Balinese babad as historical sources; A reinterpretation of the fall of Gèlgèl

Banua or Negara? The Culture of Land in South Bali

“…A similar concept is embodied in the construction of mountain bale agung, said to represent 'divine unity and the passage ... through the circle of life, afterlife and rebirth' (Reuter 1996: 156). 28 The subject of 'history' in Bali is inherently problematic (see Bateson 1970Bateson [1937; Creese 1991;Davies 1991;Grader 1960: 163;Hobart 1979: 35;Schulte-Nordholt 1992;Vickers 1986Vickers , 1990Wiener 1995: 76-96) and beyond the scope of this essay. I am concerned here less with verification of factual accuracy than with the use of history as a charter explaining and legitimating the present.…”

Chronologies and chronograms; An interim response to Hägerdal

“…Hans Hagerdal's article on the chronology of the Balinese kingdom of Gelgel (1995) is a welcome contribution to recent attempts to describe this elusive period of Balinese history. In this article, Hagerdal takes issue with my own conclusions concerning the chronology of this period (Creese 1991a). It is neither possible for me to do justice to Hagerdal's detective work among the Dutch archival sources, nor to deal with his arguments point by point, in the context of this brief rejoinder.…”

“…The central problem is that, although points of similarity do exist between the Dutch account and the Babad Dalem, both military expeditions in aid of Blambangan and revolts, particularly those by relatives of the king, are so commonplace throughout both the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries that, as I have argued earlier (Creese 1991a), it is possible to equate these events with any one of a number of rulers in the Babad Dalem. Although the visit of 1597 may have been of some significance in Dutch history, it passed unnoticed in Balinese sources.…”

Sharing the Earth, Dividing the Land : Land and territory in the Austronesian world

“…A similar concept is embodied in the construction of mountain bale agung, said to represent 'divine unity and the passage ... through the circle of life, afterlife and rebirth' (Reuter 1996: 156). 28 The subject of 'history' in Bali is inherently problematic (see Bateson 1970Bateson [1937Creese 1991;Davies 1991;Grader 1960: 163;Hobart 1979: 35;Schulte-Nordholt 1992;Vickers 1986Vickers , 1990Wiener 1995: 76-96) and beyond the scope of this essay. I am concerned here less with verification of factual accuracy than with the use of history as a charter explaining and legitimating the present.…”