New member / Javanese Iconography Book

[Bjorn]

Hello everyone, I am a new member of the warung. I have only just started collecting keris and thus I expect I will not have much to contribute to the forum for some time (apart from questions maybe!). I hope to learn a lot from the people here (as I have indeed already done quite a bit by reading old posts) and hope to be able to contribute in some ways as well.

A few weeks back I finally came across a keris that strongly appealed to me. I have been looking on and off for one I like for quite some time so I am quite happy to have finally found one. In fact, I liked it so much I started to search for more information on keris, which brought me to the Warung Kopi. My collection has nearly reached 6 keris, and taking into account financial considerations it will probably stay at this number for a while. Nevertheless, until I can acquire more keris I want to increase my knowledge about them and how they relate, and related, to the societies of modern and historical Indonesian cultures.

To start with I would like to learn more about the iconography and symbolism of Java during its Hindu-Buddhist era. Can anyone advise good books on this subject?

[David]

Hi Yuuzan. Welcome to the forum. I trust that you will find much of interest here in regards to keris and look forward to your participation. In many ways asking questions is as important as knowing the answers. ;)
As far as you first question is concerned, i don't have any personal experience with any books on this subject specific to Jawa. I believe part of the problem is that most of the books available in the English language were written from the perspective of European colonialists who didn't really gain a foothold in Jawa until the time of the Islamic conversion. Probably the best place to look then for information in regards to Hindu/Buddhist influences would be books on Bali where those influences remained in power. The first book that comes to my mind that you might want to read in Margaret Wiener's Visible and Invisible Realms: Power, Magic and Colonial Conquest in Bali.
I have also found Fred Eiseman's two volume Bali: Sekala & Niskala a valuable read. :)

[A. G. Maisey]

There is no one book that addresses Javanese iconography, especially so when we limit the period under consideration to only the Hindu-Buda period of Jawa. In order to gather a reasonable understanding of Javanese symbolism of the Early Classical Period, and the East Jawa period, you really need to cover an enormous amount of reading that encompasses the classic literary works, such as the Pararaton and the Mahabharata, standard historical and anthropological texts, and some popular literature . There will be a reasonably comprehensive bibliography available soon that will be of some assistance in finding the titles that need to be looked at.

In the mean time, here are few titles you may care to have a look at while you're waiting.

Bunce F.W., "Numbers, Their Iconographic Consideration in Hindu & Buddhist Practices", D.K.Printworld(P)Ltd., New Delhi, 2002, ISBN 81-246-0201-8

Hooykaas C., "Religion in Bali", E.J.Brill, Leiden, 1973

Kinney Ann R. with Marijke J. Klokke, Lydia Kieven, "Worshipping Siva and Buddha, The Temple Art of East Java", University of Hawaii Press 2003, ISBN 0-8248-2779-1

Lovric Barbara , "Motifs and Images in a Ritual Drama: Their Mythic References and Metaphorical Truth", in The Australian Journal of Anthropology, Anthropological Society of New South Wales, Sydney, 1992 3:3, Special Issue 4.

Ramseyer Urs, "The Art and Culture of Bali", Schwabe & Co. AG, Verlag Basel, 2002, ISBN 3-7965-1886-9

[David]

Thanks Alan, i was hoping you would chime in. I'll have to look into these books. :-)

[Bjorn]

Alan, David, your suggestions are much appreciated. I certainly don't mind this being a slow-going learning process, but it does help immensely to know where to start, so a big thanks to you both. I think I'll begin with Worshipping Siva and Buddha. And I definitely look forward to that bibliography!