The Political Use of Prophecies in Indonesia
Abstract
The paper analyzes through different historical periods in Indonesia the political instrumentalization of three prophetic narratives based on the prophecies of the medieval Javanese king Jayabaya, and looks at the ways in which millenniarist organizations and political activists have used the myths of the Savior and the Golden Age to achieve their own goals. The form of prophetic narratives has proved extremely productive in the process of channeling dissatisfaction and mobilizing for the purpose of political activism, and their interpretation does not only yield a clearer picture of the complex political situation and historical events, but also, through the actions of influential individuals, it provides insight into a number of other aspects of local culture, such as the forming of religious syncretism, the division of power in society or the cultural perception of time. The paper seeks to show that these prophecies do not aim to foretell future events, but rather serve as a means o...f ensuring the legitimacy of individuals in political struggles in the present time.
Keywords:
prophesying / political prophecies / myth of the Golden Age / millenniarism / Jayabaya / Indonesia / foretelling the future / anthropology of timeSource:
Etnoantropološki problemi, 2020, 15, 1, 269-311Publisher:
- Univerzitet u Beogradu - Filozofski fakultet - Odeljenje za etnologiju i antropologiju, Beograd
Funding / projects:
Collections
Institution/Community
Etnologija i antropologija / Ethnology and AnthropologyTY - JOUR AU - Stajić, Mladen PY - 2020 UR - http://reff.f.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/3210 AB - The paper analyzes through different historical periods in Indonesia the political instrumentalization of three prophetic narratives based on the prophecies of the medieval Javanese king Jayabaya, and looks at the ways in which millenniarist organizations and political activists have used the myths of the Savior and the Golden Age to achieve their own goals. The form of prophetic narratives has proved extremely productive in the process of channeling dissatisfaction and mobilizing for the purpose of political activism, and their interpretation does not only yield a clearer picture of the complex political situation and historical events, but also, through the actions of influential individuals, it provides insight into a number of other aspects of local culture, such as the forming of religious syncretism, the division of power in society or the cultural perception of time. The paper seeks to show that these prophecies do not aim to foretell future events, but rather serve as a means of ensuring the legitimacy of individuals in political struggles in the present time. PB - Univerzitet u Beogradu - Filozofski fakultet - Odeljenje za etnologiju i antropologiju, Beograd T2 - Etnoantropološki problemi T1 - The Political Use of Prophecies in Indonesia EP - 311 IS - 1 SP - 269 VL - 15 DO - 10.21301/eap.v15i1.10 ER -
@article{ author = "Stajić, Mladen", year = "2020", abstract = "The paper analyzes through different historical periods in Indonesia the political instrumentalization of three prophetic narratives based on the prophecies of the medieval Javanese king Jayabaya, and looks at the ways in which millenniarist organizations and political activists have used the myths of the Savior and the Golden Age to achieve their own goals. The form of prophetic narratives has proved extremely productive in the process of channeling dissatisfaction and mobilizing for the purpose of political activism, and their interpretation does not only yield a clearer picture of the complex political situation and historical events, but also, through the actions of influential individuals, it provides insight into a number of other aspects of local culture, such as the forming of religious syncretism, the division of power in society or the cultural perception of time. The paper seeks to show that these prophecies do not aim to foretell future events, but rather serve as a means of ensuring the legitimacy of individuals in political struggles in the present time.", publisher = "Univerzitet u Beogradu - Filozofski fakultet - Odeljenje za etnologiju i antropologiju, Beograd", journal = "Etnoantropološki problemi", title = "The Political Use of Prophecies in Indonesia", pages = "311-269", number = "1", volume = "15", doi = "10.21301/eap.v15i1.10" }
Stajić, M.. (2020). The Political Use of Prophecies in Indonesia. in Etnoantropološki problemi Univerzitet u Beogradu - Filozofski fakultet - Odeljenje za etnologiju i antropologiju, Beograd., 15(1), 269-311. https://doi.org/10.21301/eap.v15i1.10
Stajić M. The Political Use of Prophecies in Indonesia. in Etnoantropološki problemi. 2020;15(1):269-311. doi:10.21301/eap.v15i1.10 .
Stajić, Mladen, "The Political Use of Prophecies in Indonesia" in Etnoantropološki problemi, 15, no. 1 (2020):269-311, https://doi.org/10.21301/eap.v15i1.10 . .