Characteristics of Jasmine Sambac Tree (Jasminum sambac) in the Wild

The importance of Sambac jasmine in Indonesian culture has been known much older. The tree has long been recognized as a sacred flower in Indonesian tradition, symbolizing purity, modest elegance, and sincerity. Sambac jasmine also symbolizes beauty in simplicity and humility, although the shape of this flower is small and simple, the fragrance is very fragrant.

Sambac jasmine is the most important flower in wedding ceremonies for various ethnic groups in Indonesia, especially on the island of Java. Jasmine flower buds that have not fully bloomed are usually picked, collected, and assembled into jasmine roncean. On the wedding day, the bride and groom are decorated with roncean jasmine which forms a net to wrap the bun, and some form a jasmine chain that hangs from the bride’s head.

Sambac jasmine is also often associated with the spirits of the dead and the dead. In Indonesian struggle songs and poems, the fall of the jasmine flower is often used as a symbol of the death of heroes who sacrificed for the sake of the nation and state. This meaning is very similar to the fall of cherry blossoms in Japanese tradition which symbolizes the death of warriors. The patriotic songs “Melati di Tapal Batas” (1947) by Ismail Marzuki and “Melati Suci” (1974) by Guruh Sukarnoputra describe jasmine as a hero who died on the battlefield, whose fragrance is always present as a Kusuma (flowers are given to boys) that adorns Mother Earth. The song “Melati dari Jayagiri” (1971) by Iwan Abdurachman likens jasmine to the beauty of a holy girl and the love of the past that has been lost and is always missed.