`Cap Go Meh' celebrations hope for blessings

Tantri Yuliandini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

With incense sticks in their hands and prayers issuing from their lips, thousands of Chinese-Indonesians line up along the streets to greet the toapekong (effigies of gods) during the Cap Go Meh celebrations.

Held on the 15th day of the first month of the Lunar Calendar, Cap Go Meh celebrations in Indonesia have their roots in southern China, from where most Chinese descendants here come.

Lecturer at the University of Indonesia's School of Chinese Studies Eddy Prabowo Witanto said the Chinese in southern China believed the gods come out of the heavens on the 15th day to grant wishes and spread good luck.

"The parade, carrying toapekong around town, is a reflection of this belief," he said. Cap Go Meh simply means "night of the 15th" in the southern Chinese dialect, Hokkian.

In Singkawang, West Kalimantan -- where people of Chinese descent still practice their traditions -- celebrations center at the Kelenteng Dewi Welas Asih (temple of the goddess of mercy), Eddy said.

"Effigies from many surrounding temples are carried to the Kelenteng Dewi Welas Asih to be blessed," he explained.

In Jakarta, effigies of Cheng Guan Cheng Kun (a heavenly god) and Tian Kao (two dogs that are believed to usher the former) are paraded from the 500-year-old Wihara Dharma Djaja Toasebeo in West Jakarta to Taman Fatahillah.

This celebration was not possible during the presidency of Soeharto when most Chinese culture was suppressed, and any celebrations restricted to people's homes.

The celebration on the 15th of the first month is also marked by the lighting of lanterns, which are believed to draw the gods from the heavens to the celebration on earth and lead them back afterward.

The Lantern Festival, as it is known, takes on a more elaborate form in northern China where huge lanterns of various forms, sizes and colors are displayed.

The festival is believed to date back to the Han Dynasty (206 BC to 221 AD), and a story of its origins tells of a homesick palace maid contriving a distraction to enable her to go home.

The maid, Yuan Xiao, told the emperor that the Fire God would set fire to the city unless it was appeased with a scene of burning. The emperor ordered firecrackers be set off, and bright red lanterns hung throughout the streets.

Cap Go Meh celebrations are even more festive than New Year's day itself, known here as Imlek.

"The first day of spring is usually too cold for any activities, and only on the 15th day is it comfortable enough to go out merrymaking," Eddy said, explaining that traditional barongsai (lion dances) and liong (dragon dances) are often performed during this time.

A special food, named after the maid Yuan Xiao, is usually eaten at this time. Made of rice flour and stuffed with all manner of delicacies, both sweet and savory, these round dumplings symbolize both the first full moon of the year and the complete family union cherished by traditional Chinese.

In Indonesia this tradition has been replaced by local delicacies. Especially in Java, a more popular dish eaten during the festivities is Lontong Cap Go Meh.

Eaten with opor ayam (chicken cooked in coconut milk), telur pindang (seasoned boiled egg), boiled vegetables and powdered soybeans, the round rice cakes in Lontong Cap Go Meh also symbolize the same things as Yuan Xiao.

After the big bash on the 15th day of the new year, things return to normal.