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Tuesday, January 13, 20047 Silent Medical Conditions From high blood pressure to skin cancer, some life-threatening health conditions often arrive with few symptoms or fanfare. While you may feel fine, millions of us have one of these conditions and don't know it. Now for the good news: If we spot these conditions early, we can take simple steps to greatly reduce our risk of serious complications in the future. Here's what you really need to know about the top seven silent health thieves. Start protecting yourself now.  Type 2 Diabetes
About 18 million people have type 2 diabetes and another 16 million are silently at risk. Could it be you? "A lot of people have diabetes and don't know it, but the symptoms will eventually catch up with you," warns Anne Borik, DO, an internist at the Arizona Heart Hospital in Phoenix. Type 2 diabetes is usually due to bad diet and lack of exercise. Foods such as sweets, white breads, potatoes, white rice and crackers convert quickly to sugar in the body. When there is too much blood sugar in the body, the cells gradually become unable to use insulin properly. But "if you catch it early, Type 2 diabetes absolutely can be controlled with a low-carbohydrate and low-sugar diet," Borik says. If you have any of the early symptoms, "get either a urine or a fasting blood sugar test to find out where you stand," she says. "Controlling blood sugar is vitally important in reducing the risk of heart attack and other complications." Testing for diabetes should be considered every three years beginning at age 45, according to current guidelines. And even more frequently in people at increased risk for the condition. People at highest risk for the disease are those who are overweight, women who developed diabetes during pregnancy (gestational diabetes), and people with family members who have the disease.  Heart Disease
Heart disease is public enemy No. 1 for men and women. Often, the first sign of a heart attack is not crushing chest pain like we see in the movies, especially for women. And chest pain is often not a sharp pain, but a "very dull, achy heaviness," says Borik, an internist at the Arizona Heart Hospital in Phoenix. If you feel such symptoms, you may not be sure what's wrong. They may even come and go, but to be on the safe side, you should call 911 immediately to seek care. Regular exercise, eating a healthy diet and not smoking can help lower risk of heart disease and heart attack. "A daily baby aspirin may also be advisable to lower your risk, provided you have no history of ulcers or liver problems," Borik says. Talk to your doctor before taking aspirin to lower your heart disease risk.  Genital Herpes
"It's not only common, but recent studies demonstrate that herpes cuts across race and class very dramatically," says Charles Ebel, senior director of program development at the American Social Health Association in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. Yet early symptoms are so subtle that people often don't recognize them as a problem. The key, Ebel says, is knowing what to look for. About two-thirds of people with genital herpes will eventually recognize some symptoms. "If you have recurring symptoms below the belt that are unexplained — even those that you may think are yeast, dermatosis, or even hemorrhoids — consider getting tested for herpes," Ebel suggests. There's no need to get tested if you have no symptoms at all, says Ebel. But if you think you may have symptoms, "testing makes sense because if it's herpes, we can promote appropriate prevention steps." For example, an infected person can take antiviral drugs daily to reduce the chance of passing the virus on to a partner. Condoms also greatly reduce the risk. "Today," says Ebel, "there are many more options to manage symptoms and protect sexual partners."  Melanoma
Melanoma accounts for 4% of all skin cancers, but causes nearly 80% of the deaths. When was the last time you checked your skin? "Go to a board certified dermatologist at least once a year for a full body screen," says Jeanine Downie, MD, a Montclair, New Jersey dermatologist. "If you catch it early, it may just be an atypical mole and not a melanoma yet. And if it's a melanoma, it may be a thin melanoma on the top layer of the skin," which is easier to treat, she tells WebMD. Skin checks are particularly important for Asian-Americans, African-Americans and Latin Americans. "In these populations, melanomas may not be in sun-exposed areas. We find them in the mouth, under the finger- or toe-nails or in the genital areas," says Downie, also the author of "Beautiful Skin of Color: A Comprehensive Guide to Asian, Olive and Dark Skin." These hard-to-spot places need to be monitored in all people, but particularly in these ethnic groups, she says. Dermatologists recommend you check yourself monthly at home to look for irregular lesions that are growing and changing. Look for these ABDCs in moles: Asymmetry or moles where one half is different than another Border Irregularity, meaning that the edge of melanomas are usually ragged and jagged Color because melanomas often have a variety of colors within the same mole Diameter as melanomas continue to grow To prevent melanoma, the American Academy of Dermatology recommends avoiding sun exposure from 10:00 a.m. through 4:00 p.m. when the sun is the strongest. You should also wear a broad-spectrum sunscreen and reapply it frequently. Wear a hat and clothing with a tight weave that will block ultraviolet light.  High Blood Pressure
There's a reason high blood pressure is called the silent killer! One in four American adults has high blood pressure, according to recent estimates. But because there are no symptoms, nearly a third of these people don't know it. The only way to tell if you have high blood pressure is to have your blood pressure checked. Your doctor should check your blood pressure at every visit. The upper number in a blood pressure reading (systolic pressure) should be less than 120 and the lower number (diastolic pressure) should be less than 80, according to the American Heart Association. Uncontrolled high blood pressure can lead to stroke, heart attack, heart failure or kidney failure. But there's a lot you can do to keep your blood pressure low. For one, "a low-calorie, low-salt diet is key. Salt causes the body to hold fluid in the vessels, which increases blood pressure automatically," says Anne Borik, DO, an internist at the Arizona Heart Hospital in Phoenix. "Exercise is really, really important," she says. "During aerobic exercise, the body releases [feel-good chemicals called] endorphins that have a positive effect on widening blood vessels and decreasing blood pressure." Stress reduction is also vital. "Stress causes constriction of blood vessels and that increases blood pressure," Borik says. "Smoking increases blood pressure and one of the first things people can do is to quit smoking and try to avoid passive smoke." If lifestyle changes don't work, your doctor can also prescribe medicine to help lower moderate-to-high blood pressure.  Glaucoma
About 2.2 million Americans age 40 and older have glaucoma. But half may be unaware that they have this potentially blinding disease because they have no symptoms, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology. "It generally affects peripheral vision first; constricting it so slowly that you don't know that you are missing it," says Nauman Imami, MD, the director of the glaucoma service at Henry Ford Health System in Detroit, Mich. "You can lose a significant amount of vision before you know you have it," he says. In glaucoma, the optic nerve is damaged. It can be associated with elevated pressure inside the eye and can lead to vision loss. There is good news: Early diagnosis and treatment can preserve your sight. "In the majority of folks, if you catch it early and lower intraocular pressure, you can slow its progress so that the typical person won't have problems during their lifetime," says Imami. Typically, an eye doctor will prescribe eye drops to lower eye pressure. Surgery is also an option if needed. Risk factors include family history of glaucoma, African-American descent, increasing age and elevated eye pressure. "We can treat eye pressure to lower it and reduce risk of vision loss, but most of other risk factors we can't change," Imami says. Your best bet: If you have glaucoma, get a field of vision test once a year. "More frequently, if the condition is advanced," he says. "If you are at risk and your pressure is normal and your visual field is normal, you may not need to get tested every year but should be followed by an ophthalmologist."  High Cholesterol
High cholesterol is a major risk factor for heart disease, yet it has no symptoms. Most people don't know their cholesterol is too high unless they get a blood test as part of their annual physical. "Knowing your cholesterol — good and bad — is important," says Anne Borik, DO, an internist at the Arizona Heart Hospital in Phoenix. From there, "try to decrease the bad and increase the good." "Bad" or low density lipoprotein (LDL) levels should be less than 100 milligrams per deciliter of blood (mg/dL) and "good" or high density lipoprotein (HDL) levels should be 40 mg/dL or higher. The American Heart Association recommends having your cholesterol levels measured every five years— or more often if you're a man over 45 or a woman over 55. What's the best way to get your cholesterol numbers where you want them? "Eat foods low in saturated fat and cholesterol, lose weight if you need to and exercise," Borik says. Lifestyle changes can lower your cholesterol and reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke. If these changes are not enough, ask your doctor about medicines to lower cholesterol. SOURCES: Charles Ebel, senior director of program development at the American Social Health Association in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. Anne Borik, DO, an internist at the Arizona Heart Hospital in Phoenix, AZ. Jeanine Downie, MD, dermatologist in Montclair, NJ. Nauman Imami, MD, director of the glaucoma service at Henry Ford Health System in Detroit.
 posted by CoolSoulSmith a.k.a Rinci|ak --------------------------- Monday, January 12, 2004From Majapahit to Putrajaya: The Kris as a symptom of Civilisation Development and Declineby Dr. Farish A. Noor “Tak ada orang Belanda yang bisa bikin kris, Gus. Tak mampu dan takkan mampu. Coba buka, akan kau lihat tapak-tapak ibu jari empu linuhung yang membikinnya…Lihat pada cermin nanti. Kalau kris sudah kau selitkan pada pinggangmu, kau akan berubah. Kau akan lebih mirip dengan leluhurmu, lebih dekat pada asalmu” Pramoedya Ananta Toer, Bumi Manusia
  The civilisation of the Malay archipelago has bestowed the world a number of lasting legacies. Over a long process of socio-cultural development which spanned several millennia, the Malay world was the focal point for the meeting of civilisations and cultures from all over Asia. Malay Civilisation still bears the traces of these early encounters between Hindu, Buddhist, Chinese, Islamic, European and indigenous cultures, and Malay art reflects the subtle blend of this myriad of influences. One of the most obvious markers or symbols of Malay civilisation is the ubiquitous Kris: the famous weapon of the Malay peoples, which was used throughout the archipelago from Patani to the Philippines. Its use and appearance was widespread throughout the archipelago, as it made itself known in practically all circles of life. It was seen in the istanas and kratons (palaces), as well as the kampong and on the fleets of Malay war prahus. Krises were even made specially for women and children in some cases, perhaps by far-sighted pandai besis and empus (honorific title for the makers of krises) in anticipation of feminist critiques in the future. The Kris is one symbol that has come to be intimately identified with the Malay peoples as a whole, and this association is more than justified. For indeed, the Kris has been part of the Malay world for hundreds of years, and in the development of the Kris in all its aspects and roles (as weapon, ritual object, symbol of rank and status) we can also trace the path of civilisational development of the Malays as a people as well. From utility to luxury: The evolution of the kris as a symbol of civilisation. ‘Superfluous excess is the enemy of necessity’. Friedrich Nietzsche The kris, lest it be forgotten, is fundamentally a weapon. Although it comes in all shapes and sizes, with a myriad of configurations depending on its dapor (silhouette), prabot (marks carved on the blade) and pamor (patterns created by forging the blade with different metal) types, it remains a personal instrument of offence and defence. With the arrival of Hinduism and Buddhism to the Malay archipelago we witness the development of complex socio-cultural rituals that encompass practically all areas of life, from politics and government to family law and inter-personal relations. The new religious system brought with it not only a unique credo but also successfully transformed the mental, moral, aesthetic and cultural universe of the archipelago. What appeared in the end was a rigid and highly-ordered religio-political and social system that reflected the order of the cosmos, with the Raja (king) occupying a pivotal position as the ‘nail of the universe’ and the Istana/Kraton (palace) serving as the stage for the cosmic drama to be played out. Thus the world of the Indon-Malay Kerajaan (understood here as a government ruled by a raja, or king) was one where the affairs of Gods, Dewas, Rajas and Men constantly overlapped and interpenetrated with promiscuous ease. But due to a number of factors the development of the religio-political discourse of the pre-Islamic archipelago was a lopsided one. The Malay Rajas were eager to embrace this new creed as it afforded them a means to discursively legitimise and sacralise their rule on earth. The multifarious array of beliefs, values, ideas and symbols that made up the universe of the Kerajaan gave the court artisans plenty of work to do and kept them occupied for literally hundreds of years. There was no end to the ways and means through which they could valorise the status and role of their Dewarajas in this cosmic drama of celestial proportions. It was also during this period when Hinduism held sway in the Indon-Malay court that the kris reaches the peak of its development and importance in the context of the societies of the archipelago. True to ibn Khaldun’s view that ‘civilisation’ manifests itself in the development of excess, luxury and the overdetermination of meanings and values attached to aesthetic forms and styles, the kris enjoyed a pre-eminence unparalleled by any other object in the Indon-Malay world at that time as the embodiment of all the elements that made up the heavenly world of the Kerajaan. The kris had been a prominent social symptom in the Malay Hindu-Buddhist world all along, but by then it had evolved far beyond a mere instrument of defence and offence. Thanks to the influx of ideas and beliefs from both the mainland (Champa, Lankasuka, Siam, Patani) and the islands (Java), the Malay world was exposed to Vishnuite and Sivaistic schools of Hindu thought as well as aesthetics. The kris, as the ritual object into which these new forms, ideas and meanings had been invested, had become the living embodiment of the dominant Hindu cults of Siva and Vishnu and it had penetrated deep into the popular imagination of the Indon-Malay peoples. This ‘leap’ in the evolution of the kris was registered in a number of ways: It was around this period that krises began taking to the air and flying about in all directions. The legendary epics of the time give a vivid account of the skies of Nusantara being literally littered with hundreds of krises, and in some parts of the archipelago the air traffic must have been quite heavy indeed, taking into consideration the proliferation of krises and prominent kris-makers during the Hindu-Buddhist era. The kris also begins to feature in the numerous panegyric courtly epics and histories (babad/hikayat) of the time. […] The kris also makes numerous cameo appearances in the local wayang rendition of the Ramayana and Mahabharatta epics. Some of the more prominent stars of these stories came to be associated with famous kris types such as the kris Yuyu Rumping (which made its appearance along with the Demon-King Rawana’s army when it destroyed the bridge between Ayodya and Halengka) or the kris dapor Pasopati (which was given to the Pandawa prince Arjuna by the Gods and is linked closely to Siva the Destroyer).[…] Kris production (and evolution) during the Hindu-Buddhist era remained at its peak at the Hindu-Buddhist courts of Java, Bali and Southern Sumatra. During the Hindu era, the major powers of the region included Pajajaran, Majapahit, Demak, Padjang and Mataram. In the annals of Pajajaran, we find numerous references to famous empus/pandai-besi who produced some of the most famous kris dapors that exist till this day. […] During the Majapahit era, kris production reached another peak. The famous Majapahit kris is well known for its unique feature, namely having a hilt that is sculpted in the form of a squatting or sitting human figure, made as a part of the kris itself. (Its other unique feature being its near-miraculous ability to withstand the hazards of time, space and the vagaries of the market place to somehow find its way into numerous bazaars and antique-shops all over Southeast Asia today in ridiculously huge numbers). Not only were krises highly esteemed and even worshipped as sacred objects with spiritual power then, but the kris-makers themselves were regarded as being among the elite of Javanese-Hindu society, along with the nobility and priests. Raffles (1830) noted that from the Pajajaran to Majapahit eras, the kris-makers of the realm were among the most valued and privileged members of Javanese society and their role and status was very much linked to the world of the court. Honoured and venerated by Royals, nobles and rakyat alike, the empus of the period were a class of their own and were at the peak of their careers. The forges where they produced some of their best work were also ascribed sacred status, often decorated to appear as miniature temples[…]. However, the fact that these royal kris-makers were dedicated solely to the work of the court and the needs of their royal patrons also meant that they were liminal figures in Indon-Malay Hindu society and they were particularly dependent upon the Kerajaan and vulnerable to the vicissitudes of politics. By the time the kingdoms of Demak and Pandjang arrive on the scene (late 15th century), the Hindu-Buddhist beliefs and values of the Indon-Malay peoples were already being challenged. But kris designs and kris-use still remained true to the traditions and standards of the past, as the production of quality krises remained firmly under the control and monopoly of the royal houses and the spiritually-inclined royal empus. During this period, several important dapors made their appearance, such as the famous eleven-lok dapor Sabuk Intan, said to be designed by the empu Joko Supo, son of Prince Sedayu, under orders of Sunan Kalijaga. Another equally famous royal son who took to the anvil and hammer of the kris forge was empu Ki Joko Growah, also a son of Prince Sedayu. Thus at the height of the Hindu era, shortly before Islam began to consolidate its hold on the coastal kingdoms of the archipelago, we find that kris production and kris-use had reached its most sophisticated level. The krises produced in the kratons were of the highest quality and workmanship, crafted as they were not only by the royal empus but also the poets and historians from the special effects department of the of the Kerajaan, who dressed them in all manner of overblown epic flourishes. It is during this period that we begin to see the kris turning into an object of luxury as well as symbol of royal status and Kerajaan power. The most elaborately decorated blades, intended for royal patrons and users from the royal and nobles houses themselves, were so beautifully and delicately worked that one wonders if they were ever used at all. (No doubt the priests of the court would have informed the ignorant lay-man that such krises were so powerful in terms of the sakti or semangat contained within them that they scarcely needed to be soiled with the blood of infidels and low-born foreigners in the first place). At this stage the culture of excess and luxury had overtaken the culture of necessity in the courts at least. By the end of the Hindu era, some of the state krises of the courts had become excessively-decorated affairs bedecked with goldleaf, diamonds, rubies and other trinkets and ornaments. Spoiled and pampered in their ritual perfumed-oil baths, these krises seldom, if ever, performed the duties of state demanded of them. As the tide of change swept the landscape with the coming of Islam, the world of the Hindu-Buddhist kraton merely migrated to the popular tourist destination of Bali where the royal krises were given another couple of hundred of years or so to bask in their faded glory like retired divas. By the 20th century, they were forced to come out into the open at last, for one finale performance. When the invading Dutch forces laid siege to the royal capital of Klungkung, the Balinese-Hindu nobles performed the act of collective suicide (puputan) before the trained rifles of Holland’s infantry. The krises they wore were barely unsheathed before their masters were mowed down, and it was the bullets of Dutch rifles that tore through the air instead of the krises. Today they are found in the vaults of the Tropen Museum, Amsterdam, relegated to the status of artefacts of an antiquarian history. But long before the kris was reduced to the status of a mute and lifeless artefact, its aura of sacred unearthly power was diminished by another force of change: Islam. From Luxury to Weapon: The gradual de-mystification of the Kris in the World of Islam. ‘New history begins while the older ones continue to flourish. Conflict might occur and the attempt to marginalize the old might be taken, but the old refuses to budge’. Taufik Abdullah, The Formation of Political Tradition in the Malay World Islam not only displaced the Gods and Demigods, Dewas and Dewarajas of the ancien regime, it also bought over the copyright of the kris in the process. One of the most vivid examples that we can find of Islam’s radical impact upon the Indon-Malay world is from a comparison of the cultural life at court during the Hindu and Islamic eras. The epics of the Hindu-Buddhist era that were heavily coloured by the dye of romanticism and fantasy gradually gave way to the drier prose of Muslim scholars whose paragons of chivalry and heroism tended to be more earth-bound. These imported Muslim narratives furnished the Malay world of letters with new symbols, figures and metaphors that were decidedly foreign in origin. In many instances, the beleaguered establishment of the Kerajaan tried its best to withstand the tide of change by trying to keep alive the mystical and mysterious aura of the Kerajaan of the past. In the pro-Kerajaan narrative of the Sejarah Melayu (Malay Annals), for example, we read of fantastic krises such as Hang Tuah’s kris Tameng Sari (glorious shield) which could perform all kinds of amazing feats such as taking to the air in search of pirate fleets and enemies of the state. In time the ideas of Malay-Muslim Sufi thinkers like Hamzah Fansuri, Shamsul-din Pasai and Abdul-Rauf Singkel, couched in terms of Islamic metaphysics, would prove to be more destructive to the regimes of the Indon-Malay Dewarajas than all the divine krises that the latter could muster. For the appeal of Islam as it was taught by the Sufis to their potential converts lay in its claim that the goal of self-perfection, the ideal of insanu’l-kamil, was something that peasant and ruler, rakyat and Raja alike could strive for, and in this quest all were equal. Furthermore the Sufis taught that Reason was universal, and that in this crucial respect, all Muslims were equal to each other and equal before God. As Al-Attas puts it: within the Sufi interpretation of Islam, ‘the essence of Man is that he is rational and rationality is the connection between him and reality. It is these concepts and that of the spiritual equality between man and man that gave the ordinary man a sense of worth and nobility denied to him in pre-Islamic times’. Islam’s most radical blow to the grand cosmic worldview of the pre-Islamic era was the way in which it gradually (though not completely) demythologised the world of the Malays. Thus it was in the realm of ideas that made up the Indon-Malay worldview that Islam’s arrival and impact was most keenly felt. Ismail Hamid says ‘Islam brought an end to the Hindu caste system of the Malays which had existed prior to the coming of Islam’ and ‘in its place Islam had introduced a concept of ‘democracy’’ that was based in the belief in the equality of all (believers) before God. Through the Sufis’ and Ulamas’ reliance on Tasawwuf (rational metaphysics) the fantastic and wonderful elements of Indon-Malay culture were all explained away. And where the Sufi’s brand of rationality could not win over the audience, the Muslim poets and scholars managed to tie up the loose ends left behind by the Hindu scribes of the past, thereby making sure that all avenues and bases were covered by the newly-victorious side. In the end, the Muslim scholars, Sufis, poets and historians managed to rewrite and reinvent the worldview of the Malays to such an extent that even the esoteric world of the kris was not spared from their revisionist assaults. With the consolidation of Islam and the changes in societal relations in the Malay-Muslim world, kris-making became more commonplace and it eventually spilled beyond the confines of the court and temple. Hamzuri notes that from the Mataram period (between the 15th to the 17th century) onwards, kris-production gradually becomes a more popular enterprise. By the time of the Jogya-Solo era (after the Treaty of Giyanti in 1755), ‘kris-making was almost universal; that is, it was no longer a monopoly of the court empus, (and) it had become a folk craft’ in Java. This was also the case in the rest of the archipelago thanks to the proliferation of new empus/pandai besis who had left Java and migrated to areas such as Sumatra and the Malay peninsula due to the worsening political and social conditions in Java itself. By the 16th-17th century, kris-making had spread throughout the Malay world, with a number of production centres in places such as Patani, Kelantan, Aceh, Melaka, Minangkabau, Palembang, Bantam, Demak, Jogjakarta, Surakarta, Bali, Makassar, Goa, Banjarmasin, Mindanao and the Sulu islands. Also as a result of the social changes occasioned by the arrival of this new creed, new social groups and classes came to the fore such as landed merchants, traders and the Muslim clerical class. This ‘bottom-up’ process of conversion also led to a ‘bottom-up’ appreciation of the kris as it became available to these new social groups and constituencies. Consequently the kris enjoyed new patronage and custom from these new groups, but also became popularised and vulgarised in the process. (Much to the horror and distaste of the traditional ruling classes). Furthermore it must be remembered that the Muslim missionaries and traders brought with them not only a new creed and membership to a different religious community: They also brought with them new enemies, namely the Ferenggi (Christian Europeans) who were hot on their heels in search of merit in the global Crusade against Islam. To survive in this new environment, the Malay-Muslim had less need for pompous over-decorated weapons and more need for armaments that could persuade his infidel enemies of the righteousness of his cause. From sacred symbol and object of luxury and status, it found itself reduced to the level of a profane weapon of deadly seriousness instead. As such innovations and modifications (such as the longer Kris Sundang of the Moros from Southern Philippines and the rapier-like Kris Bahari from Sumatra) were the order of the day. Apart from the development of the form and figure of the kris blade (mata kris) itself, the evolution of the hulu (hilt) also took a different turn. Hill notes that ‘devout Muslims objected to the actual representation of Hindu divinities in the shadow-play (wayang) and on kris-hilts. But they were willing to compromise by altering the form to a grotesque caricature’. The evolution of more Islamised hilts involved a semantic revision where these pre-Islamic hilts were given more Islamic (or at least acceptable) names instead. Thus the Garuda found himself reduced from the steed of Vishnu to the status of a kingfisher (pekaka) instead. Then the sculpted figures of the Gods and Demons of the past were gradually submerged under a carpet of arabesques, floral tapestries and geometric patterns that anticipated the ‘greening’ of the Malay archipelago under Islam in the centuries to come. Some hilt variations were ultimately reduced to totally abstract geometric affairs, almost modern in their conception and execution. While in others what little remained of the symbolism of the Hindu past was almost entirely covered over by floral or vegetal motifs, to the point where only the vaguest traces of the ancient Gods could be seen. In other areas such as Patani and Kelantan where the cult of Vishnu-Garuda was too strong to be fully erased, the figure of Garuda was modified to the extent that it finally took on the form of a crouching/squatting humanoid figure with its wings effaced altogether. […] The changes found in the shape, form and use of the krises during the Islamic era were reflected also in the extensive changes in the mode of kris-production as well. While during the Hindu-Buddhist era the pseudo-scientific mode of kris-production was heavily influenced by elements of the religious and the occult, kris-production during the Islamic period witnessed the introduction of a vast range of new terms, phrases, talismanic codes, formulae and taboos that were used by the Muslim empus/pandai besis. Contrary to the claims of contemporary Islamists who state categorically that the arrival of Islam eradicated the myths and superstitions of the pre-Islamic era, there is ample evidence to show that Islam’s arrival in the Malay world actually contributed another layer of beliefs onto the already-overcrowded and overdetermined cosmos of the Malays. Investigation into the rituals involved in the kris-making process during the Islamic era shows that while many of the pre-Islamic influences are still evident, the dominant symbols, codes, talismans and formulae were Islamic in origin. The combined effect of the socio-cultural changes cited above had, in the end, serious implications for the continued use of the kris in the Malay world. Having demythologised, popularised and ‘secularised’ the kris, the weapon was then made to serve the ends of war in an age of rapid modernisation and innovation. However, it must be remembered that although Islam may have grounded the magical krises, it did not deliver the killing blow which reduced it to the status of a common knife. That only came about after the Malay world’s encounter with an even more devastating force: Modernity. From Weapon to Stigmata - The fate of the Kris in the Age of Modernity. By the time that the Hikayat Patani was written, the Malay archipelago had come within the orbit of two different worlds: Western colonialism and revivalist Islam. Like the Muslim traders and missionaries who came before them, the colonialists from the West who arrived in numbers by the 16th century had little need for the kris. They came fully equipped with new weapons of their own which would prove more than a match for the arsenal of weapons already extant in the Malay world then. As these Western adventurers and conquerors hacked their way across the Malay world, they built new settlements and monuments dedicated firstly to their faith, and later, their commercial interests. Western colonial rule drastically challenged the worldview of the Malays and forced upon them the agenda for change. By the 17th and 18th century, it was clear that these interlopers were not about to leave without a fight. The fall of Malay-Muslim powers like Melacca, the kingdom of Maniladad, the defeat of Johor-Riau, the domestication of Jogjakarta and Surakarta, all contributed to the growing sense of pessimism and defeatism that slowly worked its way into the collective Malay consciousness. What made matters worse for the self-esteem of the Malay peoples was the fact that these infidels had actually defeated them by using techniques, skills and technologies that were alien to them. The British and Dutch had introduced new modes of production, transport, agriculture and warfare, which were hitherto unknown to the Malays. [..] As this process of penetration and colonisation progressed, the Malay world was opened up, studied, categorised and finally quarantined within the coloniser’s order of knowledge. Raffles, Brooke, Hurgronje, Swettenham, Clifford and other colonial administrators took to the task of regulating and compartmentalising the Malay world within their own ethnocentric and eurocentric world view which necessarily placed the native as well as his culture, beliefs and symbols on an inferior, subjugated register. Colonial rule reconfigured the world of the colonised in every respect. The religiopolitical environment of the Malays was dissected into two categories: the rational and governable realm of the state and the other, darker world of Malay beliefs and religion, into which was thrown the ubiquitous kris as well. This epistemic arrest of the Malay world ensured that every element was neatly labelled and placed within its own appointed space, and a location was found for all. The kris was eventually put in the same ignominious group of Malay clichés like amok, latah, the world of hantu punitanak, jembalang, bomohs and pukaus. It goes without saying that those who were allowed to bear arms by then were only the sepoys of the British colonial forces, while those Malays who had the temerity to hold onto the weapons of their ancestors were classified as pirates and murderers instead. Modernisation, as it was introduced by the Western colonial powers, had created a culture where the circulation of arms was not entirely removed from society, but policed instead. Having defeated the colonial subject and deprived him of his political rights, the coloniser then proceeded to relegate his culture and all its attendant symbols to the vaults of the colonial memory. The kris of the Gods now found itself locked up in the museums of the new colonial masters. (Though one of them did manage to slip out in the middle of the night to slay the odd victim or two). The other important development within the Malay world that had an immediate effect on the cult of the kris was the emergence of modern schools of Islamic thought that came about thanks to the integration of the Malay states within the global current of pan-Islamism. The modernist trend within Islamic thought manifested itself in the form of modern reformist and revivalist movements that borrowed extensively from the tradition of Modernity in the West while also rejecting that system of belief and values at the same time. In the end it became almost an inverted mirror image of the Modern tradition itself. It was this factor that eventually contributed to the local rejection and marginalisation of the kris in Malay society. By the 19th century, the Malay world was in closer contact with the rest of the Islamic world than ever before. The modernist and reformist trends of Islam within the Malay world were very much inspired by the developments elsewhere in the Muslim world such as the emergence of the Wahabbi and Indian Deobandi schools and new Muslim revivalists (Mujaddid) whose plans for the revival of Islam was often linked to the goals of purifying it of pre-Islamic elements that were regarded as khurafat (un-Islamic) or syirik (idolatrous). This trend of exclusivist thought finally managed to become the dominant one within the Muslim world, pushing aside the earlier generations of more open, flexible and inclusivist thinkers. Consequently new Malay-Muslim scholars like Munshi Abdullah Abdul Kadir, Shaykh Mohammad Tahir Jalaluddin, Syed Sheikh Ahmad Al-Hadi, Haji Abbas Mohammad Tahar and Shaykh Mohammad Salim Al-Kalili emerged to challenge the forces of the status quo made up of the traditional Kerajaan establishment as well as the secular modern colonial regimes installed by the British and the Dutch in Malaya and the East Indies. These modern Islamic thinkers and movements were particularly concerned about the plight of the Malay peoples, whom they regarded as victims of the twin evils of modern colonialism as well as traditionalist obscurantism. In these respects, the predominant mindset of these modern Islamic movements (like the Sarekat Islam) was a world apart from the early Muslim missionaries and Sufi mystics like Hamzah Fansuri, Abdul-Rauf Singkel and Shamsul-din Pasai of the 16th and 17th centuries. The modern Malay-Muslim reformers feared the pre-Islamic past not because it was so different from the world of the present, but because it was so much alike. To them the private space of Muslim life was more often than not an esoteric realm (khalwat or khas) where the Muslim’s psyche and spirituality (batin) was most in danger of contamination from dubious elements from the occult or pre-Islamic past. Their modernist and reformist agendas ensured that the policing of discursive, behavioural and sartorial frontiers remained a paramount objective in their work. Fearful of returning to the days when the discursive economies of Islam and Hindu-Buddhism co-mingled and interpenetrated with promiscuous ease, they were desperately concerned to rid Malay Islam of the traces of pagan pre-Islamic influences. The 19th century therefore witnessed some of the fiercest attacks against not only the traditional ruling elite but also their lifestyle, culture and values. The zeal of the hajis who led the Minagkabau Padri Wars of 1821-1832 was directed against traditional customs (adat) that were regarded as un-Islamic and therefore had to be eradicated. This fervour was matched by the Ulama who led the forces of Aceh against the Dutch during the devastating Aceh war of 1873-1912 and the Muslim generals who led the Moros against their Spanish enemies in southern Philippines. These socio-political struggles had the effect of strengthening the cultural and social frontiers that existed between orthodox Malay-Muslims and their more traditionalist counterparts as well as those who were more Westernised. The generation of modern Malay-Muslim thinkers and scholars of the late 19th century who made up the Kaum Muda (Younger generation) of Malay-Muslim nationalists and activists attacked many cultural practices such as the traditional Malay wedding ceremony, the hair-shaving ceremony for babies, the burial rites of Malays and the Malay practice of puja laut (worship of the Godddess of the sea, practised until the 60s) as being pagan or Hindu in origin. Consequently, the cult of the kris was to suffer accordingly as it was branded as yet another embarrassing reminder of the days when Malays were not Islamic enough according to contemporary revised standards. […] The Kris as an Artefact of Monumental History. ‘Only from the standpoint of the highest strength of the present may you interpret the past: Only in the highest exertion of your noblest qualities will you discern what is worthy of being known and preserved, what is great in the past. Like by like! Otherwise you will draw the past down to yourselves’. Friedrich Nietzsche The Malaysian 50-Ringgit note once bore the image of a Kris Tajong. Now it carries the image of an oil rig instead. The Kris in the modern age has become a maligned and misunderstood phenomenon. The state attempts to valorise the kris by constructing huge monuments in its honour, ignorant of the fact that its beauty lay in its subtlety and finesse. One of the recent controversies surrounding the kris involved the huge steel sculpture of a kris that was made in Europe and finally exhibited outside the new national stadium outside Bukit Jalil, Selangor. (in 1998). Conservative kris-fanciers were appalled by the structure, arguing that it was an exorbitant monument (RM 9 million) with little artistic merit. Others pointed out that the kris monument was constructed with little regard for Malay kris protocols: Firstly, it was in the form of a naked blade (while most krises should be seen sheathed) and it was pointing heavenwards (which was seen as a bold and aggressive gesture, almost offending in the eyes of many Muslims who felt it was an affront to God above). Other kris monuments dot the landscape of Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Shah Alam and Kelang. For the Commonwealth Games of 1998, a number of kris monuments were commissioned (though many were uncompleted). These took the form of a kris sheath (minus the blade and hilt) planted slantwise into the ground and they were made of steel sheets. These monuments also incurred the wrath of many local kris collectors and experts. Art galleries and museums continue to feature this curious exhibit from the remote past as some kind of emissary from the age of superstition and irrationality. Contemporary scholars and authors continue to weave tales around this fetish, warning their readers of its awesome powers and bloody history. Art and antique dealers deliver the coup de grace by telling their customers that the kris with the ‘best bargain’ tag attached to it belonged to a powerful Raja who performed all kinds of wondrous deeds with it. To the denizen of the modern metropole, alienated and domesticated, it is the magic key which opens the way to a myriad of fantastic and unrealisable possibilities. The sad fate that has befallen the kris is merely symptomatic of the evolution of the Malay peoples into the modern age. Caught in the manifold vices of modernity, trapped between the religious pharisees who condemn the evils of the pagan and infidel past and the equally unremitting fervour of the fundamentalists of modernisation, the Malay of the present has precious little to remind him of the age of where the kris was actually meaningful and relevant to his life. He can no longer break the hermeneutic code that holds the secret of the kris. Thus it can no longer fly, and remains earth-bound like him. […] The evolution of the kris has come to a full cycle. What began as a knife has now been reduced to that once more, as kris tie-pins, letter-openers and paper-cutters litter the catalogues of handicraft centres and tourist shops. The kris was what it was only so long as the beliefs, practices and values attached to it were there as well, and they fed into the worldview of the people for whom the kris made sense. The cult of the kris was a social phenomenon that extended beyond the object itself. Once these beliefs and values began to wane the world of the kris was diminished and all that was left was a knife. With the rise and fall of the kris we chart the ascendancy and subsequent degeneration of Malay civilisation as it looks for its way on the stage of human agency commonly known as history. Dr Farish A. Noor is among other things a historian, a political scientist and an antique collector. This article is a version abridged by kakiseni.com of a longer piece on the kris by Dr. Farish A Noor. posted by CoolSoulSmith a.k.a Rinci|ak ---------------------------
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