Lake Djonge cleansing ritual brings farmers together

It was a hot and sweltering noon of a Legi Friday according to the Javanese calendar. Yet villagers living in the vicinity of Lake Djonge in Pacarejo village, Semanu, Wonosari, some 50 kilometers southeast of here, seemed oblivious to the searing heat.

Thousands of villagers were flocking to a prepared site located to the south of the lake that measures four hectares in diameter, bringing tenongan, large containers made of bamboo filled with a variety of dishes. Each family brought its own tenongan carried by the head of the family.

That Legi Friday was indeed not ordinary. It fell prior to this year's wet season, the beginning of the planting season for farmers. It meant that the ritual cleansing of Lake Djonge, a Javanese traditional ritual considered very important for the prosperity and protection of people living in the villages around the lake, was to be carried out that day.

"We're afraid that something calamitous will befall us if we do not perform the ritual," said Mujiono, Pacarejo's chief clerk, explaining why the ritual is still held annually every Legi Friday ahead of the planting season.

The ritual, according to Mujiono, is dedicated to the guardian spirit of Kyai (cleric) Djonge who once lived in Pacarejo hamlet of Wangen and whose grave is said to be at the bottom of the lake.

Described as one of seven advisors of the Majapahit Kingdom who escaped the troops of the Demak Kingdom following Majapahit's defeat in a war against Demak in the late 14th century, Kyai Djonge is believed to have possessed mighty supernatural powers.

So powerful was Kyai Djonge that he was believed to be able to delay the setting of the sun to give his men more time to finish their work, no matter how difficult it may be, before sunset.

Kyai Djonge, or Kyai Sidik Wacono as he was previously known before changing his name into Kyai Djonge (which literally means boat, referring to the vehicle he used to escape), died in the village on a Legi Friday, after leaving a message that the villagers could still ask him for help although he was no longer alive.

Buried in his own residence, his grave was eventually covered with rain water and turned into a lake. Locals consider the lake sacred. Villagers then began conducting the annual cleansing ritual at the lake every Legi Friday prior to the beginning of wet season, in the hope that the spirit of Kyai Djonge would protect them from harm and grant them their wishes.

"People wanting to become a village leader also come here to ask for help from Kyai Djonge. And once their wishes are fulfilled, they are obliged to present a small offering by slaughtering a chicken on a Legi Friday," Mujiono said.

According to the Javanese calendar, a Legi Friday comes every 35 days.

And that is not all. Pacarejo villagers wishing to hold a party, whether a wedding, a circumcision ritual, or other festivities, are also required to take a portion of water from the lake to be mixed with the water used to cook or to drink for the party. Otherwise, something unexpected might occur during the party, Mujiono said.

So important is the ritual that the villagers start preparations, including collecting money and cleaning the lake surroundings, weeks ahead of the day.

Last Friday's ritual, which cost Rp 7 million, began in the morning with the slaughter of three big, healthy goats by a caretaker of the lake, Krisnoto. He then threw the heads of the goats into the lake and gave the meat to other villagers to be cooked into a delicious curry for the villagers' meal at the ceremony.

"The slaughter of the goats is a requirement that must be fulfilled," Mujiono said.

The main ritual was held at an open veranda built at the south end of the lake. Hundreds of tenongan consisting of various dishes were placed near the ritual site.

Another caretaker of the lake, Notosuwito, led the prayer held in front of a substitute gravestone of Kyai Djonge, which was built intentionally on the banks west of the veranda to make it easy for visitors wanting to express their wishes to the spirit of the Kyai. Holding a burning incense stick, Notosuwito guided visitors in their prayers.

At the same time, caretaker Krisnoto was busy picking out small portions of food from each of the tenongan. He then put them into five panjang ilang (a container for offerings) to be placed around the lake.

To make sure that every villager received the blessing of Kyai Djonge, Krisnoto also distributed to all the villagers portions of the goat curry made from the slaughtered goats.

The peak of the ceremony was when the villagers ate all the prepared dishes and offerings together. Some of them took some of the dishes home for their family members who were unable to come to the ritual site.

"Each member of the family must eat the dishes in order to receive the blessings from Kyai Djonge," Krisnoto said.

Was Kyai Djonge real or a just myth? Head of Pacarejo village Sardio revealed that in 1997, when the lake was dredged, they found a coffin made of teak wood.

"It was still intact and we thought it must have been Kyai Djonge's," Sardio said.

Regardless of the authenticity of the story, Lake Djonge cleansing rite has become a venue for locals to meet. Most of the villagers of Pacarejo, including those who have left the village to make a living in other towns, return home to attend the sacred rite.

The rite, therefore, has strengthened the villagers' collective identity and invariably links them to their home village.

-- Bambang M