Getting to Know Balinese Lontar, Palm Leaf Manuscripts That Preserve a Wealth of Knowledge
Wigobali.com – Bali has many ways of preserving memories.
There are temples, ceremonies, traditions, architecture, and stories passed down from one generation to the next.
However, long before everything could easily be recorded in books and stored digitally.
Well, the Balinese people already had a medium that was simple yet special: lontar.
Its form may not be as grand as a modern book.
Just sheets of dried leaves, then inscribed with script using a special tool.
But from these sheets, various kinds of knowledge about Balinese society have been preserved.
Lontar does not only contain religious texts.
Within them can be found knowledge about philosophy, ethics, traditional medicine, agriculture, astronomy, literature, history, and various guidelines for everyday life.
Therefore, lontar is not merely an old object kept in a particular place.
Lontar itself is also one of the important traces for understanding how Balinese society in the past viewed life and organized their knowledge.
Not Merely Ancient Manuscripts
When hearing the word lontar, the image that may come to mind is an old book with writing that is difficult to read.
In fact, the scope of lontar is much broader.In various literature, lontar manuscripts are classified based on their content and function.
There are Weda, which are related to religious knowledge, Agama, which contains rules, law, ethics and morals, and Usada, which is related to traditional medicine.
There is also Wariga, which discusses calendars, astronomy and astrology; Itihasa, which is related to epic stories and literature;
Babad, which contains history and genealogies; Lelampahan, which is related to performing arts; Tantri, consisting of stories and tales; and Prasi, which features illustrations.
This classification shows one thing: the knowledge preserved in lontar does not exist within just one sphere.
Instead, these lontar intersect with many aspects of human life.
From spiritual matters to everyday affairs, lontar has become part of the knowledge tradition passed down by the Balinese people.
From Ancestors to the Next Generation
For some Balinese people, lontar holds a status beyond that of a mere document.
These manuscripts are treated as part of the ancestral heritage that needs to be cared for.
There is a belief in taksu, namely a spiritual power or force believed to be attached to something that has sacred and cultural value.
Lontar is also closely associated with reverence for Sang Hyang Aji Saraswati, the symbol of knowledge in Balinese Hindu tradition.
This relationship can be seen during the celebration of Saraswati Day,
which comes every 210 days according to the Balinese Pawukon calendar, on Saniscara Kliwon Wuku Watugunung.
On that day, various sources of knowledge, including lontar, receive special reverence.
Books and texts are not treated merely as objects, but as means through which humans acquire knowledge.
At this point, lontar becomes interesting, because it shows how knowledge in Balinese culture is not only studied, but also revered.
Written on Palm Leaves
So how is a lontar made?
Its main material is the ental leaf, a type of palm also known as the palmyra palm.
The selected leaves then undergo a lengthy process before they are ready to be used as a writing medium.
The leaves are not simply picked and then written on.
Instead, they need to go through several stages, starting with drying, soaking, boiling, rinsing, then drying and clamping.
This process aims to produce sheets that are strong enough to be written on and stored for a long time.
Material care is important because lontar must withstand humidity, insects and tropical environmental conditions.
The prepared leaf sheets are then known as part of the lontar writing medium.
Interestingly, making lontar requires patience.
Each stage is carried out carefully because mistakes in preparing the leaves can affect the quality of the writing and its durability.
Here we can see that lontar, from the very beginning, is not merely the result of writing.
Lontar becomes part of a body of knowledge about materials, hand skills, perseverance, as well as tradition.
Writing with a Pangrupak
Writing on lontar leaves is also not done using a pen like the ones we know today.
One important tool is the pangrupak, a tool used to scratch the surface of the leaf to form script.
The leaf sheets are usually placed on a particular base.
In the lontar writing tradition, equipment such as a dulang is also known.
Meanwhile, lungka-lungka is used as an arm support while writing.
There are also clamps that help keep the sheets in position.
After the script has been scratched, the surface of the leaf is coated with a blackening material so that the writing grooves become clearly visible.
One traditional material used is roasted candlenut. The method is simple, but requires precision.
The pangrupak must be moved with enough pressure for the writing to be visible without damaging the leaf.
Thus, a lontar writer needs more than just the ability to read and write script. They must also understand the characteristics of the material being used.
There Are Records of Life Within
One of the interesting things about the lontar tradition is that its contents are not always texts that feel “heavy” to modern readers.
In addition to religious texts, literature, medicine or history, lontar manuscripts can also serve as a place to preserve records of human life.
Records of habits, thoughts, experiences, agreements and various everyday affairs can be found in the Balinese manuscript tradition.
In other words, lontar can also be read as a kind of small window through which to view the lives of people in their time.
We can imagine how Balinese people in the past recorded something they considered important, then preserved it so that it could be read again by generations that came after them.
That is where the value of lontar becomes even more interesting. It speaks not only about the past, but also about the human habit of preserving memories.