08/02/2020
ORIGINS OF SRIWEDARI PARK (THE KING'S GARDEN)
Sriwedari Park, as told in Serat Arjunasasra, is the name of an artificial garden owned by Prabu Arjunasasra which its beauty is no different from gardens in heaven because it was originally created by Sri Batara Wisnu.
Although many names in the past were borrowed for names today, such as the name of a person taken from the name of the puppet, no one has ever imitated the name "Sriwedari". Sriwedari Park in Surakarta is an exception. That could be due to the similarity factor because, in addition to the existence of Sriwedari Park, it is indeed all-round fun, its beauty is now undeniable.
Following is the history of the founding of Sriwedari Park in Surakarta:
Once upon a time, after returning from a trip to Ponorogo, Sinuhun Pakubuwana II arrived at Kartasura found that his palace in a state of severe damage due to attacks by the Chinese army. Sinuhun then ordered, immediately prepare an appropriate and adequate place to move the palace. The place was found, the Sala Village. The name "Sala" is actually the name of a local figure, namely the servant of the court of Ki Busala. It is located at the southeastern end of the palace fortress where Ki Busala's grave is still found which pilgrims often visit to visit.
The initial starting point of the construction of the palace is said to be based on the steps of the Sinuhun's elephant: wherever the elephant's steps stop, that's where the starting point is installed.
Free to walk from Kartasura while accompanied by the servants in the palace, the Sinuhun's elephant strolled slowly to the east. Arriving at Sala, the elephant still walked eastward until it stopped and then did not budge at one point. The elephant's unmoved point, according to old people's stories, is precisely located south of Loji Sriwedari which is now known as Balekambang (as shown in the picture). In the right and left radius is then determined as a palace. Banyan tree was planted already. The name of the village is Kadipala, which still exists today. However, as soon as following a prediction that states that if it is erected there the palace is threatened that it will not last, so the point is then moved further east. The friction point is none other than the place of the palace at this time.
The circumstances of the Kadipala Hamlet and the point of the elephant were unmoved subsequently not mentioned anymore. Left and right then developed rapidly into a very large settlement. Here, only the land that becomes Sriwedari Park will be told.
In the Sinuhun era, which is now enthroned, the Sriwedari Park land was only divided into three parts:
On the east side and turn south: the settlement of the palace. There, there is the great lodge which has now been converted into a museum. Classified as somewhat old-fashioned, the lodge was said to have been built by Mr. Susman. Shortly occupied by the Dutch citizens, the lodge lasts for a long time because it is considered very haunted. Once upon a time Kanjeng Pangeran Arya Mangkudiningrat had lived there for several years, but after that it was empty again.
On the west side of the Great Loji: Ki Padmasusastra's house. When he was still living there, Ki Padma and his house became a place for teaching and learning of Javanese literature. The place is called Lamongan, taken from the name of the forerunner of its inhabitants: Mas Ngabei Lamong.
More to the west again: Mas Ngabei Karyadongsa's house. It was a house that was hard to see because it was so covered by a thick bamboo.
As soon as the location was determined as the future of the King's Garden (Sriwedari), the people who lived there were ordered to move. While the one designated to realize, and at the same time give the name, the park is the late Kanjeng Raden Adipati Sasradiningat alias Kanjeng Ngendrapastha.
At the beginning it was established, when almost all of the plants in it were new, Sriwedari Park was indeed very hot. Over time, the panorama has become beautiful until now. Moreover, there is also equipped with a museum containing ancient and authentic Javanese goods, a library park containing books that are free to read, and various fauna.
Certainly, at this time Sriwedari has become a favorite entertainment place. Anyone who comes is guaranteed not to be disappointed. If you are hungry, there are already various kinds of food sellers. When the weekend arrives (since Saturday night) or when Sriwedari is used as an entertainment stage, the warming of the sea of people along with the presentations of the performances undoubtedly invites the admiration of anyone who just knows.
This picture is a portrait of an entertainment venue in Sriwedari. His form in the middle of a beautiful lake. The water is clear. The charming flowering flowers that make the lake look more beautiful. In the middle of the island towers the shade of shade due to shade by large trees. The road to get there is beautifully curved. In addition, the island is also equipped with a cave on a pond and statues that seem to float in the water. Everything implies that, yes, that's where people rejoice.
Whoever goes to Sriwedari on weekends will surely be entertained by their feelings. Imagine, there is a lot of good and fun entertainment. The sound of the band playing music combined with the softness of the fresh breeze can be intoxicating while making sleepy eyes. The combination of all the pleasures seemed to create ecstasy. However, since it is a place of entertainment, a feeling of ecstasy is replaced by a feeling of wanting to sleep.
So we could say, for anyone outside the region, if they travel to Surakarta but have not seen Sriwedari with their own eyes, that means the same as not knowing the "soul" of Surakarta.
ASAL-USUL TAMAN SRIWEDARI (TAMAN RAJA)
Taman Sriwedari, sebagaimana dikisahkan dalam Serat Arjunasasra, adalah nama taman buatan milik Prabu Arjunasasra yang keelokannya tiada beda dengan taman-taman di surga karena memang asli ciptaan Sri Batara Wisnu.
Kendati banyak nama pada masa lalu yang dipinjam-sandang untuk nama-nama pada masa kini, seperti nama orang yang diambil dari nama wayang, belum pernah ada yang meniru nama "Sriwedari". Taman Sriwedari di Surakarta adalah perkecualiannya. Hal itu bisa jadi karena faktor kemiripan karena, selain keberadaan Taman Sriwedari memang serba-menyenangkan, keelokannya sekarang pun tiada terbantahkan.
Berikut adalah sejarah berdirinya Taman Sriwedari di Surakarta:
Alkisah, sep**ang dari lawatan ke Ponorogo, Sinuhun Pakubuwana II sampai di Kartasura mendapati keratonnya dalam keadaan rusak berat akibat serangan tentara Cina. Sinuhun kemudian bertitah, segera siapkan tempat yang tepat dan memadai untuk pindah keraton. Dijumpailah tempatnya, yakni Dusun Sala. Nama "Sala" sebenarnya adalah nama seorang tokoh setempat, yaitu abdi dalem jajar Ki Busala. Letaknya di ujung tenggara benteng keraton pada mana di situ masih tersua petilasan makam Ki Busala yang kerap dikunjungi peziarah untuk bertirakat.
Penetapan titik-mula pembangunan keraton konon dilakukan dengan berpatokan pada langkah gajah Sinuhun: di mana pun langkah sang gajah berhenti, di situlah kandidat titik-mula keraton ditancapkan.
Dibebaskan berjalan dari Kartasura sambil diiringi para abdi dalem, gajah Sinuhun melenggang gontai ke arah timur. Setiba di Sala, sang gajah masih saja melenggang makin ke timur hingga berhenti dan lalu bergeming di satu titik. Titik bergeming sang gajah itu, menurut cerita orang-orang tua dahulu, tepatnya berada di selatan Loji Sriwedari yang kini dikenal sebagai Balekambang itu (sebagaimana tampak di gambar). Di radius kanan-kirinya kemudian ditetapkan sebagai bakal keraton. Pohon beringin pun ditanam sudah. Nama dusun itu adalah Kadipala, masih eksis hingga kini. Akan tetapi, segera setelah menyusul adanya ramalan yang menyatakan bahwa jika didirikan di situ maka keraton terancam tidak akan langgeng, maka titiknya lalu digeser lebih ke timur lagi. Titik hasil geseran itulah yang tidak lain adalah tempat keraton sekarang ini.
Ikhwal keadaan Dusun Kadipala dan titik gajah itu bergeming selanjutnya tidak disebut-sebut lagi. Kanan-kirinya lalu berkembang pesat menjadi permukiman yang sangat luas. Di sini, hanya lahan yang menjadi Taman Sriwedari saja lah yang akan diceritakan.
Pada era Sinuhun yang sekarang bertakhta, lahan Taman Sriwedari hanya menjadi tiga bagian:
Di sisi timur dan belok terus ke selatan: permukiman milik keraton. Di situ tersua loji agung yang sekarang sudah dialihfungsikan menjadi museum. Tergolong sudah agak kuno, loji itu konon dibangun oleh Tuan Susman. Tidak lama ditempati oleh warga Belanda itu, loji lalu kosong cukup lama karena dianggap sangat angker. Sekali waktu Kanjeng Pangeran Arya Mangkudiningrat pernah menempatinya hingga beberapa tahun, tapi setelah itu kosong lagi.
Di sisi barat loji agung: rumah milik Ki Padmasusastra. Ketika masih tinggal di sana, Ki Padma dan rumahnya menjadi tempat belajar-mengajar kesusasteraan Jawa. Tempatnya dijuluki Lamongan, diambil dari nama cikal-bakal penghuninya: Mas Ngabei Lamong.
Makin ke barat lagi: rumah Mas Ngabei Karyadongsa. Itu adalah sebuah rumah yang, karena sedemikian tertutupnya oleh kelebatan semak-semak bambu ori, sampai-sampai susah terlihat.
Segera setelah lokasinya ditetapkan sebagai bakal taman raja (Sriwedari), orang-orang yang bermukim di situ diperintahkan untuk pindah. Sedangkan yang ditunjuk untuk mewujudkan, sekaligus yang memberi nama, taman tersebut adalah mendiang Kanjeng Raden Adipati Sasradiningat alias Kanjeng Ngendrapastha.
Di awal-awal didirikan, yakni ketika hampir semua tanaman di dalamnya masih baru, Taman Sriwedari memang terasa panas sekali. Seiring waktu, panoramanya menjadi elok hingga saat ini mirip keelokannya taman Sriwedari. Lebih-lebih, di sana dilengkapi p**a dengan museum berisi barang-barang kuno dan Jawa tulen, taman pustaka berisi buku-buku yang bebas dibaca, serta aneka fauna.
Bisa dipastikan, saat ini Sriwedari telah menjadi tempat hiburan favorit. Siapa pun yang datang dijamin tidak akan kecewa. Kalau lapar, sudah ada penjual macam-macam makanan. Manakala akhir pekan tiba (sejak Sabtu malam) atau manakala Sriwedari dijadikan panggung hiburan, menyemutnya lautan manusia beserta sajian-sajian pertunjukan yang ada niscaya mengundang decak kagum siapa pun yang baru tahu.
Gambar yang dimuat ini adalah potret tempat hiburan di Sriwedari. Wujudnya p**au di tengah telaga indah. Airnya jernih. Bunga tunjung berbunga menawan yang terapung-apung membuat telaga menjadi makin tampak indah. Di tengah-tengah p**au menjulang huma yang teduh karena dirindangi pohon-pohon besar. Jalan menuju ke sana dibuat melengkung dengan cantiknya. Selain itu, p**au itu dilengkapi p**a dengan goa di atas kolam dan arca yang tampak mengapung di air. Semuanya mengisyaratkan bahwa, ya, di situlah tempatnya orang bersuka-ria.
Barangsiapa yang ke Sriwedari pada akhir pekan, sudah pasti terhiburlah perasaannya. Betapa tidak, ada banyak hiburan bagus-bagus dan menyenangkan. Suara band mengalunkan musik yang dipadu oleh lembutnya semilir angin segar bisa memabukkan sekaligus membuat mata terkantuk-kantuk. Paduan semua rasa nikmat itu seakan-akan menciptakan ekstase. Tetapi, berhubung itu tempat hiburan, rasa semacam ekstase tersebut berganti dengan rasa ingin tidur saja.
Jadi bisa dibilang, bagi siapa pun orang luar daerah, apabila bertandang ke Surakarta tapi belum melihat Sriwedari dengan mata kepala sendiri, itu sama saja artinya dengan belum mengenal "jiwa"-nya Surakarta.
Sumber: YASRI
