cirebon cultural tourism “The Losari mask was first created by Prince Losari in the 13th century. This 410 year old mask does not have eye holes, therefore, usually the dancer will dance with his eyes closed and only rely on the instinct he got from the penance ritual he underwent previously.Performing Penance Rituals, all His Life, The Losari Mask Mastermind is someone who was given a “Breed” and is a direct descendant of Prince Losari. The Puppeteer Topeng has an obligation to perform special penance rituals throughout his life.
Type
The types of penance or fasting carried out by mask puppeteers include Tirakat Mutih, Tirakat Gedang, Tirakat Nganyep, Tirakat Ngasrep, Tirakat Ngrowot, Tirakat Pati Geni, Tirakat Wuwungan, Tirakat Wali, Tirakat Monday-Thursday, Tirakat Daud, and several other penances. They carry out these penances consistently from childhood.
Dancing While, Chanting Mantras, In the Losari mask dance, there are several presentation sequences that they must performed in their entirety. Therefore they cannot perform it on a short duration. This is because when dancers dance or move, it is the same as reciting mantras and prayers. As for the spell language itself, it uses Old Javanese.
Noor Anani Maman Irman (44), fully believes that this art was born when God the Creator was smiling. As for why women play it, he doesn’t really understand. But in essence, women are a form of locus of perfect manifestation of God. “For me, the Losari Mask dance is a manifestation of how women view living space through the medium of art,” said this woman born in Cirebon.
The Losari Mask Dance plays several dance rounds such as Panji, Pamindo (Samba), Rumyang, Tumenggung, and Klana. Each mask tells a story about life’s journey and human character. Panji, for example, tells the character of a newly born human being, holy and clean. Samba represents the character of a child or teenager. Rumyang depicts a turbulent human approaching adulthood. Tumenggung depicts an adult human. And Klana is a picture of a despondent human being.
However, unlike dancing in the Losari style, the prioritize is not character, but rather the story and the spirit of the character. Because of this, Losari masks are usually called acting masks or wong masks.
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Ichia Septiawati
