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The freewheeling homecoming of Serat Centhini
The transmission of collective memories from one generation to another, at least for Javanese, is very much sutured with esoteric expressions of the ruling elites
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The transmission of collective memories from one generation to another, at least for Javanese, is very much sutured with esoteric expressions of the ruling elites.
This is evident in Serat Centhini, a classic epic that highlights Javanese "local" customs, practices and knowledge.
Composed by a noble of Surakarta in the early 19th century, the scope of themes and issues of the 12 volumes of this work ranges from the lowbrow of eroticism and sensuality to the highly spiritual and moralist Javanese values.
However, one cannot simply overlook the term "local", which implies whose actions were being represented in this much celebrated literary work.
An attempt to revive the spirit profoundly promoted within the ambiguous texts of Centhini will be made in the Hari Huru-Hara Centhini (literally, "Day of Centhini's Mayhem") event, which is scheduled to be held today at LIP, the French Cultural Center in Yogyakarta.
The event's initiator, Elizabeth D. Inandiak, whose creative adaptation of Serat Centhini has been published into many languages (the Indonesian version the most recent), believes this event is an opportunity to fill the long-existing gap between different interpretations and understandings of Centhini among academics, artists, poets and lay persons alike.
A French poet-cum-journalist, Inandiak, who admits she has fallen in love with Centhini, has dedicated years to abridging the immense manuscripts into a more popular version.
In her commitment to renewing the memories of Centhini in the public mind, despite vanishing original texts, Inandiak collaborates with artists like dancer Didik Ninik Thowok, actor Landung Simatupang and musician A. Surono in tour performances in Indonesia, Spain and India.
Working as a relief worker in a Bebekan village, Bantul after the devastating 2006 earthquake, Inandiak says she encountered a gap in knowledge between people from the city and those from rural areas.
"As a writer who works in bridging ideas, it was disturbing to discover the huge knowledge gap between those in Yogya and those from a village located only 16 kilometers away," she says.
In the Hari Huru-Hara Centhini event, formal discussions and lectures by linguistic experts and artists will be interspersed with theater performances by French director Xavier Ricard, a dance performance by Didik Nini Thowok, a traditional Reog Ponorogo folk performance and traditional religious music by Hadrah.
The chaotic journey into Centhini is to be reenacted with a more contextual twist relating to current-day themes.
Inandiak sees the Friday event as the launch of the Indonesian version of her Centhini, "Kekasih yang Tersembunyi" (The Hidden Lover), and an end to her long-pursued project.
Nevertheless, she says, "This will be a whole new exciting beginning for us all, now that Centhini is back where it belongs, home among its people".
Hari Huru-Hara Centhini
Friday, 25 July 2008
LIP, Jl Sagan 3, Yogyakarta
The event begins at 2 p.m.
Admission is free
