Resolving the Paradoxism with the Logic of "Not" in Javanese Puppetry: A Re-reading of Wrekodoro and Dewaruci’s Mythology

Abstract

There are a large number of text collections in Indonesia, related to wayang theme, cf Zoetmulder (1971). And the text collections do not consist only of wayang purwa but also variations of this theme, including wayang wahyu etc. In the mean time, a Japanese scholar Shoshichi Nagatomo proposed the concept of "Asian Logic" which differs from Western logic. In Western thought, things are often seen as black or white, good or bad. However, Asian logic embraces certain degree of ambiguity. Here, "good" characters can exhibit flaws, and "bad" characters can possess redeeming qualities; especially among Javanese people preference is given more to harmony with others and with Nature (called “serasi” or “cocok”). This concept resonates with the Javanese philosophy of "ngono yo ngono neng ojo ngono" (note: the phrase can be translated: “you can do what you like, but you should not to” – as in paradoxism). This philosophy can be considered as embodiment of the logic of "not," acknowledging the contradictory multifaceted nature of reality. This review article is a follow up to our previous articles [1, 12, 13].