Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

Pusaka · 11th October 2006, 10:33 PM

This is a difficult one to answer, a lot depends on personal belief as to what a keris is. If a modern keris was made with all the care, attention and preparation as in older times then I would not hesitate to call it a “real” keris. If on the other hand a keris was rapidly beaten out, artificially aged and clearly made with little attention or skill I would have no hesitation in calling it a piece of junk and I have to say personally I would not regard it as a real keris. Ebay is full of such keris.
I am aware that there is a difference between a keris made for everyday use and a keris pusaka. The icing on the cake is if the blade is alive or not, if it has undergone the correct and complete process then it is. If it has not then it is just a piece of metal.
How long does it take a keris to die I cant answer, how long does it take a magnet to completely lose its magnetism? It will get weaker over time but it will probably always contain some residual magnetism, “life”.
I think of a real keris blade as a vassal suitably constructed so that it can be empowered and retain that for some period of time. It requires two things, firstly it must be physically constructed in the correct manner from suitable materials and secondly it must have undergone a meditative preparation.
A keris that was just hammered out with little care is not in the position to be empowered and neither can it ever become “alive”
On the other hand a keris which was constructed in the correct manner and with the correct care, even if its life has faded over time due to neglect it is in the position where it could be given new life by a good owner.
Hope I haven’t overdone it with the mystical talk about dead and alive keris

but this is just my personal thoughts about keris, and “real” keris.

So finally my definition of a “real” keris is a blade suitably constructed so that either it has life or has the potential to be given life due to it possessing correct physical construction.

And a fake keris, a blade made in such a manner that it never was nor never will be a suitable vassal to be empowered.

11th October 2006, 10:33 PM	#88
Pusaka Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 341	This is a difficult one to answer, a lot depends on personal belief as to what a keris is. If a modern keris was made with all the care, attention and preparation as in older times then I would not hesitate to call it a “real” keris. If on the other hand a keris was rapidly beaten out, artificially aged and clearly made with little attention or skill I would have no hesitation in calling it a piece of junk and I have to say personally I would not regard it as a real keris. Ebay is full of such keris. I am aware that there is a difference between a keris made for everyday use and a keris pusaka. The icing on the cake is if the blade is alive or not, if it has undergone the correct and complete process then it is. If it has not then it is just a piece of metal. How long does it take a keris to die I cant answer, how long does it take a magnet to completely lose its magnetism? It will get weaker over time but it will probably always contain some residual magnetism, “life”. I think of a real keris blade as a vassal suitably constructed so that it can be empowered and retain that for some period of time. It requires two things, firstly it must be physically constructed in the correct manner from suitable materials and secondly it must have undergone a meditative preparation. A keris that was just hammered out with little care is not in the position to be empowered and neither can it ever become “alive” On the other hand a keris which was constructed in the correct manner and with the correct care, even if its life has faded over time due to neglect it is in the position where it could be given new life by a good owner. Hope I haven’t overdone it with the mystical talk about dead and alive keris but this is just my personal thoughts about keris, and “real” keris. So finally my definition of a “real” keris is a blade suitably constructed so that either it has life or has the potential to be given life due to it possessing correct physical construction. And a fake keris, a blade made in such a manner that it never was nor never will be a suitable vassal to be empowered. Last edited by Pusaka; 11th October 2006 at 10:54 PM.