Introduction and Assistance request - Naga Sasra 11 Luk?

[JayHasAKeris]

Thanks again

It amazes me just how full of symbolism this thing is packed. From what I gather I got extremely lucky to snatch up a keris like this... it was pretty cheap, like 200 Mark (roughly 100€) back then, the seller had no idea what it was it seems. I only recently saw it for what it was, the naga is pretty subtle... I never examined this "wavy dagger" properly before, what a shame!! If I look closely it seems someone made an effort to forge? chisel? a lot of scales on the body, amazing detail and craftsmanship. The naga seems to somehow glitter if I move it in the light, utterly fascinating. You seem like an incredibly experienced expert in this field, your time and insight are very much appreciated, thank you Apparently every single detail matters with these naga... is there more to be learned about it? It seems to have a little hat or crown and seems to be holding something? Sadly the gold inlays seem to be mostly gone, I can't make out anything in that.

Edit to remove a typo

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

That's a good summary David, but I will add one little thing to just what a Naga is, the symbolism is a way of visualizing the essence of the Naga, in reality, the Naga is a force of nature that is beyond human comprehension, by providing a way to visualise the Naga, humans can get some sort of an idea of the power & nature of the Naga.

In Jawa, we believe that before leaving home on any particular day, it is best to check in which way the Naga is moving on that day, the calculation of which direction the Naga is moving is based on the Javanese system of calendars.

If we want go somewhere, or undertake an important task, it is best that we arrange our day in accordance with the direction in which the Naga is moving on that particular day, for example, it is not at all a real good idea to arrange our objectives in a direction that agrees with the direction that the Naga is facing or with his belly, rather it is a much better idea to arrange our objectives in accordance with the direction of the Naga's tail, or even his back.

As I said:- a force of nature, & in all things it is best to work with nature, rather than against nature.

Perhaps something that some of us might do well to remember at the present time.

[A. G. Maisey]

All of the details in a keris are carved into it, not forged into it.

Iron & steel are actually pretty soft after they have been annealed, & not at all difficult to carve with the correct traditional hand tools. These days most makers use electric tools for the carving, but you can still carve pretty quickly just using the traditional tools.

The picture is a keris forging as it has come from the forge. This is what we start with.

Yes, the naga here does have a crown, that's one of the things that makes him a Naga Sasra.

As for learning, well, there is no end to that. I've been studying the keris for over 70 years & I've only scratched the surface of what there is to learn.

There are many aspects to the keris, & study of it must go hand in hand with the study of the related culture & society.

[JayHasAKeris]

Thank you very much once again for your insight That picture of the pre-carving keris is very interesting, thank you I thought the luk are forged though? Or do they get carved out of the picture you shared as well? Do you have recommendations on where to start learning more on the process of making these keris? It's a scarily complex world, but I enjoy learning more about it!

I thought the "sasra" bit comes from the naga body being along most of the blade... thank you for the correction, so it's the crown that makes it a "naga sasra". My research led to the crown turning it into a "naga raja"... just another example how lost I am in this matter still. So as to not jump to too many wrong conclusions I am consulting you guys. Thanks to all you helpful people for your guidance and assistance

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

All of the details in a keris are carved into it, not forged into it.

Iron & steel are actually pretty soft after they have been annealed, & not at all difficult to carve with the correct traditional hand tools. These days most makers use electric tools for the carving, but you can still carve pretty quickly just using the traditional tools.

The picture is a keris forging as it has come from the forge. This is what we start with.

Yes, the naga here does have a crown, that's one of the things that makes him a Naga Sasra.

As for learning, well, there is no end to that. I've been studying the keris for over 70 years & I've only scratched the surface of what there is to learn.

There are many aspects to the keris, & study of it must go hand in hand with the study of the related culture & society.