“Hell has no fury like a woman scorned”. In the tale of Ulek Mayang, it was the princess spirit!
According to legend, during an outing at sea, a Princess Spirit was infatuated with a fisherman and cast him a spell that made him unconscious. A medium was called to revive him and this led to a war of wills between the Princess Spirit and the medium. Having persuaded by the sisters of the Princess, she had to let go albeit with one condition, that the fishermen have to give occasional offerings to appease her.
The Ulek Mayang dance reenacts the legend and includes scenes of the Ulek Mayang ritual. In the past, it was also known to actually “awake the spirits” whenever the dance was performed and this would affect at least one member (usually a woman) of the audience into being “possessed”. Alas, none of this happens nowadays!
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