Kites are a very popular game around the world. Basically, a kite is in the form of bamboo or a type of strong frame covered with a wide paper or cloth and can accommodate wind gusts so that it can fly and go up into the air with the control of a thread. Bamboo is an important component as a framework to hold the kite structure that interacts by wind currents and also the kite player's control.
 |
| Layang-layang yang umumnya di mainkan pada sore hari dengan angin yang lebih deras |
Holidays or weekends are the most enjoyable times for children and even adults to play kites. Especially when the dry season with strong winds is the perfect time to play kites.
The development of this kite features a unique looking wing structure influenced by the famous sails from the archipelago that existed before the Christian era. These model kite structures apparently migrated to Malaysia and formed the basis of their exquisite wau kites, starting with the wau peacock from the province of Johor.
This tradition continues to this day because the craft of kite making is also an arena for art and creativity that reflects the depth of art and craftsmanship that characterize this unique country.
 |
| Seorang anak bermain layangan yang menggunakan buntut sebagai stabilisator |
If you explore the history of kites in the archipelago, namely from a painting in a mesolithic cave in the form of a kaghati kite image. The age of the paintings on rock caves in Southeast Sulawesi has existed since 9500-9000 years BC.
The discovery of the image in Goa Kobari occurred in 1996, by a man named La Hada who is currently the caretaker of the Kobori Cave Complex. The discovery of these paintings amounted to 18 paintings on the cave walls made of rock. The position of the painting is in the Sugi Patani niche, which is 700 meters from the Kobori Complex and 250 meters above sea level. Kobari Cave administratively is located in Liangkobari Village, Lohia District, Muna Regency, Southeast Sulawesi.
 |
| Several models of kites played in Indonesia. |
The painting on the flapon wall of the cave niche is reddish brown in the form of a human figure playing with a kite. The shape of the human and the kite is very clear, but the facial image of the kite player is not very clear and mysterious. From the scratches of the painting, it is estimated that the results of the finger quenching.
The discovery of a kite painting in the cave was also published in the research and analysis of a German named Wolfgong Bick. He is the Consultant of Kite Aerial Photography Scientific Use of Kite Aerial Photography related to the oldest type of kite in the world in 1997. In his writing, Wolfgong explains that people on Muna Island, Southeast Sulawesi already have a culture to fly a kite called Kaghati Kolope. since thousands of years ago.
The findings were then published in an article entitled "The First Kiteman" which was published in a magazine in Germany in 2003.
Perhaps these ancient drawings depict kites used in their earliest earliest activities, such as fishing and religious spirituality. The Muna people also use kaghati kites when welcoming the main harvest to celebrate their gratitude for the blessings given by the Creator.
 |
| Gaung echo kites that can emit sound that comes from ribbons placed crosswise. |
Apart from Muna in South Sulawesi, kite games have also become a tradition in Mandar, West Sulawesi. The name of the kite here is called the lake kite which is also commonly played after the harvest is over. Currently this game tradition has become a routine agenda in the form of the Lake Kite Festival which is usually held in August.
The Mandar tribe also includes strong maritime souls and is well known in the archipelago for their ability to build ships and sail to many countries. The culture of playing kites cannot be separated from the existing maritime capabilities. This lake-type kite from Mandar is flown while there is an east monsoon that blows from the continent of Australia which is cold to the continent of Asia which is hot and dry. The existence of this wind is also used to sail northward in the direction of the wind using a sailing ship.
In Sumatra, the history of the kite is closely related to the history of Malay in the archipelago. Writing about kite games in a Kite Festival recorded in Malay History (Sulalatus Salatin) in the 17th century. The participants in the event were royal officials.
In Sumatra, the kite game also developed in Malay culture parallel to the maritime culture that existed at the time when many trades took place in the Pasai Aceh region, the Malacca Strait, Riau Islands, Jambi, South Sumatra and Lampung. From this area also then spread to the Melaya Peninsula and Tumasik (Singapore) brought by traders from the Malacca Strait to various parts of the archipelago. From the Strait of Malacca, Portuguese and Spanish explorers took him to the Continent of Europe and America.
In West Sumatra, the kite game is done by young people who want to captivate a girl's heart, they make the most beautiful kites and can also make sounds using a rope of rapia that is spread between the two curved sides of the bamboo. The string will vibrate while in the air and produce a buzzing sound.
In Bali, playing kites is not only a game, but also very full of rituals and beliefs, for example, a kite is given offerings before being flown and the ritualized kite becomes a sacred object. The tradition of flying a kite in Bali is called the Rare Angon. Rare Angon is a puppet character and is the form of the son of Lord Shiva.
There are many kinds of kites in Bali that are made with various artistic creativities, we can see this at the Kite Festival in Bali. Some are in the form of ordinary, but also in the form of animals, mythical beasts, in three dimensions and shapes with beautiful colorful patterns made by mutual cooperation. This passion for togetherness causes the Kite Festival in Bali to be the most eagerly awaited time for Balinese citizens and tourists.
There are several types of kites in Bali, such as fish-shaped bebean kites, dragon-like kites with long tails, tail-less kites, namely dragon kites without tails and crescent-shaped kites whose edges point downward. . Kites usually use an echo sound because they are added with a stretch of a rope or thin bamboo blade that can vibrate and make a sound when exposed to the wind.
Sumber Referensi:
- https://kebudayaan.kemdikbud.go.id/ditwdb/kaghati/
- https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Layang-layang
- http://en.gocelebes.com/kaghati-worlds-first-kite/
- http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~ET3M-TKKW/scrap-11.html
Tag
: Kites, games, playing kites, kaghati, Muna South Sulawesi, Muna kites, South Sulawesi, South Sulawesi kites, history of kites