Ceremonies

THE IMPORTANT ROYAL CEREMONIES
The ceremony held on the 12 th of Mulud, the third Javanese month,
is to commemorate Mohammed, the Holy Prophet. For about a week,
the people of Yogyakarta celebrate this event with a festival
called Sekaten.

At the end of this festival the Kraton Soldiers will be on display in their traditional colourful uniforms. They will escort the Gunungan(a mound of rice ornamented with vegetables, fruits and other food - stuff) which is carried from a quarter of the Sultan's Palace to the Great Mosque.



After the praying ceremony in the Mosque, some of the Gunungan will be distributed among those attending the Garebeg ceremony.

The interesting and attractive pageantry of those Royal Soldiers with the Gunungan procession is also held on two other Garebeg occasions,
namely:

Garebeg Syawal
Held on the 1st of the tenth Javanese month of Syawal, after the end of
the fasting month of Ramadhan.

Garebeg Besar
Held on the 10 th of the last month of the Javanese year, for celebrating
the religious festival based on Abraham's intention to sacrifice one of his sons as atoken of absolute obedience to God.

Labuhan
Labuhan ceremony is held to celebrate the birth of Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono. "Labuh" in Javanese means throw something sacred
to a river or the sea. Offerings from the Yogyakarta palace consists food and cuttings of the fingernails and hair of Sri Sultan, which is thrown
to the South Sea or Indian Ocean. The offering is intended to be
presented to the Goddess of the South Sea, Kanjeng Ratu Kidul.
It is hoped, by performing the ceremony, that the King and the people
of Yogyakarta will get their welfare. The same ceremony is also held
on the top of mount Merapi and Lawu.

SENDANGSONO
Sendangsono lies on the slope of the Menoreh mountain range, in the Kulon Progo Regency, some 40 kilometers northwest of Yogyakarta. The word "Sendang" means "spring" whereas "Sono" is the name of a giant tree. Thus, Sendangsono means a spring under a Sono tree.

It is considered to be the holy place for the Catholics, and it can be regarded as the Lourdes of South-east Asia. During May and October, the holy months of Holy Marie, Queen of Heaven.