Mbah Saniyem, Keeping Something That was Left Behind

Defri Werdiono

· 6 minutes read

Unlike the preservers of shadow puppets, the number of Krucil puppet preservers in East Java is very limited. One of the few was Mbah Saniyem, 95. The eighth generation Krucil puppet heir in Malang regency has been trying for decades to maintain the tradition, which is hundreds of years old.

The hands of the clock were ticking a few minutes past 10 a.m. on Wednesday (12/6/2019), when Mbah Saniyem walked off the terrace of her house in Wiloso hamlet, Gondowangi village, Wagir district. She approached a few neighbors who were busy arranging a gamelan (traditional orchestra) and chatted with them moments before performing a Krucil puppet shot in her yard.

For the next six hours, the neighbors will become panjak (gamelan musicians). They sat lesehan (on the ground) and only took shelter under a makeshift tent to protect them from the hot sunshine that hit the slopes of Mount Katu, a hill on the slope of the eastern side of Mount Kawi.

The simple stage caught the attention of some people who were still in a post-fasting Lebaran mood. The presence of a number of students from one of the state universities in Malang, East Java, who were doing a project made the annual routine performances this time feel different from the previous years. The annual performance is known as Gebyak Syawalan.

Puppet master Paiman, 69, led the play, which comprised wooden puppets. The play was titled Panji Laras Adu Jago and followed the journey of Panji Asmorobangun from the Kingdom of Kediri. According to Paiman, the plays performed during Gebyak Syawalan did not have to be the same from year to year.

Gebyak Syawalan itself is a mandatory stage for Mbah Saniyem and family. The activity has been carried out for the past 10 years or even hundreds of years after the Lebaran Ketupat feast, which falls a week after Idul Fitri.

Countless numbers. This kind of performance has been done for a long time. In fact, this puppet was already here before I was here.

Mbah Saniyem no longer remembers how many times she’s participated in Gebyak Syawalan. What she knows is that this activity has been carried out for generations and was handed down to her by her parents.

"Countless numbers. This kind of performance has been done for a long time. In fact, this puppet was already here before I was here," she said with a smile.

Krucil puppets are different from other traditional puppets. The number of characters in Wiloso is said to be the most complete compared to that from other regions in East Java, which have 75. Made from pule wood, the characters represent local figures, such as Panji Asmorobangun, Minak Jinggo and Ronggolawe.

If shadow puppets adopt the plays of Ramayana and Mahabharata, Krucil puppets tend to tell local stories, both stories about the kingdoms in Java, the journey of Walisongo and the struggle of the heroes to expel colonial rule.

Collector\'s target

So far, no one knows for sure when and who made the Krucil puppets now in the hands of Mbah Saniyem. According to village administrators, Mbah Saniyem got the puppets from her mother, Mbah Taram (Metaram). An artist from Putat village, Tanggulangin district, Sidoarjo, Mbah Taram was believed to have migrated to Gondowangi in 1896 or 1910. Another version stated that the puppets were created by the Prince Pekik, a duke in Surabaya, East Java, in the 17th century.

Regardless of their origin, Mbah Saniyem remained loyal and determined to keep the "treasure" inherited to her. Because she was used to it, according to her, there were no difficulties and special treatments for the puppets. All of them are put in a wooden container and placed inside the house. The art object would only be cleaned prior to a performance.

Risk of possible damage from aging is not the only challenge that must be faced. As a unique item, the puppets also become the target of collectors. According to Mbah Saniyem, there was once a puppeteer from outside the area who intended to exchange the Krucil puppets with a truck. However, the puppeteer must bury his desires deeply because Mbah Saniyem’s parents turned down the offer.

"When my parents were still alive, [there was] an offer to exchange this [puppet] for a truck. But my father refused it. My father said this was an ancestral heritage, a charm, so it was not traded. In fact, we knew the price of the truck at that time. Of course, it was not cheap," she said.

In addition to the regular show called gebyak, the puppets – which in other areas are called klitik puppets – are also often performed during the village’s cleaning rituals. Mbah Saniyem and her family also did not object if the puppets were performed elsewhere, including on university campuses.

There are no successors

Now in her late age, Mbah Saniyem said she did not know who would later inherit her ancestor\'s inheritance. None of her six children could perform with the puppets. So far, those who played as dalang, sinden and panjak are local residents around Gondowangi village. They are the main supporters of the performance as well as the preservation of this precious art.

Actually, Mbah Saniyem’s son-in-law Suyadi can play karawitan (gamelan). He also had time to teach children in the neighborhood how to play gamelan. However, he died in the middle of Ramadan this year.

"None of her children could play the puppets. They are hesitant. They don\'t play the gamelan either, duko niku lare-lare [I don’t know why]. So, she didn\'t know who would inherit this puppet. Duko mbenjing-mbenjing [I don’t know later]. So far, there has not been any discussion about the problem," the grandma said, laughing.

Regarding the absence of children who can play the puppet is confirmed by Gunari, 70s, the eldest child. None of the children, Gunari and his five younger siblings, can play the Krucil puppet because they never practiced. As for the late Suyadi, he was able to play karawitan, but he could not do play the puppets.

"Yes, later the puppets will be taken care of together by the children," he said.

In the context of conservation, Mbah Saniyem opened up and accepted the collaborative efforts offered by other parties, including the village administrators. For the past several years, the village has been expanding the Krucil puppet shows outside the gebyak, which is done regularly once a year. Three years ago, the village administration also wrote a book called “Almanak Desa Wayang Krucil Ereng-ereng Gunung Katu” (Village Almanac, Krucil Puppet from the Slopes of Mount Katu).

The book written by Fariza Wahyu Arizal from the Yogyakarta-based Indonesia Arts Institute serves as a medium of preservation as well as the distribution of values because the puppets contain good philosophical values. The book has also been circulated to a number of schools around Gondowangi.

According to Mbah Saniyem, however, ancestral relics need to be preserved even though the methods used are different. She also hopes that in the future, the puppets will still continue to exist for a new generation and a different era.

Saniyem

Born: Malang

Children: Gunari, Supomo, Sutik, Suprat, Jumik,

Sunaryo

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