Swiss scholar dedicates life to Bali

Susi Andrini, Contributor, Denpasar

Bali never ceases to inspire hundreds of writers.

A new book on Bali entitled Bali Living in Two Worlds, launched on Thursday, Feb. 21, will certainly add to the existing references on the island's social, cultural and religious life.

But the new book is quite different from others as it was written by a band of aspiring Balinese writers, an architect, activists and others who are directly witnessing the rapid changes in Bali.

Thirteen people contributed their thoughts in the book including IGR Panji Tisna, Degung Santikarma, Putu Suasta, Oka Rusmini, I Ketut Sumarta, Cok Sawitri, Popo Danes, Alit S. Rini, Putu Wirata Dwikora, Ida Ayu Agung Mas, Sugi B. Lanus. The illustrations for the book were done by photographer Rama Surya.

Yet, the book would never have come into existence without the meticulous efforts of Swiss anthropologist and scholar Urs Ramseyer.

"Each chapter of the book will provide insights for the readers on the reality of contemporary Bali," reflected Ramseyer who raised funds to finance the publication of the book.

The book, which was already launched in Basel last January, is expected to become a comprehensive mozaic of current Balinese society, said Ramseyer.

It is hoped that the current English-German edition of Bali Living in Two Worlds could be translated into Indonesian in the coming months.

This is not the first cultural and intellectual endeavor of this Swiss scholar to promote Bali. He is the author of several popular books on Bali such as The Arts and Culture of Bali (Oxford University Press, l977), Textiles in Bali (Periplus Editions, l991), The People of Bali (Blackwell, l998).

For Ramseyer, thirty years are not enough to understand Bali and its people. His love affair with Bali started in l972 when he first arrived on the island to carry out a thorough study of its music, dance and culture.

In June l972, Ramseyer and his colleagues from the University of Basel, Switzerland and two television cameramen visited several villages including Sidemen, Tenganan and Pengringsingan in Karang Asem, East Bali.

He conducted a 20-month comprehensive study on the sacred dance of Rejang, which can only be performed during certain religious ceremonies. He also researched Selonding traditional music and various rituals performed by people in the two villages.

Since then, Ramseyer visited Bali almost every year. In these two old villages, Ramseyer browsed through hundreds of ancient lontar (palm leaf inscriptions) and tried to understand the contents of the inscriptions. He also learned how to play gamelan instruments.

"I studied the subject as well as involved myself in every cultural activity," he recalled.

One of his fascinating documents is a video on the process of weaving the sacred Penggringsingan cloth. In the documentary, which took around 18 months to complete, Ramseyer chronicled how the woven cloth was made. Penggringsingan cloth is used for sacred religious functions. Tenganan residents are allowed to wear the cloth only in major religious events. The cloth is also used to cover various ceremonial utensils in the village's major temples.

It takes between five to eight years to weave the sacred cloth. Only a few Tenganan people are still capable of making this cloth. The weaving skill has been passed down from generation to generation. The documentary was made due to concern that the cloth-making tradition would be forgotten if the younger generation of Tenganan were no longer able to acquire the weaving skill from their parents. "One of the Penggringsingan masters was very old and was dying when I shot the film," Ramseyer remembered.

The documentary film is currently kept and regularly showed at the Museum Der Kulturen in Basel, Switzerland where Ramseyer is vice director and curator of the Southeast Asian culture section.

Ramseyer's other legacies is the establishment of Sidemen high school in Sidemen village. It was established in l987 when Bali was experiencing a tourist boom.

Most youth in remote villages went to city centers to find schools and work in tourist centers like Denpasar and Ubud in Gianyar. The villages were left empty. Only women and young children stayed in the villages taking care of their rice fields and cattle.

Ramseyer was very concerned and decided to find financial and technical assistance to set up a high school in Sidemen village so that young people did not have to go to the cities. What's more, girls could also enroll at the village high school, he said.

With a fund of US$300,000, Ramseyer and local residents built the school, Sekolah Menengah Umum Sidemen. Unlike public schools in Bali, the Sidemen school set up its own curriculum that includes cultural studies such as Lontar reading, dancing, singing and gamelan music lessons. The school also gives its students knowledge of traditional medicine and other traditions such as Usada Bali, Subak (Balinese social and agricultural system), history, weaving sacred cloth, and how to make offerings.

"The school incorporates a modern and traditional curriculum. It is important for Balinese children to understand their own culture deeply," he said. Now, in its 15 years of existence, the school has become a role model. Up until now, Basel still subsidizes the school including the salaries of its teachers.

Nowadays, Ramseyer is busy organizing a cross-cultural exhibition in which he has invited Indonesian artists to exhibit their works in Basel and Swiss artists to exhibit their works in Bali and other places in Indonesia. Among the invited artists include painter Heri Dono, I Wayan Sika, Putu Suta Wijaya, Eddie Hara and photographer Rama Surya.

Last January, Ramseyer held a cultural exhibition on Bali in Basel, Switzerland.

"It was amazing, more than 10,000 people visited the exhibition on the opening day. It was like queuing at a movie theater," he recalled.

Thanks to Ramseyer, people outside the island really appreciate Balinese culture.