Book depicts Javanese puppet world

Book depicts Javanese puppet world

Leather Gods and Wooden Heroes: Java's Classical Wayang

By David Irvine

Times Editions, Singapore, 1996,

360 pp

Rp 175,000

JAKARTA (JP): For newcomers to this country who know little,
if anything, about traditional cultures, David Irvine's book is a
good place to start learning.

The book focuses on Java's classical wayang purwa. For the
uninitiated, this is the fascinating world of traditional
Javanese theater.

Written in English, this publication explains clearly
everything from Java's Pre-Hindu Civilization to a wayang purwa
performance.

Wayang purwa means original theater or original stories (or
traditional drama and puppet plays) which are inherited from the
Hindu-Islamic culture of thousands of years ago. They are
performed in various ways, such as wayang wong (dance drama);
wayang golek (doll puppet) and wayang kulit (leather puppet).

The wayang stories stem from the Hindu epics Ramayana and
Mahabharata, but are adapted to the indigenous culture, serving
as media for ethical and aesthetical expression.

As the author states in the introduction, wayang purwa
combines religion, mysticism, folklore, history, literature,
philosophy, music, dance, and social and political comment. It
contains high drama, subtle wordplay and low comedy. Wayang is
entertainment, yet it provides guidance for Javanese in the
personal search for fulfillment, which involves achieving harmony
between the soul and outward behavior.

In Leather Gods and Wooden Heroes the term wayang purwa is
used to describe the four oldest cycles of stories, or lakons,
drawn from 'the origins', from "Javanese pre-history and
folklore; Indian post-Vedic literature and Javanese creativity
and inventiveness" over many centuries. Some readers may be
familiar with at least two of the epics - the Ramayana and the
Mahabharata cycles.

The first cycle of wayang purwa is the 'prehistory' or Jawa
Dewa (Gods of Java) stories. Refined over the centuries and
absorbing many Hindu influences, the seven surviving lakons
continue to be performed on occasions traditionally requiring
ritual purifications, propitiation of the gods and prayers for
fertility.

Lakons with the Goddess of Rice and the Harvest, Dewi Sri, are
still occasionally performed in villages of Central and East Java
as invocations for the fertility of the land.

The birth of the ancient Javanese God of Darkness and
Destruction, 'hinduised' as Bathara Kala, is told in the lakon
entitled Murwakala ('The Birth of Kala'). It is performed as a
traditional exorcism ritual - usually to protect children. Some
lakons from other cycles are also performed to mark special
occasions, such as births, circumcisions and weddings.

The book is written in simplistic style and is designed to
keep the audience's interest. It is divided into four sections
for ease of reference.

Part one discusses the development, art forms and themes of
Wayang Purwa. Part two comprises the principle Wayang characters;
part three is a simplified guide to the characters and their
alternative names; and part four is a simplified glossary of
Javanese and Indonesian terms relevant to a trip into Java's
classical Wayang.

Footnotes at the end of each chapter also assist in defining
terms and explaining some of the fables in more detail.

From the moment you set eyes on the wonderful photographs
(taken by John Midgely and Jakarta photographer Tara
Sosrowardoyo) and sketches (by Sugiri), you will be engrossed in
the world of Wayang.

Epic stories of Wayang Purwa include those which relate the
exploits of the original Javanese gods and legendary heroes.
Ogres and giants battle against the gods - evil versus good. You
will be amazed at the goriness contained in some of the tales,
(there seems to be a lot of murder and suicide in these puppet
shows), yet you will still be drawn to stories such as the one
about Ngruna and Ngruni, two fairy nymphs who were married to the
Sun God, Bathara Surya.

Surya provided them each with an egg to hatch. Ngruna's egg
hatched into two Garuda birds (a Garuda is a mythical beast -
half man and half bird), the bald headed eagle, Sempati, and the
vulture, Jatayu. Ngruni's egg hatched into a serpent. Squabbles
developed between the children, souring the relationship between
the wives.

Ngruna cursed Ngruni, turning her into an ogress, who then
went to Bathara Wisnu for help. Heaven was under attack from a
giant king (Sengkan Turunan) at the time, so Wisnu turned
Ngruni's misfortune to Heaven's advantage. Ngruni was told the
curse could be lifted if she could save Heaven. Guided by Wisnu,
Ngruni kidnapped Sengkan's daughter, Jatawati, while the Garuda
Jatayu created a diversionary attack on Sengkan's armies. The
plan was successful and Heaven was saved. Jatawati was married to
Jatayu and Ngruin was restored to her former beauty.

Perhaps you would enjoy the fables about giants, demons and
ogres (raksasa). It is revealed the raksasa puppet is usually
ugly, red-faced and grotesque in shape, symbolizing the fiery
temper and uncontrollable lusts of the creatures.

Not all raksasa characters are inherently evil. Bagawan
Bagaspati was a sage who was born in a giant form and who
sacrificed his life for his daughters happiness.

Plots of wayang include: the human sacrifice; the maiden in
love; the mischief in disguise (which can often be hilarious);
revenge; the kidnapped wife or daughter; the quest for missing
parents and the quest of the Supernatural, among others. A
typical wayang performance may commence at 9 p.m., and continue
until 4 a.m.

The author says wayang characters mirror the infinite variety
of human personality traits, yet still serve as both positive and
negative role models for a majority of Javanese.

Leather Gods and Wooden Heroes is sure to captivate and
entertain readers, satisfying their curiosity about the
fascinating art form. It may also prove valuable to Javanese
people, as it documents an important part of their traditional
culture, which hopefully, will not be lost in the future.

-- Jodie Munro