Nyai Loro Kidul
Encyclopedia
Nyai Loro Kidul is a legendary Indonesia
n spirit, known as the Queen of the Southern Sea of Java (Indian Ocean
or Samudra Kidul south of Java island) in Javanese and Sundanese
mythology. She is also the legendary consort of the Sultans of Mataram
and Yogyakarta, beginning with Senopati and continuing to the present day.
. Other names include Ratu Laut Selatan ("Queen of the South Sea," meaning the Indian Ocean
) and Gusti Kanjeng Ratu Kidul
. The royal house of Keraton Surakarta
revered her as Kanjeng Ratu Ayu Kencono Sari. Many Javanese believe it is important to use various honorific
s when referring to her, such as Nyai, Kanjeng, and Gusti. People who invoke her also call her Eyang (grandmother). In mermaid
form she is referred to as Nyai Blorong.
The Javanese word loro literally means two - 2 and merged into the name of the myth about the Spirit-Queen born as a beautiful girl/maiden, in Old Javanese rara, written as rårå, (also used as roro). Old-Javanese rara evolved into the New Javanese lara, written as lårå, (means ill, also grief like heartache, heart-break). Dutch orthography changed lara into loro (used here in Nyai Loro Kidul) so the word play moved the beautiful girl to a sick one - Old Javanese Nyi Rara and the New Javanese Nyai Lara.
with a tail as well the lower part of the body of a snake. The mythical creature is claimed to take the soul of any who she wished for.
Sometimes Nyai Loro Kidul literally can be spoken of as a "naga", a mythical snake. This idea may have been derived from some myths concerning a princess of Pajajaran who suffered from leprosy
. The skin disease mentioned in most of the myths about Nyai Loro Kidul might possibly refer to the shedding of a snake's skin.
The role of Nyai Loro Kidul as a Javanese Spirit-Queen became a popular motif in traditional Javanese folklore and palace mythologies, as well as being tied in with the beauty of Sundanese and Javanese princesses. Another aspect of her mythology was her ability to change shape several times a day.
Nyai Loro Kidul in a significant amount of the folklore that surrounds her - is in control of the violent waves of the Indian Ocean
from her dwelling place in the heart of the ocean. Sometimes she is referred as one of the spiritual queens or wives of the Susuhunan
of Solo/Surakarta
and the Sultan
of Yogyakarta. Her literal positioning is considered as corresponding to the Merapi
-Kraton-South Sea
axis in Solo Sultanate and Yogyakarta Sultanate.
Another pervasive part of folklore surrounding her is the colour of green, gadhung m'lathi in Javanese, is referred to her, which is forbidden to wear along the south-coast of Java.
(1586-1601 AD), founder of the Mataram Sultanate
, and his grandson Sultan Agung (1613-1645 AD) who named the Kanjeng Ratu Kidul as their bride, is claimed in the Babad Tanah Jawi
.
One Sundanese folktale is mentioned about Dewi Kadita, the beautiful princess of the Pajajaran Kingdom, in West Java
, who desperately fled to the Southern Sea after being struck by black magic. The black magic was cast by a witch under the order of a jealous rival in the palace, and caused the beautiful princess to suffer disgusting skin disease. She jumped into the violent waves of the Ocean where she finally cured and regain her beauty, and the spirits and demons crowned the girl as the legendary Spirit-Queen of the South Sea.
A similar version of the story above mentions that the king (at the time), having her as the only child, who is planning to retire from the throne, remarries. Having a queen (instead of a king) was forbidden. The king's new wife finally gets pregnant, but, because of jealousy, forces the king to choose between her wife or her daughter. There was an ultimatum. If he chose his daughter, then her wife would leave the palace and the throne would be given to what would later become the queen. If the wife was chosen, the daughter would be banned from the palace and the new, yet to be born child, would be king. The king solves this by ordering a witch to make his daughter suffer a skin disease. The daughter, now banned from the palace, hears a voice that tells her to go to the sea at midnight to cure her disease. She did, and vanished, never to be seen again.
Another Sundanese folktale shows Banyoe Bening (meaning clear water) becomes Queen of the Djojo Koelon Kingdom and, suffering from leprosy, travels to the South where she is taken up by a huge wave to disappear into the Ocean.
Another West Java folktale is about the Ajar Cemara Tunggal (Adjar Tjemara Toenggal) on the mountain of Kombang in the Pajajaran Kingdom. He is a male seer who actually was the beautiful great aunt of Raden Jaka Susuruh. She disquised herself as a psychic and told Raden Jaka Susuruh to go to the east of Java to found a kingdom on the place where a maja-tree just had one fruit; the fruit was bitter, pait in Javanese, and the kingdom got the name of Majapahit. The seer Cemara Tunggal would marry the founder of Majapahit and any descendant in first line, to help them in all kind of matters. Though the seer's spirit would have transmigrated into the "spirit-queen of the south" who shall reign over the spirits, demons and all dark creatures.
The edible bird's nests Bird's nest soup
or sarang burung, which find a ready market in China, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore are dedicated to Nyai Loro Kidul, mentioned by Sultan Agung in reports.
There are three harvests which are known as the Unduan-Kesongo, Unduan-Telor and Unduan-Kepat, taken place in April, the latter part of August (the largest), and December. The places of Rongkob and Karang Bolong along the South-coast of Central Java are famous for the edible bird's nests, made by the little sea swallows named Salanganen or Collocalia fuciphaga; famous because of the wayang
performances which are held, and the Javanese ritual dances which are performed during gamelan
music at the traditional ceremony.
This happens in a cave (Karang Bolong) and when these are ended specially prepared offers are made in a shed in what is known as the "State Bed of Nyai Loro Kidul". This relic is hung with beautiful silk batik
kains, and a toilet mirror is placed against the green-coloured pillows of the bed ...
Nyai Loro Kidul is the patron goddess of the bird's-nest gatherers of South Java, who pursue what must be one of the world's most hair-raising professions. The gatherers descend the sheer cliff-face on coconut-fibre ropes to an overhang some thirty feet above the water where a rickery bamboo platform has been built. From here they must await their wave, drop into it, and be swept beneath the overhang into the cave. Here they grope around in total darkness filling their bags with bird's nests. Going back needs very precise timing for not misjudging the tides, and fallen into the violent waves.
She was to become the special protectress of the House of Mataram. Senopati's reliance upon both Sunan Kalijaga and Nyai Loro Kidul in the chronicles accounts nicely reflects the Mataram Dynasty's ambivalence towards Islam and indigenous Javanese beliefs.
, a small fishermen city in West Java
, celebrates an annual holiday in her honor on April 6. A memorial day for the locals, offering a lot of ceremonial "presents". Nyai Loro Kidul is also associated with Parangtritis
, Pangandaran
, Karang Bolong, Ngliyep, Puger, Banyuwangi
, and places all along the south coast of Java. There is a local belief that wearing a green garment in these areas will anger her and will bring misfortune on the wearer, as green is her sacred colour.
, was involved with the exact location and the idea for the Samudra Beach Hotel. In front of the room 308 there is the Ketapang tree where Sukarno
got his spiritual inspiration. The painting of Nyai Rara Kidul by Basuki Abdullah
, a famous Indonesian painter, is displayed in this room.
dance by the royal line of Surakarta
, and she is honored by the susuhunans of Solo/Surakarta and the sultans of Yogyakarta, Central-Java. When Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX
died on October 3, 1988, the Tempo newsmagazine reported her sighting by palace servants, who were sure she was paying her final tribute to the dead ruler.
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
n spirit, known as the Queen of the Southern Sea of Java (Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
or Samudra Kidul south of Java island) in Javanese and Sundanese
Sundanese people
The Sundanese are an ethnic group native to the western part of the Indonesian island of Java. They number approximately 31 million, and are the second most populous of all the nation's ethncities. The Sundanese are predominantly Muslim...
mythology. She is also the legendary consort of the Sultans of Mataram
Mataram Sultanate
The Sultanate of Mataram was the last major independent Javanese empire on Java before the island was colonized by the Dutch. It was the dominant political force in interior Central Java from the late 16th century until the beginning of the 18th century....
and Yogyakarta, beginning with Senopati and continuing to the present day.
Names
Nyai Roro Kidul has many different names, which reflect the diverse stories of her origin in a lot of sagas, legends, myths and traditional folkloreFolklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
. Other names include Ratu Laut Selatan ("Queen of the South Sea," meaning the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
) and Gusti Kanjeng Ratu Kidul
. The royal house of Keraton Surakarta
Surakarta
Surakarta, also called Solo or Sala, is a city in Central Java, Indonesia of more than 520,061 people with a population density of 11,811.5 people/km2. The 44 km2 city adjoins Karanganyar Regency and Boyolali Regency to the north, Karanganyar Regency and Sukoharjo Regency to the east and...
revered her as Kanjeng Ratu Ayu Kencono Sari. Many Javanese believe it is important to use various honorific
Honorific
An honorific is a word or expression with connotations conveying esteem or respect when used in addressing or referring to a person. Sometimes, the term is used not quite correctly to refer to an honorary title...
s when referring to her, such as Nyai, Kanjeng, and Gusti. People who invoke her also call her Eyang (grandmother). In mermaid
Mermaid
A mermaid is a mythological aquatic creature with a female human head, arms, and torso and the tail of a fish. A male version of a mermaid is known as a "merman" and in general both males and females are known as "merfolk"...
form she is referred to as Nyai Blorong.
The Javanese word loro literally means two - 2 and merged into the name of the myth about the Spirit-Queen born as a beautiful girl/maiden, in Old Javanese rara, written as rårå, (also used as roro). Old-Javanese rara evolved into the New Javanese lara, written as lårå, (means ill, also grief like heartache, heart-break). Dutch orthography changed lara into loro (used here in Nyai Loro Kidul) so the word play moved the beautiful girl to a sick one - Old Javanese Nyi Rara and the New Javanese Nyai Lara.
Description
Nyai Loro Kidul is often illustrated as a mermaidMermaid
A mermaid is a mythological aquatic creature with a female human head, arms, and torso and the tail of a fish. A male version of a mermaid is known as a "merman" and in general both males and females are known as "merfolk"...
with a tail as well the lower part of the body of a snake. The mythical creature is claimed to take the soul of any who she wished for.
Sometimes Nyai Loro Kidul literally can be spoken of as a "naga", a mythical snake. This idea may have been derived from some myths concerning a princess of Pajajaran who suffered from leprosy
Leprosy
Leprosy or Hansen's disease is a chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Named after physician Gerhard Armauer Hansen, leprosy is primarily a granulomatous disease of the peripheral nerves and mucosa of the upper respiratory tract; skin lesions...
. The skin disease mentioned in most of the myths about Nyai Loro Kidul might possibly refer to the shedding of a snake's skin.
The role of Nyai Loro Kidul as a Javanese Spirit-Queen became a popular motif in traditional Javanese folklore and palace mythologies, as well as being tied in with the beauty of Sundanese and Javanese princesses. Another aspect of her mythology was her ability to change shape several times a day.
Nyai Loro Kidul in a significant amount of the folklore that surrounds her - is in control of the violent waves of the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
from her dwelling place in the heart of the ocean. Sometimes she is referred as one of the spiritual queens or wives of the Susuhunan
Susuhunan
Susuhunan or in short version Sunan, is a title used by the kings of Mataram and then by the hereditary rulers of Surakarta, Indonesia. The rulers of Surakarta traditionally adopt the reign name Pakubuwono...
of Solo/Surakarta
Surakarta
Surakarta, also called Solo or Sala, is a city in Central Java, Indonesia of more than 520,061 people with a population density of 11,811.5 people/km2. The 44 km2 city adjoins Karanganyar Regency and Boyolali Regency to the north, Karanganyar Regency and Sukoharjo Regency to the east and...
and the Sultan
Sultan
Sultan is a title with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic language abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", and "dictatorship", derived from the masdar سلطة , meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who...
of Yogyakarta. Her literal positioning is considered as corresponding to the Merapi
Merapi
Merapi may refer to:* Mount Merapi, an active volcano in Central Java, Indonesia** aka Gunung Merapi * 2010 eruptions of Mount Merapi* Mount Marapi , an active volcano in West Sumatra, Indonesia...
-Kraton-South Sea
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
axis in Solo Sultanate and Yogyakarta Sultanate.
Another pervasive part of folklore surrounding her is the colour of green, gadhung m'lathi in Javanese, is referred to her, which is forbidden to wear along the south-coast of Java.
Origin and history
Panembahan SenopatiPanembahan Senopati
Sutawijaya, also known as Panembahan Senopati, stylized name as Senopati ing Alaga Sayiddin Kalifatullah Tanah Jawi was the first king of the Mataram Sultanate Kingdom. He was the son of Ki Ageng Pemanahan, one of Hadiwidjaja , the Duke of Pajang's retainer and loyal servant, and then adopted by...
(1586-1601 AD), founder of the Mataram Sultanate
Mataram Sultanate
The Sultanate of Mataram was the last major independent Javanese empire on Java before the island was colonized by the Dutch. It was the dominant political force in interior Central Java from the late 16th century until the beginning of the 18th century....
, and his grandson Sultan Agung (1613-1645 AD) who named the Kanjeng Ratu Kidul as their bride, is claimed in the Babad Tanah Jawi
Babad Tanah Jawi
Babad Tanah Jawi , is a generic title for a large number of manuscripts written in Javanese language. Their arrangements and details vary, and no copies of any of the manuscripts are older than the eighteenth century....
.
One Sundanese folktale is mentioned about Dewi Kadita, the beautiful princess of the Pajajaran Kingdom, in West Java
West Java
West Java , with a population of over 43 million, is the most populous and most densely populated province of Indonesia. Located on the island of Java, it is slightly smaller in area than densely populated Taiwan, but with nearly double the population...
, who desperately fled to the Southern Sea after being struck by black magic. The black magic was cast by a witch under the order of a jealous rival in the palace, and caused the beautiful princess to suffer disgusting skin disease. She jumped into the violent waves of the Ocean where she finally cured and regain her beauty, and the spirits and demons crowned the girl as the legendary Spirit-Queen of the South Sea.
A similar version of the story above mentions that the king (at the time), having her as the only child, who is planning to retire from the throne, remarries. Having a queen (instead of a king) was forbidden. The king's new wife finally gets pregnant, but, because of jealousy, forces the king to choose between her wife or her daughter. There was an ultimatum. If he chose his daughter, then her wife would leave the palace and the throne would be given to what would later become the queen. If the wife was chosen, the daughter would be banned from the palace and the new, yet to be born child, would be king. The king solves this by ordering a witch to make his daughter suffer a skin disease. The daughter, now banned from the palace, hears a voice that tells her to go to the sea at midnight to cure her disease. She did, and vanished, never to be seen again.
Another Sundanese folktale shows Banyoe Bening (meaning clear water) becomes Queen of the Djojo Koelon Kingdom and, suffering from leprosy, travels to the South where she is taken up by a huge wave to disappear into the Ocean.
Another West Java folktale is about the Ajar Cemara Tunggal (Adjar Tjemara Toenggal) on the mountain of Kombang in the Pajajaran Kingdom. He is a male seer who actually was the beautiful great aunt of Raden Jaka Susuruh. She disquised herself as a psychic and told Raden Jaka Susuruh to go to the east of Java to found a kingdom on the place where a maja-tree just had one fruit; the fruit was bitter, pait in Javanese, and the kingdom got the name of Majapahit. The seer Cemara Tunggal would marry the founder of Majapahit and any descendant in first line, to help them in all kind of matters. Though the seer's spirit would have transmigrated into the "spirit-queen of the south" who shall reign over the spirits, demons and all dark creatures.
Specialities
Sarang Burung are Javanese bird's nests, and some of the finest in the world.The edible bird's nests Bird's nest soup
Bird's nest soup
Bird's nest soup is a delicacy in Chinese cuisine. A few species of swift, the cave swifts, are renowned for building the saliva nests used to produce the unique texture of this soup....
or sarang burung, which find a ready market in China, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore are dedicated to Nyai Loro Kidul, mentioned by Sultan Agung in reports.
There are three harvests which are known as the Unduan-Kesongo, Unduan-Telor and Unduan-Kepat, taken place in April, the latter part of August (the largest), and December. The places of Rongkob and Karang Bolong along the South-coast of Central Java are famous for the edible bird's nests, made by the little sea swallows named Salanganen or Collocalia fuciphaga; famous because of the wayang
Wayang
Wayang is a Javanese word for theatre . When the term is used to refer to kinds of puppet theatre, sometimes the puppet itself is referred to as wayang...
performances which are held, and the Javanese ritual dances which are performed during gamelan
Gamelan
A gamelan is a musical ensemble from Indonesia, typically from the islands of Bali or Java, featuring a variety of instruments such as metallophones, xylophones, drums and gongs; bamboo flutes, bowed and plucked strings. Vocalists may also be included....
music at the traditional ceremony.
This happens in a cave (Karang Bolong) and when these are ended specially prepared offers are made in a shed in what is known as the "State Bed of Nyai Loro Kidul". This relic is hung with beautiful silk batik
Batik
Batik is a cloth that traditionally uses a manual wax-resist dyeing technique. Batik or fabrics with the traditional batik patterns are found in Indonesia, Malaysia, Japan, China, Azerbaijan, India, Sri Lanka, Egypt, Nigeria, Senegal, and Singapore.Javanese traditional batik, especially from...
kains, and a toilet mirror is placed against the green-coloured pillows of the bed ...
Nyai Loro Kidul is the patron goddess of the bird's-nest gatherers of South Java, who pursue what must be one of the world's most hair-raising professions. The gatherers descend the sheer cliff-face on coconut-fibre ropes to an overhang some thirty feet above the water where a rickery bamboo platform has been built. From here they must await their wave, drop into it, and be swept beneath the overhang into the cave. Here they grope around in total darkness filling their bags with bird's nests. Going back needs very precise timing for not misjudging the tides, and fallen into the violent waves.
The Dutch and their Javanese legacy
The term wali which is applied to all of the Islam teachers is Arabic (meaning "saint"), but the title "sunan" which they all carry, too, is Javanese. Sunan Kalijaga used to be one of the most "popular" Wali Sanga, and he got deeply involved with Nyai Loro Kidul because of the water aspect (at the beach of Pemancingan of northern Java, kali means river). Panembahan Senopati Ingalaga (1584–1601) , founder of Mataram's imperial expansion, sought the support of the goddess of the Southern Ocean (Kangjeng Ratu Kidul or Nyai Loro Kidul) at Pemancinang of southern Java.She was to become the special protectress of the House of Mataram. Senopati's reliance upon both Sunan Kalijaga and Nyai Loro Kidul in the chronicles accounts nicely reflects the Mataram Dynasty's ambivalence towards Islam and indigenous Javanese beliefs.
Pelabuhan Ratu
Pelabuhan RatuPelabuhan Ratu
Palabuhanratu is an isolated fishing village at the south coast of West Java in the Sukabumi Regency, serves as its capital. It is up to 12 hours' drive from Indonesia's capital Jakarta due to traffic jam in Ciawi, Cicurug, Cibadak and Pelabuhan Ratu gate, whose residents love to visit Teluk...
, a small fishermen city in West Java
West Java
West Java , with a population of over 43 million, is the most populous and most densely populated province of Indonesia. Located on the island of Java, it is slightly smaller in area than densely populated Taiwan, but with nearly double the population...
, celebrates an annual holiday in her honor on April 6. A memorial day for the locals, offering a lot of ceremonial "presents". Nyai Loro Kidul is also associated with Parangtritis
Parangtritis
Beach and community on the southern coast of Yogyakarta, or otherwise Southern Central JavaLocation of meetings with the legendary Nyai Loro Kidulor 'Queen of the South'. Local folklore warns visitors notto wear the colour green, or the Queen will entice the...
, Pangandaran
Pangandaran
Pangandaran is a small town and a subdistrict in southern Ciamis regency, West Java, Indonesia. It is located on the southern coast of Java. Pangandaran is a popular tourist destination, having a beach which is considered to be one of the finest in Java and which offers excellent surfing.A...
, Karang Bolong, Ngliyep, Puger, Banyuwangi
Banyuwangi
The Regency of Banyuwangi is located at the easternmost end of the Indonesian island of Java and it is a very strategic area for those who want to go to Bali, since it also serves as an important ferry port between Java and Bali. It is surrounded by mountains and forests to the west; by sea to the...
, and places all along the south coast of Java. There is a local belief that wearing a green garment in these areas will anger her and will bring misfortune on the wearer, as green is her sacred colour.
Samudra Beach Hotel
The Samudra Beach Hotel, Pelabuhan Ratu, West-Java, keeps room 308 furnished with green colours & reserved for Nyai Loro Kidul. The first president of Indonesia, SukarnoSukarno
Sukarno, born Kusno Sosrodihardjo was the first President of Indonesia.Sukarno was the leader of his country's struggle for independence from the Netherlands and was Indonesia's first President from 1945 to 1967...
, was involved with the exact location and the idea for the Samudra Beach Hotel. In front of the room 308 there is the Ketapang tree where Sukarno
Sukarno
Sukarno, born Kusno Sosrodihardjo was the first President of Indonesia.Sukarno was the leader of his country's struggle for independence from the Netherlands and was Indonesia's first President from 1945 to 1967...
got his spiritual inspiration. The painting of Nyai Rara Kidul by Basuki Abdullah
Basuki Abdullah
Basuki Abdullah was an Indonesian painter. His work is characterized as realism and has been exhibited in the Indonesian National Gallery. He received formal training in The Hague. During the Japanese occupation of Indonesia he was an art teacher...
, a famous Indonesian painter, is displayed in this room.
Central-Java
Legends recount her love for Senopati and the famous Sultan Agung of Mataram, which continues to be recounted in the ritualized BedhayaBedhaya
The bedhaya is a sacred ritualized dance of Java, Indonesia, associated with the royal palaces of Yogyakarta and Surakarta...
dance by the royal line of Surakarta
Surakarta
Surakarta, also called Solo or Sala, is a city in Central Java, Indonesia of more than 520,061 people with a population density of 11,811.5 people/km2. The 44 km2 city adjoins Karanganyar Regency and Boyolali Regency to the north, Karanganyar Regency and Sukoharjo Regency to the east and...
, and she is honored by the susuhunans of Solo/Surakarta and the sultans of Yogyakarta, Central-Java. When Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX
Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX
Hamengkubuwono IX or HB IX was the first Governor of the Yogyakarta Special Region, the ninth Sultan of Sultanate of Yogyakarta and the second vice president of Indonesia during the Suharto's reign.-Early life:...
died on October 3, 1988, the Tempo newsmagazine reported her sighting by palace servants, who were sure she was paying her final tribute to the dead ruler.