Did you know that Palembang is the oldest city in Indonesia? Due to its age, Palembang has an old cultural history and produces various kinds of art.
One of the arts originating from Palembang is the Gending Sriwijaya dance.
This Gending Sriwijaya dance is accompanied by a chant which is also called Gending Sriwijaya which describes the majesty, glory of the empire and also the nobility of the culture of the Sriwijaya Kingdom which placed Palembang as one of the centers of its kingdom.
History of Gending Sriwijaya
History of the Birth of Sriwijaya Gending Dance
Once upon a time there was a Tanggai dance which was sacred and also sacred as an offering and also a welcome in the era of the Sriwijaya Kingdom.
However, when Indonesia was colonized by the Dutch Colonial, a regulation was issued that women were prohibited from dancing.
The Tanggai dance which is performed by women is then changed to be performed by men.
This dance change then happened again at the time of the Japanese occupation, where the Tanggai dance was not allowed to be performed at all.
After the ban on the performance of the Tanggai dance, the people of Palembang no longer have a welcoming dance.
This then led to the emergence of a Japanese request to make a dance along with a song that could be used as a welcoming dance in Palembang.
In 1943, Tina Haji Gong along with Sukainah A. Rozak then began to create this Gending Sriwijaya dance.
The concept of this dance is taken from a combination or elements of traditional dances that already exist and are popular in Palembang.
The variety of movements used in this dance uses elements of Buddhist motion and is combined with Buddhist ascetic movements (a religion adhered to by the Sriwijaya Kingdom at that time) and also traditional elements from Batanghari Sembilan (Nine rivers in South Sumatra).
Batanghari Sembilan is also applied to the number of dancers from the Gending Sriwijaya dance, totaling nine people.
In terms of musical art or song accompaniment, A. Dahlan Muhibat acts as a music director and is assisted by Nungcik AR who composes song lyrics.
This dance and song, which was completed in 1944, was then first performed at a welcoming ceremony for the arrival of officials in the courtyard of the Great Mosque of Palembang, August 2, 1945.
Meaning of Gending Sriwijaya Dance
The Meaning and Philosophy of Sriwijaya Gending Dance
This dance, which is performed as a welcoming dance and filled with friendliness, joy and respect, has meaning and philosophy in every movement made by the dancers.
Related to the meaning and philosophy, here are some explanations:
1. Standing Prayer Movement
The movements carried out by the dancers are a symbol of the obedience of the people of South Sumatra, especially Palembang to God. The attitude of tolerance for others is also described by this movement.
2. Thumb and Middle Finger Flick
At the time of dancing the Gending Sriwijaya dance, the dancers snap their thumbs with their middle fingers, then perform mutually releasing movements that match the rhythm.
This movement symbolizes the discipline and hard work of the people of Palembang (South Sumatra).
3. Betelling
In this dance, betel is used as a property and also a symbol of humility.
Judging from the way of life of the betel plant, this plant does not harm other parties. This trait is what we want to show from the use of betel.
Good character and high loyalty are depicted through the use of straight-stemmed areca nut.
Meanwhile, patience and unyielding attitude to achieve success are illustrated by the gambier component, which was previously processed before being used with betel nut.
Broadly speaking, the Gending Sriwijaya dance implies that the people of Palembang and South Sumatra have trustworthiness, humility, care, mutual cooperation and harmony, independence, loyalty and strength.
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