WAYANG (PUPPET), AN INDONESIAN CULTURE, FULL OF VALUABLE LESSONS

picture by: www.gadogado.web.id

Wayang is an Indonesian traditional art that mostly developed in Java and Bali. Wayang is a very popular traditional play in Indonesia. Puppet is generally based on a story taken from the epics of Ramayana and Mahabharata. Both these epic are originally from India, but the story has been changed.

picture by: www.antoys.wordpress.com

Initially, the puppet is part of the religious activities of animism, which was based on an important moment, especially when the harvest time as an expression of gratitude and prayer in order to avoid future catastrophe. At this time, puppet mostly adopted Mythos stories that glorify the king as a direct descendant of the gods. After the entry of Hindu and Buddhist, puppet show adopted the stories of heroism in these religions.

When globalization came into Java, where the influence of Islamic culture began to permeate the society, a lot of puppet rule clashed with Islamic teachings so that one important figure of Islam in Java, Raden Patah ordered to change some rules of the puppet. After that, various innovations and the forms of puppets continued to the time of Islamic Mataram until today.

However, despite experiencing various changes in form and stories, the essence of puppet shows remains the same, that is to teach the phenomenon of life, good teaching, as well as a warning to mankind to live a life in harmony with the guidance of the puppeteer. This culture is so important for Indonesia and the world, so that with various efforts, puppet show has been recognized by the United Nations Agencies, UNESCO on November 7, 2003, as a work of amazing cultural stories in narrative and beautiful heritage and valuable (Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity).