SAJEN kerises

A. G. Maisey · 26th May 2009, 11:18 AM

It is very true that the meaning of words can and does change as time passes.

During the 17th and 18th century in England the word "occupy" was considered to be so vulgar that its utterance in a public place would get you time in the stocks.

So perhaps in Groneman's time the keris form that we now term "sajen", or "majapahit", was indeed named a "keris buda". However, the use of the term "keris buda" in the present time refers to a keris of a particular form that is from the buda period of Jawa, and that particular form excludes the keris sajen.

In the generally accepted sense, the "buda period" is the time prior to Islam, and does not mean purely the time when the Buddhist faith was dominant in a particular area of Jawa, but rather is a term applying to olden times before Islam.

In this day and age I have never encountered any confusion as the keris form that we term a "keris buda". The term has nothing to do with the unusual nature of a form, nor of any unique qualities of a form, it refers to a short, robust keris form with a square tang and a metuk, very often without pamor.

When we discuss the keris we sometimes do lose sight of the universal human tendency to vary the meaning of words, beliefs, customs, and traditions over time. This note of Groneman's would seem to me to be a wake-up call.

26th May 2009, 11:18 AM	#16
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,015	It is very true that the meaning of words can and does change as time passes. During the 17th and 18th century in England the word "occupy" was considered to be so vulgar that its utterance in a public place would get you time in the stocks. So perhaps in Groneman's time the keris form that we now term "sajen", or "majapahit", was indeed named a "keris buda". However, the use of the term "keris buda" in the present time refers to a keris of a particular form that is from the buda period of Jawa, and that particular form excludes the keris sajen. In the generally accepted sense, the "buda period" is the time prior to Islam, and does not mean purely the time when the Buddhist faith was dominant in a particular area of Jawa, but rather is a term applying to olden times before Islam. In this day and age I have never encountered any confusion as the keris form that we term a "keris buda". The term has nothing to do with the unusual nature of a form, nor of any unique qualities of a form, it refers to a short, robust keris form with a square tang and a metuk, very often without pamor. When we discuss the keris we sometimes do lose sight of the universal human tendency to vary the meaning of words, beliefs, customs, and traditions over time. This note of Groneman's would seem to me to be a wake-up call.