Taken from ‘’Wayang’’ in Bali Post, Sunday, 26 October 2008 by I Wayan Juniartha
Translated by Putu Semiada
Nobody is really interested to watch the ‘Wayang Wong’performed at the temple outer courtyard. They are playing Anoman Duta. Only some children are watching. But as it starts raining, the children are leaving as well.
But the show keeps going to finish the story. For the dancers, it is a matter of ngayah, so they do not really care whether there are spectators or not.
“It is raining heavier and heavier. I think, the dancers would get sick,” says I Made Tengal Sengal-Sengal while biting a piece of sugar cane.
Due to temple festival at the village at the temples, the warung tuak has closed for a week. The owner of the warung, NI Luh Makin Digosok Makin Sip, has been busy ngayah at the temple day and night, so does the sekehe tuak.
“It’s not only the dancers would get sick, so would us. After big ceremonies many villagers would get sick,” says I Kadek Bukal Kual.
Some get sick due to too much ngayah. They make skewers and chopping spices. They don’t get enough sleep as they have to be always ready everytime they hear the sound kulkul. They would get very tired. The same thing would happen to the wives. They have to make thousand pieces of cakes and have to serve the women making offerings. As they are too busy, they don’t even have time to take care themselves and get sick too.
There are also some people who get sick as they never do the ngayah. Instead, they are busy gambling (playing Chinese cards) and forget the time and keep drinking coffee. They don’t even pray to the gods. This make them get sick.
“There also some people who get stress after ngayah as they loss their job. As they have to do ngayah for a month so they have to take a month leave at their office. Once they back to the office to work, their positions have been replaced by others from other islands. It is difficult to employ Balinese. Too many holidays. That’s what their boss said,” says Made.
If you don’t do the ngayah, the villagers will talk about you or the gods will punish you. But if you do a lot of ngayah, you will have to be off from the office very often, then you might lose your job. So far no boss is punished by the gods because of firing their employees who ask for many days off to do the ngayah.
It seems that the gods are afraid of the boss. It seems also that the village has no obligation at all how to deal with unemployed villagers. The village’s obligation is just to make sure that the villagers will do the ngayah, instead of making sure if they have a job.
Back to the Wayang Wong show. The Anoman is jumping high. It seems that he is going to burn the Alengka. But as it’s heavy pouring now so it is not possible to continue the story. It is not possible to make fire in open stage when it is raining. Let alone no villagers are watching the show. Nobody cheer up. They prefer gambling at the banjar hall. Some are sitting in the warung working on numbers for the lottery.
Only I Made and I Kadek are still watching.
“I find that the Balinese are like the Wayang Wong. They are busy looking after their heritages but nobody really cares. Like now, they keep playing although nobody watching,” says I Made.
“I agree with you. We are like wayang. Since We’ve never done anything on our own in our whole life. We have to follow the adat, banjar, village, the gods, employer, boss, company and the state, all the time.
It’s flooding now around the temple but as the dalang keeps telling story, so the wayang keeps going.
Glossary:
Adat : village or customary law
Anoman : The powerful white monkey in the Ramayana story
Anoman Duta : a play taken from Ramayana story.
Banjar: village community sub-unit
I Kadek Bukal Kual: lazy and naughty person
I Made Tengal Sengal-Sengal : Someone who always do something in hurry
Kulkul : Balinese wooden drum
Ngayah : Doing something voluntarily (usually religious matter) without expecting rewards
Ni Luh Makin Digosok Makin Sip : a flirting lady
Rahwana : The evil king of Alengka in the Ramayana story
Sekehe tuak : informal association of Balinese men whose hobby are drinking palm toddy (tuak)
Warung tuak : food stall offering palm toddy
Wayang: shadow puppet
Wayang Wong : classical masked play.
Translated by Putu Semiada
Nobody is really interested to watch the ‘Wayang Wong’performed at the temple outer courtyard. They are playing Anoman Duta. Only some children are watching. But as it starts raining, the children are leaving as well.
But the show keeps going to finish the story. For the dancers, it is a matter of ngayah, so they do not really care whether there are spectators or not.
“It is raining heavier and heavier. I think, the dancers would get sick,” says I Made Tengal Sengal-Sengal while biting a piece of sugar cane.
Due to temple festival at the village at the temples, the warung tuak has closed for a week. The owner of the warung, NI Luh Makin Digosok Makin Sip, has been busy ngayah at the temple day and night, so does the sekehe tuak.
“It’s not only the dancers would get sick, so would us. After big ceremonies many villagers would get sick,” says I Kadek Bukal Kual.
Some get sick due to too much ngayah. They make skewers and chopping spices. They don’t get enough sleep as they have to be always ready everytime they hear the sound kulkul. They would get very tired. The same thing would happen to the wives. They have to make thousand pieces of cakes and have to serve the women making offerings. As they are too busy, they don’t even have time to take care themselves and get sick too.
There are also some people who get sick as they never do the ngayah. Instead, they are busy gambling (playing Chinese cards) and forget the time and keep drinking coffee. They don’t even pray to the gods. This make them get sick.
“There also some people who get stress after ngayah as they loss their job. As they have to do ngayah for a month so they have to take a month leave at their office. Once they back to the office to work, their positions have been replaced by others from other islands. It is difficult to employ Balinese. Too many holidays. That’s what their boss said,” says Made.
If you don’t do the ngayah, the villagers will talk about you or the gods will punish you. But if you do a lot of ngayah, you will have to be off from the office very often, then you might lose your job. So far no boss is punished by the gods because of firing their employees who ask for many days off to do the ngayah.
It seems that the gods are afraid of the boss. It seems also that the village has no obligation at all how to deal with unemployed villagers. The village’s obligation is just to make sure that the villagers will do the ngayah, instead of making sure if they have a job.
Back to the Wayang Wong show. The Anoman is jumping high. It seems that he is going to burn the Alengka. But as it’s heavy pouring now so it is not possible to continue the story. It is not possible to make fire in open stage when it is raining. Let alone no villagers are watching the show. Nobody cheer up. They prefer gambling at the banjar hall. Some are sitting in the warung working on numbers for the lottery.
Only I Made and I Kadek are still watching.
“I find that the Balinese are like the Wayang Wong. They are busy looking after their heritages but nobody really cares. Like now, they keep playing although nobody watching,” says I Made.
“I agree with you. We are like wayang. Since We’ve never done anything on our own in our whole life. We have to follow the adat, banjar, village, the gods, employer, boss, company and the state, all the time.
It’s flooding now around the temple but as the dalang keeps telling story, so the wayang keeps going.
=====
Glossary:
Adat : village or customary law
Anoman : The powerful white monkey in the Ramayana story
Anoman Duta : a play taken from Ramayana story.
Banjar: village community sub-unit
I Kadek Bukal Kual: lazy and naughty person
I Made Tengal Sengal-Sengal : Someone who always do something in hurry
Kulkul : Balinese wooden drum
Ngayah : Doing something voluntarily (usually religious matter) without expecting rewards
Ni Luh Makin Digosok Makin Sip : a flirting lady
Rahwana : The evil king of Alengka in the Ramayana story
Sekehe tuak : informal association of Balinese men whose hobby are drinking palm toddy (tuak)
Warung tuak : food stall offering palm toddy
Wayang: shadow puppet
Wayang Wong : classical masked play.
