Gringsing, Weaving Balance

Description: an example of gringsing weaving being used in a ritual in Tenganan Pegringsingan.

Photo: Tenganan youth wearing gringsing weaving while performing the Abwang Lemah dance. (Ni Wayan Widayanti Arioka) When you hear the word Bali, what comes to mind is a beautiful natural panorama and a strong sense of traditions. Balinese people still bind themselves to their traditions, including their traditional cloth tradition. It is not surprising that in some places woven fabrics with distinctive motifs inspired by nature exist. The process of making this woven cloth is tied to tradition. Gringsing cloth from Tenganan Pegringsingan is one of them.

For the people of Tenganan Pegringsingan, weaving is not just about producing a piece of cloth to cover the body or for fashion needs. Gringsing cloth has a special function in the religious tradition of the Pegringsingan community. This woven cloth is present in most religious ceremonies. On some of them, Gringsing cloth is even the main requirement in the ceremony.

Not only do the motifs in the weaving contain the meaning of balance but also the colours in the weaving itself. The colours black, red, and white or yellowish on the Gringsing cloth symbolise the elements of water, fire, and air. The three colours must be balanced so that nature and the body avoid pain.

According to the saga, the people of Tenganan Pegringsingan are descendants of Wong Paneges who came from the territory of the Beuntung Kingdom. Wong Paneges taught the importance of maintaining balance to their descendants. This is so that life can continue. The principle of balance is symbolised by the tapak dara (plus sign) motif as a symbol in people’s lives. This symbol is also depicted in the lubeng motif, the basic motif of Gringsing weaving.

The name Gringsing itself comes from the word gering which means sick and sing which means not. So, gringsing means not getting sick or avoiding getting sick. Therefore, gringsing is also believed to have magical powers as a repellent against bad things or bad luck. This belief is not only believed by the people of Tenganan Pegringsingan but also in other areas in Bali. Therefore, the Balinese people require the presence of gringsing cloth as a repellent against danger.

For example, the Gringsing cloth with the sanan empeg motif, which is used in the ceremony of tolak bala and pleading for protection for the middle child of a family whose older and younger siblings (first and third children) have passed away. It is said that Gringsing weaving was created when Lord Indra was admiring the beauty of the sky at night. Lord Indra, then, showed the beauty of the stars in the sky to Wong Paneges. That was what inspired the birth of various kinds of Gringsing weaving motifs.

Another version believes that the Gringsing weaving skill was obtained from Dadong Bungkuk, the Gringsing weaver on the Moon. Dadong Bungkuk’s expertise was imitated by the Grinsing community so that this meaningful weaving tradition was born.

Weaving for Tradition Sustainability

For the people of Tenganan Pagringsingan, weaving is a process of rigorous spiritual practise and taste. Gringsing is a double ikat weaving, namely the vertical dihi thread (the width of the fabric) and the horizontal pakan thread (the long section of the fabric). This double ikat has a motif that is produced through a special binding and colouring process. For

Description: Pekak Raji’s daily task is processing cotton into yarn.

Photo: Pekak Raji. (Ni Wayan Widayanti Arioka)

information, the double tie is a symbol of rwabhineda which means that everything is always in pairs and complements each other.

Gringsing weaving is the result of a long process. Starting from spinning cotton into yarn, preparing yarn for dihi and pakan, tying yarn to form motifs, dyeing yarn, to marrying dihi and pakan yarns to become a piece of cloth. At least, there are eighteen steps that must be done to produce a piece of Gringsing cloth. This long and time-consuming series of processes is a representation of self-control and patience as a spiritual practice.

The weaving process is Mebed or separating the cotton fibre from the seeds, nyetet or splitting and cleaning the cotton, ngulung or rolling the cotton on a bamboo stalk, to ngantih or spinning the thread using a jantra or a cylindrical wooden wheel that is rotated by hand. The process of spinning yarn is a process full of patience and thoroughness. Oftentimes, the spun cotton breaks halfway and needs to be reconnected to keep it going.

However, Gringsing cloth is a sacred cloth for the people of Tenganan Pegringsingan. Gringsing is treated with great care, even from the time it is still a thread. The brushing process is the process of ensuring that all threads are separated before the weaving process begins. This process is like combing hair. Yarn is considered like hair that needs to be combed carefully so as not to break. The brushing motion is the same as combing hair, from top to bottom, and is repeated many times until the threads are dry and nothing sticks to each other.

This shows that the weaving tradition in Tenganan Pegringsingan is bound by various rules that must be obeyed. Other rules include the ngames process, which is the process of dyeing the fabric blue. This process should not be carried out in the Tenganan Pegringsingan area. The ngames process is carried out by the community in Bugbug Village, Karangasem.

Furthermore, the process of soaking the yarn for dyeing, both the first soaking and subsequent soaking, should not be carried out during the kajeng (third day in tri wara, three-day cycle of time in the Balinese lunar calendar).

Integrated Into Religious Traditions

One thing that is unique to the Tenganan Pegringsingan community is that they expect marriages to take place among their own community. Of course, the typical Tenganan Pegringsingan cloth is the cloth used as the main dress for traditional weddings. However, the tradition does not stop at just wearing Gringsing cloth

during the wedding ceremony, but it also involves other rituals. For example, the best dowry is not in the form of money or other expensive objects, but a grinsing thread that symbolises the connection between the two families.

The bride in Tenganan Pegringsingan is obliged to ngantih (spun yarn) at the house of a family outside the village of Tenganan Pegringsingan. This ritual contains the message that after marriage she must be ready to become a mother who weaves her children’s clothes herself.

Still related to the wedding ceremony, in mebanten kaja, a husband and wife who have just been married for the past year must introduce themselves as husband and wife to Ida Bhatara Sanghyang. They must prepare additional offerings in the form of a pair of red and black Gringsing cloth. The Gringsing brought by this couple is a holy Gringsing whose sheets are still continuous (the edges have not been cut) and have never been worn as clothing. Currently, Gringsing cloth is also used to cover the corpse in death ceremonies. But this is not a must.

In the end, Gringsing is not just a piece of cloth with interesting and ethnically unique motifs but is a patient process to achieve a balance in life. Attachment to Gringsing weaving is attachment to religious rituals and attachment to the continuation of tradition. The revitalisation effort is expected to be able to make Gringsing cloth sustainable amid the onslaught of mass textile production and the use of synthetic dyes.

Pekak Raji, the only yarn spinner in Tenganan Pegringsingan, just passed away at the end of 2020. His departure certainly affects the continuity of the yarn spinning tradition in Tenganan Pagringsingan. However, the people of Tenganan Pegringsingan believe that there will be someone who will continue this rare, yarn spinning skill.

Ni Wayan Widayanti Arioka, BPNB Bali

Description: Weaving process in Tenganan Pegringsingan.

Photo: The process of weaving. (Ni Wayan Widayanti Arioka)