Si Kabayan As Folklore

West Java in Indonesia is rich in popular traditions, including folklore. Although the court tradition lived in West Java, due to age of two great kingdoms, they are Galuh in the Ciamis area and Pajajaran in the Bogor area, very few cultural artefacts discovered from this palace. Hinduistik kingdoms in West Java disappeared along with his supporters, including the palace. Islamic kingdoms that later appeared in West Java did not continue the tradition of previous palaces. Islamic kingdoms it is in Banten and Cirebon.

Folklore in West Java is very rich, the contents of myths, demon stories, legends, the lives of daily people, and fables. Attempt to collect the types of folklore are still a bit to do, let research on these stories. Myths and local legends certainly are Sundanese. However, animal stories often come from outside. While the life stories of daily people to be mostly local, but also often adapted from the outside, like in the stories of Si Kabayan.

Si Kabayan could be a symbol of Sunda as well as well as the identity of Sundanese culture. Si Kabayan is stupid-smart character. Sometimes so stupid and at another time, so smart.

Later, when we consider, Si Kabayan as dumb figures are always related to spiritual values, while a smart figure always in contact with other human beings. Si Kabayan is also folly spiritually. In the presence of spiritual values-divinity and Divine, Si Kabayan described so stupid that cannot distinguish between shadow and reality.

Si Kabayan stories ignorant is not so much. Kabayan folly in such stories is often unheard. For example Kabayan can not differentiate between corpses and human life, the shadow of the sky and the ground in the fields. Si Kabayan such stupidity, it turned out to be symbolic spiritual. We foolish spiritual. In this case, Si Kabayan not only identity of Sundanese, but the identity of the man himself.

Sundanese of Si Kabayan is in the background locality. In Sundanese society that way daily life, such as going to the fields, to rice field, into the woods, a trap animals, festivity, pilgrimage, prayer, certain trees, bathing in the river, and others. But in the mind and spiritual attitude completely to all men, just sometimes tucked cosmology old Sunda. As folklore, Si Kabayan is depicting humans in the land of Sunda. Themes and messages remain universal.

To write a new story Si Kabayan required basic knowledge of philosophy, not just writing stories. Si Kabayan stories that have a basic view of mysticism and mystical behavior was indeed paradoxical.

Below is a story of Si Kabayan:

Si Kabayan Daydreaming

Abah, father-in-law of Si Kabayan, very annoyed, because Si Kabayan daydreaming. Working daydreaming, eating daydreaming, bathing daydreaming, especially if it is being defecated more and dreaming.

One day Si Kabayan find duck eggs, lying on the straw in the fields of his father-in-law, Si Kabayan really happy, immediately the duck egg was brought home to show to his wife, Nyi Iteung.
"Thank God, give it to me, I'll cook it." She said to Si Kabayan.
"Never," replied Si Kabayan, " These eggs will hatch I'll put it together with the eggs being incubated by Abah’s Chicken ".
The eggs then he puts in front of him.

 "Whatever Akang says. And I ask for help, I was cooking in the kitchen, please take care of it, I want to buy seasoning", his wife said as she left to go out of the house.
Si Kabayan then sat down, wrapped in sarongs and saw the egg. Cooking in the kitchen left alone, he ignores it.

Si Kabayan daydreaming about eggs, below:

"These eggs would have hatched, hatch into a duck, female ducks of course. This duck will surely spawn again. If the egg there are 10, all of them will hatch into a duck. So all there will be 11 ducks. And all the ducks Spawn again, if each Spawning 10 eggs, then all the eggs will be 110 eggs, increasingly many ducks are hatched, the eggs also increase. I will be Stockman of eggs, I will have much money from the sale of eggs ".

"I will buy sheep from the traded eggs. The sheep will give birth to lambs, so I'll have a lot of sheep. I will sell the sheep to market. I will have money from the sale of sheep, then will I buy female buffalo. The buffalo will give birth, I will have a lot of buffalo. Buffalo. Yahoo. I would sleigh buffalo in the fields.... "

As he was daydreaming, eggs that lie ahead of Si Kabayan, his wife solved it by using a broom, it turns out that the duck eggs is eggs failing that cannot be eaten or hatched.
"Kabayan, you daydream outrageous, look in the kitchen cooking becomes scorched overcook, Akang leave it alone".
 Si Kabayan yell to his wife.

"Why are you ruined my buffalo? I'll hit you.. "said Si Kabayan, grabbing a broom from Nyi Iteung, his wife.
His wife was terrified, and ran out of his parents' home. Si Kabayan running after her picking up a broom and shouting.
His parents -in-law out of the house, and then asked Si Kabayan.

 "What happen Kabayan? are you crazy .."
"Because of my buffalo ruin by Nyi Iteung .."
"You have a buffalo? From where?"
"I have from selling the eggs ..." replied Si Kabayan

 "I've heard it Abah, it was just a fantasy, and the eggs are failed eggs.." answer Nyi Iteung.
"Oh, so .." Answer Abah.
"My field is damaged, ruined by buffalo, your buffalo, you have to make restitution. If not, I will report it to the police. "
"Please Bah .." replied Si Kabayan. "I do not have buffalo, although only fur. It was all just a fantasy. Let return home Nyi Iteung ". Si Kabayan then return with his wife.
His parents -in-law shake their head.

The next day, Si Kabayan ordered to harvest coconuts by Abah. Of the ten coconuts which he quotes, Si Kabayan will be given a coconut. Si Kabayan is unbelievably excited, he then climbs coconut trees, to harvest coconuts.
When he up in the coconut branches, he then sat back. Then he started daydreaming again:

"The Coconut, what I get from picking coconuts, will sell to the market, the result will be I bought chicken eggs. Then chicken eggs will hatch into chicks. My chicken will lay eggs and more. Chicken eggs also will be many. I will sell chicken eggs to market. I will be a Stockman of eggs chicken. From sales of chicken eggs, I will buy a sheep. The sheep will give birth and more. I will be the Stockman of sheep. The Results of selling sheep, I will buy a buffalo. Eh, not a buffalo, I would not buy a buffalo, as it will damage Abah’s fields. Ah, I'll buy the horse. Horse racing. Australia's high horse, I will ride it. I would be a jockey. Clop. Clop. "

Dreamily Si Kabayan not realize he also demonstrated riding on a coconut tree branch.
"Riding the horse. Yyiihhaaa. Yyiihhaaa". Si Kabayan more excited and more and more moving coconut branches. Until the branches swaying and broken. Si Kabayan falling along with the coconut tree branch. He fell into a fish pond. He was very lucky, palm trees that grow alongside a fish pond. Si Kabayan injured due to falls.
From then on, he stopped daydreaming.