The dance can be interpreted in a number of ways, including as an abstract sequence of positions, and a reenactment of the love between the goddess and a royal ancestor. Another common interpretation is that they symbolize military formations, which may explain why the dancers are given names of . Furthermore, the dancers were brought onto battlefields with the Yogyakartan ruler. Some of the choreographic positions are vaguely similar to those that were believed to have been used in the Kurukshetra war, the war in the Mahabharata, and some of the texts tell of military victories.