Balinese iconography turned into a commodity<\/p>\n
By Kadek Adnyana<\/p>\n
DENPASAR (JP): A few years ago, when coming down the steep
\nroad from Bukit to the village of Jimbaran, now the location of
\nthe Bali Intercontinental, I noticed a tree split in two in a
\nstrange way. Branching just above the ground before rejoining
\nagain higher up, it was the perfect simile of the female vagina.
\nThis similarity had not escaped the attention of the locals
\neither.<\/p>\n
Obviously awed by what to them was more than a coincidence,
\nthey had started placing offerings in the tree's most interesting
\njuncture. To them, the vagina-like tree was obviously the
\ndwelling place of a deity of fertility. Now, a few years later,
\nwalls have been added, as well as a couple of shrines. The deity,
\ncertainly after proper consultation, has been formalized in its
\npossession of the place. A sexual shape has been elevated to a
\nreligious symbol and function.<\/p>\n
Things like this are common in Bali. Phallic or vaginal-shaped
\nstones are found all over the island. As with the tree, this
\nembodies a local ancestor or god of fertility of megalithic
\norigin. With names as varied as Batara Segara or Batara Celak
\nKontong (celak means penis), they have been integrated into the
\ngeneral framework of the Hindu-Balinese perception of life. When
\ntheir special day comes around in the Balinese calendar, they are
\nwashed, dressed, powdered and sometimes carried around the temple
\nand village as a way to ask for protection and prosperity.<\/p>\n
Sexuality has also been accepted and been given symbolic
\nreverence at the upper level of the Hindu-Sivhaist pantheon. In
\nthe Hindu-Shivaist philosophy, the world is seen as consisting of
\nthe union of two cosmic forces: the male principle, called the
\nPurusa, bearer of the material component, and the female
\nprinciple, called the Purusa, bearer of the spiritual component.
\nThe linga is said in particular to represent the god Siwa in its
\nsupreme ParamaSiwa aspect. In the Siwaratri Kalpa story, the evil
\nhunter Lubdaka is saved from hell for having inadvertently put
\ntogether a linga of leaves in a lake while waiting out the night
\nin a tree for protection. In Bali's Goa Gajah cave, one can also
\nsee three lingas representing the Hindu trinity of Shiva, Brahma
\nand Wishnu.<\/p>\n
The Balinese island world itself has been rethought along the
\nlines of sexual cosmology. The highest mountain, Agung, the
\ndwelling place of the highest gods, is a male symbol while the
\nlakes and the sea are female and the abode of more negative
\ndeities. At the level of the individual microcosm (Bhwana Alit),
\nthe phenomenon of conception is said to come from the encounter
\nbetween the Kama Petak or deified white desire (kama) of the male
\nwith the Kama Abang or red deified desire of the female. It is
\nthrough their meeting that the incarnating soul (atma) can came
\ndown and don an earthly dress.<\/p>\n
Sexuality conveying symbolical and religious meanings accounts
\nfor the sexually explicit nature of some Balinese iconography.
\nMany temples are decorated with daring sexual or erotic scenes
\nfrom Balinese hell, usually as a warning against the consequences
\nof sin. The representation of sex is therefore not negative. It
\nis the use which is made of sexuality which matters to the
\nBalinese, whether it serves demonic or godly purposes. This fact
\nis little understood by many Moslem and Christian Indonesians.
\nThey are not able to appreciate the dual aspect of Balinese
\nsexual symbolism, and criticizes it from a perspective that is as
\nintrinsically ignorant as it is self-righteously puritanical.<\/p>\n
Problems are emerging in Bali, however. Because of its
\nreligious and symbolic significance, Balinese iconographic sexual
\nrepresentation is ill-prepared to deal with modern secular
\nsexuality. It is an accepted fact that sex sells, and that sex is
\nnow inseparable form the other aspects of the much vaunted market
\neconomy. The consequence can be guessed easily.<\/p>\n
Spurred by the unquenchable demand of tourists with their own
\nperception of freedom of choice and sexual orientation, the
\ncosmic and religious sexuality of the Balinese is being eaten
\naway and turned into just another commodity.<\/p>\n
The change in the meaning and content of sexuality has had
\nlittle effect on behavior, because the Balinese are still
\nprotected by their village tradition, but a tremendous effect on
\nwhat images are produced.<\/p>\n
Twenty years ago, to give but one example, villagers in Pujung
\nmade primitive statues of naive sexual content. They carved small
\nfigures with big penises, a theme directly derived from similar
\nimages found in the local tradition. Now, obviously at the
\nrequest of alien purchasers, local sculptors make, alongside
\nregular statues of gods or Donald Duck, hard-porn statues of male
\nhomosexuality.<\/p>\n
In villages reputed for their traditional painting, like in
\nthe Ubud-Batuan area, some artists, and not necessarily the less
\ntalented, have turned to producing soft-porn. A picture depicting
\nan act of fellatio against a Balinese backdrop -- invariably on
\ncommission -- commands a better price than the traditional but
\npasse Balinese love scene between faithful Setyawati and her
\nbeloved husband Salya.<\/p>\n
Traditional erotic iconography is thus voided of its symbolic
\nand didactic meaning. It has been set in a new, secular
\nperspective for the sake of increasing sales. This portrays not
\nonly a change in function but also a change in culture.<\/p>\n
In some instances, the pretense of a Balinese cultural
\nbackground is completely gone. One of the biggest hits at beach
\nstalls and at the Balinese art market of Sukawati are penises of
\nall shapes, sizes and hues. They are made into ashtrays,
\nkey holders and other instruments for domestic and private use.
\nJust imagine ten, perhaps even hundreds of good, temple-going
\nsmiling Balinese bent over pieces of wood, earnestly carving
\nthese pieces of shame.<\/p>\n
All Balinese are artists, it is said. But, in post-modern
\nBali, where have all the symbols gone?<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/balinese-iconography-turned-into-a-commodity-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}