Sajojo dance has become a popular dance coming from the east side of Indonesia. Find out the history, meaning, and the magical things behind this traditional dance.
As you know, Indonesia is rich in culture and home to plenty of tribes – considering this country consists of thousands of islands. Learn everything you need to know about this traditional dance through this article.
What is Sajojo Dance?
Sajojo is originally a song about how happy a man could walk with the lady of his dreams. Later, this traditional dance is performed by a group – with energetic dance moves and happy music.
You can see how happy and bright the vibe of this dance is.
Even though the dance doesn’t reflect the lyrics of the song, Sajojo dance is highly enjoyable. The dance itself is considered as something that reflects closeness and affection between one to another.
Meaning Behind the Dance
As mentioned earlier, Sajojo dance comes from a song with the same title. The song itself tells a story about a young lady from a small village who has a lot of fans. Those men are happy to walk side by side with the girl.
Of course, the dance doesn’t show anything the lyrics say. According to history, the dance of Sajojo is a performance for ceremonies in West Papua.
Nowadays, you will find this dance almost on every occasion, especially to welcome honorary guests. It is no wonder that Sajojo and the dance become somewhat of an icon of West Papua.
A group of musicians with various instruments used to carry the entire music.
However, today people dance by playing the song through their gadgets. Still, it doesn’t affect the magical vibe transmitted by this traditional dance.
1. The Property
Similar to other dances you commonly see, Sajojo also requires a set of properties. Generally, the costume is similar to West Papua traditional clothes. Here are the costumes and other properties needed to perform this Papua origin traditional dance.
Head Scarf
Instead of a head scarf, this element is more like an accessory made of palm fiber, soft wod, and bird feather. The dancers will wrap it around their heads. Of course, the size depends on the dancer’s head.
2. Body Painting
All the male dancers will be topless, and their body will be painted with traditional patterns you commonly find in West papua.
Other than the body, their arms and feet will also get painted, which is commonly applied to female dancers as well.
3. Necklaces and Bracelets
The next accessories that the dancers of Sajojo should wear are necklaces and bracelets. Commonly, the necklaces are made of stones, woods, or shells. Some of them are made of animals’ teeth as well.
Meanwhile, the bracelets are made of dried sago leaves or palm fiber. Everything looks so precious yet natural in this dance.
4. Traditional Skirts
You can say that the skirt is the icon of Sajojo. Both male and female dancers wear traditional skirts made of dried sago leaves.
However, many of the dancers alter the natural materials into raffia or other modern materials. Still, the costume looks stunning.
Just like any other traditional dances in Indonesia, Sajojo has a philosophy that will amaze the audience. Generally speaking, this traditional dance displays harmony and affection.
Since this dance is performed by a group, it portrays how people in West Papua work together, shoulder to shoulder.And that’s a wrap – this is everything you need to know about Sajojo dance.
In these modern days, these traditional days may have some tweaks here and there. Still, all those tweaks won’t change the essentials of Sajojo in the first place.
