2025-11-22
Putu Eka Guna Yasa et al.
This article examines the discourse on pregnancy in the context of Kawi culture. The sources of data discussed here include texts of Śaiva persuasion across various genres and geographical areas, such as the Old Javanese Bhīṣmaprava from the Merapi-Merbabu region, the Old Javanese Bhīma Svarga from West Java, and a number of Old Javanese and Balinese texts from Bali, namely Tutur Aṅgastya Prāṇa, Śivāgama, Tutur Kanda Pat Bhūta, Dharma Kahuripan , and Uṣadha Mānak . According to their genres, these texts highlight either the theological, narrative, or practical (namely, from the perspective of healing) aspects of pregnancy. An intriguing feature is the presence of teachings other than Śaivism in the discourse on pregnancy. For instance, in the Śivāgama , which refers to Buddhist figures during the descent of gods in pregnancy, including their observances ( brata ), and hand gestures ( mudrā ). Meanwhile, the Tutur Aṅgastya Prāṇa explains that Bhagavān Aṅgastya had thoroughly studied Buddhism before explaining the origins of foetal development in the womb. Furthermore, the Uṣadha Mānak text repeatedly mentions Allah and Mohammad, who are crucial figures in Islamic theology, to treat people who often miscarry. This shows that the discourse of pregnancy eclectically adopts practices and idea stemming from different religious systems to ensure the safety and health of the foetus.
2025-11-22
Arlo Griffiths et al.
This short contribution presents two recently discovered inscriptions from Central Java that are among the oldest documents in the Old Javanese language, namely a dated stone from Kesongo (685 Śaka/743 CE) and the Disunuh inscription (709 Śaka/787 CE). These two artefacts constitute new evidence that Old Javanese had become a written language in this part of Java already in the eighth century CE. Previously, the period of use of Old Javanese in epigraphy was reckoned to have begun in the ninth century, and in East Java, based on the Harinjing A inscription from Kediri, assumed to date to 726 Śaka/804 CE. The new discoveries require a revision of the chronology of the emergence of vernacular epigraphy on the island of Java.
2025-11-22
Tyassanti Kusumo Dewanti et al.
The toponym Salingsingan is observed in several inscriptions spanning the period 791-836 Śaka (869-914 CE), through the reigns of King Lokapāla until King Daksa. Its occurrences are attributed to an area where a religious foundation was established. From these occurrences, we see several interesting topics to explore regarding the sīma institution, religious foundations ( dharma ), and the toponymy of early Central Java. Our aim is to demonstrate the management of the dharma of Salingsingan and to determine its present-day location by combining epigraphical records and archaeological remains. The research will first try to lay a foundation of what is meant by the terms s ī ma and dharma in a general context. Second, it looks at the relevant inscriptions to understand the context of Salingsingan’s occurrences. Third, it will examine how a religious foundation was managed through different patrons. Fourth, it will explore the possible locations of the Salingsingan foundation from the archaeological remains and the provenance of inscriptions. The study reveals different actors and their actions in the foundation at Salingsingan during the ninth and tenth centuries. The study of inscriptions’ provenances and the architectural styles of temples sheds light to the possible location of this foundation: the complex of Candi Asu, Lumbung, and Pendem in kabupaten Magelang. This multidisciplinary methodology of epigraphical and archaeological analysis helps us to ultimately understand the history of the foundation.
2025-11-22
Agung Kriswanto et al.
Evidence from literary texts originating from the Mount Merapi-Merbabu milieu in Central Java demonstrates the existence of a variant of the passive marker -in- affix, which has been in use since the early period of Old Javanese: the passive prefix ing- . The six literary texts that serve as the sources for this study indicate that the ing- prefix began to emerge during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, coinciding with the development of Middle Javanese. Previous researchers have not paid much attention to the ing- prefix, as it was considered merely incidental, especially since ing- was also found in texts from periods before the fifteenth century. Alongside the emergence of ing- , another form ring- appears, which serves the same grammatical function. This article focuses on two key issues: (i) ing- as a passive marker and (ii) passive construction patterns. The findings of this study reveal both similarities and differences in the grammatical characteristics of Javanese as used in texts from Merapi-Merbabu, compared to Old Javanese and Modern Javanese. The similarity between Middle Javanese and Old Javanese lies in passive constructions where the agent is expressed through suffixes for second- and third-person pronouns. Meanwhile, Middle Javanese and Modern Javanese share a similarity in passive constructions where the agent appears as a prefix for first- and second-person pronouns. The resemblance of Middle Javanese’s passive constructions to both Old Javanese and Modern Javanese within literary texts from the Merapi-Merbabu milieu suggests that this region preserves a transitional form of the language between Old Javanese and Modern Javanese.
2025-11-22
Editors Wacana
2025-06-10
Wendy Mukherjee
Raden Tjandra Pradja’s Wawacan rusiah nu geulis (The verse tale of the secrets of a beautiful woman) which was published in 1921 is a verse narrative of high literary merit. A tale of sexual morality, it is an early example of the realist fiction which was to develop during the first half of the twentieth century in the Sundanese language of West Java. The work carries an unusual and intricately woven sub-text telling of ethnic and cultural tension in Bandung, the provincial capital, through the representation of non-Sundanese figures – Hadhrami Arabs and cosmopolitan foreign Muslims. An Arab, Sheikh Abubakar bin Ma’rup al-Attas is made the villain of the piece. A community of Indians and emigres from Palembang, Sumatra, is further portrayed, according to stereotypes of the time, as wealthy merchants, strict in their observance of Islam but uncultivated in the Western-educated ways of the Sundanese elite. There is a historical irony lying behind this sub-text, since at the time of the work’s appearance progress was underway within the Hadhrami community of the Indies in the matter of religious reform, inspired by the ideas of Muhammad Abduh of Egypt. Furthermore, in 1923, in Bandung itself, members of the resident Palembang community and a Tamil Muslim from Singapore were to find the Persatuan Islam (Islamic Association) an organization which, through its pamphlets, lectures, and public debates was to create an intellectual vanguard of reformist thought in West Java.
2025-06-10
F.X. Rahyono