The Tradition of Pre-Eid Cemetery Visits Becomes a Source of Income for Flower Vendors at Karet Public Cemetery
JAKARTA — Beneath the shade of trees, a simple cart stands at the entrance to Karet Public Cemetery (TPU Karet) on Pasar Baru Barat Road, Central Jakarta. On the cart’s table, dozens of glass bottles filled with rose water are arranged neatly. Beside them, plastic bags containing a mixture of red, white, and yellow flower petals are hung and stacked for sale to the steady stream of visitors paying respects.
According to observations by Kompas.com at TPU Karet Pasar Baru Barat on Monday 16 March 2026, several flower vendors were seen opening their stalls from early morning. They sell scattered flowers, rose water, and other ritual items near the cemetery’s entrance. The bags are hung from cart poles or arranged on tables for easy access by customers.
Glass bottles labelled “Rose Water” are displayed in neat rows. This water is typically used by visitors to pour onto graves after scattering flowers. Some vendors also prepare larger quantities of flowers in transparent plastic bags hung on the sides of their carts. Red and white flower petals fill these bags, serving as reserves should demand increase.
Behind the vendors’ stalls, rows of graves stretch across the fairly spacious cemetery grounds. Grey and black headstones stand neatly amongst grass growing between plots. The cemetery atmosphere is calm. Occasionally, visitors can be seen walking along narrow paths between graves, carrying bags of scattered flowers in their hands.
“Scattered flowers, sir… just five thousand,” calls out one vendor to a visitor entering the cemetery grounds.
Visitor activity increases, and flower vendors begin arriving to take advantage of the occasion. One such vendor who continues to sell faithfully at TPU Karet Pasar Baru Barat is Marsini, 78.
The elderly woman has relied on selling scattered flowers to visitors for nearly two decades. “I’ve been selling flowers here for a very long time, almost 20 years,” Marsini said when met by Kompas.com at her stall on Monday.
She noted that flower sales typically increase ahead of Eid when the number of visitors grows. “It gets busy when Eid approaches. Usually, two to three days before Eid it starts getting crowded,” she said.
Marsini sells scattered flowers in small plastic bags for IDR 5,000. However, during the Eid period, the price of rose water can increase due to higher demand.
The flowers she sells are not grown by herself. She purchases them from flower markets, including those in the Rawa Belong area of West Jakarta. According to Marsini, scattered flowers typically consist of a mixture of rose petals, ylang-ylang petals, and pandan leaves.
If flowers do not sell completely, she stores them in a refrigerator to prevent them from wilting quickly. “The flowers typically last two to three days. If they haven’t sold, I usually keep them in the refrigerator,” she said.
Despite being 78 years old, Marsini still regularly comes to sell every day from morning until evening. “From around 6 am until around 6 pm,” she said.
Income from selling flowers is not always consistent. On regular days during the fasting month, she earns only around IDR 50,000 per day. “Sometimes it takes two days to earn around IDR 60,000,” Marsini said. “That’s how it is, it’s all about making a living. Sometimes you profit, sometimes you don’t,” she added.