TRADISI KIRAB MALAM SATU SURO KARATON SURAKARTA | A TRIBUTE TO GKR RETNO DUMILAH

The Surakarta Kasunanan Palace has a special tradition to welcome the Islamic New Year, or what is better known to the Javanese as Malam Satu Suro (One Suro Night). The Surakarta Palace holds a traditional heirloom procession. Uniquely, the procession begins with a procession of white buffaloes, also known as kebo bule, as the cucuk lampah (opening ceremony). All family members and members of the palace are involved in the Malam Satu Suro tradition. From princes and royal families to thousands of courtiers (abdi dalem). They prepare everything needed for the procession, including yams, coffee, fruit, rice, flower water, chicken, and incense and torching incense in front of the offerings. The palace servants wear black traditional Javanese clothing. They go barefoot for the procession. The buffalo descendants of Kyai Slamet, a legacy of PB II Buffalo are an important part of traditional Javanese customs. They are closely associated with daily life, serving as a means of transportation and for plowing rice fields. Furthermore, buffalo hold symbolic significance for several ancestors of the royal family. The procession of the white buffaloes (kebo bule) begins in the palace courtyard. The buffaloes are accompanied by their handlers, who wear white clothing, black pants, headbands, samirs, and summing gajah ngoling (a garland of jasmine flowers placed above the ears). In the palace courtyard, the sacred buffaloes eat offerings and drink coffee served by the courtiers. After consuming the offerings, the group of white buffaloes, acting as the cucuk lampah (opener) for the procession, departs. As soon as the buffaloes depart, without any command, the residents rush forward to fight over the remaining offerings from the Kyai Slamet-descended buffaloes. The offerings left over from the white buffalo are believed to possess magical powers. Kartini, a palace servant from Purwodadi, was overjoyed to have obtained the remaining offerings from the white buffalo, namely betel nut or betel leaf. For her, obtaining the remaining offerings from the white buffalo was like a blessing. "Don't be half-hearted, if you truly believe in this, it can be a blessing. It can bring you safety, prosperity, good health, and longevity. This is what my niece Sinuhun gave me," she said. Although she had obtained the betel nut, she really wanted the dung of the white buffalo, a descendant of Kyai Slamet. It is believed to have powerful magical powers. "Especially if you can get some water buffalo dung. If you do, you should immediately dry it in the sun and store it. It will then be wrapped in white cloth," she explained. The white buffalo procession is the cucuk lampah or opening procession of the sacred sacred rites of the First Night of Suro. As soon as the buffalo passed, the procession of heirlooms emerged. The front row was the main heirlooms carried by the sentana (royal servants) and courtiers. The dozens of heirlooms carried by the sentanas and courtiers were wrapped in black cloth decorated with jasmine flowers. The procession route began at the Kasunanan Surakarta Palace and wound its way through the main streets of Solo. The Night of One Sura (Night of One Sura) procession is based on the Sinuhun calendar of Sultan Agung, which combines the Hijri and Saka calendars. #tradition #palace #surakarta #procession #nightofonesura #nightofonesura #kratonsolo #palace #karatonsurakarta #heritage #solotourism #solocity #surakartaistimewa