the myth

1. The myth of goa maria
Gua Maria Tritisbecomesone of the natural caves ina line of karst hillsinGunungkidul whichturnsout
to be a sacredplace for Catholicpeople forpraying.The name tritisistakenfromJavaneselanguage,
tumaritiswhichmeanswaterdrop.Inthiscave,there are alwayswaterdropsfromthe stalactitesfrom
the above.It usedtobe a veryquietandspookyarea,so onlyfew people dare tocome.Inthe past,this
cave was usedas a place for asceticismpractice of some princesfromMataram Kingdom.Itstartedto
be knownby the Catholicpeople in1974 whenitwas usedforChristmasEucharist.Nolongerafterthat,
itsname,Gua Tritis,was alsogivenname Maria.In otherwords,Gua Maria Tritisbecomesafavorite
place for the pilgrimstoprayor do meditation,especiallytoworshipmotherMarry.
To get to the cave,we needtowalkacross hardwoodplantationthroughcurve pathbetweenthe barren
rocky hills.Youmayhave tworoutesto reach the cave,theyare the longroute (1.5 kilometers) andthe
short one (500 meters).Forthose whowantto doJalanSalib(a Catholicrite ina formof shorttrip to
commemorate JesusChrist'scrucifixion),theyusuallychoose the longroute with14stopsof Jesus
Christ'smiseryjourney before beingcrucified.Inthe 12th stop,there are 3 crossesas a signthat Jesus
was crucifiedwith2criminals.
I was almostinthe duskwhenYogYES arrivedat the parkinglot.There wassuch a quietplace andonly
the soundof insectandthe windblow accompaniedus.We wentthroughthe longstonypath infrontof
us until we couldsee the cave.A huge statue of motherMarry in prayingpositionwaslocatedonone of
the corner of the cave.Inthe middle,therewasastone altar withflowerdecorationonit,andthere
were alsonochairs for the visitors,onlycarpetonthe floor.We couldreallyfeel the senseof nature and
simplicitythere.
DuringMay andOctober,Gua Maria Tritiswill be socrowdedof visitorswhowantto prayto mother
Marry since those monthsare special monthsforher.Furthermore,forthose whowanttoconduct
Novena,aform of worshipconsistingof special prayersorservicesonnine successive daysfor
respectingmotherMarry,itwill be heldonthe firstweekineverymonth.The dayhad beendarkwhenI
bentmy kneesinfrontof the statue of motherMarry. There wasonlythe candle lightthatsometimes
quiveredbecauseof the windblow.Itseemedgivingalittle hope forusinthe middle of darkness.The
soundof water dropfrom the stalactiteswaslike abeautiful musicinstrumentthataccompaniedus
duringour mediation,andwe couldfeelthatthere waspeace inthe deepestof ourheart.