My Bugis keris

A. G. Maisey · 21st October 2016, 10:48 AM

Yes, I know I said I wouldn't comment, and I will not --- on the keris.

This is about the word "kalawija".

Kalawija is a variation of palawija.

In the courts of old Jawa cripples, deformed people, dwarfs and so on were kept as servants and clowns. These people were called "palawija".

The people who were palawija, along with other unusual individuals such as artists and eccentrics were deemed to be the ones who could carry a palawija (kalawija) keris: they were deformed, and in the Old Javanese value system, so was the palawija keris.

The maximum number of luk for a "normal" keris was held to be 13 luk. This of course raises the question of why 13 should be the barrier between normal and not normal.

And that is a whole other story.

21st October 2016, 10:48 AM	#28
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6,861	Yes, I know I said I wouldn't comment, and I will not --- on the keris. This is about the word "kalawija". Kalawija is a variation of palawija. In the courts of old Jawa cripples, deformed people, dwarfs and so on were kept as servants and clowns. These people were called "palawija". The people who were palawija, along with other unusual individuals such as artists and eccentrics were deemed to be the ones who could carry a palawija (kalawija) keris: they were deformed, and in the Old Javanese value system, so was the palawija keris. The maximum number of luk for a "normal" keris was held to be 13 luk. This of course raises the question of why 13 should be the barrier between normal and not normal. And that is a whole other story.