Palaces join parade in Surakarta
Kartika Bagus C., The Jakarta Post, Surakarta
The Idul Fitri holiday, known to locals as Syawalan, became all the more special this year, since it coincided with Christmas and the New Year. Plenty of celebration and joy has made these occasions lively and merry ones.
Surakarta, Central Java's main tourist destination, marked the holidays with Gebyar Pekan Syawalan, a week-long fair commemorating the month of Syawal based on Javanese calendar, which involved the Kasunanan (kingdom) of Surakarta Hadiningrat and Pura (castle) of Mangkunegaran at the Taman Satwa Taru Jurug (Taru Jurug Zoo) starting Dec. 23.
The kirab (parade) -- the first program, involving two cultural monuments in Java -- displayed mostly palace soldiers as well as Kereta Kencana (the Golden Chariot), a palace heirloom, symbolic of its importance.
Kraton (palace) in Surakarta exhibited its Retno Juwito chariot, which originally carried the palace delegation, Kereta Siswondo to promenade the figure of Joko Tingkir and another one to carry the ulemas.
Horseback riders and soldiers comprising Tamtama, Jayeng Astra and Sorogeni -- in black, gray and red uniforms respectively -- accompanied Joko Tingkir, a figure played by movie actor Willy Dozan.
Pura Mangkunegaran displayed the heirloom of a horsedrawn chariot, followed by the Joyo Misesa soldiers. These soldiers are famous historically as special warriors of Mangkunegaran I, better known as Pangeran (Prince) Sambernyawa.
The parade of the chariots -- followed by hundreds of abdi dalem (palace servants) -- emerged from the former city hall of Surakarta to the Taru Jurug zoo, located about 10 kilometers from the main street of Surakarta.
The Kirab comprised of bregodo (a group) of Kraton Surakarta, Pura Mangkunegaran and Joko Tingkir, preceded by cucuk lampah (guides), patah kembaran (pairs of male and female escorts), pinisepuh (elders) and supernatural, satrio kembar tiga (triplet twins) and Gajah (elephant) squad.
Along the road, people cheered and watched the parade enthusiastically. It was a rare and special occasion to see a procession jointly staged by both kingdoms, which used to be a unitary kingdom of Mataram.
The Surakarta Palace cultural observer, Kalinggo Honggopuro, said the palace's participation was meant to boost tourism in the city of Surakarta. The event was staged in the month of Syawal, in which the palace had no relevant programs in the Idul Fitri festivity.
"The Surakarta Palace has proven the dedication of Sultan Pakoe Boewono XII to his people by giving udik-udik (small change) to them," he said.
The chief of the Pura Mangkunegaran tourism bureau, Tranggono, echoed the benefits that the participation of these palaces has had in supporting the local tourist economy.
"It is the second time Pura Mangkunegaran joined in the peak of Syawalan in the city," he said. "But it's not the first without the Kraton Surakarta's involvement; hopefully, it could bring back the vanishing Kraton Festival, where both palaces could stage such an event together."
The final procession of the Syawalan saw Larungan Ketupat (the throwing offerings to the river) ceremony into the Bengawan (big river) Solo, symbolic of purging and eradicating sins.
Thousands of people also flocked the river bank to see Joko Tingkir and groups as they passed by.
Joko Tingkir, according to the history of Java Kingdom, is the ancestor of the greatest kings and biggest kingdoms in Java, such as the kingdoms of Mataram and Demak.
These include even the Mataram Kingdom begot the line of the Palaces of Surakarta, Yogyakarta and Pura Mangkunegaran Surakarta in 1757 and the Pura Paku Alam Yogyakarta in 1812.
The Kirab, which involved kingdoms after Mataram, reflected the reconciliation needed by Indonesians today.
Looking at the Mataram Kingdom as the major root of culture in Indonesia it is conceivable that, one day, this country could regain the glory of its past history.