Ondel ondel || is a form of Betawi folk performance which is often performed at public parties
Published at : December 02, 2022
Ondel-ondel is a large puppet figure featured in Betawi folk performance of Jakarta, Indonesia. Ondel-ondel is an icon of Jakarta. Ondel-ondel are utilized for livening up festivals or for welcoming guests of honor, usually in pairs. Ondel-ondel is one of a few Indonesian folk performances that has survived modernization and is still being regularly performed.
Traditionally, the figure of ondel-ondel was known as barongan, a word derived from barong, a protective spirit that can be found across the animistic Austronesian culture long before the arrival of Hinduism. The figure was performed around villages to provide protection against calamities or for warding off wandering evil spirits. It was thought as a representation of the ancestors protecting the village.[1]
The first record of ondel-ondel is probably by British merchant William Scot who noted that een reus raksasa ("a giant Rakshasa") was one of the figures included in the procession led by Prince Jayakarta Wijayakrama to celebrate the circumcision of 10 years old Prince Abdul Mafakhir in the year 1605.[2]
Up until the modern colonial period, ondel-ondel figure was recorded to have a gruesome facial feature such as large fangs and menacing goggle-eyes, similar to the Balinese Barong or Rangda figure. The ondel-ondel was performed on the streets and asked by-passers for opium. When opium was banned in the Dutch East Indies, the ondel-ondel would ask for cigars instead, which is done by placing a cigar on their mouth. During this period, local Betawi people still believe that ondel-ondel can protect a village against disease such as chickenpox. Ondel-ondel performance was recorded by American writer E.R. Scidmore who visited Batavia in late 19th-century who noted a street performance in the form of dances, which could be the ondel-ondel performance.[1]
The construction of an ondel-ondel must follow a certain ritual. Before the construction of an ondel-ondel, the maker must gives offering in the form of incense, kembang tujuh rupa, and a rice porridge. The offering was intended to ensure the process of making ondel-ondel is a smooth one and to allow benevolent spirit to enter the figure
Traditionally, the figure of ondel-ondel was known as barongan, a word derived from barong, a protective spirit that can be found across the animistic Austronesian culture long before the arrival of Hinduism. The figure was performed around villages to provide protection against calamities or for warding off wandering evil spirits. It was thought as a representation of the ancestors protecting the village.[1]
The first record of ondel-ondel is probably by British merchant William Scot who noted that een reus raksasa ("a giant Rakshasa") was one of the figures included in the procession led by Prince Jayakarta Wijayakrama to celebrate the circumcision of 10 years old Prince Abdul Mafakhir in the year 1605.[2]
Up until the modern colonial period, ondel-ondel figure was recorded to have a gruesome facial feature such as large fangs and menacing goggle-eyes, similar to the Balinese Barong or Rangda figure. The ondel-ondel was performed on the streets and asked by-passers for opium. When opium was banned in the Dutch East Indies, the ondel-ondel would ask for cigars instead, which is done by placing a cigar on their mouth. During this period, local Betawi people still believe that ondel-ondel can protect a village against disease such as chickenpox. Ondel-ondel performance was recorded by American writer E.R. Scidmore who visited Batavia in late 19th-century who noted a street performance in the form of dances, which could be the ondel-ondel performance.[1]
The construction of an ondel-ondel must follow a certain ritual. Before the construction of an ondel-ondel, the maker must gives offering in the form of incense, kembang tujuh rupa, and a rice porridge. The offering was intended to ensure the process of making ondel-ondel is a smooth one and to allow benevolent spirit to enter the figure
OndelondelBetawi