sembah

File:Javanese tembang and dance fusion performance, Sonobudoyo Museum, Yogyakarta, 2017-12-05 06.jpg susuhunan, a gesture to convey respect]]

In Indonesian and Malay, the term sembah means to pay the honour, obeisance, or homage, or to worship. According to Indonesian writer Hamka in his book Dari Perbendaharaan Lama, the word derives from a Javanese word susunan, with the receiver of the susunan or sembath being referred to as the susuhunan or sesembahan.HAMKA, Prof. Dr., Dari Perbendaharaan Lama, Page 244, Cet. II, Pustaka Panjimas, Jakarta, 1982

File:Borobudur - Divyavadana - 033 S, The King goes to Protect the Hermits (detail 3) (11701405255).jpg bas-relief]]

Sembah first appeared c. 4000 years ago on clay seals from the Indus Valley Civilisation.{{cite web | title = Economics of the Indus Valley Civilization | url = http://www.csuchico.edu/~cheinz/syllabi/asst001/fall97/2chd.htm | author = Chad Greenwood | url-status = dead | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20071226125638/http://www.csuchico.edu/~cheinz/syllabi/asst001/fall97/2chd.htm | archivedate = 2007-12-26 }} Images of sembah later appear in bas-reliefs of Javanese Candi, such as the 9th-century temples of Borobudur and Prambanan. From then, the sembah gesture was endemic in the region, especially in Java and Bali.

File:KITLV 3904 - Kassian Céphas - Serimpi of the Sultan of Jogjakarta a sembah prior to a dance called Semang I - Around 1885.tif dancers performing sembah in keraton Yogyakarta by Kassian Cephas. Sembah is prescribed etiquette in Javanese courts.]]

Sembah is a prescribed etiquette and much-preferred in keratons or the Javanese courts of Yogyakarta and Surakarta, where it is important to greet kings, princes, and nobles in this gesture. Sembah is expected among the Javanese aristocratic circle of ningrat and priyayi, where the height of raised clasped-hand corresponds to the social stature of the person in question. The higher sembah hands are raised, and the lower the body is bowed, the higher the social stature of the person revered. In Javanese court tradition, the pisowanan ngabektèn ("visit to offer homage") ceremony is annually held during Lebaran (Eid al-Fitr), when Javanese kings receive from their subjects the sembah sungkem from their subjects, a kind of sembah performed by bowing the body low, then clasping the hands at the lap or knee of the revered person.{{Cite web|last=Liputan6.com|date=2010-09-11|title="Pisowanan Ngabekten", Penghormatan bagi Raja Jawa|url=https://www.liputan6.com/news/read/295819/quotpisowanan-ngabektenquot-penghormatan-bagi-raja-jawa|access-date=2020-08-10|website=liputan6.com|language=id}}

Sembah also has become incorporated in standard protocol towards Malay royalty, and it is still continued in Malaysia{{Cite web|url=http://www.istananegara.gov.my/amalan-protokol-diraja/|title=Amalan Protokol Diraja|last=|first=|date=29 March 2019|website=Istana Negara|publisher=Government of Malaysia|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200628024452/http://www.istananegara.gov.my/amalan-protokol-diraja/|archive-date=28 June 2020|access-date=7 August 2020|url-status=dead}} and Brunei.

File:Pura Parahyangan Agung Jagatkarta 6.jpg

Sembah is also a common social practice in Bali, where the legacies of Hindu etiquette and customs, are still alive and well. In Balinese tradition, in the sembah for greeting the joined palms are placed lower than the chin, while in the high sembah, usually reserved only for religious worship, the clasped palms are risen to over the forehead.{{Cite web|last=Artiningrat|first=Ketut Sri|title=Mantra Kramaning sembah|url=http://www.mantrahindu.com/mantra/mantra-kramaning-sembah/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160423195158/http://www.mantrahindu.com/mantra/mantra-kramaning-sembah/|url-status=usurped|archive-date=April 23, 2016|access-date=2020-08-10|website=Mantra Hindu Bali|date=30 July 2015 |language=id-ID}}

In Sundanese tradition of West Java, sembah often replaces the modern handshake.{{Cite web|date=2020-03-13|title=Cegah Corona, Ridwan Kamil Ganti Salaman di Jabar dengan Salam Sunda|url=https://jabar.suara.com/read/2020/03/13/143933/cegah-corona-ridwan-kamil-ganti-salaman-di-jabar-dengan-salam-sunda|access-date=2020-08-07|website=suara.com|language=id}}

Within the Minangkabau culture of West Sumatra, sembah is also known as salam sembah.{{Cite web|date=2020-06-08|title=Kenormalan Baru, Gubernur Sumbar Wajibkan Warga Pakai Masker hingga Salam Sambah|url=https://langgam.id/kenormalan-baru-gubernur-sumbar-wajibkan-warga-pakai-masker-hingga-salam-sambah/|access-date=2020-08-07|website=Langgam.id|language=id-ID}} In Jambi, Sumatra, the gesture is called seloko, or seloko salam sembah.{{Cite web|last=Liputan6.com|date=2020-06-12|title=Menilik Relevansi 'Seloko Salam Sembah' dalam Era Normal Baru|url=https://www.liputan6.com/regional/read/4277081/menilik-relevansi-seloko-salam-sembah-dalam-era-normal-baru|access-date=2020-08-07|website=liputan6.com|language=id}}

In Javanese and Sundanese, usually no words are spoken during sembah. However, in the Balinese version, the words om swastiastu, meaning "oh God, I hope all goodness (safety, happiness and prosperity) comes from all directions,"{{cite web |date=8 January 2012 |title=Om Swastyastu |url=https://baliround.wordpress.com/2012/01/08/om-swastyastu/}} are often spoken with the sembah.{{cite web |title = How should I greet a Balinese? |url = http://www.baliadvertiser.biz/articles/kulturekid/2007/greet_balinese.html |url-status = dead |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20150923181743/http://www.baliadvertiser.biz/articles/kulturekid/2007/greet_balinese.html |archivedate = 2015-09-23 }} In ancient Indonesia, the word "swasti" is said during sembah, as shown by stone inscriptions, such as the Kedukan Bukit Inscription, found in Java and Sumatra.

File:Airin Rachmi Diany.jpg

Today, sembah is used in many ways, including in the hospitality industry in Indonesia. It is performed by Garuda Indonesia flight attendants to greet passengers prior to and after flights,{{cite web|title= The concept of Indonesian hospitality is applied into several icons to delight the five senses |publisher =Garuda Indonesia|url=https://www.garuda-indonesia.com/id/en/garuda-indonesia-experience/service-concept/index.page}} and also commonly used as welcome greetings by staff in Indonesian hotels, resorts and spas.

Sembah is often performed by prominent figures, politicians, state officials, president, VIPs, or important persons during public visits to greet crowds. This is usually done when approaching and personally greeting each individual is not possible. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this non-contact social greeting was promoted to replace the common handshake to prevent direct contact and uphold social distancing.

Sembah is often performed in ritualized Indonesian traditional dances, such as Lampung's tari persembahan and Palembang's tanggai dance, as well as its Malay variants. In Sundanese, Javanese, and Balinese dances, sembah is often incorporated into dance movements, such as bedhaya, serimpi, topeng, wayang orang, panyembrama and pendet.

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• [https://sollervalley.com/2015/04/hundred-sculptures-of-sembah/ Hundred Sculptures of Sembah] - the sculptures by Indonesian artist Purjito
• [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLMJdJMfXYI Sembah dance from Lampung]

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Category:Culture of Indonesia

Category:Culture of Malaysia

Category:Greetings

Category:Gestures

Category:Gestures of respect

Category:Indonesian words and phrases

Category:Malay words and phrases

Category:Bowing