Pantun Sunda is a type of Sundanese oral narrative performance interspersed with songs and music played on a kacapi, a kind of zither. A pantun is intended to be recited during an evening-length performance during which a single performer relates the story of a hero's initiation: The protagonist leaves his kingdom to seek experiences, beautiful princesses to become his wife, power, other kingdoms to the subject, the realization of a dream (Rosidi 1984a:143); after having succeeded in reaching his goal he finally returns to his kingdom. Alongside descriptions of historical events, the stories often contain mythical elements. Pantun were originally not written down, the bards often being illiterate and in many cases blind. Originally the performances had a sacred character, as was clear from the offerings made at the beginning of the recitation and also from the content of the introductory part of the story, called rajah, which was an invocatory song, imploring the help of divine figures to ward off bad influences. The linguistic form of the pantun was not strictly fixed, however, the dominant form employed in most pantun is the octosyllabic verse. For a detailed description of the nature and form of a Sundanese pantun you are referred to Eringa (1949), to Hermansoemantri (1977–79).[1]: 10
Currently, there are few Pantun Sunda shows performed, due to a decline in popularity of the form following the widespread introduction of radio and television in households throughout West Java.[2][3]