This dance is one of the traditional dances of Fakfak Regency. To be more precise, it comes from Kokas District. Aniri is one of the most sacred dances that exist in the land of Papua. Imayu, the one who created Aniri, says that the dance is sacred and magical. Therefore, not just anyone can dance to it.
So, here is the story, the movement, the formation, and also the purpose of the dance!
The Story behind the Aniri Dance
Just like almost all traditional dances in Indonesia, especially Papua, there is a story behind the Aniri dance. This dance tells a story of a demon who disturbs a child when they are being left alone at home. The story begins when the parents of the child go to the village.
However, they left their child alone at home because they did not take him or her away with them. It makes the demon come to their house and make the child become one of them. This is where the procession of releasing the child from the demon takes place.
The exorcists then tried to free the child from the interference of the demons. When the parents come home, they immediately look for their child. Fortunately, this story has a happy ending. Because in the end, they met their child who has been freed from the demon. Then, they follow the exorcists.
The Movement and Formation of Aniri Dance
Basically, Aniri is one of the group dances. So, usually, the formation of Aniri dance consists of several dancers. The dancers who dance Aniri also vary, from men to women. They also come from various age groups, from children to adults.
The best time to dance Aniri is from late afternoon until late evening. This is because of the magical and also mystical value that is contained in this dance. In total, there are four parts of this dance that tell the whole story about the disturbance of the demon to the children.
The first part is when both of the parents go to the village. Then, in the second part, it revolves around the child who lives alone at home. After that, the demon disturbs the child in the third part. The fourth part is when the parents are looking for their child.
There are three movements of Aniri Dance that are important. The first one is wae ndi, a movement to protect the child from the demon. Then, there is Aniri ndi, a movement to feed demons to release their child. The last one is and wapa, the process of liberating the child from demonic power.
The dancers are using traditional clothes called tauri or rogoi. It is made from sago leaves. Then, they decorate the clothes with feathers of cassowary, bird of paradise, and also white cockatoos. As for the make up, usually use chalk and red soil.
Aniri uses the accompaniment of tifa, a traditional musical instrument of Papua. Then, the accompaniment song that is sung is awito tuo.
The Purpose behind Aniri Dance
In fact, the word Aniri means “the release of a child”. The word release here means liberation from demons. This is because the parents of the child left him or her alone at home. So, the purpose of Aniri Dance is to tell people not to leave children alone, because it is vulnerable to demonic interference.
Just like other traditional dances of Papua, Aniri Dance is usually displayed during some traditional ceremonies. Moreover, because of its sacred, mystical, and magical nature.
