Mega Mendung batik or Megamendung batik? what is the meaning of the conjunction of words with the same meaning that will refer to the same object, namely Mega Mendung batik which is indeed the identity of Cirebon batik that has gone global? Each mega mendung batik motif contains a high philosophy towards its wearers, namely that every human being must be able to suppress Anger in a downturn or sad condition or a condition that reflects a situation where when receiving mental pressure we must be able to controls attitides, actions, and behaviour in a positive context.
The point is that a wise attitude in any condition, especially when the cloud situation is cloudy ( sad, down, suffering, and others), is like a cloud that always appears when a cloudy atmosphere occurs that can cool the surrounding atmosphere. Every color that arises in every Mega Mendung batik motif is a representation of leadership that nurtures (wise) its people.
This shown in the blue color (the nature of a leader) combined with a color gradation of seven layers on the cloud ornament, to represent the form of seven layers of sky, as well as the earth which has 7 layers of soil, 7 days a week. The Mega Mendung batik motif may look simple, but it is full of noble meaning. We also need to know that curently, the number of color gradations formed is not always as many as seven due to the demands of diverse market demands, there are even types of Mega Mendung batik that have no gradation at all.
Do we then hit the order of the Mega Mendung batik motif if it eliminates or reduces the number of color gradations? has the philosophy become faded? these questions can be the subject of our discussion as fellow Indonesian batik lovers. If we review from the point of view of this philosophy, it is very unlikely to reduce the level of color gradation of mega cloudy batik because it will reduce the essence of the noble value of a mega mendung batik tulis cloth itself which indirectly injures the nation’s culture. It should be called a separate motif if there is a minor component of the motif so that the next generation is not misguided in judging Mega Mendung batik.
History of Mega Mendung Batik
THe History of Mega Mendung batik motif if reviewed based on book reference sources as well as existing literature will lead to a history of the arrival of the Chinese to the Cirebon region which ultimately refers to the marriage of Sunan Gunung Jati with queen Ong Tien in the 16th century. Then the people of Cirebon knew some Chinese art objects such as plates, ceramics, and fabrics that had cloud-shaped motifs.
The clouds whitin Taoism symbolize nirvana as a picture of a vast, eternal, free, and transcedentally meaningful world of divine concepts. THe cloud is also represented by the Sufis as the same expression of the concept of broad and free. This is the concern of Cirebon batik artists to be poured into batik cloth into a new motif name, namely the Mega Mendung batik motif. One thing that distinguishes the Chinese batik motif from Mega Mendung batik is the cloud pattern formed where the Chinese batik motif has a cloud line in the form of a circle or circle, while the Cirebon Mega Mendung batik, in the form of a cloud line that tends to be pointed, oval, and triangular.
Another history says that the development of Cirebon batik is also related to the history of the development of the movement of the older people as a source of income to fund lives in trusmi village which is located 4 km from the Cirebon palace.
Another meaning of the Mega Mendung batik motif is blue with a combination of red colors that describe masculinity, dynamism, openness, straightforwardness, and egalitarianism. It is also emblematic as a rain- bearer that is anticipated to bring fertility.
Mega Mendung Batik Motif Picture
This is the picture of the Mega Mendung motif that we know today that we can make to become a model of modern motif clothes if we combine it with other types of batik ot with plain fabrics of contrasting colors.
Bibliography of Mega Mendung Batik
- Can we protect ‘mega cloudy’?,2015. JAKARTA POST. Online: http://goo.gl/DhD5eZ.
- Batik Megamendung, 2014. WikiPedia. Online: https://goo.gl/DMeHK8