Traditional Indonesian Wisdom for Modern Birth
What Jarik, Selendang, Bengkung, and Traditional Movement Can Teach Us About Pregnancy and Birth
"Sometimes the future of maternity care is not found in something new, but in rediscovering something we almost forgot."
Around the world, conversations about pregnancy and birth often focus on technology, medical advances, and modern healthcare systems.
These developments have undoubtedly saved lives and improved maternal care.
Yet alongside these advances, something valuable has often been overlooked:
The wisdom that lives within communities.
The wisdom carried by mothers, grandmothers, midwives, artisans, dancers, and families across generations.
In Indonesia, this wisdom is woven into daily life.
It can be found in a piece of batik cloth.
In the way women carry babies.
In traditional movement.
In postpartum rituals.
In community support.
And in the belief that pregnancy and birth are not journeys meant to be experienced alone.
Pelvic Wisdom was born from a simple question:
What can modern maternity care learn from traditional Indonesian wisdom while remaining guided by evidence and respectful maternity care?
More Than Culture
When people hear the words traditional practice, they sometimes imagine something outdated.
Something symbolic.
Something beautiful, but no longer relevant.
Pelvic Wisdom takes a different perspective.
Culture influences how people:
Move
Sit
Rest
Carry children
Recover after birth
Support one another
These everyday habits shape the body in ways we rarely notice.
Rather than viewing culture and science as opposites, Pelvic Wisdom explores how they can inform one another.
Not every traditional practice is supported by research.
Not every modern practice is automatically superior.
The goal is not choosing one over the other.
The goal is understanding.
Jarik: More Than a Piece of Cloth
Perhaps no textile is more closely associated with Indonesian motherhood than the jarik.
A jarik is a traditional batik cloth used throughout many regions of Indonesia, particularly in Java.
For generations, women have used jarik for:
Clothing
Carrying babies
Supporting the body
Daily household activities
To an outsider, a jarik may appear to be simply fabric.
To many Indonesian families, it represents care.
A grandmother carrying her grandchild.
A mother comforting her baby.
A family tradition passed from one generation to the next.
Jarik as a Tool for Movement
Within Pelvic Wisdom, jarik is not only appreciated as cultural heritage.
It can also become a practical movement tool.
A jarik may be used to:
Support movement exploration
Encourage body awareness
Facilitate partner-assisted movement
Provide gentle feedback during positioning
Importantly, there is currently limited scientific research specifically evaluating jarik use during pregnancy.
For this reason, Pelvic Wisdom does not claim that jarik directly improves birth outcomes.
Instead, we recognize its value as a culturally meaningful tool that may support comfort, connection, and movement awareness.
Selendang: Support Through Simplicity
Another familiar element in Indonesian life is the selendang.
Traditionally used as a shawl or carrying cloth, the selendang appears in countless aspects of daily life throughout the archipelago.
Within Pelvic Wisdom, the selendang becomes a bridge between tradition and movement education.
It may be used to:
Assist movement
Provide support
Encourage partner participation
Improve body awareness
Its strength lies in its simplicity.
A simple cloth becomes a tool for movement, comfort, and connection.
The Forgotten Wisdom of Movement
Long before pregnancy exercise classes existed, Indonesian women moved throughout their daily lives.
Many women regularly:
Walked long distances
Sat on the floor
Squatted
Carried water
Worked in fields
Participated in community activities
These were not considered workouts.
They were simply life.
Today, many women spend most of their day:
Sitting in chairs
Driving
Using computers
Looking at phones
As lifestyles have changed, movement patterns have changed as well.
Modern research increasingly shows that regular physical activity during pregnancy supports maternal health, physical function, and psychological wellbeing (WHO, 2020).
Pelvic Wisdom encourages women to reconnect with movement not because it is traditional, but because the body continues to benefit from movement.
Learning from Traditional Dance
Indonesia is home to hundreds of dance traditions.
Each carries unique expressions of rhythm, posture, balance, and movement.
Pelvic Wisdom does not treat these dances as clinical interventions.
Nor does it claim that traditional dance directly improves birth outcomes.
The evidence for such claims remains limited.
Instead, Pelvic Wisdom explores movement qualities found within traditional dance.
Java: The Wisdom of Mendhak
One of the most recognizable inspirations comes from Mendhak, a foundational position in Javanese dance.
Mendhak involves:
Soft knees
Grounded posture
Balanced weight distribution
From a movement perspective, it encourages:
Lower limb strength
Hip mobility
Stability
Body awareness
The position creates a sense of connection with the ground.
A feeling of stability.
A feeling of presence.
Java: Ombak Banyu
Another inspiration comes from Ombak Banyu, meaning water waves.
This movement uses gentle side-to-side shifting.
Like waves moving through water.
Biomechanically, the movement encourages:
Weight transfer
Pelvic mobility
Thoracic movement
Coordination with breath
But perhaps its greatest lesson is simplicity.
Movement does not always need to be complicated.
Sometimes gentle movement is enough.
Bali: Flowing Transitions
Balinese dance offers a different quality.
Many movements emphasize:
Flow
Grace
Coordination
Controlled transitions
Rather than forcing positions, dancers move continuously from one expression to another.
This principle aligns beautifully with Pelvic Wisdom.
Pregnancy itself is a process of transition.
Birth is a process of transition.
The body is constantly adapting.
Movement can support that adaptation.
Bengkung, Bebat, and Setagen
Perhaps one of the most unique aspects of Indonesian postpartum traditions is the use of supportive wrapping techniques.
These practices have existed for generations across various regions of Indonesia and Southeast Asia.
Among the most well-known are:
Bengkung
Bebat
Setagen
Although the techniques vary, they share a common purpose:
Supporting women during recovery.
Bengkung: The Art of Being Held
Bengkung is a traditional postpartum wrapping practice that uses a long cloth wrapped around the abdomen and torso.
For many women, bengkung is more than physical support.
It represents:
Care
Rest
Recovery
Protection
Many mothers report feeling:
More supported
More comfortable
More aware of their posture
while wearing a bengkung wrap.
What Does Science Say?
This is where scientific honesty matters.
Current research on bengkung specifically remains limited.
At present, there is insufficient evidence to support claims that bengkung:
Repositions internal organs
Permanently narrows the waist
Accelerates uterine involution
Produces significant weight loss
These popular claims are often repeated online but are not strongly supported by research.
However, this does not mean bengkung lacks value.
Many women describe:
Increased comfort
Improved body awareness
A feeling of support
Greater confidence during recovery
These experiences are meaningful and deserve recognition.
Bebat and Setagen
Long before modern support belts existed, Indonesian women used fabric-based support systems.
Bebat
A cloth wrapped around the abdomen.
Setagen
A long woven cloth traditionally worn around the waist.
From a modern perspective, these can be understood as traditional forms of external support.
Somewhat similar to:
Pregnancy support belts
Belly bands
Postpartum binders
Yet their cultural significance extends far beyond function.
More Than Compression
The greatest lesson of bengkung, bebat, and setagen is not compression.
It is care.
These traditions remind us that postpartum recovery was once treated as a sacred transition.
Women were not expected to immediately return to normal productivity.
Instead, communities recognized the need for:
Rest
Nourishment
Support
Recovery
Modern maternity care increasingly recognizes these same needs.
The methods may evolve.
The human need for care remains unchanged.
The Philosophy of the Female Body
At the heart of Pelvic Wisdom lies a simple belief:
The female body is not a problem to be fixed.
It is a system designed to adapt.
Pregnancy is adaptation.
Birth is adaptation.
Motherhood is adaptation.
Traditional Indonesian practices often reflect this understanding.
They remind women:
You deserve support.
You deserve rest.
You deserve community.
You deserve care.
This philosophy aligns closely with modern principles of respectful maternity care and woman-centered care promoted by the World Health Organization and the International Confederation of Midwives.
Tradition Meets Modern Evidence
Pelvic Wisdom does not promote traditional practices as medical treatments.
Nor does it dismiss them simply because they are traditional.
Instead, Pelvic Wisdom seeks balance.
Traditional wisdom offers:
Cultural meaning
Community connection
Practical experience
Emotional support
Modern science offers:
Evidence
Safety evaluation
Critical thinking
Clinical guidance
Together, they create a richer understanding of maternal wellbeing.
Why This Matters to the World
Many countries have maternity exercise programs.
Many countries have prenatal education.
Many countries have movement-based approaches to pregnancy.
What makes Pelvic Wisdom unique is that it grows from Indonesian soil.
It draws from:
Jarik
Selendang
Bengkung
Bebat
Setagen
Traditional dance
Community support
Cultural identity
These elements are not borrowed from somewhere else.
They belong to Indonesia.
And by sharing them thoughtfully, respectfully, and honestly, Pelvic Wisdom contributes a uniquely Indonesian voice to the global conversation about pregnancy, movement, and birth.
Final Thoughts
The future of maternity care may not lie solely in innovation.
Sometimes it lies in remembering.
Remembering how women have supported one another.
Remembering how movement belongs in daily life.
Remembering how a simple piece of cloth can carry generations of wisdom.
Pelvic Wisdom is not about returning to the past.
It is about carrying the best of the past into the future.
With respect.
With curiosity.
And with gratitude for the women who came before us.
References
UNESCO. Indonesian Batik as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. 2009.
World Health Organization. WHO Recommendations on Maternal and Newborn Care for a Positive Postnatal Experience. 2022.
International Confederation of Midwives (ICM). Philosophy and Model of Midwifery Care. 2025.
World Health Organization. WHO Recommendations: Intrapartum Care for a Positive Childbirth Experience. 2018.
Geertz H. The Javanese Family: A Study of Kinship and Socialization. Classic anthropological reference on family and caregiving traditions in Java.
Studies on traditional dance and movement science remain limited in relation to pregnancy outcomes; therefore Pelvic Wisdom treats these movement traditions as cultural and biomechanical inspirations rather than evidence-proven clinical interventions.