The Powerful Mantra in Borobudur

Name: The Powerful Mantra in Borobudur
Uploaded: 2020-11-12T03:59:15Z
Duration: 20 min 32 s
Description: The padasan (clay barrel) in front of the house of Siti Zaenab in Karanganyar vllage, Borobudur district, Magelang regency, Central Java, does not only look dull, but also mossy.

The padasan (clay barrel) in front of the house of Siti Zaenab in Karanganyar vllage, Borobudur district, Magelang regency, Central Java, does not only look dull, but also mossy.

REGINA RUKMORINI/GREGORIUS MAGNUS FINESSO

· 5 minutes read

Even though they are blessed with fertile land and natural beauty, the residents around Borobudur Temple have for a long time been used to living with difficulties ranging from natural disasters to terror and the current pandemic. They continue to rely on the local wisdom of their ancestral heritage in dealing with the difficulties.

The padasan (clay barrel) in front of the house of Siti Zaenab in Karanganyar vllage, Borobudur district, Magelang regency, Central Java, does not only look dull, but also mossy. It is at least 30 years old. Under the barrel, there is a small tap with a rubber plug. Since she was a child, Siti has washed her hands and feet using the water in the basin before entering the house.

"This is a heritage from my father. Since childhood, we have been accustomed to washing our hands,” Siti said on Friday (23/10/2020). The padasan is placed permanently in the yard of Siti\'s house.

Read also: Borobudur Blooming in the Autumn

Apart from washing hands, the padasan is also used for ablutions. Just like her parents told her, Siti also advised her children and all of their family members to always wash their hands regularly at the padasan.

Supoyo, a community leader who is also a pottery craftsman in Klipoh hamlet, Karanganyar village, said that the habit of washing hands, which is now being promoted as one of the health protocols to prevent Covid-19 transmission, has actually become a local culture, including among those around Borobudur. Just like Siti, Supoyo recalled, as a child, every member of his family who returned from anywhere was obliged to wash their hands with running water from the padasan.

"From the padasan, we use the running water to wash our hands, feet and drink," he said.

It is not uncommon for the padasan to be placed on the side of the road so that anyone who needs water can take it. Pedestrians and residents, mostly farmers, use the water in the padasan to wash their faces and their limbs before going to the fields or returning home.

The clay barrels are sold for between Rp 40,000 and Rp 350,000 each.

The habit of washing hands has eroded in line with the decline in the number of pottery craftsmen in Klipoh hamlet, which is about 3.5 kilometers southwest of Borobudur Temple. However, since the emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic, the demand for a container to wash hands has increased. Supoyo received 300 orders to make a sink or padasan from March to May, compared to between 5 and 10 orders before the pandemic. The clay barrels are sold for between Rp 40,000 and Rp 350,000 each.

In addition to the habit of maintaining cleanliness, it is also local wisdom among residents of Magelang to pray for every bad thing and plague that hits them. They usually hold a ruawatan ritual in the form of puppet shows, dances, traditional ceremonies or praying together.

https://cdn-assetd.kompas.id/mAMth2kn4is-ZxeW85lmiWOlE8Y=/1024x683/https%3A%2F%2Fkompas.id%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F09%2F7e74ce43-fcaa-40e8-9736-6791d9622a8d_jpg.jpg — Kompas/Ferganata Indra Riatmoko
Residents dance in a number of places as they place offerings during the jatilan (traditional Javanese trance dance) parade, part of the Suran tradition, in Tutup Ngisor hamlet, Sumber village, Dukun district, Magelang regency, Central Java, Thursday (3/9/2020). The Suran tradition is observed by the farmer artist family of Padepokan Tjipto Boedojo every Sura month in the Javanese calendar. This year the tradition was held as a means of rejecting the disease outbreak and asking for safety from the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition to holding wayang orang performances, in this tradition, residents make pilgrimages to their ancestral graves, encircle the ancestral grave complex three times, and encircle their hamlet three times

One of them is the saparan tradition held by residents of Mantran Wetan hamlet, Girirejo village, Ngablak district, Magelang regency. In this tradition, residents pray together in the hope that the Covid-19 pandemic will end soon.

"From the village, we pray that the Covid-19 pandemic will end immediately from all over the world," said Supadi Haryanto, a community leader in Mantran Wetan hamlet. This event is held annually at the end of September.

Prayers asking for the Covid-19 outbreak to end were made during the Mujahadah religious ritual held in the local mosque, which was attended by 200 residents. Each person must maintain a distance of 1-1.5 meters from others. It was the first time the residents had held the Mujahadah ritual in celebrating the saparan event. Usually, in observing the saparan event, the residents pray together to express gratitude for fertility of the land and the abundant crops.

Mura Aristina of the public relations department of the Borobudur Conservation Center said there were at least two relief panels in the temple that depicted people making herbal medicine.

Another local wisdom that has begun to be revived is having jamu (herbal drinks). The herbal ingredients for health are believed to have been around for a long time, even since the 8th century when Borobudur was built. Mura Aristina of the public relations department of the Borobudur Conservation Center said there were at least two relief panels in the temple that depicted people making herbal medicine.

Disaster-prone

These various local wisdoms thrive in Magelang regency, which is actually very vulnerable to disasters. According to the Magelang regency disaster risk assessment, between 2017 and 2021 there were eight disasters in the area, namely landslides, earthquakes, extreme weather, Mount Merapi eruptions, forest and land fires, floods, landslides and flash floods.

Such natural disaster risks have motivated residents around Borobudur to establish the Disaster Risk Reduction Organization (OPRB). OPRB chairman Nur Fauzan said the organization was founded in January 2018 and now has around 80 members from 20 villages in Borobudur district. "Apart from taking part in training, OPRB personnel also equip themselves with various equipment needed during a disaster," he said.

The personnel bought themselves the required equipment such as raincoats and radios. In addition, they also received two ambulances for social activities. For Fauzan, involving the residents in disaster mitigation is very important for disaster-prone areas such as Borobudur.

Eruptions of Mount Merapi frequently disrupt tourism activities on the border of Central Java and Yogyakarta. Borobudur Temple, which comprises 55,000 cubic meters of rock, is often hit by volcanic ash from eruptions of Merapi. Not only nature, human-induced disasters have also hit the temple. On 21

Jan. 1985, two terrorists put 13 bombs on the eighth and 10th floors of Borobudur Temple. Nine of them exploded and destroyed a part of the temple.

Sucoro, a Borobudur cultural activist, said the temple as the masterpiece of the Syailendra dynasty was a spiritual inspiration and culture for the people. The two elements are deeply rooted in the character of the people of Borobudur as the powerful mantra to survive every disaster.

Editor:

naranasrullah

borobudur Local Wisdom kompascetak Borobudur Marathon jatilan 000 and Rp 350 000 each. padasan