3 Balinese 'working' kerises

[wilked aka Khun Deng]

Hey I'm not even a keris guy and I absolutely love the look of these blades. I for one do like lots of detail, but with these you don't need detail in the dress it's already there in the blade. Thanks I REALLY enjoyed these.

[BluErf]

Thank you. You guys are too kind. But I'm glad you enjoyed it.

[Raja Muda]

Blu,

Just curious. I've seen footage of Balinese performing the Barong dance in a state of trance. Whenever they stab themselves, the keris blades they use could actually flex and bend. Does the same goes for yours?

[BluErf]

Heehee... that's the observation I had too.

My kerises flex, but not as much as the ones that they use in the Barong dance. The metal of the kerises that they use seem to be very 'springy'. Also, the blades do not have prominent ada-ada like these 3 examples. I also notice that the kerises used in the dance are shorter Javanese/Madurese type. Not really Balinese kerises.

[nechesh]

Raja, i'm wondering when the film you saw dates from. It seems to me that the trance state achieved by the keris dancers is similar to the trances of intitiates in Vodoun ceremonies in Haiti. For the most part, these rituals, at least the ones in public spaces, are theatre pieces performed to entertain the tourists (though, unfortunately, there is not much tourism in Haiti these days). This, of course, was not always the case as these dances once held profound cultural significance for the Balinese people. I have never seen film of the keris dance, but there are some very interesting photographs taken back in 1949 by famed photojournalist Henri Catier Bresson. I believe his wife at the time was Balinese herself. It is difficult to tell with still photograph, but the keris used then do not appear to have much flex to them. All the blades appear straight and rigged and are being pushed with considerable force against the skin of the dancers. There is not enough detail to tell, but where i can see the hilts they appear to be of the Bali type. As for the blades, it is hard to tell. They are not of the extra long (17in. or more) Bali type, but neither are they short. To stab one's self requires the blade to be a bit less than arms length. Anyway, my point really is, i guess, that things ain't what they used to be. I don't think very springy blades were always used for this ceremony and the power of trance states and belief is not to be under estimated. Still, i would like to see the film you mentioned. Is it available anywhere?

[Raja Muda]

Hi Nechesh,
I have very bad short term memory but I'll try and recall nevertheless
The footage I saw was from a contemporary documentary on Discovery Travel and Adventure channel on satellite TV, probably made as recent as one or two years ago, though I only saw the documentary a few months ago. I think you might be able to get that on cable TV over there.
It was either Globe Trekker or something else.
I'm not sure if this particular dance was enacted for a tourist audience but if i could recall correctly, it was in a temple compound.
The dancers attempt to attack the witch Rangda and ended up stabbing themselves instead. A few things I noted, one, the skin and muscles on the chest becomes taut just before the dancers push the tip of the blades (with some force it seems!) often causing it to bend or flex.
I didn't get very clear views of the keris used. From afar they look like simple tilam upih or tilam sari straight blades, with simple tubular balinese ukiran, some so makeshift that they look like knife handles. I'm sure no pusaka was harmed during filming
If there's one thing the Tahitians and the Balinese share, it's the Austronesian genetic and linguistic roots (or Malayo-Polynesian in some older books) so I wouldn't be surprised at the parallels. Trance dances are probably a residue of pre-Hindu animism practised by the Balinese and other communities in Southeast Asia.