[Kulino]

Dear Alan,
You have explained things so eloquently, no other words are needed.

Looking at your comment in respect of creation and men, another thought.
My teacher taught me exactly the rule you mentioned. He added that the combination of men made objects and creation would empower the object. For educational purposes, could you comment on that?

I agree, keris are an asset with a potential monetary value. The thing that bugs me the most is that some trading is done with the idea that with obtaining the keris you gain a higher (social, spiritual) standard. It becomes a kind of competition. And with that, the more you can spend, the higher the standard you can obtain.
That’s totally different from the regular man's economic necessity.
Although I think it is a shame to sell a prized family possession, I also realise that is a very elite point of view.
In the western world we have discarded all things spiritual and now some of us are in deer need for them. So we turn to cultures which still uphold these values. When we see these cultures picking up the western path by choosing a Honda instead of a keris, we are shocked. We forget that to (re) appreciate ones roots, apparently one has to go through a series of cultural stages. With the risk of losing things in transit.

Maybe it is better to say that I can afford to stay away from trading. Sometimes I cannot avoid a money exchange. I paid for the keris sajen. But also sometimes I step away from a tempting keris. Martin Kerner offered me the keris Vogelsäng shortly before he passed away. The proto keris was excavated inside the krater of mount Bromo. From me he would accept any offer because, as he told me, he wanted a good home for the keris. I thanked him for his kind offer, but refused. Why, it is such an unique keris, only seen depicted in Candi Sukuh? The keris was an offering to the spirits of mount Bromo. It should not have been taken away from the mountain in the first place. That's why I drew that line. No idea where it is now.