Bali Keris for Comment

[A. G. Maisey]

This picture is from the book I mentioned, it is a bit blurred & the pic in the book is small, but I think it is sufficient to tell the story. If still unclear, please do not hesitate to make a further enquiry.

Rob, I do not want to jump into hilt names, because you have addressed these questions to Gustav, & we really should wait for his response before making a comment, however, the way this discussion is moving is straight into a mine field, one of the reasons I really do not like playing name games with Indonesian terms & very much do not like playing name games with keris.

Put it this way:- you ask ten Javanese people for an opinion you'll probably get upwards of twenty firm opinions, same applies with Balinese people. And all of those 20+ opinions & ideas will depend upon a multitude of factors that nobody who is a stranger to these societies could have a hope in hell of understanding. What you think you understand today can be contradicted tomorrow, what Pak Gede told you this morning can be different to what he tells you this afternoon, & both things might be generally accepted as fact, or both things might be generally disregarded as nonsense. Maybe the only way to come to a reasonable understanding of the keris in Jawa & Bali is to immerse yourself into the two societies & at least have some sort of understanding about what you are being told & why.

Outside of keris literate people in Jawa & Bali I often find it is easier & safer to use English language terms if possible.