Shadow puppet that depicts Yudhistira, one of the Pandava brothers of the Mahabharata. Tanned stiffened leather cut in a traditional pattern with small decorative cutouts. Painted in various colors with a whitish-yellow body. Both arms move. Mounted on a carved horn stick. Used as a puppet in wajang kulit performances of the Mahabharata. Held in front of a screen, behind a light, moved. Yudistira, the model of the Benevolent King, is the eldest of the Pandawa brothers. He never loses his temper, never fights, and never rejects a request from anyone. His time is spent in meditation and deep intellectual pursuits. Unlike other heroes, whose main accouterments are weapons, Yudistira's sacred possession is a mysterious book, the Kalimasada, containing the secrets of religion and the universe. His one fault is his weakness for gambling which leads to the loss of his Kingdom, his brothers, and their wife.
Collection place:
Bali, Lesser Sunda Islands, Indonesia
Object type:
ethnography
Object class:
Shadow puppets
Function:
5.3 Objects relating to the Secular and Quasi-religious Rites, Pageants, and Drama