The body of the king: reappraising Singhasari period syncretism

This article argues for a reassessment of the history of the Singhasari period based on disambiguating diverse historical sources that have often been combined to produce a seamless narrative, when in fact the textual record is marked by conflict, contradiction and ambiguity. The author proposes a b...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Southeast Asian studies
Main Author: Hunter, Thomas M. (Author)
Format: Print Article
Language:English
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Published: Cambridge Univ. Press 2007
In: Journal of Southeast Asian studies
Further subjects:B Literature
B Buddhism
B Religion
B Epoch
B Royal house
B Politics
B Hinduism
B History
B Syncretism
B Indonesia
Description
Summary:This article argues for a reassessment of the history of the Singhasari period based on disambiguating diverse historical sources that have often been combined to produce a seamless narrative, when in fact the textual record is marked by conflict, contradiction and ambiguity. The author proposes a basic division between the perspective of kakawin literature, which represents the interests of royal and priestly actors with a large stake in maintaining a fixed symbolic order, and literature in Middle Javanese, which reflects the more personal values that arose among young royals competing for favourable position in the core-line status hierarchy. The author further claims that symbolic initiatives of Krtanagara (1265-92 CE) that led to his identification as ‘the god Shiva-Buddha’ were not aimed at producing a syncretic religious system, but rather a politico-religious hegemony that had profound effects on the shape of statecraft during the Majapahit era. (J Southeast Asian Stud/GIGA)
ISSN:0022-4634
Contains:In: Journal of Southeast Asian studies