Thick knife frome Bali/Lombok

[A. G. Maisey]

There is one other little thing that deserves a mention Ian, it is well known within the communities that study these societies professionally, but seems to be mostly unknown amongst those of us who study only certain aspects of these societies, & that as mostly a hobby occupation.

In Javanese society in particular, & in other Malay societies to perhaps a lesser extent, the answer to a question, or information given in general, will be what the giver of information either believes the recipient of information wishes to hear, or will be what he believes will please the recipient of information. Accuracy & truth are very much a secondary consideration.

This tendency was very much in presence during colonial times, & it makes reliance upon old sources of information doubtful, to the point where any info taken from an old source needs to be checked & cross checked before it can be accepted as being possibly accurate, & then only accurate for a given time & place.

We need to keep an open mind & to be quite flexible when dealing with what might be or what might not be correct.