RAKSASA & Buta Bajang Figure Hilts

A. G. Maisey · 4th July 2009, 02:41 PM

Sorry Pak Ganja, this is an area that I know virtually nothing about.

Supposedly many of these figures are found in the pralambapada mudra, but my knowledge is insufficient for me to confirm this, or to speculate upon the reason, if indeed they are.

It has been suggested to me by a Chinese academic who teaches in this area of knowledge that perhaps these mudras are not so accurately portrayed and that to truly interpret them might be more than a little difficult.

These hilts are probably very fertile ground for some serious research.

harimauhk · 4th July 2009, 02:51 PM

Nice hilts. I too don't know much about them, but having grown up around Hinduism (I'm Indian and Nepalese), I find Indonesian representations of figures from Hindu mythology fascinating. Just out of curiosity, does 'buta' mean ghost?

ganjawulung · 5th July 2009, 11:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by harimauhk

Nice hilts. I too don't know much about them, but having grown up around Hinduism (I'm Indian and Nepalese), I find Indonesian representations of figures from Hindu mythology fascinating. Just out of curiosity, does 'buta' mean ghost?

Not 'ghost', but 'giant'. In some (javanese) wayang stories, giants were not always gigantic in size. Only the form (appearance) is 'giant' like, but the size of the creature is told as -- sometimes even smaller than human being. "Buta Bajang" means "Dwarf giant"... Literally "buta" (javanese) means "giant". Unfortunately, in Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian language) "buta" means "blind"..

GANJAWULUNG

harimauhk · 5th July 2009, 12:27 PM

Ma kasih ganja, in Hindi, "bhut" means ghost, which is why I was curious.

David · 5th July 2009, 05:01 PM

Great thread, though i would like to point out that we had a very similar thread on these figurative hilts this past spring. It might not be a bad idea to merge the 2 threads just to have all this info in one place, but for now i will just provide a link.

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...hlight=raksasa

erikscollectables · 5th July 2009, 07:52 PM

Yes my most favorite type as well.

The discussion last time (as mentioned by David) with good input from Alan was very interesting.
Also the krisdisk mentioned by Michael and of course the text by Martin Kerner on this theme is quite interesting (for those that read german..)

Erik

5th July 2009, 07:52 PM	#6
erikscollectables Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 318	favorites Yes my most favorite type as well. The discussion last time (as mentioned by David) with good input from Alan was very interesting. Also the krisdisk mentioned by Michael and of course the text by Martin Kerner on this theme is quite interesting (for those that read german..) Erik Attached Images

4th July 2009, 02:41 PM	#1
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,015	Sorry Pak Ganja, this is an area that I know virtually nothing about. Supposedly many of these figures are found in the pralambapada mudra, but my knowledge is insufficient for me to confirm this, or to speculate upon the reason, if indeed they are. It has been suggested to me by a Chinese academic who teaches in this area of knowledge that perhaps these mudras are not so accurately portrayed and that to truly interpret them might be more than a little difficult. These hilts are probably very fertile ground for some serious research.

4th July 2009, 02:51 PM	#2
harimauhk Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 88	Nice hilts. I too don't know much about them, but having grown up around Hinduism (I'm Indian and Nepalese), I find Indonesian representations of figures from Hindu mythology fascinating. Just out of curiosity, does 'buta' mean ghost?

5th July 2009, 12:27 PM	#4
harimauhk Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 88	Ma kasih ganja, in Hindi, "bhut" means ghost, which is why I was curious.

5th July 2009, 05:01 PM	#5
David Keris forum moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Nova Scotia Posts: 7,218	Great thread, though i would like to point out that we had a very similar thread on these figurative hilts this past spring. It might not be a bad idea to merge the 2 threads just to have all this info in one place, but for now i will just provide a link. http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...hlight=raksasa