Sunday, June 08, 2008
[4:19 PM]
Of all the three weddings, the one that's happening at my void deck is making me feel a little apprehensive. Unlike the typical noise and scene you get from the all the karaoke singing, this one is special because the noise it creates comes solely from the playing of a gamelan and a kuda kepang performance, all of which are happening on a small field that's right outside my window. These two are traditions that originate all the way from ancient Indonesia, Bali if im not wrong, where the influence of Hinduism was one of the strongest during the expansion of Southeast Asian kingdoms and civilisation. Im the kind of person who embraces tradition if it doesn't cross any religious line. The introduction of Islam in the region came much later hence some traditional and cultural practices of the Malays tend to be influenced with Hinduism and one has to be very careful not to mix them up else it will create unnecessary controversy.
From the very little knowledge I have of kuda kepang, the only thing significant to me about this culture is its involvement with the spriritual world. It crosses the boundary of reality and dwells with spirits from the underworld. Men riding on the fancifully decorated cardboard horses will start to behave unnaturally differently a few minutes into the performance and that is probably an indication that spirits have taken over the souls and body of these men.
Sometimes I do wonder if these people really have their souls taken over by spirits or if they are purely acting for the pleasure of the audience. But from what I see I don't think it's acting. They are getting physically beaten with rods, whipped, and they look the least normal drinking from pails are gorging on fruits once in a while in a manner one would remotely associate with humans. And there's one in a tree right outside my window at the moment.
All of this is making me feel uneasy. I can never feel comfortable whenever a certain boundary is crossed so to have the underworld involved in a ritual like this is something Im not able to accept. It gets even more disturbing with the fact that it's happening at a wedding ceremony. It's called a holy matrimony for a reason, it ought to be religious in nature. Im not sure how I should go on because it's not easy to put my words across without offending any related parties. This is a highly sensitive issue so I think it'll be right if I just end it here. I will do a little more research on this age old tradition to have a better insight before I start to make improper judgment.