Punokawan
Encyclopedia
In Java
nese wayang
(shadow puppets), the punokawan are the clown servants of the hero. There are four of them – Semar
(also known as Ki Lurah Semar), Petruk, Gareng and Bagong. Semar is the personification of a deity, sometimes said to the be the dhanyang or guardian spirit of the island of Java. In Javanese mythology, deities can only manifest themselves as ugly or otherwise unprepossessing humans, and so Semar is always portrayed as short and fat with a pug nose and a dangling hernia.
His three companions are his adopted sons, given to Semar as votaries by their parents. Petruk is portrayed as tall and gangling with a long nose, Gareng as short with a club foot and Bagong as obese.
The punokawan always appear in the second act of a wayang performance – pathet sanga – as servants to the hero of the story regardless of who that hero is.
Similar characters appear in other Indonesian wayang and theatrical traditions, including those of Bali
and Sunda
, under different names.
The punokawan characters are generally much-loved by audiences who attend wayang plays in Indonesia and their appearance in the plays is usually greeted with laughter and anticipation. However, there are sometimes underlying tensions in Indonesian society between the Hindu elements of Javanese culture which the punokawan characters capture and religious purists who oppose secular and other strains of Javanese culture. In an unusual incident in Purwakarta
in West Java in September 2011, for example, four wayang statues (of Gatotkaca
, Semar, Bima
, and Nakula-Sadewa
) were destroyed.
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
nese 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...
(shadow puppets), the punokawan are the clown servants of the hero. There are four of them – Semar
Semar
Semar is a character in Javanese mythology who frequently appears in wayang shadow plays. He is one of the punokawan , but is in fact divine and very wise. He is the dhanyang of Java, and is regarded by some as the most sacred figure of the kotak...
(also known as Ki Lurah Semar), Petruk, Gareng and Bagong. Semar is the personification of a deity, sometimes said to the be the dhanyang or guardian spirit of the island of Java. In Javanese mythology, deities can only manifest themselves as ugly or otherwise unprepossessing humans, and so Semar is always portrayed as short and fat with a pug nose and a dangling hernia.
His three companions are his adopted sons, given to Semar as votaries by their parents. Petruk is portrayed as tall and gangling with a long nose, Gareng as short with a club foot and Bagong as obese.
The punokawan always appear in the second act of a wayang performance – pathet sanga – as servants to the hero of the story regardless of who that hero is.
Similar characters appear in other Indonesian wayang and theatrical traditions, including those of Bali
Bali
Bali is an Indonesian island located in the westernmost end of the Lesser Sunda Islands, lying between Java to the west and Lombok to the east...
and Sunda
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...
, under different names.
The punokawan characters are generally much-loved by audiences who attend wayang plays in Indonesia and their appearance in the plays is usually greeted with laughter and anticipation. However, there are sometimes underlying tensions in Indonesian society between the Hindu elements of Javanese culture which the punokawan characters capture and religious purists who oppose secular and other strains of Javanese culture. In an unusual incident in Purwakarta
Purwakarta
Purwakarta is a City in the West Java province of Indonesia the capital of Purwakarta Regency.Purwakarta existence is inseparable from the history of the struggle against the forces VOC. Around the beginning of the 17th century Sultan Mataram sent an army led by the Regent of Surabaya and West...
in West Java in September 2011, for example, four wayang statues (of Gatotkaca
Ghatotkacha
Ghatotkacha , is a character in the Mahabharata, the son of Bhima and the giantess Hidimbi . His maternal parentage made him half-rakshasa and gave him many magical powers that made him an important fighter in the Kurukshetra war, the climax of the epic...
, Semar, Bima
Bhima
In the Mahābhārata, Bhima is one of the central characters of Mahabharata and the second of the Pandava brothers...
, and Nakula-Sadewa
Nakula
Nakula, also spelt "Nakul" was one of the five Pandava brothers according to the epic Mahābhārata. Nakula and Sahadeva were fraternal twins born to Madri, who had invoked the Ashvins using a mantra for a son, the mantra shared by Kunti...
) were destroyed.
Further reading
- Brandon, James (1970) On thrones of gold - three Javanese shadow plays Harvard University Press
- Keeler, Ward (1987) Javanese Shadow Plays, Javanese Selves Princeton University Press
- Keeler, Ward (1992) Javanese Shadow Puppets OUP
- Long, Roger (1982) Javanese shadow theatre: Movement and characterization in Ngayogyakarta wayang kulit Umi Research Press