Trifter

When I was married, I see a couple of statue in the form of Javanese bridegroom placed in the reception room. I was so fascinating with the beauty of them and fall in love with them instantly. Later, I knew that the statue was called “Loro Blonyo”. This fascination leads me to study deeper into the tradition behind it.

The statue is a symbol of the God and Goddess of fertility in Javanese culture: Devi (Goddess) Cri and God Sadono. Java is an island, part of the Indonesian archipelago whose society is very rich with customs and traditions.

Loro Blonyo is the Javanese words of “two become one”. Devi Cri and God Sadono are very much worshipped by Javanese rural community especially by the farmer. Traditional Javanese farmer feel very much attached to Devi Cri, as they called her “mother Cri”. The farmer believes that their crop is the gift of kindness from the Devi.

Traditional Loro Blonyo Statue

Detail of traditional Loro Blonyo hairdo called ‘Paes Ageng” (photograph is private collection of the writer)

Prerogative of the Hindu Javanese aristocracy, in the past there was always a room in traditional houses of royal family which was specially made for worshiping Devi Cri, it is called pasren or petanen, stand for the words pa-sri-an and pa-tani-an which means the place of the Devi and the storage of the agricultural products. The room must be equipped with certain furniture and ornament arranged in certain order. There must be a set of wooden bed fully ornamented with crafty design, which is located in the centre of the room. Other stuffs placed before the bed are a couple or the Javanese bridegroom Loro Blonyo, one set of jar, one set of rice paddy and crops containers and robyong lamp which always flames up.

For traditional Javanese society, this requirement is quite expensive. Therefore only rich farmer can keep Loro Blonyo statue in their house. The richer the farmer, the grandeur will the statue, the ornament and the furniture in the room be. In fact, the statue eventually becomes a sort of a wealth symbol for its owner.

By keeping the statue in their home, the farmers believe that it will bring them good luck in their farming activity. They store their crops one night in pasren before it’s taken to the ceremony next day. They also belive that the Devi will bless them with many children. In a wedding, the bride and groom meeting ceremony was held before the pasren, so that the Dev will bless their life and turn their life into the ones of Dewi Ratih and Dewa Kamajaya, The God of Love.

Devi Cri and God Sadono statue in traditional custom is represented by man and woman dressed in traditional Javanese outfit, with traditional hairdo and traditional accessories. They will stand in a very formal manner, or sit down in a traditional Javanese wooden chair.

Modern Loro Blonyo Statue

Modern Loro Blonyo Statue – Image credit

Most Javanese farmer these days, no longer follows the sacred philosophy of Loro Blonyo. The penetration of Islamic culture as well as other religions such as Christianity had lead to the extinction of this tradition. Ironically enough, many young generations doesn’t even know what Loro Blonyo is although the statue can still frequently be seen in many Javanese wedding ceremony as a symbol of union between man and women. Loro Blonyo has no longer regarded as the patron of the farmer. Many families still keep the statue, but they are treated as merely decoration of the house. The statue is no longer has its sacred room, instead it is placed in the living room, or any other room, together with any other decorations of the house. The statue is quite popular nowadays as souvenir amongst both domestic and overseas tourist. 

Beside its function, the appearance of modern day’s Loro Blonyo had also greatly changed. They no longer stand or sit in a formal manner only. Most statues now have more cheerful and gay appearance. Their outfit, which still maintaining its traditional form, is full of modern touch here and there.  Their hair style is also more modern. Some statues even have a completely modern hair do and accessories. Devi Cri sometimes manifested as sexy as a today’s model with sexy smile and sexy apparel. The appearance of the Devi had definitely followed the modern day’s beauty definition. The traditional statue was still in existence and sometimes the traditional and modern statue are displayed in a souvenir or art shop side by side.