CULTURE CEREMONIES/ ARTS
princess who had drown in these waters to escape a politically arranged marriage. This festival is done the same time with the season of these wormlike fish, where they are caught and eaten roasted in banana leaves with much enthusiasm.
Bidar Race held in August, people can find lots of vivid bidar (canoes) race in Sumatra’s Sungai Musi (Sungai Musi).
Christmas the commemoration of the Jesus birthday on 25 December, despite being only 8% of the population who are Christian, it is still a significant amount of people with it being a popular festival and a national holiday in December.
Festival Teluk Kendari a festival in every April, it is a big party and dragon-boat races in Sulawesi’s Kendari Bay.
Galungan Hari a Hindu holiday celebrates the coming of the gods and the ancestral spirits to dwell in the homes of their descendants. Evil spirits are driven off by incantations and fire crackers. The festivities are characterized by offerings, dances and new clothes.
Gawai Dayak this routine ritual from the Dayak tribe around Pontianak, West Kalimantan and has been part of their tradition for many decades now. The essence of this ceremony is as an
expression of gratitude to Jubata (God) for the abundant harvest, and also petitioning that the next harvest will be fruitful as well. The Gawai Dayak tradition is usually performed over a period of three months by the Dayak tribes especially the Dayak Iban and Dayak Darat.
Working with local government Gawai Dayak is now only held for one week, instead of three months, which takes place on the 20th of May every year.
Hudoq a thanksgiving festival of many of sub-groups of the Dayak ethnic group of East Kalimantan province, Indonesia.
Idul Fitri following from the fasting month in Ramadhan, the Muslims will end it with a huge celebration for three days following it in Syawal month.
Indonesian Independence/National day the Indonesians will celebrate their Independence Day on 17th of August, and this is their biggest national festival. Usually there will be a grand parade before the President in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia.
Jalan Jaksa Festival a festival at the capital of Indonesia, Jakarta, it usually takes place in July/August, where people can find the street close to all traffic and replaced with food stalls, craft workshops, street artists and
musicians. People may try food from all kind of Indonesian specialties while immerse in the rest of the art shows like traditional martial art combat or Betawi orchestra. You may also find batik making workshops in the midst of it all.
Kesodo Ceremony in August, hundreds of thousands Tenggerese gather at the active crater of Mount Bromo in East Java to present offerings of rice, fruit, vegetables, flowers, livestock and other local produce to the God of the Mountain in a ceremony called the Kesodo Ceremony. They ask for blessings and a year free of eruptions.
Ketoprak a theatrical genre of Java featuring actors who may also sing to the accompaniment of the gamelan. It draws its stories from Javanese history and romances and in this differs from wayang wong, which shares with wayang kulit a repertoire drawn from the Hindu epics Mahabarata and Ramayana.
Krakatoa festival annual festival held in Lampung to celebrate the volcanic island called Krakatoa.
There will be performances, elephant procession and assorted dances in the town with the finale of the event is a trip to the active volcanic island itself.
Lenong a form of theatre traditional to the Betawi people of Jakarta, Indonesia. Dialogue is generally in the Betawi dialect. Actions and
dialogue are often presented in a humorous manner on top of a stage known as a pentas tapal kuda, so named for the way actors enter the stage from the left and right. Audiences sit in front of the stage. The number of performers is determined by the needs of the story. Male performers are referred to as panjak, while female performers are known as ronggeng.
Performers are generally poorly educated.
Ludruk one of the theatrical genres in East Java. It is a form of traditional performance presented by a troupe of actors (or comedians) on a stage, re- telling the life stories of everyday people and their struggles. Its origin is unclear, but it is believed to be dated as far back as the 13th century.
Maulid Nabi the commemoration of birth of Prophet Muhammad, Muslims commemorate the birth of Prophet Muhammad with a week-long festival with gamelan performances and a parade of floats.
Nyepi literally means “Day of Silence, is the day of the Balinese New Year, commemorated every Isaawarsa (Saka New Year) base on Balinese calendar, and therefore changes every year but generally in March. On this day you will find everything is closed in Bali as it is a day of fasting and meditation. But on days preceding to it, you will see people of Bali scrubbing clean the
status on Gods, pray, hold ceremonies and various other rituals.
Odalan community festival takes place every 210 days, or once a year during a particular full moon, to mark the “birthday” or dedication of a temple. It can be a brief one-day affair or an elaborate event that goes on for weeks and involves months of preparation.
Pasola During February or March, Pasola will be celebrated in various locations across East Nusa Tenggara. Every year there will be announcement on where and when the celebration will be done. This is one of the most exciting Jousting Festival, well known around the world, where people on horseback without saddles will throw spears (know as hola) at each other to unseat the opponent. It is a traditional Sumba ritual sport to keep the spirits happy and to bring good harvest.
Ramadan the ninth month of the Islamic calendar where the Muslims will fast during the day for an entire month. The month of celebration is base on the Islamic calendar, therefore changes every year. Having a large percentage of people who are Muslim, approximately 86% of its population, Ramadan is celebrated widely here all across Indonesia.
Randai a folk theater tradition of the Minangkabau ethnic group which incorporates music, singing, dance, drama and the martial art of silat. Randai is usually performed for traditional ceremonies and festivals, and complex stories may span a number of nights. It is performed as a theatre-in- the-round to achieve an equality and unity between audience members and the performers.
Randai performances are a synthesis of alternating martial arts dances, songs, and acted scenes. Stories are delivered by both the acting and the singing and are mostly based upon Minangkabau legends and folktales. Men originally played both the male and female characters in the story, but since the 1960s women have also participated.
Satu Suro the first day of the Javanese calendar year in the month of Sura (also transcribed as "Suro"), corresponding with the Islamic month of Muharram. Satu Suro has numerous associations in folk tales and superstitions in Java, Indonesia that vary considerably through regional variation in cultural practices. The prevalent theme through most superstitions is one of the dangers of going out from the home.
Seren Taun an annual traditional Sundanese rice harvest festival and ceremony. This festival originally held to mark the new agriculture year in Sundanese ancient calendar as well as thanks giving for the blessings of the abundance
rice harvest, and also to pray for the next successful harvest. Seren taun demonstrated the Sundanese agriculture way of life, and it is held in high importance in Sundanese traditional villages, as the festival draw thousands Sundanese villagers to participate as well as Indonesian or foreign visitors.
Silat created and firstly developed in the islands of Java and Sumatra. It is an art for survival and practiced throughout Indonesian archipelago.
Centuries of tribal wars in Indonesian history had shaped silat as it was used by the ancient warriors of Indonesia. Silat was used to determine the rank and position in old Indonesian kingdoms.
Slametan the communal feast from Java, symbolizing
`the social unity of those participating in it. It is considered as the core ritual in Javanese religion, in particular the abangan variant. The feast is common among the closely related Javanese, Sundanese and Madurese people. A slametan can be given to celebrate almost any occurrence, including birth, marriage, death, moving to a new house, and so forth. Depending on the intention, the mood and emphasis may vary somewhat, but the main structure is the same.
Tabuik the local manifestation of the Remembrance of Muharram among the Minangkabau people in the coastal regions of West Sumatra, Indonesia, particularly in the city of Pariaman. The festival
includes reenactments of the Battle of Karbala, and the playing of tassa and dhol drums. Tabuik is also the term used to refer to the high funeral biers carried around during remembrance procession. Although originally a Shi'a festival, nowadays most inhabitants of Pariaman and other area's where similar Tabuik-festivals are held by all Muslims and even non-Muslims.
Toraja Funeral Ceremony the Toraja people are rice farmers and live in the mountainous areas of South Sulawesi. They hold fascinating and elaborate funeral rites to send the spirit of the dead to the afterworld and to prevent misfortune on the deceased's family. The ceremony is often held weeks or months after the death so that sufficient funds can be raised to cover the funeral expenses. During the waiting period, the corpse "lives" with the family in their tongkonan.
Tumpek days set aside to honour physical things that make life possible. During tumpek landep, keris daggers are ritually cleansed and presented with offerings to fortify their protective powers. Other metal objects, such as cars and motorcycles, are also treated with respect.
Tumpek Wayang a special day honours Betari Dewi Saraswati, goddess of learning and knowledge, sacred masks and dance costumes along with wayang kulit (leather puppets) used for ceremonies are presented with offerings.
Offerings are given to lontar (palm-leaf manuscripts) and books. No reading and writing are allowed, and students pray to Saraswati to ask for her blessings.
Waisak commemorates the birth, enlightenment and death of Gautama Buddha. During the full moon in May or June, Indonesian Buddhists observe Waisak at Borobudur, the largest Buddhist monument in the world. The ceremony is centered at the three Buddhist temples by walking from Mendut to Pawon and ending at Borobudur.
Wayang a Javanese word for particular kinds of theatre. When the term is used to refer to kinds of puppet theatre, sometimes the puppet itself is referred to as wayang. Performances of shadow puppet theatre are accompanied by a gamelan orchestra in Java, and by gender wayang in Bali.
Yogya (Jogja) Arts Festival held in June – July, people will find shows and exhibitions in the Java’s cultural capital Yogyakarta.