Kuntowijoyo's clarity his hallmark

Kuntowijoyo's clarity his hallmark

Aziz, Contributor, Jakarta

Kuntowijoyo has gone, and we can barely dry our eyes at the
sadness of losing him.

It is a loss for Yogyakarta, the home of a handful of great
Indonesian writers. We might remember that not long ago we lost
Prof. Umar Kayam, author of the best-selling novel Para Priyayi
and a series of columns in Kedaulatan Rakyat daily.

Most of all, Kuntowijoyo's passing is a loss for Indonesia.

Kuntowijoyo might not be regarded as the "guru" of Indonesian
intellectuals, as Soedjatmoko was in the past. The late
Soedjatmoko, former rector of United Nations University, had
great influence among Indonesian activists and intellectuals
during the 1970s and '80s.

One way or another, Soedjatmoko won great respect from his
Indonesian colleagues -- and international colleagues -- whether
of his own age or from a younger generation.

However, to a considerable extent, Kuntowijoyo also possessed
such influence. Ask any of the big names who now dominate the
intellectual discourse in Indonesia and you can bet they have
great respect for his thinking.

Since he was a frequent contributor to the media, with opinion
pieces and short stories, Kuntowijoyo may have influenced an
audience far beyond the intellectual community.

It may have been more through a loose association of secret
admirers that his work reached people in the wider world.

Or maybe he knew: He must have been familiar with a famous
quote from Soedjatmoko: "An idea has its own legs."

The mind is one thing, the heart another. As humility is the
first thing that comes to mind when we talk about this great
personality, many would testify how he always made an effort to
answer invitations, regardless of the amount of publicity, or
lack thereof, an event might generate.

He could get along with people from any level of society,
always exuding the same sincerity. In other words, he never
underestimated his audience.

It must be very hard to maintain a low profile and be
genuinely humble for a person who won numerous awards and
recognition scientifically, artistically and commercially.

For Kuntowijoyo, nonetheless, his humility just came
naturally.

For those not familiar with Kuntowijoyo, one of his first
published short stories earned him an award in 1968. He went to
the U.S. to study history at Columbia University, where he earned
his PhD.

His novels Marke and Khotbah di Atas Bukit (Sermon on the
Mount) gained recognition in the mid-1970s and became classics of
Indonesian literature.

His book on the Islamic paradigm (Paradigma Islam:
Interpretasi Untuk Aksi) was a best seller during the 1980s. He
wrote a number of other books and novels, most of which were
best-sellers.

One word that would encapsulate the quality of his works would
be "clarity". He could write efficiently, every paragraph packed
with power. It was as if every sentence had gone through a
process of scrutinized milling in his mind before it came out to
form part of a paragraph.

Moreover, he could always present something new, or, when not
new, in a new perspective. "One may be able to bomb the American
Embassy, Kentucky fast-food restaurants, but not (bomb) American
capitalism", he wrote in Mentalitas Bangsa Klien (Client Nation
Mentality). "Because, in the past, whereas people could struggle
against colonialism physically, nowadays we face a more abstract
(problem)."

Kuntowijoyo offered understanding with short sentences that
conveyed a very basic, but often overlooked, point of view.

Beyond his humble appearance, Kuntowijoyo was a strong man, a
very strong man.

Not even encephalitis could stop him. He was hospitalized for
almost five months with the illness, yet his strong will enabled
him to recover.

After his illness, three of his short stories were selected by
Kompas daily as the best of the year.

Not that Indonesia lacks great short story writers, but again,
his clarity was too good to resist.

Farewell, Professor Kunto. Your clarity and humility taught us
much. Whatever you may have received in return for your kindness
is less than you deserve.