Brilio.net/en - In a non-descript, narrow alley of Sutodirjan, Yogyakarta, a man named Martinus Doel Wahab, 84, sits at a workstation in his small house and begins another masterpiece. Wahab, who goes by Mbah Doel, creates stunning homemade lion dance costumes -- some of the most beautiful that anyone has seen. And he has been doing it for decades.
Mbah Doels passion for the art of lion dance began when he was a boy. When he was 12, he longed to join a lion dance group and practice the Indonesian martial art known as pencak silat.
If youre unfamiliar with pencak silat, the Oxford Dictionary defines it this way: the [Indonesian] art of self-defense, practiced as a martial art or accompanied by drums as a ceremonial display or dance. As a combat style, it uses every part of the body to execute strikes, grappling techniques, throws, and weapon forms.
Mbah Doels desire to excel in the martial art only grew with age. As a teenager he became adept in silat -- though at that time, in 1953, there were not many pencak silat competitions as there are today. The silat that Mbah Doel did was performed for the public as a show.
In time, Mbah Doels silat skill earned the attention of Soekarno, Indonesias first president. Soekarno invited Mbah Doel to represent Indonesia in the first delegation of performers in Indonesian history after its independence to be sent abroad on a cultural mission. Mbah Doel would perform for thousands of people around the world and expose them to the beauty and poetry of Indonesian culture. His service in that delegation was one of the proudest moments in Mbad Doels life.
I was 22 years old, remembered Mbad Doel with joy in his eyes. It could be said that the delegation was the first Indonesian cultural mission after Indonesias independence. So, I was sent to Eastern Europe and Egypt. Why? You still remember the history, right? It was because Egypt was the first country to recognize our independence, said Mbah Doel, who, when speaking with brilio.net/en, recalled the events with a sharp mind and keen articulation that still sparkled in his old age.
During his cultural mission to Eastern Europe, Mbah Doel performed in Prague, Poland and Moscow. He also toured Hungary and Czechoslovakia and took a trip to South America to perform in Colombia. By that time, performing silat in front of Soekarno had become an ordinary thing for him. Besides touring around the world, the young Mbah Doel also became the first national silat referee in Indonesia.
As Mbah Doel approached retirement, he had already lived a full life -- one that would produce six children, nine grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. With so many children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren to enjoy and less energy than he had in his youth, he decided to end his silat career. However, it was his decision to retire that began a new chapter for him: the artisan life of making world-class lion dance costumes. After retiring, I started to think about the most suitable job for me, said Mbah Doel, while showing off news clippings from his glory days. Suddenly, out of the blue, it occurred to me to make lion dance heads, many of which I have owned for a long time.
To help preserve the culture of the lion dance, Mbah Doel also formed a lion dance group called Isaku Iki. His group performs widely in a variety of places, especially during the Chinese New Year. And when his group is not performing, Mbah Doel hones his artisan craft, builds stunning lion heads, and dreams of the days when he brought the beauty of Indonesian culture to the world.