The Meaning Of The Sekar Arum Sari Motive In The Indonesian Hajj Batik Uniform 2024

Indonesian Hajj pilgrims' batik uniforms in 2024 (photo: dock. Ministry of Religion)

YOGYAKARTA This article will discuss the meaning of the motif sekar arum sari on the Indonesian Hajj Batik 2024 uniform.

It is known that the Indonesian Ministry of Religion (Kemenag) has introduced a new uniform for pilgrims who will go to the Holy Land this year. The uniform has a typical Indonesian batik accent.

According to the official website of the Indonesian Ministry of Religion, this uniform is a batik chosen through the Indonesian Hajj Jamaah Batik Design Competition which has been held since August 2023. The winner of this competition is Sony Adi Nugroho.

Minister of Religion (Menag) Yaqut Cholil Qoumas said that Sekar Arum Sari's batik motif could represent and become Indonesia's identity.

"We know that the pilgrims are not just spiritual, they are also ambassadors, it is appropriate that the clothes to be used should be clothes that represent Indonesia," said Yaqut, quoted by VOI, Monday, April 29.

Sekar Arum Sari is a contemporaneous batik motif with a purple base that uses white, kawung, truntun, songket, weaving, and a white image of a Garuda bird.

These motifs come from the philosophy of the Indonesian national puspa which is depicted with the flowers of Melati. Melati putih was chosen because it symbolizes sacredness, splendor, simplicity, sincerity, beauty, and humility.

Director General of Hajj and Umrah Organizers Hilman Latief said batik with the motive of Sekar Arum Sari would replace the previous batik uniform that had been used since 2011.

Previously, batik had been used for more than 10 years, and it turned out that it did not fully represent Indonesia's identity. Many have not recognized Indonesian batik uniforms, said Hilman, according to the Ministry of Religion's official website.

He added that batik uniforms are produced using the cap method and involve many MSMEs that meet the requirements according to the standards set by the Ministry of Religion.

Perjamaah membutuhkan 3 meter kain untuk satu batik, jadi sekitar 600 km banyaknya jika dibentangkan. Artinya (produksi batik) melibatkan banyak UMKM untuk membuatnya. Ini juga bentuk kepedulian kita terhadap UMKM, papar Hilman.

For information, the uniform motifs for Indonesian pilgrims were previously taken from large island ornaments in Indonesia, such as the Raflesia flower from Sumatra Island, the shield from Kalimantan Island, the Slope or the Machete from Java Island, and the rambat plant from eastern Indonesia. This batik uniform was first worn during the Hajj season 1432 Hijriah/2011.

The old Indonesian Hajj batik uniform has a green base color as a symbol of the Khatulistiwa Jamrud which has united the islands in Indonesia into one unit.

The green huba color is the main color of Islam used throughout the world.

The addition of a combination of purple color is a color symbol for each ornament of the big islands in Indonesia.

This is information about the meaning of Sekar Arum Sari's motive for Indonesian Hajj batik uniforms. Get news updates of other options only on VOI.ID.