Many Indonesians believe that many of Indonesia’s traditional medicines, known as jamu, were originally concocted in the royal courts of Solo and Yogyakarta, where health and beauty treatments were a big part of court life. These medicines were not available to the public until the 1830s when their secrets began to trickle out. One member of the royal family who started a jamu company said. “Our lives revolved around jamu. We would prepare, drink and talk about jamu from morning to night. It was an obsession.”
Gamelan music reached its zenith in the 19th century in the courts of the sultans of Yogyakarta and Solo. Yogyakarta court players were known for their bold, vigorous style while gamelan players from Solo played a more understated, refined style. Since independence in 1949, the power of the sultanates was reduced and many gamelan musicians learned how to play in state academies. Even so the finest gamelan are still associated with royalty. The largest and most famous gamelan, the Gamelan Sekaten, was built in the 16th century as is played only once a year. ^^
Wayang dance-dramas and a variety of court dances are still widely performed in Java. Yogyakarta has a number of dance academies and is home to the Ramayana ballet. Solo also has a number of dance academies. Dr. Jukka O. Miettinen of the Theatre Academy Helsinki wrote: “Most of the court dances are traditionally attributed to sultans, and many of the rulers are themselves known to have been skilled dancers. The performers were mostly close relatives of the sultan, or members of the court and the bodyguard. The dances are of a highly aristocratic character, and consequently Central Javanese dancers have usually had an exceptionally high social status. [Source: Dr. Jukka O. Miettinen, Asian Traditional Theater and Dance website, Theatre Academy Helsinki **]
“ Many ceremonial court dances developed in the kraton palaces of Java. They include ceremonial group dances of male dancers reflecting the influence of ancient martial arts. The most famous are the beksa dances of the kraton of Yogyakarta. They were originally performed by two groups of soldiers of the royal guard, depicting scenes of warfare with a strong military spirit. The most valued court dances of are bedhaya and serimpi. They are both slow, restrained group dances performed by women to the accompaniment of choral singing and gamelan music, and their traditions are especially linked to the kraton of Yogyakarta and Surakarta in Central Java. **
Every year fingernail clippings of the sultan of Yogyakarta are offered to Mt. Merpati volcano god and locks of his hair were offered to sea goddess of Java's southern coast. In Solo, up to the 1990s anyway, a 30-meter-high, phallus-shaped tower was erected in the palace courtyard and sultan and sultan was officially married to Loro Kidul, Goddess of the South Seas. In the upper reaches of the tower the sultan spent the night making passionate love to the goddess. Crowds waited up all night to find out the outcome. If the goddess was satisfied the equilibrium between the earth and the sea would be maintained. If not there might be earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis or floods. [Source: "Ring of Fire" by Lawrence and Lorne Blair, Bantam Books, New York]
In “Return of the Sultans,” Gerry van Klinken wrote: “The government of Indonesia as of December 2007 decided that ancient culture and royalty must be recognized. Hence, the Indonesian government has officially recognized the important contribution of the former small monarchs in their history and are registering the present heads of the ruling families as representing the former kings and sovereign princes who ruled their land. Apparently about 100 of about 300 have been screened so far as valid claimants. However, some have too many claimants as royal heads of heir particular branch and therefore may not be included among the honored. But this recognition is a great milestone for these ancient royal families. [Source: “Return of the Sultans,” by Gerry van Klinken]
The last sultan of Pontianak, Syarif Hamid II Alqadrie, was jailed for 10 years in 1953 for siding with the Dutch army against the Indonesian Republic during the revolution of 1945. When he died in 1978 the throne was left empty. His palace remained a somewhat run-down tourist attraction by the Kapuas River. In January 2004 a new sultan was installed in the Qadriah palace, a nephew of Sultan Hamid II. At the celebration to mark the occasion, golden umbrellas adorned the palace, and thousands of well-wishing guests dressed in traditional Malay finery feasted on food set out in long rows on mats. Massive cannon shots boomed over the river and Air Force Skyhawks performed acrobatics over the palace. The man who said the prayers almost choked on his tears; his father had taught the Koran to the entire Alqadrie family years ago. It seemed as if the past was not gone after all.
Long-dormant sultanates are being revived all over Indonesia. My own list, no doubt incomplete, contains about 24 of them in Kalimantan, Sumatra, Java, and Maluku. That does not count the 40 or so sultans and non-Islamic kings whose roles have not changed appreciably. Figures such as the sultan of Bima and the king of Kupang have always been respected as informal local leaders.
The royalty are now represented by 3 organisations: FKKAS (for Sulawesi only), FKIKS (the oldest one) and FSKN (this last one is the most succesful and is seen as the official one, but it has some political problems in it's history). The organising of royal festivals can be a way of showing royal culture to outsiders and especially to their own people, who with amazement sees the rich culture, which was pushed back for such a long time [since 1945]. [Source: Donald Tick]
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