Masnunah guards oral verse

Masnunah guards oral verse

Oyos Saroso H.N., The Jakarta Post/Bandarlampung

Amid an influx of modern art forms, Masnunah (72) is one of
Lampung's few surviving traditional artists.

Despite her meager income and her limping walk, this old woman
continues to recite dadi, Lampung's traditional oral verse, at
traditional festivals and parties.

Her shrill, loud voice when chanting dadi always mesmerizes
her audience. It is really amazing to observe how a 72-year-old
woman recites this oral poetry, which requires above all else an
excellent breathing technique as each verse must be recited in
full without drawing breath.

"Extraordinary. She deserves to perform not only at the Gedung
Kesenian Jakarta or Taman Ismail Marzuki, but also on the
international stage," said poet Afrizal Malna moments after
witnessing Masnunah's dadi recital during the opening ceremony of
the Indonesian Short Stories Congress held at the Lampung Culture
Park a year ago.

Other people can recite Lampung's traditional oral verse but
Masnunah is the only one who is passing it, particularly dadi,
down to the younger generation.

She is rightly called the doyen of Lampung's traditional oral
verse as no one else of her age has devoted themselves with the
same zeal to this area, while none of her students can compare to
her in terms of the melodious rise and fall of her voice when
chanting the poetry.

"I have been learning to chant dadi from her for over five
years but even now I am nowhere near her level in terms of the
rise and fall of the voice as I don't fully understand the
meaning symbolism of the dadi verses," said Riagus Ria, 33, who
is also a grandchild of Masnunah.

Dadi is poetry that is chanted. One verse usually consists of
four lines with an "aa-aa" or "ab-ab" rhyming scheme.

Made up of symbol-laden lines, dadi verses normally dwell on
such themes as adoration for a lover, a tragic episode in one's
life, an expression of love for the motherland, advice and words
of wisdom to be passed to the younger generation, and heroic
stories about the fight against the Dutch and Japanese.

Dadi verses are usually chanted at the turn of the year, to
mark a bumper harvest, at meetings between young men and women,
and during many traditional types of festival in Lampung.

Usually, young people sit face to face with a white piece of
cloth separating them. They take turns to chant the verses in an
exchange of responses. Usually, their elders sit behind them and
provide them with the right responses to ensure that the chanting
proceeds smoothly.

Not everybody, however, can understand the meanings
encapsulated within each verse as the poetry uses a refined
version of the local Lampung dialect -- one that is full of
symbols and metaphors.

"That's why not every native of Lampung can learn to recite
this poetry," Riagus said.

Masnunah learned to recite the traditional poetry from her
father, Dalon Muda Sebuway, at the age of seven. Siti Aminah, her
mother, also helped her to become a skilled dadi performer.

Born in 1932 in Segala Mider Pubian village, Central Lampung,
Masnunah said she felt called upon to continue performing the
traditional oral poetry as she realized that this art form was
becoming increasingly marginalized by the influx of modern art
forms.

"In the past, traditional art was usually performed when there
was a party in our village. Today, a solo organ or dangdut music
concert is preferred," she noted.

Dadi, she said, is the most important literary form among the
Pubian people. Pubian is the name of a traditional clan in Lam
pung. As she is a Pubian, she feels called upon to preserve this
traditional art. "I have always encouraged my people to stage
dadi performances as the main form of entertainment during
festivals among the Pubian people," she said.

In the belief prevailing in the Dalon Muda Sebuway clan, dadi
verse is not regarded as simply a cultural manifestation but also
as something sacred.

"Dadi is part of our very life and soul," Masnunah noted.

The verse created and chanted by Masnunah generally dwells on
her struggles in life. She expresses everything that she feels,
witnesses and goes through in her beautiful verses.

Masnunah said she had to devote a lot of time to learning how
to chant the traditional poetry. "I create this poetry with my
heart so I need a week's fasting before I can chant it," she
said.

During a week of fasting, Masnunah usually trains her voice by
submerging her face in the water while saying a prayer. Thanks to
this, she says she is still able to produce the required high-
pitched tone when chanting a full verse of dadi without drawing
breath, despite her advanced years.

Masnunah married Abdul Hasan, of Tanjung Kemala, Central
Lampung, in 1955, and right after the wedding she made up her
mind to devote herself to teaching dadi and other Lampung oral
literary forms, such as pisaan, kias and warahan.

Her grandchild, Riagus, who now manages all her performances,
said the Lampung provincial administration paid only scant
attention to this art form.

"Lampung's traditional arts are now on the brink of extinction
due to a lack of government attention," Riagus added.

Riagus said that Masnunah and other guardians of Lampung
traditional art forms had recently been enjoying more public
exposure thanks to the Ragom Budaya Lampung (RBL), or Lampung
Cultural Variety Shows, held once a month on Saturday evenings in
the auditorium of the Bandarlampung station of Radio Republic
Indonesia.

"Don't ask whether the Lampung provincial administration has
ever shown appreciation for Ibu Masnunah," Riagus said.

Riagus also said that Tim Smith, a researcher from the United
States, earned his master's degree a few years ago for his
research on dadi in Central Lampung. "Tim is the only person that
has documented this form of traditional oral poetry. Ironically,
neither the central government nor the Lampung provincial
administration have done anything to document or recorded this
traditional art form," Riagus noted.

Masnunah said she had never been discouraged in her efforts to
preserve traditional oral poetry, although on many occasions she
received no payment for her performances. "I persist in my
efforts to preserve dadi as it reflects the real meaning of
life,' she explained.

It is true that her name has become more familiar today
because of her frequent appearances at RBL events. Many natives
of Lampung have asked her to perform at their parties. But this
does not necessarily mean that she now earns money. It is often
the case that she does not even receive a cent from the hosts.

"Once I had to walk all the way and then took a small bus home
as the host did not give me any money. I had to fork out my own
money," she said.

Despite the lack of the government attention and her meager
income as a dadi performer, Masnunah is determined to keep
promoting the art form.

"Dadi is my life, and so I will continue to perform it until
my dying breath," said Masnunah, who always wears slippers and
covers her mouth with a fan when reciting dadi.