The things we cannot see

[A. G. Maisey]

Thank you for those links David.

I am reluctant to comment much on the content of either link, but I think I can perhaps make a couple of comments that should not offend anybody.

Both gentlemen involved with these links touched on one idea that is central to the idea of "isi", that idea is that whatever might be the effect of the isi of a keris, that effect is ultimately a very personal matter.

This "personalisation" of effect is one of the things that is causing me to pause before I go into print.

Both gentlemen have clearly had personal contact with Javanese society and have absorbed some of the beliefs that are attached to the keris within that society, but there is, in my opinion, little depth in what is presented. I do not know (obviously) if this is intentional or not.

Mr. Mrazek has, I think, made it very clear that one is not able to understand the keris in isolation from a very good understanding of the Javanese style of communication, this style is always indirect, a bit like aiming at something that can be seen, but hitting something that cannot be seen.

One implies by words and actions, one does not ever act in a straightforward fashion, for polite people, gratuitous truths are very unsavory, it is best to deliver a message through a back door, rather than by walking up to the front door and ringing the bell.

I rather feel that Mr. Mrazek has been very much influenced by the Jogja (Ngyogyakarta) way of understanding.

But all this stuff is good. There is really not only one belief system that is attached to the keris, there are in fact a multitude of belief systems. Being "beliefs", that makes it almost impossible to look at the matter objectively and declare one belief right and all others wrong.