Rerajahan soul of the keris

[Pusaka]

I did a search on here for "Rerajahan" and it came up with zero results. Well it is arguably the most important aspect of the Keris so I decided to start this thread with some basic knowledge on the subject as I understand it.

So what is Rerajahan? During the construction of a keris there are two aspects.

The physical aspect, knowledge of blacksmithing, pamor making, metallurgy, carving, dapur, geometry, art, anatomy, chemical treatment etc etc

using the above skills you can produce a fine keris physically, a work of art but according to traditional belief beautiful as it maybe what you have produced is a keris mati, a dead keris. Most newly made keris today are like this actually.

A Living keris (keris hidup) on the other hand is an enchanted weapon. It is empowered by offerings to the Gods/spirits, mantra and Rerajahan.

Really the outer palmor and dapur are only visible indications which tells us the character of the Rerajahan and mantras used to empower the keris because depending on the specific requirements of the user these can be altered.

Really the soul of the keris is the Rerajahan which is given shakti (power) by reciting mantras over the keris during its construction.

A Rerajahan is a mystical diagram which pictorially represents the intention the Pande/Empu has for the keris. In western magic we would call it a sigil, a mystical digram that represents the spiritual purpose of the keris, its program if you like. You can think of the physical keris as being the hardware and the mantra/Rerajahan as the software.

During the construction of the keris the Pande/Empu takes a special stylus in hand and traces the Rerajahan diagram into the metal with intense mental concentration. This will form the core of the keris blade. It is the non seen aspect of the keris the only way after construction to know the character of the Rerajahan used is clues in the pamor, dapur. The pamor, dapur always matches the Rerajahan. If someone is skilled in ilmu batin (Science of the heart) they can "read" the character of the keris using their rasa. Other then that dreams received whilst the keris is placed under your pillow can give clues.

Once the keris is awakened (basupati) it is a living thing having a purpose, a name and should be respected (but not worshipped). It must be sustained with the fragrant smoke and oil of botanical origin. You must no use industrial chemical/oils on the blade as it acts as a poison to the isi.

What is the isi but the mantra empowered Rerajahan which resides in the keris. A keris in reality is nothing but a Jimat in the form of a dagger.

[David]

As you are probably aware Puasaka, Rerajahan is a Hindu concept and practice which is not uniquely attached to the creation of keris. It is applied as a practice in numerous ritual situation. I believe that many of us have a limited understanding of the exact process applied to instilling isi into a "living" keris as these are secret devices of the empus of the past, but i also believe many of us are vaguely aware that such a practice may indeed be part of the creation of a keris even if we might not be aware of the name of this specific Hindu concept.

http://www.discoveryjournals.org/dis...46-150/A6.pdf?

But as far as i know Rerajahan is a Hindu practice that involves Hindu mantras, scripts and symbols. The keris is an iconic cultural artifact that spans centuries and numerous and varied cultural influences. Is it your belief that once Islam took firm root in Jawa and other parts of Indonesia that empus continued to use Hindu mantras and symbolism when bringing a keris to "life"? If not, then is the process still referred to a "Rerajahan" and was it performed my Islamic empus in the same manner and fashion as it was by Hindu empus? Or perhaps you believe that the process of creating the "living" keris died out with the advent of Islam?
You ask "What is the isi but the mantra empowered Rerajahan which resides in the keris" and then go one to state "A keris in reality is nothing but a Jimat in the form of a dagger."
I would suggest that in your first question you might be confusing the map for the territory. The things that represent the isi (mantra and sigils) are not likely to be the isi itself.
As for your last statement, i believe it might be a mistake to claim that the keris is "nothing but" any one thing. In the multi-leveled meanings that are pervasive throughout all of Indonesia the keris is a complex and multi-layered object that hold many meanings and cultural functions all at the same time.

[Pusaka]

David, when I say that a keris is a jimat in the form of a dagger I am speaking only of keris hidup. Essentially the purpose and process to empower a jimat and a keris are identical (originally). A keris was often attached to the central post of the house to "protect" it in the same way a jimat is hung around the neck to protect the owner.

Has this "technology" survived in Islamic parts? that is an interesting question. As the nature of this subject is secret perhaps we can never know but my suspicion is that it has not (I am not here talking about blacksmithing, obviously the making of keris has survived in Islamic parts)

You can see that vedic jimat have been replaced with Islamic talismans in Muslim parts. I suspect the process of creating a keris has been similarly altered. Vedic mantra will be replaced by Muslim prayers and Rerajahan will most likely be replaced with verse from the Quran. As the science and efficiency of mantra is based on sound substituting for any prayer that takes your fancy in my opinion would not be equivalent.

Having said that as long as a person can go through enough mental gymnastics to convince themselves that what they are doing is rooted and originates in Islam then perhaps it can be retained. We see the same in Silat where for example the prophet Muhammad "was a great silat player" yet we can be quite sure he never knew a single silat jurus.

I have heard that Cimande balur oil is empowered by reciting vedic mantras over it despite the region being Islamic perhaps it was discovered that replacement with Islamic prayers did not work? As long as they can convince themselves that these vedic mantras came from Muhammad its all good

[David]

Originally Posted by Pusaka

David, when I say that a keris is a jimat in the form of a dagger I am speaking only of keris hidup. Essentially the purpose and process to empower a jimat and a keris are identical (originally). A keris was often attached to the central post of the house to "protect" it in the same way a jimat is hung around the neck to protect the owner.

Yes Pusaka, i realize that you were only talking about "living" keris. However, keris hidup covers much more than the talismanic keris that were attached to central posts as a protective jimat. So i am afraid that i still question your statement the "A keris in reality is nothing but a Jimat in the form of a dagger." It is obvious that many keris hidup were far more than simply a jimat.

[A. G. Maisey]

Empu Pauzan Pusposukadgo (Alm.) produced some of the finest keris of the modern era.

After the passing of Empu Suparman Supowijoyo (Alm.), Empu Pauzan was recognised as the ranking Empu of the Karaton Surakarta, yet Empu Pauzan himself would never accept the title of "Empu". He preferred to be recognised as "Pande Seni Keris" : "A Skilled Craftsman in the art of the Keris".

Pauzan and I met in 1974, long before he took the decision to attempt to make keris. We became close friends and remained that until the time of his passing. I once asked Pauzan why he refused to be known as "Empu", when everybody referred to him as "Empu". His answer was interesting, and I believe it demonstrates quite clearly the division between Javanese indigenous belief, Javanese mystical belief created by Sufic mysticism, the Hindu-Buddhist beliefs of pre-Islamic Jawa, and the beliefs of those Javanese people who observe the tenets of conventional Islam.

Pauzan's response to my question was this:-

"An Empu is somebody who is believed to be able call life into a keris and imbue it with certain special powers. Now, I ask you Mas Alan, can any man create life? You and I know that only God can create life. Can a man presume to take the place of God? This is sinful belief, and even more sinful if a man were to attempt to bring life into something that man has made. I will never be a part of this sort of belief. I create art. Only art."

Pauzan's Islamic beliefs were very much of a conventional nature. He did not follow the mysticism of Kejawen, he identified as Santri, he unfailingly observed all the requirements expected of a devout Muslim.

For the devout Javanese Muslim, a keris must be no more than an item of dress that might also be an art work, and a way in which he can store wealth.

However, for a Javanese person who follows the indigenous belief systems of Ancestor Worship and Animism the nature of the keris is not the same as it must be for the devout Muslim, or for those Javanese people who identify as followers of Kejawen beliefs, the nature of the keris is again at variance with the nature of the keris for a man like Pande Seni Keris Pauzan Pusposukadgo.

In Hindu-Buddhist Jawa the nature of the keris was again very different to the nature of the keris that has developed since the domination of Jawa by Islam.

During the Central Jawa Period, prior to the migration of power to East Jawa, the keris was primarily a weapon, probably one that was also used in blood sacrifice.

In East Jawa the original form of the keris underwent some change, its nature also underwent change, but it did retain the essentially Hindu edged weapon characteristic of being an empty vessel that had been prepared for the visit of a Deity.

In East Jawa, probably during the Majapahit era, the development of Hindu-Buddhist beliefs and the incorporation of indigenous beliefs into the belief system that became Agama Jawa Hindu saw the identification of ancestors with Deities and since Mount Meru is the place where ancestors wait to become one with their own God, or to be reborn, the idea that an ancestor could also visit an earthly meru took root. Thus the keris had now assumed the nature of a meru:- a place to be held in readiness for the visit of a deity, and in the case of Javanese belief, for the visit of an ancestor.

Since a keris was not permanently occupied, that meant that it was empty, and being empty it was necessary to ensure that no evil or unwanted forces came into that keris.

During the period to the collapse of Majapahit, the keris would have been primarily an item that was reserved for the K'satriya, however, there was a constant population of traders who lived in enclaves along the north coast, most of these traders were Muslim, and they had a tendency to copy the style of the Court of Majapahit. These traders would have had not the vaguest idea of the true nature of the keris. They had probably heard that it had some esoteric characteristics, but to these outlanders, it was merely a personal weapon worn by men of the Court.

With the collapse of Majapahit the keris became a secular object and its new masters invented their own ideas of its nature based upon the vague idea of its esoteric nature.

If we wish to understand the nature of the keris we need to devote ourselves to study of the society of Jawa, its history and belief systems, and we need to cultivate the mental facilities that will enable us to comprehend Javanese values and belief systems.

It is a very facile approach to attempt to understand the nature of the keris in the absence of the necessary foundations that might permit this.

[David]

Thanks for this summary Alan.