Krenah: The Middle Ground in the Face of the Impasse of Calculating Dates and Days at Weddings

Abstract

Marriage is an important moment in human life. In various tribes and nations, marriage is a sacred moment carried out through a series of rituals or wedding processions according to the culture in the environment. In Javanese culture, especially in Selakambang Village, Purbalingga Regency, marriage is an important day that must begin with a calculation to determine the day and date of marriage by village elders in order to find the meaning of the day with good connotations. This tradition has been carried out for generations by the people of Selakambang Village, Purbalingga Regency in determining the celebration day. Interestingly, unlike in other parts of Java, this counting tradition has a middle ground when it comes to deadlocks in determining good dates and days. This research will describe krenah (ritual saving the day and date of marriage), the purpose, ritual process, and conditions for carrying out krenah (krenah). This research uses descriptive qualitative methods by conducting a phenomenological approach. This research data was obtained from observations and interviews conducted on communities, elders, traditional village heads, and community leaders in Selakambang Village, Purbalingga Regency. The results in this study explain narratively the description of the Krenah, the reasons and purposes, the ritual process, and the conditions for doing the krenah so that it is revealed why the krenah is called a middle way when the counting does not find the meaning of a good day and date and continues to be carried out until now (this research was conducted).