Tips about Jemparingan's technique

By Edgar Freire (Ecuador)

Jemparingan is a meditative practice. Physically, jemparingan is performed seated, in cross-legged position. The practitioner must perpendicularly face the target. When holding the bow, this must be leaned about 30 degrees, however it depends on the practitioner. When pulling the string, the hand must reach the right cheek, and usally count to three before releasing the arrow. If released too fast, patience must be studied, however if hold too long, the fingers or arm can get tired. It must be in the right time. 

The target is known as bandul, set around 25-35 m far from the shooter. It is around 30 cm long and 3 cm wide, and it is suspended by ropes at 1,60 m from the ground. The white section of the bandul is called awak or body, and the red section is called sirah or head. Some people say it looks like a human being with head and body. But do not get a bad impression, it is just symbolic. Reaching the target could mean killing the own ego. Actually, all the activity itself has a philosophical meaning: the bow, arrows and target is the representation of the internal battle, the ego struggle. The practitioner is impelled to shoot from his heart.

What do you need?

You need a bow. The bow is made from bamboo and wood. The bow or gendewa should be as tall as its user. The arrows are also made from bamboo, with a 3-feathered-tail and a bullet metal head. They should be slightly longer than the user’s extended arm. The bow is not intended to be used as a weapon. The target is set 30m away and it takes a clean and accurate technique to reach it.

The practice

Although jemparingan is a spiritual exercise, it is also competitive. For competition, 20 sets are set, shooting 4 arrow per set. The white part of the bandul earns 1 point, while the small red part earns 3. After 20 sets, each participant’s points are counted, and the winner receives a reward.


Do you like to know more details about this practice and where it takes place? Read my next post: "Sasasa Jemparingan or Jemparingan's courts".



       Image source: Jemparingan Langenastro



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