Swiss scholar dedicates life to Bali

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.