Hari Raya: Weaving Rice Dumpling Cases - "Ketupat"

The "Ketupat" decorations are very popular at this time of year in Singapore as they have become associated with the end of the Muslim fasting month.  The weaving of rice dumpling cases is a traditional craft of this region and one that children as young as seven have mastered. I decided to give it a try with a lot of help from this video.

"Ketupat" refers to a rice dumpling that is packed and cooked in palm leaves and can be found in South East Asia and the Philippines.  As the rice cooks, it expands to fill the casing and becomes compressed creating the dumpling-like texture. Although the Ketupat's significance is not necessarily religious, it is often connected to the end of the Muslim fasting festival Ramadhan and the beginning of Hari Raya Aidilfitri or Eid ul-Fitr.  According to Javanese tradition, the criss-cross pattern of the woven palm leaves is believed to symbolise sins for which fasting and deliverance is required.  The white rice dumpling is meant to symbolise purity and forgiveness after the fast.

We are hanging our decorations in Wugs' and Dooey's room to remind us to pray for the children who are living in conflict in the Middle East.

What we used:
Balloon ribbons (15mm width and 1m in length for each colour)

Using "Wayang" (Javanese-style Shadow Puppets) to Depict Bible Stories

"Wayang" is the Javanese word for "shadow", but it is commonly used to refer to the shadow puppet shows that are famous across Indonesia. Although Wayang is commonly used to depict the Hindu epics such as the Ramayana and Mahabharata, I decided to use the beautiful form of "Wayang" and apply it to the Christian love story of Isaac and Rebekah. Wugs and Dooey love standing up in their cots and playing with their shadows so I thought it would be a fun way for them to interact with the story.

I created the templates of Isaac, Rebekah, the camel and the jug on card and then cut them out.  Although Abraham's servant plays a big role in the story, I decided to use the camel to fill his part - knowing that Wugs would enjoy holding the camel.  For the arms, I followed the template on this website.  The arms are in two sections and are held together with brass fasteners which enables them to move.  Before connecting the arms to the main body of the puppets, I gave Wugs the pottu ("bindis"). They were a little difficult for him to handle, as they are very small and delicate, but he did manage to add some to Rebekah's dress. I used black and gold pens to draw some basic features on the puppets.  Although the decoration cannot be seen on the shadow, the puppets are an art form in themselves and this was a nice way to get Wugs involved in the making of the puppets.  I added some decoration that would show up in the shadows such as the doily (on Isaac) and the cup cake border (on Rebekah).  Finally I fixed coffee stirrers (from Costa!) onto the hands of the puppets and a chopstick to the back of the puppets so I could hold the puppet whilst manipulating its arms.

I placed a lamp on a stand by the boys' beds and narrated the story with them both standing up in a cot and Wugs holding the camel puppet.

What we used:
A4 Card sheets
Pottu ("bindis")
4 Coffee stirrers
3 Chopsticks
8 Brass fasteners
Black marker
Gold marker
Doily paper
Acrylic gold paint
Cup cake decorative border
Masking tape
Glue

Note: If I carried out this activity again, I would have doubled up on the card that I used for the puppets' bodies and limbs as they seemed a bit fragile in action.  I would have also experimented with narrating the story by projecting a light behind a white sheet as the shadows may have been clearer than they were on the wall.