Head and Feet<\/p>\n
By Mas Ruscitadewi<\/p>\n
When his father, Ratu Peranda Agung Banjar, hereditary ruler
\nof the regency, passed away, many people came to call - so many
\nrelatives and retainers, in fact, that the king's son could not
\nremember all their names individually. Evidently, from the number
\nof well-wishers, his father had been held in great esteem and,
\nfor that, he justifiably might have felt the right to be proud.
\nIn ceremony after ceremony that followed his father's death, it
\nwas the same: thousands of retainers and relatives were present,
\nturning the prescribed rituals into festive events.<\/p>\n
As the only son of the dead ruler, Ida Bagus Agung Mudita had
\nno time to think about anything except for his prescribed role in
\nthe innumerable ceremonies and making sure that he fulfilled all
\nhis duties as the son. That was the only thing on his mind. As a
\nresult, when his close friend Madi Kandel asked him how he was
\ndoing, he didn't have time to take the question seriously<\/p>\n
\"Thankfully, everything is going well,\" he had replied
\nemotionlessly. There was no opportunity for him to grieve over
\nthe death of his father. All the activity and bustle that
\nsurrounded the numerous ceremonies served to suppress the
\npersonal pain, and the many rites and formalities seemed to make
\nthe time pass more quickly. In the end, when he finally had the
\ntime for grieving, it almost seemed too late and his feelings too
\nforced. The only thing he really felt was exhaustion.<\/p>\n
Then one day at the university, where Mudita was pursuing a
\ndegree, his friend Kandel asked again, \"So, ratu, are you really
\nall right?\" His tone of voice showed sympathy and understanding.<\/p>\n
Mudita began to nod in agreement but then, as if he had just
\nawoke from a long dream, he shook his head violently. \"What was
\nthat you called me?\" he asked his friend. Kandel had called him
\nratu - \"your majesty\" - the term of address used by subordinates
\nwhen speaking to the hereditary king. Of course, he had heard
\nhimself addressed as such when all the ceremonies had been going
\non. But he had viewed the term's use in reference to himself as
\njust one more part of the ritual, one more way of ensuring the
\nceremony's smooth progression.<\/p>\n
\"Ratu...\" Mudita said the word out loud. \"That's right, you've
\nbeen calling me that ever since your family came to assist with
\nmy father's cremation. If we were in the palace right now, maybe
\nI could understand you calling me that so that you wouldn't look
\nstrange in front of the others. But here, Kandel, on campus,
\nwhere we study together? Why are you acting like that towards me?
\nI'm your friend, not your ruler!\"<\/p>\n
A sense of deep disappointment welled inside Mudita's chest
\nand he suddenly found himself starting to cry. Unable to hold
\nback his hidden grief any longer, he cried all the harder. Now,
\nat this point in time when he was most in need of friendship, he
\nwas being treated by people in ways foreign to him. Even his best
\nfriend, Kandel, was distancing himself from him. And this had all
\ncome to a head the moment that Kandel called him 'ratu'.<\/p>\n
Kandel hesitated to speak, feeling that anything he might say
\nwould be wrong. He had known that Mudita would protest his use of
\nthe title. But he couldn't just call him Mudita any more. Now
\nthat Mudita had inherited his father's title, it would be
\ninsubordinate to call him by his name, all the more so because,
\nin the traditional and hierarchical realm of things, his family
\nwas in service to Mudita's family.<\/p>\n
He remembered a story his father once told him: \"It was His
\nHighness, Ratu Peranda Agung Banjar, who saved our family's
\nposition here. When your grandfather took a higher-caste Brahmin
\nwoman as his wife, the two of them might have been expelled from
\nsociety, but the king showed them mercy. And so, as your
\ngrandfather once told me, there was nothing with which for them
\nto repay this kindness, except through respect and loyal
\nservice.\" Thus it was that in times of calamity or misfortune,
\nKandel's family always went to their ruler's home where they
\nwould kiss his feet and ask for his blessings. For the family,
\nthis was not just a matter of ritual. This act was performed out
\nof sincere respect. All members of the family did this willingly,
\neven his aged grandfather.<\/p>\n
\"Our respect is all the greater because the one we hold in
\nesteem is a wise man,\" his grandfather had told him when asked
\nwhy the family continued to do this. And now, upon the death of
\nRatu Peranda Agung Banjar, the title of 'ratu' was transferred to
\nMudita. Though still a young man, he was now the regency's
\nrightful ruler. Both as a friend and a subject, Kandel had
\nrealized this even before Mudita thought about it.<\/p>\n
Kandel bowed towards Mudita and finally replied: \"I am sorry,
\nratu, but as your servant I cannot do that. Upon the death of
\nyour father, your majesty succeeded him as ruler, and we, the
\nmembers of the families who owe your family their allegiance,
\nmust be the first to pay homage.\" Kandel spoke emphatically, now
\neven more convinced by the rightness of his grandfather's view
\nthat Mudita's family did not crave respect, and for that very
\nreason were all the more worthy of the honor that was their due.
\nThis was reflected in Mudita himself, a young Brahmin for whom he
\nhad the utmost respect.<\/p>\n
Mudita pleaded quietly with his friend: \"But Kandel, haven't
\nwe always shown respect for each other and in a much better way?
\nEven if you don't call me ratu or kiss my feet, I know that you
\nrespect me, and that is what I value.\" Even as he spoke he knew
\nKandel would not change his mind, let alone the other members of
\nKandel's family or those who knew him less well. Deep down,
\nhowever, he hoped that Kandel might initiate a change in this
\ntradition. Considering Kandel's education and how well he knew
\nMudita, he though this might be possible.<\/p>\n
\"Please don't ask me to do that,\" Kandel said. \"Not because of
\nmyself, but because I am part of my family, I am one of the
\npeople. If it were only me, I'd make the sacrifice in order to
\nsave your majesty the discomfort. But I, as your servant, cannot
\nupset the family and the people who honor you so highly, and
\ntherefore must ask for your majesty's understanding.\"<\/p>\n
Feeling the sincerity in Kandel's voice and seeing that his
\nfriend was not going to change his mind, Mudita did not push him
\nfurther. Unable to reach a solution, the two young men eventually
\nfell silent. All that they had learned in the lecture halls and
\nclassrooms of the university could not resolve the complex issue
\nbefore them. They could not look on 'caste' as simply a product
\nof culture. They had to find a way not to upset others by their
\nwords or behavior.<\/p>\n
Mudita asked Kandel not to visit him for a while, not until he
\nhad found a solution for himself. He knew the problem lay not
\nwith Kandel but with his own way of thinking.<\/p>\n
And so Mudita searched constantly for the answer within
\nhimself. He tried to find a way to be at peace with the manner in
\nwhich others treated him. It was at times like this that he
\nthought of his recently deceased father. His father had taught
\nhim to respect not just all people but all creatures, even
\nwrongdoers. \"If you show a criminal respect, more often than not
\nhe will be ashamed of his crimes,\" his father had advised.<\/p>\n
He felt as if there were no way out of the problem. He yearned
\nto be the child again. How much happier he would be if there was
\nsomeone to stroke his hair, to soothe him, as his father, mother
\nand siblings used to do when he was small. Now, as ruler, no one
\nwas allowed to touch his head. If it were up to him, he decided,
\nhe would prefer to have his retainers and traditional subjects
\nstroke his hair rather than kiss his feet. He knew, though, that
\nthat would be unacceptable to both his family and the people of
\nthe regency.<\/p>\n
Feeling that he didn't have the answer to his problem, Mudita
\navoided his home and tried to spend as little time as possible in
\nplaces where he might encounter his retainers. Increasingly, he
\nspent his time at the temple where his father used to meditate.
\nAlmost unconsciously he began to imitate his father, practicing
\nthe yoga movements his father had taught him when he was small.
\nHe doubled his legs over until they touched his head. He felt
\ncomfortable doing this movement. He repeated it over and over,
\nonce, twice, three times, four times, and when he had done it for
\nthe ninth time, he snapped out of his trance.<\/p>\n
\"Head and feet - what's the difference? If the head can touch
\nthe feet and the feet can touch the head, then just as surely as
\nthe head and feet are equal, high caste or low caste are just the
\nsame.\"<\/p>\n
His face glowed with a bright smile. He wanted to shout out.
\nHe couldn't wait to see Kandel, his best friend.<\/p>\n
Translated by Sally Wellesley<\/p>\n
This short story is taken from The Menagerie IV courtesy of
\nLontar Foundation.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/head-and-feet-1447899208",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}