Chapter 5 - Living Lives with Multiple Subjectivities

Summary

My roommate Najmudin is a fascinating individual. He is a native of Baunae Jeudong village, about 15 kilometres away from Guba. But given that his maternal grandmother and relatives live in Guba, he has travelled to the village since he was young. He spent his youth and early adulthood in Yala city with “unconventional” friends, many of them Thai Buddhists. Then, he worked as a driver for Shakib, the Arzeulee SAO chief executive who at the time was an antique dealer. However, for various reasons, he quit that job and began to work for other people, mostly as a driver. After two years of being a freelance driver, Najmudin settled into the house of the family I stayed with, mostly driving and doing other chores for the family. The day I began my field research in Guba, Saifuldin and other family members assigned me to stay on the second floor of the house. The floor has one room, which belongs to Aiman (the homeowner), and outside the room is an old bed with a shabby mattress and pillow covered by a torn mosquito net, where Najmudin spends the night. The empty space between Aiman's room and Najmudin's area was allocated for me to make a sleeping place with some old mats. It is largely from our before-sleeping talks that I gradually learned how fascinating Najmudin's life is.

In addition to helping the family out with various matters, Najmudin does some work for one kratom cocktail producer/seller, getting paid in product. If there is no work in the family, he hangs out with his friends, most of them living on the fringes of the law, during the day and returns home late at night. His life is like a mystery, and many residents regard it as extraordinary. However, he is still committed to being a good Muslim. He regularly performs Friday noon prayers at the mosque, and he attempts to fast during Ramadan despite the pain this causes because of his kratom addiction. Meanwhile, he also considers himself a Malay. In addition to participating in various Malay cultural activities with Aiman, he wears a waistband with ta krud (tiny, rolled pieces of metal inscribed with magic spells), a local belief he considers not in conflict with Islam, because, he said, “I don't revere it”.