Scrambling for blessings at Yogya’s Grebeg Syawal ritual

Wed, July 13, 2016 / 06:11 pm

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Palace servants wait for their turn to carry the pyramid-shaped gifts ahead of the Grebeg Syawal ritual.(JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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Palace guards escort the Grebeg Syawal procession at the Yogyakarta Palace square. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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Residents wait for the pyramid offerings, known as gunungan, being paraded out from the Yogyakarta Palace to designated places. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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Visitors watch the Grebeg Syawal procession at the palace’s square. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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Officers help a royal guard who apparently tripped and tumbled to the ground during the procession. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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Elephant troops join the Grebeg Syawal parade. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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People scramble for Grebeg Syawal offerings that symbolize the sultan’s care and blessings shared with the people. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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A woman wins a handful of vegetables and fruit from the gunungan offerings. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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Residents scramble for leftovers from the gunungan offerings. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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Palace servants stop to drink tea after the Grebeg Syawal parade. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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Tea is served to royal guards after the Grebeg Syawal procession at Pratjimosono in the vicinity of the Yogyakarta Palace. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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Three palace guards take a rest after escorting the Grebeg Syawal procession. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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Palace guards have some chit-chat after escorting the Grebeg Syawal parade. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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Palace guards tidy up a flag pole after the Grebeg Syawal procession at the Yogyakarta Palace. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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Palace guards return their rifles after the Grebeg Syawal procession. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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A palace guard arranges old rifles at the Yogyakarta Palace.(JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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A palace guard gestures as a sign of worship to the returned rifles used to guard the Grebeg Syawal procession. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)

In conjunction with the recent Idul Fitri celebrations and in keeping with tradition, the Yogyakarta sultanate on July 7 handed its people gifts in the form of agricultural produce.

The annual Grebeg Syawal ritual is said to have been performed since the sultanate’s third sultan, Sultan Agung.

Guards at Yogyakarta Palace presented seven pyramid-shaped offerings. Five offerings, called gunungan, were paraded from the palace to the Grand Mosque in the Kauman neighborhood, while the two others were carried to the Yogyakarta administration office and the Puro Pakualaman Palace.

Upon the offerings’ arrival at the designated places, people jostled with each other to get a share of the pyramid. Yogyakartans believe that anyone who receives a portion of these offerings will be blessed. The idea of scrambling, or ngrayah, shows that to achieve a goal, humans have to fight.

The ritual can also be interpreted as a symbol of connection between the Sultan and the commoners, with the Sultan’s care for his people reflected in his willingness to supply them with agricultural produce. [dmr]