Introducing the Kraton Life
Nyantri aims at acquainting the Sultan’s future son/daughter-in-law to the life of the Kraton of Yogyakarta. In the course of this ritual, s/he will be taught the way to live as a family member of the Kraton of Yogyakarta. “Nyantri may be seen as a training session for the Kraton’s future son or daughter-in-law,” said KRT Pujaningrat, a Kraton relative and cultural expert, in his residence in Mangkubumen area. Aside from teaching how things work in the Royal Palace, Nyantri is also carried out so that the Kraton may see the daily life of the future son/daughter-in-law, assessing all the behaviors and attitudes displayed during the process.
In the old times, Nyantri would be held for 40 consecutive days. It has been shortened since the reign of Sultan Hamengku Buwono IX. This is because the Kraton understands and tolerates the future son/daughter-in-law’s need to do other activities, such as work. The person who would provide the training for the future son/daughter-in-law in the past was the Pepatih Dalem (the Kraton’s Prime Minister) but, as that position has been abolished, it will be a Kraton elderly appointed by the Sultan.
As time changes, nowadays Nyantri is held for one day only. The groom in this wedding will be taught about the customs and traditions in the Royal Palace, such as how to speak in a specific level of Javanese to the Sultan, how to prostrate before him, and how to do ngapu rancang (the Javanese gesture showing respect and courteousness). He will also be trained to do laku ndhodhok, which is a certain walking gait, in a squatting position, as a form of good manners.
Nyantri will start in the Mangkubumen, a royal mansion located in the west of the Royal Palace and currently used by Widya Mataram University as a campus. From there, the groom and his family will be picked up by the Utusan Dalem (the Sultan’s envoy) and brought to Bangsal Kasatriyan. The Utusan Dalem will take the groom and his family using horse carriages in the accompaniment of a cavalry. The route to be taken will be from the Mangkubumen to Magangan, then continued to Bangsal Kasatriyan on foot.
In Bangsal Kasatriyan, the groom will have been awaited by the princes of the Kraton. Starting then until before the Akad Nikah (the wedding solemnization), it is where the bridegroom will be staying. In the meantime, the bride will be preparing herself in Sekar Kedhaton.
It is in this Nyantri process as well that the delegates from the five districts in Yogyakarta Province (Sleman, Bantul, Gunung Kidul, Kulonprogo, and Yogyakarta City) will present to the Kraton the appurtenances for the installation of the Tarub (temporary buildings for wedding guests) and the Bleketepe (woven coconut leaves for walls, roofs, etc.). These appurtenances will be in the form of agricultural products such as coconuts, rice plants, and sugarcanes.
The bride will also perform the ritual of Nyantri, but it will be different from that for the groom. For her, the Nyantri will consist of activities to prepare for the wedding.
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