Above is a picture of a traditional Wayang Kulit puppet from Indonesia.The term Wayang derives from the Indonesian word for shadow, Bayang, due to the traditional practice of utilizing these puppets to produce shadow theater. These puppets have a longstanding history throughout the various islands of Indonesia dating as far back as the 800’s. Because it was widely believed that the puppets were able to be temporarily inhabited by ancestral spirits during performances, the shows were held at the cemeteries where the founders of each village were buried. Each founder is believed to have a particular puppet character that they prefer and that they will choose repeatedly to perform through. The Wayang Kulit puppets were originally produced from water buffalo hide, but are more typically produced from metal currently. Each Puppet is intricately carved and painted before being welded to thin metal posts that can then be held by the puppeteer during shows. When not being used for a performance, the puppets regularly serve as beautiful decorations within homes and performance centers. Growing up, my family had many Wayang puppets throughout our house as decoration and although they can look a bit frightening, they are also quite beautiful and served as a great reminder of traditions that my ancestors held dear.
This is very interesting! What really stood out to me was that it was thought that the spirits perform through the puppets so the shows take place in the graveyard! That is so unique and certainly nothing I’ve never heard of. Being African American, I don’t feel we have anything close to these which makes them even more unique. This is a very concrete example of your culture which we learned can be basically everything that contributes to how you view yourself.
Thank you for sharing such a gorgeous aspect of Indonesian culture! The puppets are such a unique and beautiful representation of connections with your ancestors and celebrating life even after death. Are there any other burial services your culture performs? Do you plan on having the same puppets in your home?
I remember having a very similar puppet in my house as a child. I don’t remember ever asking my parents where it was from or why we had it, but then I remembered that my mom used to travel to Indonesia for work. Thinking back, she either brought it back with her or her one of her Indonesian friends gave to her as a gift.
I am very familiar with basic shadow puppets, but I have never seen puppets that were as intricately designed and decorated as Wayang Kulit puppets. You would think that a paper cutout would suffice, but there must be a greater value to these puppets than just putting on a show. Thank you for sharing the backstory for these puppets, it was very eye-opening for me and made me appreciate the “strange” puppets that my mom had in our house!