Ruwatan

Ruwatan (also know as Ruwatan Murwakala) is a ritual for live safely and happily to remove the bad luck (accident, sickness, mistakes, sins, etc). Ruwat means to abolish power, to erase or to free (from the curse of bad luck, calamity and disaster).

Batara Kala, was entitled to prey on human beings in the list of Sukerta. Sukerta or Sukarta means children who are loved by their parents. It also means people who have accidents when they are doing something and the accident are considered dangerous. Those Sukerta people (includes children and adult) must be protected or purified from Batara Kala by performing Ruwatan Murwakala. This ritual is considered very sacred and must prepare carefully.

There are 25 categories of Sukerta:
Ontang anting, means the only boy in the family without having any brothers and sisters.
Unting unting, means the only girl in the family without having any brothers and sisters.
Gendhana gendhini, means a boy and a girl in the family
Uger-uger lawang, means 2 boys in the family
Kembar sepasang, means 2 girls in the family
Pendawa, means 5 boys in the family
Ngayomi, means 5 girls in the family
Julangwangi, means someone born at sunset
Pangayam-ayam, means someone born at noon, etc

Important things during Ruwatan:
The Dalang, must be wise and qualified dalang because he is a symbol of adopted father of Sukerta

Sukertas and the families should involve in deep feeling during the performance, to understand the essential of the Kidung, sung and said by dalang. The Sukertas and families must wear traditional Javanese costume. Before the wayang puppet begin, Sukertas ask blessing from their parents. During the wayang puppet performance, the rite is perform along with offering, hair cut (small part) and bathing, also dressed in white clothes (symbolize holiness).

Holy water that uses to bath the Sukertas must be from seven different springs.

Due to its sacred, the dalang who performs Ruwatan must be an old dalang whose father and grandfather were also dalang. Nowadays the dalang who perform ruwatan is at the minimum age of 55 years, married and mature person and also knows very well the purpose of ruwatan.

Simple Ruwatan is not complicated as Ruwatan Murwakala. The participant cleansed with the purified water, only on their heads were soaked and wetted, not the whole body and small part of their hairs also cut. The water filled with mantras is believed to have supernatural power to cure any physical and mental sickness. The participants might bring the purified water to their home to be used by their families.

Ruwatan usually held in the month of Suro.

Glossary:
Batara Kala = a bad son of Batara Guru perform as ogre giant who eats only human flesh
Dalang = wayang puppet master