight with one’s big toes crossed? Few people know the answer: most can only reply that it is tradition. Yet they still do it! One school of thought insists that jamu must be drunk facing the sun. This accords with the principles relating to spiritual energy, where the sun is a symbol of light and divine power, representing the oneness of everything. On a more pragmatic level, the sun warms the body, automatically relaxing the muscles and enabling the body’s systems to absorb the herbs more efficiently.

      Herbalists warn never to drink jamu with alcohol because the latter dissolves the jamu, thus cancelling out its benefits. Furthermore, freshly ground roots and powders may sink to the bottom of a glass and end up being washed down the sink: the solution is to stir and drink the mixture immediately. To make jamu more potent, some advise whisking in a fresh chicken or quail egg (but not duck or turtle eggs). This is a popular addition to many powdered jamu and is normally mixed into Jamu Cabe Puyang (an abbreviation of cabe jawa, the fruit of piper retrofractum, a type of pepper, and lempuyang pahit, the rhizome of the bitter ginger, zingiber amaricans). Jamu Cabe Puyang is often prescribed for people who are run down.

      The right jamu gendong or seller is the best route to successful jamu taking. It is expected that the jamu gendong will pose a number of questions to ascertain whether an ailment might be related to other complaints, due to pregnancy, vaccinations, and so on, and therefore will have a better idea which jamu is most suitable. A lack of experience can lead to the wrong mixture which, not surprisingly, will not work.