Upuh Ulen-Ulen

Upuh Ulen-Ulen, also known as kerawang gayo, is a traditional cloth of the Gayonese people in Aceh, Indonesia.

The cloth is traditionally placed on a young couple during a wedding ceremony, as well as on the shoulders of guests of honour.^[1] On April 6, 2018, the Aceh poet Lesik Kati Ara presented Joko Widodo, the president of Indonesia, with a cloth in the State Palace in Jakarta.^[2]

The cloth has many components. Traditionally, the background is meant to be the same as 'the contrast and color of the Earth'. According to a Gayonese proverb, God created man from the earth, who then lives on the earth and ultimately returns to the earth after death. The white circle in the center symbolizes a full moon.^[3]

Other motifs found in Upuh Ulen-Ulen are:

1. A fence (jang), since everything in the world has a certain limit, beyond which one should not go.
2. Sprouts of bamboo (tuwis), which are symbols of persistence, longevity, and happiness.
3. A string of clouds (enum beriring), which is an allegory of our path through life.^[4][5]