Mahatma Putra

Manusia dan Matahari

2011-07-30T13:18:00.003+07:00

Manusia dan Matahari adalah kawan

Berebut awan menunggu hujan

Matahari dan awan memang berdampingan

Namun manusia lebih cinta awan ketimbang panas sengatan

Matahari lalu terheran pada manusia

Mengapa awan lebih dipuja daripada ia

Mungkin awan lupa sejenak

Merasa pongah berada ditengah serasa bijak

Padahal awan hanya gumpalan air mata

Sekejap kemudian cair melanda

"Selamat pagi manusia," kata matahari,

Sejenak setelah manusia menari.

The Melting Pot, Salad Bowl & Rujak

2011-07-21T02:49:00.001+07:00

As an Indonesian with the opportunity to live in the US, I have had quite an interesting experience. For me it is a real visualization of western movies I've seen, that indeed America consists of a lot of people from all around the world with diverse cultural, ethnic and religious background.

The United States is often called as a melting pot, a place where everybody from all over the world meets and unites as Americans. The “Melting Pot” term was first used to describe the celebration of American value created by immigrants from Europe in 1870s, and popularized in 1905 by Israel Zangwill, a British writer and humorist.

But from early 1930s there has been some questions and critique about the Melting Pot concept. Some people, mainly the multiculturalists, begin to wonder whether America –as a nation of immigrants— actually dissolves its immigrant’s cultures into one American Culture and lose their origin’s values. The melting pot refers to a condition where everything in heterogeneous culture melts and become one homogenous culture.

The multiculturalists used the term “Salad Bowl” to counter “The Melting Pot”. They believe in the “Salad Bowl” concept, where the richness of diverse culture is not lost to become homogenous. “Salad Bowl” offers a mix of ingredients that still could be distinguished from one another, but still creates one whole new rich flavor.

In the salad bowl, lettuce, tomatoes, shrimp, and the sauce still could be distinguished from one another. The same as America where the Irish, the Italian, the Chinese, the Hispanic and the Black still can be identified as unique societies that blend together as Americans. Each of them preserve their old traditional values and pass it for generations. Chinese has their Chinese New Year, Black Americans has their Kwanzaa, Hispanics has their Cinco de Mayo, Irish has their St. Patrick days, the Jews have their Passover, and as for the Muslims, next month they will be observing Ramadhan and celebrating Eid Mubarak. America has all different celebrations for many different groups.

After covering the ISNA (Islamic Society of North America) Convention from July 1st to 4th in Chicago, I started pondering deeper about the life of Muslims in America. Are they lost in the “American Melting Pot” or do they still maintaining their identity as expected from the “American Salad Bowl” concept?

This event is the 48th convention of ISNA. The main event is a series of seminars on subjects important to American Muslims, and on the sideline there is a bazaar of Muslim products from halal foods, books, toys to handicraft. The five day event is attended by approximately 40,000 Muslims from all over America. Here, the diverse faces of American Muslims are truly revealed by the diversity of ISNA attendees. There are men wearing white robes to blue jeans and women wearing black burqas to pink skirts.

The theme of this year's convention is "Loving God, Loving Neighbor, Living in Harmony". Imam Mohamed Magid, ISNA President, said that they have this theme to encourage Muslims and fellow Americans to uphold their faith as the practice of Loving God, and from loving God they should connect with their neighbors regardless who the neighbors are. Then he advised Muslims to invite people to their Mosque and show to American society in general that Islam is indeed a religion of peace and Muslims do strive to live in harmony with other groups.

In ISNA I’ve met a lot of people that are very proud of being a Muslim and also American at the same time. Most of them do not feel that their Muslim faith contradicts the American way of life. Personally and professionally, they are capable to communicate, conduct business, socialize, and blend perfectly outside their community. They are proud of being American Muslims.

One of the attendees there, Aala Mohamed, a Yale student, has her own opinion about the face of American Islam. She thinks that the face of American Islam is the face of every American; that the true meaning of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness –the famous phrase in United States declaration of independence—cannot be separated from American Muslims, because for some the goals of pursuing life, liberty and happiness are through Islam.

From what I saw in ISNA, I learned that American Muslims preserve their identity in this “Salad Bowl.” This community uphold its unique culture and specific values, maintain a strong bond to their faith, without feeling they need to give it up to be part of the American society.

This example made me question how we handle diversity back home. In Indonesia, we have a lot of laws to preserve diversity. But some cases regarding the treatment of minorities, for example GKI Yasmin Bogor to Ahmadiyah, do not reflect that. These cases do not reflect that we are also the “Salad Bowl” –or “Rujak” society.

So, are we going to melt? Or are we going to introduce the “Indonesian Rujak” to the world?

Sang Ahmad

2011-07-13T23:29:00.004+07:00

English Closed Captioning Available.
YouTube HD Available.

The Moslem Blues

2011-07-06T02:10:00.007+07:00

4th of July celebrates not only the Independence of United States. It celebrates the birth of fundamental human rights, the milestone for mankind to be equal in every aspect.

However, for some people in the States, independence and equality came to them a bit too late. Black American has their rights to vote in mid 60’s, almost 2 centuries after America first gained its freedom.

When we talked about equality, we talked about blues. Blues as the oldest music genre in the world also happened in America. As black American felt that their voice can only be heard from these songs. Blues is music for fighters, a song of liberation, and the unheard voices. It has accompanied America and its civilization from the cowboy era in Midwest until the era of President Obama.

Obama starts his first step to enter American political stage in Chicago, the city that has full of young and energetic people, one of the homes of blues in America. Chicago reflected the struggling, true liberation, and equality for its every citizen. These are the core value of blues.
As a metropolitan melting pot, Chicago also known as a place that has the largest Moslem community in America. In Devon Avenue at the north of Chicago almost every store and restaurant not just sells halal food, but zabihah food, means that the animals sacrificed in the name of Allah.

In Rosemont, north of Chicago, from the 1st to the 5th of July, one of the biggest Moslem expo held there, named ISNA, Islamic Society in North America. About 40,000 American Moslem attended and participated in this annual event. In ISNA they can see exhibition of Moslem products from foods, books, toys to handcraft. There are also film festivals that encourage Islamic theme, seminars about halal food from American Halal Association, and one of the most interesting things is a speed dating for fellow young Moslem, man and women that expect marriage. They called the speed dating “Matrimonial Banquet”, mean that they seek only for serious date that lead to marriage, because even for American Moslem dating is not much allowed.

Here are some people I've met who attended the Matrimonial Banquet

From what I’ve seen in Chicago, I began to realize whether if America is a true melting pot. It is pretty fair if melting pot defined as a neighborhood that everyone there is diverse and lives together side by side. But if there is a neighborhood that not so diverse stand by the neighborhood of other community that also not diverse, can it be called the melting pot? For me personally it only creates blocks that separate each community.

Chinese have their own Chinatown where everybody speak Chinese, black American have their own Harlem where everybody listen to hip hop, and now there is Devon with its halal store everywhere.

Every immigrant must have difficulties to cope. In past time we can see problems with Irish and Italian immigrant in America. Now they seems have blend well with each other for time has dissolved their ethnical identity into American identity.

As I began questioning, I begin to understand that the question is maybe not whether they choose to live within their community or outside their community, because everybody is always looking for the common ground. Perhaps the one that I should be questioned is whether they could live outside their own community.

In ISNA I’ve met a lot of people that are very proud being a Moslem and also American at the same time. They are proud of being American Moslem. They still have their own traditional moral value but they are also professionals that are capable to communicate, making business, socialize, and blend perfectly outside their community.

Some people in America may lose their racial, ethnical, and religion identity and gained their American identity. But from what I see, Moslem community in America, especially the middle-east Moslem, have very strong bond to their traditional values and religion, and they are not willing to give it up.

It is a long and winding journey for American Moslem to keep their both identity in harmony.

From the heart of Chicago, with the 4th of July spirit, American Moslem deserves some blues plays for them, for their liberation, and the long fight ahead.

The Kawah Ijen's Warriors

2011-04-09T11:32:00.000+07:00

English Closed Captioning Available

"The Kawah Ijen's Warriors"

"The Kawah Ijen's Warriors" merupakan video dokumenter perjalanan dari pameran bertajuk sama yang memamerkan foto-foto karya Andi Ari Setiadi, Barmen Simatupang, Budi Chandra, Mahatma Putra dan Panji Wijaya.

Pembukaan Pameran "The Kawah Ijen's Warriors" diselenggarakan pada Sabtu, 1 Mei 2010 pukul 19.30 WIB dan dimeriahkan oleh Gugun & Blues shelter, Oppie Andaresta, Inong Lubis Union, mengambil tempat di Galeri Foto Jurnalistik ANTARA, Jl. ANTARA No. 59 Pasar Baru, Jakarta.

Mek

2011-03-31T15:45:00.002+07:00

Mulan #2

2011-03-31T15:44:00.002+07:00

Mulan

2011-03-30T10:08:00.003+07:00

Identitas

2011-03-24T12:30:00.004+07:00

2 Hari Bersama Laura

2011-03-24T12:12:00.004+07:00

@Bucksbuks with Laura Aprilia Sihombing

Captured by Tri Saputro

Ahimsa in Indonesia

2011-01-21T12:37:00.001+07:00

India and Indonesia are countries that achieved their independence in an almost exact time. India celebrates its independence on 15th of August 1947, while Indonesia is on the August 17th 1945, two years earlier than India. India has struggled for their independence from Britain while Indonesia from Dutch. These two countries share certain values and traditions applied in their social life, for colonial’s occupation has made their mentality to grow in difficult conditions.

If we see some Javanese and Indian values, their philosophy are very much alike for their similarities and strong roots of Hinduism. However there are certain things that have vanished in Indonesia caused by the enculturation processes and Islamic values that have erased some basic fundamental Hinduism values.

Ahimsa is one of India’s values that have been erased during Islamic proselytizing. Literally ahimsa translated as a term that means not to do any harm. Ahimsa is avoidance of violence. This principal is an important value for Indian religions like Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.

Mahatma Gandhi, one of India’s most respected leaders, believes this principal and promoting it during the Britain-Indian peace war around 1940. With this value he fights the British not by violent force, but by accepts all harm that the British done to the Indian people. Then this thing led India to its independence.

In Indonesia Ahimsa is not so well known anymore, for Islam values are a bit contradictive with Ahimsa. For instance, Had law (Islamic Syariat Law) supports violence if it will lead to goodness (such as “cut the hand” law).

Indonesia as a multi-cultural countries have their own problems caused by their differences. There are many ethnic and religion conflict happens caused by their lack of understanding in how to cope their own differences.

It will need a long way to grow understanding between these groups in order to avoid conflict. Ahimsa maybe is one of the practical solutions for people in Indonesia nowadays that we could look back and learn at, for we already have Hinduism and Buddhism as a part of our history.

Promoting Gotong Royong & Musyawarah

2011-01-21T12:14:00.009+07:00

Indonesia is a vast archipelago that unites a lot of ethnic groups that has their own values and traditions. From Dutch occupation for almost 350 years, then Indonesia learn to unite by suffered together under colonial's rule.

From the difficulties Indonesian people had been facing for 3 centuries, then they have learned to cope all the problems collectively together due their lack of education and intellectualism. The circumstances required them to think and do things with a lot of not-so-intellect brains in order to solve their problems.

The condition then made Indonesian people --from all ethnic groups-- becoming more collectivist. They depend on each other on almost every aspect in their life. The needs of others in Indonesia are very high.

From here then born things such as gotong-royong and musyawarah.

Gotong-royong is an Indonesian way to work together in almost every aspect of their social life. Up until now, in Indonesian country-sides still we could see, for example, when one is trying to build a house or some simple building, every people around there are not hesitate to give their time and energy in order to finish the task that actually are not theirs.

Musyawarah is an Indonesian way to sit and think together, in achieving one goal and a win-win solution. Ideally, with musyawarah, minority’s voices still could be listened, because musyawarah is not to vote, musyawarah is to listen. People in the House of Representatives could do a better job if they stick to this principal.

If there is a chance to promote Indonesian values and tradition, I would like to promote these two genuine Indonesian ways that made people have the sense of not being alone. Because in this postmodern era there are many problems in this world that have been caused by human alienation, for in their alienation then human would become more selfish and individualistic, therefore gotong royong and musyawarah are two effective solutions offered by Indonesian values and traditions that could be applied easily in every parts in this world. So people in every part of this world could learn how to trust and depend on each other more than before.

Cuplikan Pergolakan Ekonomi Orde Lama

2011-01-20T04:37:00.013+07:00

Indonesia sebagai bangsa yang baru mencicipi kemerdekaan mengalami pergolakan pertamanya pada era Orde Lama. Orde Lama adalah era yang mengalami banyak ketidak-stabilan, karena pada masa awal kemerdekaan bangsa Indonesia masih harus mencari tahu bentuk sistem ekonomi dan pemerintahan yang paling tepat bagi bangsa yang multikultural, dimana terdapat banyak sekali suku, budaya dan bahasa, dimana mereka pada akhirnya harus bersatu untuk menghadapi berbagai tekanan dunia pada saat itu, entah dari PBB ataupun agresi militer Belanda I dan II oleh Kerajaan Belanda yang masih ingin mencokolkan dirinya di Indonesia.

Bukan hanya sistem pemerintahan yang mengalami banyak perubahan, bahkan TNI telah berkali-kali berganti struktur dari BKR (Badan Keamanan Rakyat), yang kemudian menjadi TKR (Tentara Keamanan Rakyat), kemudian TNI (Tentara Nasional Indonesia) dan akhirnya pada era orde baru kemudian sempat ajeg menjadi ABRI (Angkatan Bersenjata Republik Indonesia). Maka tidak heran jika sistem ekonomi kita juga mengalami banyak perubahan bentuk untuk akhirnya mendapatkan bentuk perekonomian yang ajeg. Dimana akhirnya pada masa itu roda pemerintahan dituntut untuk menjadi otoriter demi terciptanya sebuah keteraturan.

Dengan pemerintahan yang otoriter (demokrasi terpimpin), Soekarno berhasil mengatasi berbagai masalah yang tidak disangka sebelumnya dalam era pra-kemerdekaan. Jika dibandingkan dengan Soeharto yang sama-sama totalitarian, era Soekarno mungkin tidak segemilang Soeharto dalam pembangunan karena Soekarno tidak punya satu pun referensi pemerintahan sebelumnya (kecuali Belanda dan Jepang) sebagai bahan pembelajarannya.

Namun satu hal yang harus dibanggakan dari Soekarno adalah bahwa semangat dan jiwa Indonesia pada masa itu adalah sebuah semangat untuk membangun bangsa yang berporos pada rakyat kecil. Salah satu ‘wong cilik’ yang kemudian benar-benar menginspirasi Soekarno dalam paham politik dan ekonominya adalah seorang petani bernama Marhaen. Dari sini Soekarno belajar bahwa rakyat kecil adalah poros dan roda kehidupan masyarakat dan bangsa yang besar ini.

Marhaenisme kemudian lahir sebagai simbol kedekatan Soekarno dengan rakyat kecil mungkin tidak seratus persen berhasil, namun pada era ini kesenjangan sosial sangat kecil, karena semua rakyat masih susah dan miskin. Namun di tengah kemiskinan dan kesulitan bangsa Indonesia di masa itu, Soekarnosebagai seorang pemimpin adalah seseorang yang bisa menciptakan kebanggaan atas Indonesia di tengah pergumulan bangsa. Soekarno adalah seorang presiden yang benar-benar dicintai rakyatnya. Ia tidak segan-segan untuk berdiri di tengah kerumunan rakyat yang menghadang mobilnya sampai tidak bisa berjalan hanya untuk bersalaman ataupun melihat presiden pertama Indonesia tersebut.

Sayangnya nilai ideal yang tertanam dalam Marhaenisme dalam penerapannya juga tidak seratus persen terlaksana. Soekarno yang sangat dicintai rakyat dan mengagungkan nilai-nilai sosialisme malah hidup mewah dan berkecukupan sendiri di Istana Newaga. Ia terlena dengan kekuasaan yang pada akhirnya berujung pada suatu masa dimana terjadi pemberontakan yang berujung pada kudeta atas dirinya.

Pada masa pemerintahan awal Soekarno, dalam sistem pemerintahan dan ekonomi yang masih prematur, mulai tercipta budaya korupsi. Tidak heran dalam suatu sistem pemetintahan dan ekonomi yang masih labil bila terjadi praktek-praktek korupsi. Ditambah lagi praktek korupsi juga adalah warisan budaya pada zaman pra-kemerdekaan (zaman Belanda), dimana VOC yang bangkrut karena korupsi dari dalam organisasinya, secara tidak langsung mempengaruhi bagaimana cara petinggi daerah (pamong praja) pada saat itu untuk mendekati orang yang berada di puncak kekuasaan, yakni Belanda. Bahkan pada era sekarang saat Indonesia sudah mempunyai KPK (Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi), korupsi mungkin sudah melekat dan menjadi budaya yang tidak begitu menjijikkan bagi masyarakat. Kita lihat saja Gayus Tambunan yang masih bisa tersenyum pada turnamen tenis di Bali kemarin.

Pembangunan di daerah-daerah pada era orde lama juga dinilai lambat karena tidak adanya otonomi khusus, sehingga para pemerintah daerah harus melapor ke pusat yang membutuhkan waktu yang sangat lama. Hal ini dikarenakan sistem demokrasi terpimpin Soekarno, dimana segala keputusan berada di bawah kendalinya. Hal ini harus dimengerti bahwa pada masa itu terdapat begitu banyak pemberontakan seperti DI-TII yang memaksa terjadinya suatu pemusatan kekuasaan sehingga pada akhirnya tidak terdapat kegiatan yang berindikasi pada perpecahan bangsa.

Kejadian yang paling memukul pada era Soekarno adalah krisis ekonomi di tahun 1965. Kejadian inilah yang pada akhirnya menjadi ujung sumbu kudeta Soekarno, hampir sama dengan kejadian krisis ekonomi 1998 yang pada akhirnya juga menurunkan Soeharto dari kursi kepresidenan. Namun jika kita lihat dalam kacamata yang lebih luas, permasalahan ekonomi sangat wajar kita temui pada negara yang baru berkembang, apalagi yang baru merdeka. Kita dapat lihat beberapa negara di Amerika Latin dan Afrika juga banyak mengalami permasalahan yang sama di awal era kemerdekaan mereka.

Pada akhirnya metode pemerintahan dan sistem ekonomi pada era orde lama adalah sebuah pembelajaran dan referensi yang sangat berharga dalam perjalanan bangsa Indonesia. Sebagai generasi muda yang nantinya akan ikut berpartisipasi dalam berjalannya roda perekonomian bangsa ini, kami berusaha untuk memahami pergolakan ekonomi pada masa ini dengan segala nilai positif dan negatifnya.

Fenomena Eksistensi dan Alienasi Manusia Melalui Jejaring Sosial

2011-01-10T20:58:00.002+07:00

Generasi yang lahir di era tahun 80 dan 90 mungkin adalah generasi yang benar-benar lahir di era peledakan teknologi dan benar-benar mengalami fenomena tersebut. Dengan lahirnya internet melalui world wide web (www), kemudian generasi ini lahir ditelan pesatnya kemajuan teknoloogi yang semakin menyatukan seluruh dunia lewat layar kaca yang sekarang ini bahkan dapat diakses dari genggam tangan manusia seluruh dunia.

Sejak manusia pertama kali dapat berpikir dan menggunakan akal sehatnya dan mengekspresikan pemikiran dan keinginannnya lewat hal-hal yang berada di luarnya, manusia kemudian berinovasi untuk menggunakan banyak hal-hal yang nyata maupun abstrak, benda maupun pemikiran, untuk menjadi atribut yang melengkapi diri manusia dan secara personal menjadikannya utuh. Manusia bereksistensi, dan ia hanya dapat bereksistensi melalui hal-hal yang berada di luarnya.

Sejak lahir manusia bereksistensi dalam tiap saat kehidupannya, dari awal hidupnya ia bereksistensi lewat suara tangisnya, hingga akhirnya sampai ia mati ia pun masih bereksistensi dengan peti mati, tanah kuburan yang harganya semakin melambung, dan nisan mahal yang menghias makam tempat istirahat terakhirnya.

Dalam kesehariannya manusia bereksistensi lewat hal-hal sederhana seperti sepatu bermerk yang ia pakai, ritual agama yang dijalani hari per harinya, dan dalam konteks ini ia bereksistensi lewat dunia maya, dimana ia dapat mengekspresikan dirinya setiap saat. Untuk tidak perlu merasa kosong dan sendiri bahkan dalam waktu kesendiriannya.

Pertama kali masalah tentang eksistensialime ini muncul saat Kierkegaard, seorang filsuf eksistensi Denmark kenamaan melihat banyaknya kemerosotan rasio manusia akan nilai 'berada' mereka, yang kemudian konsekuensinya adalah ketakutan dan kehidupan yang absurd.

Dalam kehidupan masyarakat urban pada era posmodern ini, eksistensi manusia tidak banyak ditentukan dari benda-benda nyata saja, bahkan kepopuleran benda-benda riil semakin bergeser oleh kehadiran benda-benda abstrak dalam menghadirkan nilainya sebagai manusia.

Pada permulaan zaman modern mungkin kita dapat melihat bagaimana prestise seseorang ditentukan oleh mobil yang ia kendarai, ataupun sepatu apa yang ia pakai. Memang, jejak materi sebagai penanda pemenuhan manusia tidak akan pernah pudar, faktanya bahkan dalam memenuhi kebutuhan eksistensinya dalam hal-hal yang abstrak, manusia tetap membutuhkan benda-benda nyata –seperti uang—sebagai syarat pemenuhannya.

Namun dalam era sekarang, saat pemenuhan kebutuhan fisik dirasa sudah mencukupi, masyarakat urban semakin butuh untuk mengaktualisasikan dirinya lewat dunia maya, yang sekarang ini sudah menjadi simbol eksistensi masyarakat urban.

Facebook, twitter dan berbagai media jejaring sosial lain seperti plurk sekarang dirasa sudah menjadi kebutuhan yang dirasa bukan lagi kebutuhan sekunder apalagi tersier. Kebutuhan eksistensi masyarakat urban di dunia maya sekarang sudah menjadi kebutuhan primer yang seakan tidak dapat dipisahkan lagi dari kehidupan sehari-hari mereka.

Jika disikapi secara bijak fenomena ini dapat menjadi suatu titik awal dimana materi tidak lagi menjadi suatu tolak ukur manusia dalam pemenuhan kebutuhan eksistensinya. Dalam satu sisi ini adalah sebuah hal yang harus dibanggakan. Manusia sekarang lebih merasa bangga saat ia bisa mendapatkan 1000 follower di twitter dibandingkan mempunyai motor bebek tipe terbaru.

Namun jika kita dapat cermati dengan baik ternyata fenomena ini juga diikuti dengan efek samping yang tidak kalah hebatnya dengan nilai positif yang ada.

Alienasi manusia sekarang semakin menggila dengan berbagai gadget yang ada di genggaman manusia, yang tidak mungkin untuk kemudian memindahkan hidup manusia dari alam nyata ke alam maya.

Dalam tingkat candu dan ketergantungan yang tinggi antara manusia dengan dunia maya, kemudian kebutuhan eksistensi manusia tersebut bukan tidak mungkin mengikat manusia dan akhirnya mengurung manusia dalam penjara abstrak baru yang bernama “dunia maya.”

Secara tidak sadar bahkan mungkin manusia akan makin diikat dan bahkan kemudian dikontrol oleh jejaring sosial yang akhirnya melahirkan sebuah kekuatan kapital baru, yakni media online itu sendiri.

Hal ini sudah lama diprediksi oleh Jurgen Habermas, bapak penjaga gawang filsafat modern, bahwa manusia pada akhirnya bukannya menjadi manusia yang utuh dengan adanya perkembangan teknologi, tetapi justru teralienasi dengan ketergantungannya akan kebutuhan teknologi tersebut.

Alieansi ini kemudian akan menghasilkan sebuah kesadaran palsu yang pada akhirnya mengungkung manusia sehingga tidak dapat berpikir secara sehat dan tidak mampu menjelaskan apa yang terjadi padanya atas fenomena yang terjadi dalam hidupnya tersebut.

Anthony Giddens, seorang sosiolog Britania menjabarkan pemahamannya tentang “agen.” Menurutnya “agen” adalah manusia yang sadar akan apa yang ia lakukan dan mampu menjelaskannya lewat kata-kata, dimana akhirnya manusia dapat berdialektika atas segala fenomena yang terjadi dalam hidup mereka.

Mungkin pemahaman Giddens akan “agen” adalah sebuah solusi ideal bagi segenap insan posmodern dalam menghadapi fenomena ini, dimana kemudian setiap kita dapat memahami fenomena jejaring sosial dan pada akhirnya dapat menggunakannya dengan tepat guna dalam rangka pemenuhan kebutuhan kita untuk bereksistensi secara lebih bijaksana.

Menyambut 2011 di Rimba Jakarta

2011-01-01T15:36:00.004+07:00

Photo: Kartika Dian Fransiska's Personal Archive

Pergantian tahun adalah sebuah penanda perubahan waktu, yang kemudian mengalir menjadi penanda akan berakhirnya sebuah masa dan lahirnya masa yang baru. Masa kemudian sebagai rahim peradaban akan melahirkan sebuah karya kolektif yang kemudian secara tidak langsung berdampak bagi setiap individu yang ada di dalamnya.

Karya adalah sebuah makna zaman yang terpancar lewat tangan dan pemikiran manusia yang hidup dalam suatu pusara waktu, dimana jiwa dan harapan koletif masyarakat kemudian tercermin, terefleksikan secara gamblang –walaupun tidak sungguh-sungguh eksplisit. Namun paling tidak semangat dan spirit kolektif masyarakat dapat direnungkan dan lebih jauh dipetik hikmah dan pelajarannya.

Macet sudah pasti bukan sebuah hal yang asing bagi masyarakat Jakarta. Macet bukan barang baru dan bukan sebuah momok baru bagi mereka yang setiap hari harus bepergian dan menempuh waktu mereka di jalan raya –kalau boleh secara lebih gamblang dikatakan, mereka “menuakan" diri mereka di jalan raya.

Secara tidak langsung macet adalah sebuah karya kolektif masyarakat yang alih-alih lahir dari sikap warga Jakarta yang konstruktif, justru lahir dari ego bersama yang disahihkan, kemudian pada akhirnya dikritik bersama pula. Macet adalah cerminan mentalitas warga Jakarta yang egosentrik dan individualistik.

Kemudian dari mentalitas egois dan individualis tidak jarang segenap kita mengeluh dan saling menyalahkan orang lain sebagai penyebab kemacetan dan carut-marutnya sistem transportasi Ibukota.

Tidak jarang kita mendengar komentar pengendara mobil “Ini sepeda motor kebanyakan sih, salib sana-sini bikin macet aja!”, atau komentar pengendara sepeda motor “Kebanyakan mobil nih, orang Jakarta pada kaya-kaya semua sih!”, atau komentar keduanya yang menyalahkan metode transportasi “Coba metode transportasi umumnya Jakarta bagus, mending gue naek angkot atau bus transjakarta deh!”

Manusiawi memang untuk menjadi egois di dunia yang semakin padat dan menuntut persaingan yang ketat, apalagi di ranah dunia perkotaan seperti Jakarta--yang hukumnya mirip dengan hukum rimba. Namun justru rimba belantara adalah tempat kontemplasi terbaik.

Macet, adalah karya kita bersama. Tanpa bertele-tele, pada awal tahun baru ini tidak ada salahnya kita mengembalikan segalanya pada diri kita sendiri.

Selamat menyambut tahun baru! Mari sambut Jakarta yang lebih berwarna di 2011!

Published on December 31st 2010 @ urbanesia.com

coming soon: envyloft

2010-11-22T11:07:00.005+07:00

http://www.envyloft.com

Imaji Lennon

2010-11-16T22:59:00.006+07:00

“Imagine there’s no heaven, it’s easy if you try.
No hell below us, above us only sky.
Imagine all the people, living for today.”

Bayangkan sebuah dunia tanpa surga, dimana manusia hidup berdampingan, kemudian memikirkan bagaimana mereka dapat hidup untuk hari ini saja.

Sepenggal esensi kemanusiaan di atas, yang pernah dipopulerkan John Lennon tersebut, mungkin tidak akan pernah leleh dibakar oleh api kemarahan dan kebencian yang telah memperkosa umat manusia sejak awal tercatatnya berbagai macam kisah, roman dan tragedi kemanusiaan dari awal mula spesies homo sapiens berevolusi.

Lennon sama sekali bukan seorang jenius yang luar biasa bertalenta untuk dapat menggubah susunan simfoni dan lirik yang telah lebih dari lima dekade menggugah manusia untuk membangun pelbagai cara membentuk dunia yang lebih damai. Ia hanya seorang yang cukup sensitif untuk merespon harapan umat manusia dan mengejewantahkannya lewat bahasa universal manusia, yakni musik.

Bumi ini sudah tua, tapi dunia ini belum pernah dewasa. Bumi ini bijaksana, namun manusia beringas.

Bumi ini sudah tua, tapi dunia ini belum pernah dewasa. Bumi ini bijaksana, namun manusia beringas. Sejak awal mula peradaban, manusia mengenal bahwa kepal tangannya, dipadu dengan benda tumpul seperti bonggol batu, dapat dipergunakan sebagai senjata untuk menguasai dan menindas demi kepuasan ego personal dan kelompok.

Bahkan hingga hari ini, saat ilmu pengetahuan dan teknologi –yang merupakan instrumen kemajuan umat manusia—menebas dan menyimbah darah kesana-kemari bak pedang liar yang tajam tanpa gagang, manusia masih bergulat dengan keberingasannya sendiri, dengan dirinya dan sesamanya. Mencoba mencari satu nilai yang dapat menyatukan seluruh penduduk bumi.

Merujuk pada ucapan Obama pada kunjungannya ke Universitas Indonesia pada tanggal 10 November lalu, ia mengatakan tentang keberagaman Indonesia yang mirip dengan Amerika menimbang banyaknya etnis dan suku bangsa yang hidup bersama dan berdampingan dalam satu payung sistem masyarakat yang sama, sehingga potensi konflik tumbuh menjadi lebih dari sekadar wacana abstrak.

Sampit, Poso, Ketapang, Ahmadiyah, penusukan pendeta HKBP, Mbah Priok, hanya beberapa kata kunci dari banyak lagi fenomena yang dapat difungsikan untuk mengidentifikasi begitu banyaknya konflik di Indonesia yang terjadi karena ketidakdewasaan dan ketidakmampuan manusia Indonesia dalam mengatasi masalah yang timbul dari keberagaman dan perbedaan yang seharusnya melukis nusantara dengan pelbagai warna-warni corak budaya yang bhineka.

Jurgen Habermas, seorang filsuf kenamaan dari Jerman yang menjadi penjaga gawang filsafat modern, dalam wacana pos-sekularismenya mengatakan bahwa dalam manajemen konflik, resolusi akhirnya dapat tercapai dengan studi tentang sejarah. Karena dari sejarah kemudian manusia akan selalu dapat belajar untuk tahu bahwa perbedaan bukanlah sebuah “barang baru,” yang mengagetkan umat manusia dengan kehadirannya.

Karena dari sejarah kemudian manusia akan selalu dapat belajar untuk tahu bahwa perbedaan bukanlah sebuah “barang baru,” yang mengagetkan umat manusia dengan kehadirannya.

Namun ketidaksadaran dan ketidakperdulian masyarakat lalu meletakkan perbedaan sebagai sebuah komoditas yang kemudian dapat dikontrol dan dimanfaatkan oleh pihak-pihak berkepentingan sebagai kendaraan politik yang sangat peka terhadap ekspose media masa.

Tragedi Ampera-Blow Fish mungkin adalah tonggak terakhir eksposure media dalam tragedi kemanusiaan yang kemudian secara tidak langsung mempersalahkan keberagaman –mengesampingkan fakta bahwa keberagaman itu sendiri telah ditunggangi ego dan kepentingan tertentu—menimbang saat ini eksposure media sedang senantiasa mengingatkan akan rudungan duka mendalam bangsa Indonesia atas bencana Wasior, Mentawai dan Merapi, yang mengangkat simpati, kebutuhan rasa solidarisme, kebersamaan dan kemudian pada akhirnya meredakan berbagai potensi konflik dan menjadikannya laten kembali.

Pada bait pertama “Imagine,” Lennon berandai akan suatu masa dimana manusia dapat memahami konteks “Hidup untuk hari ini.” Kata-kata yang mungkin terdengar dangkal dan biasa saja bila tidak dimaknai, direnungi dan dialami ini, sesungguhnya adalah sebuah kebijaksanaan purba yang secara sporadik berkembang melalui berbagai latar belakang budaya dan kearifan lokal yang berbeda.

Dalam nasehat suci-Nya Buddha Chi Kung mengatakan “Hari ini tidak tahu masalah esok. Apalah yang mau dikhawatirkan?” Kemudian juga dalam kitab suci umat Nasrani tertera “Sebab itu janganlah kamu kuatir akan hari besok, karena hari besok mempunyai kesusahannya sendiri. Kesusahan sehari cukuplah untuk sehari.” Dalam versi yang lebih cadas dan sinis, Janis Joplin mengatakan bahwa esok tidak pernah terjadi, yang ada hanya hari ini. “Tomorrow never happens man! It’s all the same fucking day!”

Pesannya singkat, lugas dan sederhana: Lakukan yang terbaik untuk hari ini, karena hari ini nyata. Esok dan kemarin adalah sebuah konsep abstrak yang mengikat manusia, namun tidak akan pernah dapat memperbudak dan menjadi tuan atas hidup manusia. Sehingga pada akhirnya kekhawatiran atas esok dan penyesalan atas kemarin adalah sebuah kesia-siaan.

Hari ini masyarakat Indonesia bahu-membahu, dalam skala nasional bersatu-padu mengerahkan segala daya dan kemampuan mereka untuk membantu para korban bencana Wasior, Mentawai dan Merapi tanpa memandang atribut suku, agama dan ras mereka.

Dalam masa tanggap bencana yang hampir berakhir, bangsa ini dengan segenap kemampuannya telah berhasil mengatasi dampak bencana secara bersama-sama. Hari ini masyarakat Indonesia berhasil mengatasi perbedaan-perbedaan demi nilai kearifan dan kemanusiaan yang lebih tinggi. Mereka mengungkapkan cinta kepada sesama.

Hari ini pula letusan Merapi sudah mereda. Namun bangsa Indonesia masih punya pekerjaan rumah setiap harinya untuk meredam potensi laten perbedaan yang setiap saat dapat meletuskan bencana, yang bahkan mungkin akan lebih miris dan lirih akibat dari konflik yang seharusnya tidak pernah ada jika bangsa ini dapat dengan dewasa menghadapi segenap perbedaan yang ada.

“Imagine all the people, living live in peace.”

Semoga imaji Lennon tetap hadir untuk mengiringi perjalanan bangsa ini dan dunia, untuk kemudian dapat dipahami dan dimaknai sebagai harapan dan cita-cita seluruh penduduk bumi.

Mencatat Konsep Alternatif Keperawanan

2010-11-08T11:07:00.018+07:00

“I think people should be free to engage in any sexual practices they choose; they should draw the line at goats though.” - Elton John

Photo: Mahatma Putra's Personal Archive

Aksara adalah simbol keadaban manusia. Dengan akrasa akhirnya manusia bisa mencatat dan berbagi kisah hidup, pengalaman personal, pengalaman masyarakat, bahkan pengalaman bangsa dari generasi ke generasi.

Pencatatan akhirnya menjadi sesuatu yang penting untuk menilai validitas sebuah peryataan yang terkait dengan masa lalu --yang secara tidak langsung mengikat masa depan.

Sebuah pernyataan selalu bergantung pada asumsi, syarat dan pilihan. Asumsi kemudian mengarahkan manusia pada pembuatan hipotesa yang sarat dengan syarat sebagai pemenuhan sebab-akibat, dan meninggalkan tidak hanya satu, tapi berbagai macam pilihan atau alternatif kesimpulan yang mengarah pada suatu nilai kebenaran.

Dalam berasumsi manusia tidak pernah lepas dari hasrat dan pandangan subjektifnya dalam melihat suatu permasalahan. Contoh nyata dari pernyataan yang lahir dari asumsi, menuju hipotesa, dan menjadikan beberapa pilihan kebenaran adalah stereotipe.

Melalui stereotipe pernyataan hadir dalam bentukan asumsi yang ada lewat pengalaman empiris banyak orang. Kemudian bentukan stereotipe itu berusaha direka-reka untuk menjadi sebuah kesimpulan, dimana bentukan kesimpulan itu akhirnya tidak tunggal, namun bisa jadi bercabang menurut kacamata nilai masyakat penilainya.

Asumsi selalu membutuhkan syarat dalam pembentukannya. Asumsi tidak pernah lepas dari atribut dalam membuat pernyataan, baik atribut tersebut nyata maupun abstrak.

Salah satu atribut yang tidak pernah tidak menarik untuk diperbincangkan di Indonesia adalah atribut yang menjadi tolak ukur keperawanan perempuan Indonesia, yakni selaput dara.

Perawan --yang juga adalah atribut abstrak perempuan-- menjadi kian penting dewasa ini. Ditandai dengan maraknya wacana tes keperawanan yang dilemparkan oleh DPRD Jambi dan Kalimantan tengah untuk membuat tes keperawanan bagi siswi SMP dan SMA sebagai salah satu alat bantu dalam peningkatan mutu akademik.

Entah sejak kapan konsep keperawanan telah dicatat oleh berbagai bangsa di dunia sebagai simbol dari kesucian. Peradaban mesir kuno mencatat cerita tentang Dewa Horus yang dilahirkan oleh seorang perawan. Begitupun ajaran Nasrani mencatat Santa Perawan Maria sebagai ibu dari Yesus Kristus. Banyaknya kisah spiritual tentang para perawan pada akhirnya meletakkan nilai agung dan suci perempuan, terutama perempuan muda, pada pengalaman seksualnya.

Kedua atribut di atas --keperawanan dan selaput dara-- yang kemudian menjadi salah satu alat ukur untuk menilai perempuan, merupakan secuil contoh dari banyak lagi cara untuk mengukur nilai manusia berdasarkan standard yang lahir dari berbagai pencatatan yang pernah ada. Terlepas dari apakah standard masyarakat itu kemudian lahir dengan penuh pemikiran, perenungan, dan kebijaksanaan yang mendalam, atau justru malah lahir dalam ketidak-sadaran masyarakat, ketulian masyarakat akan gagasan dan kebutaan akal pikiran karena belenggu sistem dan nilai sosial yang kaku dan tidak dapat diragukan, dipertanyakan dan didiskusikan.

Pencatatan pada mulanya bukanlah menjadi sebuah patokan standard akan masa depan, tapi hanya alat berbagi untuk kemudian dijadikan alat refleksi --termasuk kitab suci. Sehingga pencatatan semua teks yang ada tidak pernah lepas dari konteks zaman saat ia ditulis, sehingga dalam mentafsir dan memahaminya sangat diperlukan untuk juga mengerti akan tujuan, fungsi, dan tradisi asalnya.

Pada akhirnya pencatatan kemudian dimaknai sebagai cara untuk membuat sebuah tolak ukur dari sebuah pengalaman. Padahal pemaknaan sebuah nilai pada akhirnya akan selalu bergeser karena adanya alternatif dan pilihan untuk membentuk sebuah kesimpulan yang baru dan lain atas dasar fenomena yang sama, sehingga pencatatan akan sebuah pergeseran nilai dalam sebuah kebudayaan juga adalah kontribusi yang sangat penting dalam pembangunan karakter dan masa depan sebuah bangsa dan manusia secara spesifik.

Indonesia sedang mengalami gejolak kecil dalam menanggapi pergeseran konteks keperawanan, dan anak muda sebagai pelaku dan pengamat yang dekat sudah selayaknya kemudian bertugas untuk menjadi pencatat pergeseran makna ini. Semakin banyak opini, pemikiran, dan pandangan subjektif dalam menilai fenomena ini, niscaya akan semakin banyak kontribusi pemikiran dan pandangan baru untuk membuat standard baru tentang keperawanan yang lebih objektif, karena perlu untuk selalu dipahami bahwa objektivitas tidak lebih dari subjektivitas kolektif.

Sebagai seorang muda juga, saya ingin mencatat pemikiran subjektif saya tentang nilai keperawanan. Secara sederhana saya punya pendapat bahwa keperawanan adalah atribut abstrak yang memperbudak perempuan, dan pada akhirnya hanya membawa permasalahan baru yang menyita waktu dan pikiran sementara masih banyak permasalahan pelik lain tentang hidup dan tentang bangsa ini yang harus dicari solusinya. Saya percaya bahwa nilai seorang perempuan sangat terlepas dari bentukan pengalaman seksualnya. Bagaimana dengan anda?

3 Days Grace: Vague Patong

2010-11-04T08:45:00.008+07:00

Rangkuman Liputan Urbanesia.com Oktober 2010

2010-11-03T10:33:00.004+07:00

Omar's Visual Journey

Minggatnya Cebolang

Kineforum Oktober: Memori Dunia

Vakansi: Album Terbaru White Shoes & The Couples Company

Euforia Bautanah Galeri Jalanan

Oleh-Oleh Pasar Seni ITB 2010

Jakarta Blues Festival 2010

Perayaan 82, untuk 28 Oktober 2010

Dialektika Tentang Manusia Lewat Homo Floresiensis

2010-10-18T11:13:00.003+07:00

Homo Florsesiensis adalah spesies yang ditemukan pada tahun 2007 di Liang Bua, Flores, NTT, Indonesia. Penemuan tentang spesies manusia baru diluar daripada Homo Sapiens dan Homo Neandertal di tanah flores ini secara tidak langsung mengubah konsep manusia yang sekarang sudah terbentuk di dunia.

Dalam peradaban sekarang, manusia tergolong dalam spesies Homo Sapiens. Perkembangan tentang bagaimana manusia untuk menjadi manusia seperti sekarang pun, yakni melalui evolusi, masih mempunyai banyak pertentangan dan berbagai macam teori dukungan dan sanggahan.

Sedangkan nenek moyang Homo Floresiensis dikatakan berasal dari Homo Erectus yang kemudian mengembara dan berhenti di ujung lautan di Flores, diluar fakta bahwa masih banyak kontroversi tentang eksistensi dari Homo Floresiensis itu sendiri.

Yang sangat menarik dari fenomena ini adalah bahwa Homo Floresiensis adalah jenis manusia yang mempunyai tinggi badan maksimal 100 cm, yang menurut para ahli antropologi, merupakan salah satu bentuk penyusutan dari Homo Erectus –yang terkenal dengan badannya yang besar— yang menyesuaikan diri dengan alam yang keras dan sulit –sehingga mereka mencoba menyusutkan diri untuk bisa tetap bertahan hidup dengan mengurangi porsi makan mereka.

Menurut para ahli, pulau adalah sebuah tempat yang sangat unik dan istimewa dalam sebuah proses evolusi. Dengan pola kehidupan yang ‘terbalik’ di Flores, ada sejenis perubahan rantai makanan yang menyebabkan perubahan bentuk tubuh pada manusia dan juga hewan lagi di sekitar sana. Manusia, gajah, dan kebanyakan hewan berdarah panas kemudian menyusut menyesuaikan dengan keadaan alam, sedangkan Komodo, salah satu jenis hewan berdarah dingin, kemudian mengembang menjadi besar.

Dalam tahapan pencarian akan esensi dari konsep manusia itu sendiri, sangat menarik untuk melihat bahwa dalam setiap tahapan zaman pengertian kita tentang manusia akan selalu berubah dan berkembang. Kegamangan manusia akan dirinya pun selalu melahirkan banyak pertanyaan yang selalu berusaha untuk dijawab dari generasi ke generasi.

Apa dan siapakah manusia itu? Apakah Homo Floresiensis –atau yang kemudian disebut para antropolog dengan hobbit—itu adalah juga 'manusia' yang ada di kepala masyarakat sekarang? Apakah kriteria untuk menjadi manusia didasarkan pada jenis spesiesnya –Homo Sapiens, Homo Neandertal atau Homo Floresiensis? Dan akhirnya mengapa kita menjadi 'manusia'?

Dengan berbekal akal budi dan rasa ingin tahu, umat manusia senantiasa ditantang oleh zaman untuk terus menggali esensi dan eksistensi mereka di dunia ini. Untuk terus berdialektika dari generasi ke generasi.

Insecurity: Because to Love is to Become Insecure

2010-10-11T22:44:00.001+07:00

"For the words that flows from your heart are my finest tranquilizer"

The story began when loads of smoke exhaled throughout my mouth, the uncountable substances that flew out from my mouth to fill the room that fully loaded with unstable people that would like to complete themselves thoroughly, for their essence in life are to seek the meaning of life by living their life undeniably, free from our tight social-constructed system.

I have had a contenting experience with the one, whose name is reflecting the purpose of my own life to illuminate the black nights, ascribing the essence of loneliness that indirectly spoke in the name of the truth, and then conquered it once and for all, for today.

For the taper always be the source of light in our small and peaceful hut, and the stars always shine to direct the way in the age of the darkness, accompanying pilgrims to wade the oceans, all over again.

And there will be Set, our mighty Egyptian god that always have killed Horus each day, to pamper his pupils –darkness and terror- so they will forever be free to intimidate and vanish manhood’s contentment. Blowing winds that shook the taper’s lunt, and trembled our modest raft, insecuring our uncertain and recursive voyage, while the only thing night sky’s tiny dot could do was to obey nature’s nurture that told her only to revolve and attract in her own axis and gravitation.

The story ended when I drank the elixir of knowledge and blew a dragon’s breath from my burned throat. Set had killed and threw me into a cold hole of the night that was dug by the hands of his brazen disciples. I was dead, thank you. Because I believe that in order to feel the life, I have to be dead firmly.

And just like what I believe, before the dawn dawned, I was revealed through Horus’ eyes, to see from his eyes and to learn in how to secure my voyage all by myself and how I must not depend on some lights or some shiny armor –or bottles.

It is very tricky to watch that glamorous star danced and made her own way to become the brightest light in the night while the pilgrim’s raft were shaken by night’s waves. But to learn to understand in how to dance with her together separately is the only way to secure and welcoming Horus to relove the cosmos –micro and macro- at the same time. Therefore the pilgrim’s raft will tranquilly sailed in harmony with Horus and Set, reaching his final destination and meet the dawn once again. Everyday.

This writing was dedicated to all anonymous who were tied by insecurity, because you are the one that are truly free and secure. And for you that have secured me, today.

When I was just ...

2010-10-09T18:36:00.007+07:00

When I was just a little boy, I asked my mother,
"What would I be?"
"Will I be famous, will I be rich?"
Here's what she said to me
"Que sera sera, whatever will be, will be"
"The future is not ours to see, que sera sera"

When I was just a child in school, I asked my teacher,
"What should I try?"
"Should I take photos, or should I write?"
This was his wise reply
"Que sera sera, whatever will be, will be"
"The future is not ours to see, que sera sera"

When I grew up and fell in love, I asked my sweetheart
"What lies ahead?"
"Will we have rainbows, day after day?"
Here's what my sweetheart said.
"Que sera sera, whatever will be, will be"
"The future is not ours to see, que sera sera"

Mitos dan Logika

2010-10-04T09:00:00.002+07:00

Sejak zaman dahulu banyak sekali bentuk-bentuk kebijaksanaan yang dijewantahkan dalam bentuk cerita dan mitos-mitos sederhana agar dapat dimengerti dan diterapkan dengan mudah oleh masyarakat awam.

Sejak zaman dahulu manusia telah berusaha menjelaskan konsep diri mereka sebagai manusia dan hubungan mereka dengan alamnya lewat ilmu filsafat sederhana bernama mitos.

Mitos bukanlah sesuatu yang lahir begitu saja tanpa penjelasan apa-apa. Segala sesuatu yang ada di balik cerita rakyat dan legenda dibagian mana pun di dunia ini pasti mempunyai sebuah nilai yang disusupkan di baliknya.

Kita ambil contoh mitos Horus dan Set di Mesir, juga Thor dan Frejya di Norwegia. Melalui mitos tentang Horus dan Set kita belajar tentang keseimbangan antara siang dan malam. Horus digambarkan sebagai matahari yang membunuh malam yang gelap, sementara Set adalah malam yang selalu akan membunuh siang. Horus dan Set adalah penjelasan peradaban mula-mula tentang pergantian hari dan metamorfosa di balik hari.

Kisah tentang Thor dan Frejya di Norwegia juga adalah contoh mitos yang menjadi penjelasan mula-mula tentang pergantian musim di Norwegia. Bangsa Viking yang kala itu mencari tahu mengapa ada musim semi dan musim dingin mulai membuat cerita tentang dewa-dewa yang berperang.

Thor adalah raja para dewa bangsa Viking. Pada suatu kali palu sakti Thor jatuh ke tangan raksasa yang akhirnya meminta Frejya untuk menjadi mempelainya. Frejya adalah istri dari Thor, juga adalah dewi kesuburan dan kehidupan. Jika akhirnya ia jatuh ke tangan para raksasa musuhnya ujung ceritanya akan sama saja. Norwegia akan mengalami musim dingin abadi karena dewi kehidupan meninggalkan Norwegia.

Akhirnya Thor berdandan sebagai seorang perempuan, berpura-pura menjadi Frejya dan akhirnya menghadiri pernikahan. Sesampainya di sana Odin meminta para raksasa menyerahkan terlebih dahulu palu sakti milik Thor kepada Frejya.

Para raksasa mengabulkan permintaan mereka, kemudian saat Thor –yang sedang menyamar sebagai Frejya- menerima palu saktinya, ia kemudian membunuh semua raksasa dan mengembalikan musim semi di Norwegia.

Dua ceritera singkat di atas merupakan sedikit contoh dari banyak sekali penjelasan mula-mula tentang alam.

Di Indonesia sendiri banyak sekali mitos yang bahkan menjelaskan tentang kebatinan manusia. Mungkin karena manusia yang hidup di Indonesia pada zaman dahulu tidak terlalu memiliki masalah dengan alam sehingga mereka bisa berkonsentrasi lebih penuh ke masalah dalam diri manusia seperti jiwa.

Kejawen termasuk kepercayaan yang sangat tua di Indonesia, terutama tanah Jawa. Dilihat dari etmologinya, Kejawen berasal dari kata “jawen” yang berarti “jiwa”. Sehingga konsep kepercayaan kejawen adalah konsep yang banyak merenungkan tentang Jiwa.

Jika sekitar 500 B.C. Sokrates berkata bahwa tubuh adalah penjara jiwa (Soma Sema / Tomb of Soul), maka Kejawen adalah ilmu filsafat yang tidak kalah untuk disejajarkan dengan pengertian Jiwa Sokrates. Sayangnya hegemoni barat sering menjadi penyebab kekalahan teori ketimuran yang padahal lebih bijaksana dan tidak anti-metafisis.

Pada kejawen konsep “nrimo” pun adalah sebuah konsep penyerahan diri yang sangat tinggi, yang banyak sekali diadaptasi oleh banyak peradaban di dunia. Bagaimana dari kepercayaan yang berangkat dari animisme bisa menerima kehendak semesta dengan penuh penyerahan kepada alam.

Sayang seperti yang sudah kita bahas tadi. Konsep mitos dan mitologi kadang tidak dipikirkan sampai ke akar-akarnya. Orang jawa akhirnya banyak menerima konsep “nrimo” adalah sebuah konsep untuk hidup tanpa usaha, bukannya sebuah konsep penyerahan diri.

Mitos dan mitologi pasti punya penjelasan yang lebih masuk akal di baliknya, sehingga sangat menarik untuk dipahami dan digali lebih dalam secara kritis sesuai dengan konteks masa dan budaya asalnya.

One of The Ways

2010-10-02T14:59:00.005+07:00

“Even if thousands of Socrates resurrects and have another thousand years of dialectics, still they could not describe this Love."
- Mahatma Putra

Photo: Mahatma Putra's Personal Archive

What I am about to write is something that is corny and shallow when it is not being experienced. It is about one's purpose in life, to find a moment when someone feels complete thoroughly. A moment when life and dead, are no longer the main points of joy and fear. Questions about God are no longer relevant when you experienced Him/Her.

That moment of that experienced named love. It is all one have to experience, to feel the rush that given directly from that transcendent being, and often given separately into the hearts of two human being. Therefore, it will become something astonishing that drive them remarkably crazy to find that other half -I like to understand it as arche¹ .

One’s search will stop when they give up. But for me personally, giving up is not a condition of desperateness. Giving up is a condition and a moment when you are ready to let go your self and ego of your search, of your life arche. At first you will numb. But then when you touched the deepest bottom of your heart, alone, giving up, then content you’ll become. As many people said, “Stop looking and you will find,” –a very common line- is something that is hard to understand. It is not a statement of knowing, but a state of experienced.

When one is content and have experienced the love of God, then suddenly the true purpose in one’s life is fulfilled –just like a lot more people have said before. God put his unrecognizable love through everything & everyone, but for some people He/She gave a certain point to make one believe in His/Her love that is real, rather than an abstract literature concept.

At this moment in my life I could say that God, the prima-causa, was not a being that wants us to bow or worship before him. Being humble, receptive and sensitive are some of his many ways to make us experienced him even more. Of course it is different for each person, but in the end we are all swimming into the same sea.

“We could swim together if you want, for the one that made me full and complete is you, a bright star that will lead my way. Let me become the earth that revolving and reloving around you every time, until Horus came and killed it. But until then, just sing “que sera sera,” because what will be always be.”

Refference:
1. Arche (ἀρχή) is a Greek word with primary senses 'beginning', 'origin' or 'first cause' and 'power', 'sovereignty', 'domination' as extended meanings.

*I wrote this note when I had a second heart attack in 30th of September 2010, at the age of 24, in campus waiting for Ito to bring me to the emergency room, where I listened to “The Spirit Carries On” by Dream Theater to calm me down.

Hidup dan Jalan

2010-09-23T07:01:00.003+07:00

Foto: Arsip pribadi Mahatma Putra

Hidup mungkin sama dengan jalan-jalan Jakarta. Suatu saat aku pernah bertanya pada adikku, "Putri, kalau jalan itu adalah hidup, lebih baik kamu tinggal di jalan tol atau di jalan biasa seperti di luar sana?" Kebetulan saat itu kami sedang berkendara di jalan tol menuju Bandung.

Adikku menjawab, "Di jalan biasa-lah!"

Aku mengerti sekali jawabannya. Tanpa ia menyebutkan alasan sama sekali aku juga tidak akan pernah ragu untuk menjawab hal yang sama.

Berjalan di lajur bebas hambatan seperti 'mencurangi' hidup dengan berbagai macam alasan untuk menghindar dari berbagai macam masalah yang seharusnya dihadapi muka ke muka dalam hampir tiap saatnya.

Kadang jalan tol membuat segalanya lebih mudah. Kita terbebas dari sistem, bisa melaju sesukanya (kadang batas kecepatan maksimum dan minimum tidak pernah ada), berada di jalur yang notabene lebih luas dan disana tinggal sedikit sekali manusia. Tetapi tentu harus dengan beberapa bayaran di gerbangnya, entah bagaimana nasib mereka yang tidak mampu untuk membiayai diri mereka masuk ke dalam tol. Bahkan untuk masuk ke dalam tol pun anda harus punya mobil, tidak bisa jika anda memakai motor.

Saat berkendara mungkin manusia sedikit lebih dekat kepada Tuhan dan alam bawah sadarnya mungkin. Karena kadang saat sedang mabuk pun kita tetap bisa berkendara pulang bukan? Ini sama sekali bukan anjuran untuk menjadi seorang drunk-driver, tapi kadang manusia hampir mencapai saat trance mereka di jalan raya. Sepertinya banyak sekali pengandaian akan hidup yang bisa saya dapat hanya dari berkontemplasi di jalan raya.

Jalan raya dan hidup adalah sebuah tempat yang identik dengan perjalanan. Manusia yang bergerombol begitu banyak berjalan masing-masing untuk suatu tujuan. Ada yang jauh sekali, ada yang dekat sekali, ada yang jalurnya rusak, ada yang terburu-buru, ada yang santai, ada yang mogok, ada yang membantu orang mogok dan tertimpa kecelakaan tanpa mengharap imbalan, ada yang sebaliknya, dan seterusnya.

Sistem jalan raya juga adalah sebuah sistem yang manusia -terutama manusia Jakarta- coba buat dengan seapik mungkin, mencoba meyenangkan semua pihak, biarpun kadang lampu merah dari sisi barat lebih lama tigapuluh detik dari lampu merah di selatan, padahal jumlah mobil yang ada di kedua sisi berbanding terbalik dengan lama waktu lampu hijau menyala.

Suatu kali ada seorang istimewa sedang bersamaku, kami berpikir dan berbincang lama, "Sistem itu jahat sekali ya!" Mungkin. Sistem jalan raya di Jakarta dan sistem bermasyarakat di dunia sepertinya akan selalu mendapat kritik dan saran untuk diperbaiki. Banyak orang berbincang membicarakan kebobrokan sistem tersebut, kadang memaki, bahkan tidak jarang saling adu jotos. Tapi jarang yang sadar untuk berusaha menyadari bagaimana keadaan akan jauh lebih buruk tanpa sistem. Paradoks sistem yang luar biasa.

Wacana perbaikan sistem kadang berubah menjadi realisasi nyata. Kadang. Tapi lebih sering mereka para pengkritik sistem hanya duduk diam dan tidak sadar bahwa mereka sendiri menjadi oknum yang telah merusak sistem dengan mengendarai kendaraan pribadi baik mobil maupun motor, sementara angkutan umum semakin melompong. Prestise memang segalanya di jalan raya. Di hidup manusia.

Pemberian hak istimewa bagi beberapa kalangan untuk berada di atas sistem tidak jarang didapat oleh mereka yang mempunyai kedudukan dan jabatan. Mudahnya untuk menerobos jalur 'macet' saat ada uang dan kawalan dari para aparat penegak hukum di depan dan belakang mereka.

Indahnya sistem yang rusak. Karena tanpa sistem yang rusak kita tidak akan pernah tahu bagaimana sebaiknya sistem ideal dibangun. Nyata dan bebas dari keberpihakan.

Socrates pernah berkata, "Tubuh adalah penjara jiwa."

Ini adalah sebuah ungkapan yang sering dan lazim diterima oleh kita semua. Maaf, yang akan saya sampaikan berikut ini sekedar pandangan subjektif, lepas dari stereotipe apapun yang ada di dalam masyarakat dan pandangan pribadi pembaca masing-masing.

Mobil, motor dan angkutan umum, mana yang terbaik? Menilik pengandaian di atas, kadang aku merasa mobil adalah tubuh yang memenjara jiwa. Dalam mobil pribadi kita bisa melihat hujan, orang berhantam karena kecelakaan, polusi yang menyesakkan, razia SIM dan STNK yang lebih sering dikenakan pada pengendara sepeda motor, tanpa merasakannya lewat indera nyata, mirip dengan konsep goa bayangan Plato. Berada dalam mobil pribadi adalah tempat terbaik melihat banyak sekali bayangan tanpa mengalaminya. Aman dan nyaman dari segala kerepotan yang kadang sebenarnya tidak perlu dan kadang sangat dibuat-buat. Tapi bukankah untuk merasa aman dan nyaman bukanlah suatu kesalahan? Penjara tidak selamanya tempat yang buruk.

Di sepeda motor kita bisa mendengar makian dan umpatan orang sebelah lebih jelas, merasakan tetes hujan yang membasahi sekujur tubuh sampai kadang dipaksa untuk sebentar berteduh, dan menurut saya salah satu yang terparah adalah menghirup asap knalpot bus kota yang entah kenapa bisa lulus uji emisi. Tapi bukankah akhirnya mereka pengendara sepeda motor banyak sekali belajar dengan pengalaman mereka? Bukan hanya dengan wacana dan melihat dari zona nyaman tanpa mengalami.

Mereka mengalami dan mendapat kebebasan yang jauh lebih nyata, yang akhirnya terlalu sering disalahgunakan. Kebebasan mereka membuat trotoar pejalan kaki menjadi "lajur khusus motor," berjalan zigzag, sedikit menyerempet spion mobil dan baret sedikit di badan mobil, serong kiri-serong kanan bebas tanpa hambatan adalah sesuatu yang biasa. Bahkan saat malam hari jalan umum adalah ajang unjuk gigi bagi sebagian dari mereka. Trek-trekan liar sudah hal umum. Sangat dimaklumkan. Lucu sekali bahkan ternyata bebas dari penjara juga tidak selamanya baik.

Mungkin kendaraan umum adalah sebuah perpaduan yang sangat ciamik dan menarik untuk menyelesaikan banyak permasalahan sistem, kebebasan dan perasaan terpenjara. Lepas dari mode transportasi seperti kereta, bus, mikrolet, bahkan gethek, angkutan umum adalah tempat terbaik untuk menerapkan sebuah kebebasan kolektif yang sangat indah. Salah satu contoh paling nyata adalah bagaimana bisa manusia belajar berbagi di kesesakan, tetapi di lain pihak sebagai imbalan untuk mereka, waktu, emosi, dan konsentrasi mereka di jalan raya bisa dimanfaatkan untuk hal-hal yang lebih berguna, apapun bentuknya, entah saat penuh sesak atau lowong, saat berdiri atau duduk, pasti banyak sudah kegiatan yang terlintas di kepala anda untuk menghabiskan sedikit waktu.

Bahkan mungkin jika angkutan umum adalah sesuatu yang populer, tidak lagi dikritik melulu karena ketidak nyamanannya mungkin tidak akan ada lagi orang yang ingin berkendara pribadi saat tidak ada keperluan mendesak. Semoga akhirnya prestise -yang notabene tidak pernah ada dan merupakan hasil konstruksi masing-masing mereka, saya, dan kamu sebagai manusia yang tidak pernah lepas dari jalan- hilang sirna.

Banyak sekali yang dapat dipelajari dari jalan, seperti juga banyak sekali hal yang bisa didapat dari hidup. Bagi saya pembelajaran yang paling cocok adalah berkendara dengan vespa. Paling tidak ini yang saya rasakan sekarang, lepas dari pengetahuan saya bahwa vespa dan sepeda motor identik dan hanya dibedakan dengan perbedaan mendasar seperti bensin vespa yang lebih boros dan menghasilkan lebih banyak polusi. Ya, memang vespa lebih tidak ramah lingkungan. Tapi satu hal nyata yang sangat saya apresiasi adalah solidaritas pengguna vespa dimana menurut saya adalah sesuatu yang paling nyata ada. Bagaimana saling bantu dan sapa merupakan nilai yang sekarang sangat langka dijumpa.

Tapi lagi-lagi ini hanya sebuah pandangan subjektif tentang hidup, sama seperti anda akan memilih sendiri apa kendaraan yang paling cocok untuk anda. Mungkin hari ini saya atau anda akan menggenjot sepeda dan menjadi penggila kampanye bike to work. Semoga dan mungkin saja. Siapa yang tahu?

God, You've Fallen from The Sky!

2010-09-18T13:29:00.008+07:00

Photo: Mahatma Putra's Personal Archive

I used to see ‘a’ world in black and white. Yes, I was a color-blinded person. I had never seen colors before, and sometimes, especially, when the night was very dark, it was funny and dizzy to walk on the street. But I’ve changed –now I see colors in everything! Not because I’ve had an eye-surgery and replace my color-blinded eyes with some fresh-colored eyes. I had some kind of holy-dumoly-magic-water poured into my eyes, and suddenly I saw that sky’s color was not a light gray, it was blue, and my girlfriend’s nipple was pink! I thought it was very grayish, near to the white. It was my first day to see the real world.

God is great, eh? But still, I did not know what was the purpose of my new eyes, that most of the people I met, ever so often said that it was a gift from God. Then I used to reply them arrogantly yet frantically, “don’t you dare to tell me as if I don’t know what it is!”

I knew there was something more I could get from those new pair of eyes, rather than just to enjoy my girlfriend’s pink-nipples.

I have made a good and marvelous black & white picture. If you were a color-blinded person you could learn about black and white zone-system¹ easily. It only took me a month to see that a radish was in the bright white zone X, and thine dark eyes usually in the zone I. A bit archaic, isn’t it? My bad, because I will always remember, that I saw you in me for you saw me in you; such an old-school proverb. This line is for you, turnip², therefore I write it down in present. I remember that yesterday we’ve talked about it.

Since high school I’ve had already took photography courses, and then take it as my major studies in university. Now I’ve already graduated and in the search of what I was supposed to do. “I was looking for my true-self!” I said proudly that time.

People these day’s called it ‘self-searching’ or ‘self-fulfillment,’ they got that jargon from that lame shows in television, some kind of motivation program, hosted by famous motivator named Mario Tegur. Oh God thank you very very very very very much that nowadays such Messiah could teach such wisdom through television! Indirectly you are projecting yourself through astonishingly Belials form. Which is for me personally it is a finest way to introduce the Aquarian Age. I know you, God, you are all good, all evil, all of all of all of everything of everything, but sorry I could not describing you well enough, because sometimes I feel that your transcendence-ness is such an obstruction, yet it made my ways well built.

MELANKOLIK BITCH! I almost forget to tell you about imaginations. Siapa butuh imajinasi kalau kita punya televisi³ dan siapa butuh televisi kalau kita punya imajinasi⁴

I used to imagine and to dream in a monochrome motion, therefore I felt that it was affecting me so much to see everything in black and white, including the values. I used to believe in morality, of course, I’ve been raised and been told that to kill is bad, black, while to help is good, white.

Until one day I experienced and realized that morality was nothing more than a legitimate form of racism! White-black-true-false was a mark that stamped by god and goddess of the modern era.

One was always on top before they went down. Yes! Now we are celebrating the fallen of the gods! Once I was on the top of the world⁵, though my world was nothing more than a circle formed by about 808 people holding hands.

I was god! They all bowed before me. Knelled when I told them to. Until in just one ordinary day I realize that I was a god among gods. Yeah, thanks again God, you god⁶ me! Through someone’s eyes I realized that you, as a persona, were not only formed into one. You formed into a lot and lots of multiverses.

Oh dear, finally why I should walk on other god’s shoes? Once I was unique. I knew the rights and the wrongs. I knew there were structures, hierarchies, and stratus, just like the one ultimate principal in zone system, one that walk to ten. Now I should learn again how to see colors. There is nothing such as legal, illegal, beauty, handsome, ugly, Adam, Eve, health, sick, poor, rich, etcetera. There will always a color in colors. Hinduism explains it perfectly. Literal and simple. Kasta is Color.

I was wrong about my rights and wrongs that I felt much better to fool my own state of mind. To fool my eyes and said to my own ears that roses is black and the ocean is gray.

Now I’m still taking photos using an old-fashioned-manual-camera with black-and white negative rolls, for the more I saw colors the more I became more color-blinded. The more I searched, the more I lost, and the more you ignored me the closer I get⁷.

From today, I see nothing in everything.

“I’m sorry I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Sappho. I am a Lesbos.”

“So why did I do it? I could offer a million answers, all false. The truth is that I'm a bad person, but that's going to change, I'm going to change. This is the last of this sort of thing. I'm cleaning up and I'm moving on, going straight and choosing life. I'm looking forward to it already. I'm going to be just like you: the job, the family, the fucking big television, the washing machine, the car, the compact disc and electrical tin opener, good health, low cholesterol, dental insurance, mortgage, starter home, leisurewear, luggage, three-piece suite, DIY, game shows, junk food, children, walks in the park, nine to five, good at golf, washing the car, choice of sweaters, family Christmas, indexed pension, tax exemption, clearing the gutters, getting by, looking ahead, to the day you die.”

Renton’s dead-end, Trainspotting, 1996

CATATAN SI PEMAKAI KHAKI:

1. Metode ukur fotografi konvensional hitam putih, gambar di bawah menjelaskan pola ukur kepekatan hitam sampai putih.

2. Personal line, yang tidak berhubungan dengan teks, yang ditujukan cuma untuk kamu.
3. Quote dari “Mars Penyembah Berhala” oleh Melankolik Bitch

4. Quote kreatif dari sahabat Fatihatul Insan Kamil Ramadhani Imama (FIKRI)
5. The Carpenters, “Top of The World”
6. Pelesetan, maksudnya: you got me! Hehehe, maaf kalo jayus.
7. Morissey!

2010-09-14T23:03:00.001+07:00

"A Man Left Lonely"

A man left lonely will soon grow tired of waiting,
He'll do crazy things, yeah, on lonely occasions.
A simple conversation for the new women now and again
Makes a touchy situation when a good face come into your head.
And when he gets lonely, he's thinking 'bout her women,
He knows she's taking him for granted, yeah yeah,
Honey, he doesn't understand, no no no no!

Well, the fevers of the night, they burn an unloved man
Yeah, those red-hot flames try to push old love aside.
A man left lonely, he's the victim of the life, yes he is.
When he can't keep up his own way, good Lord,
He's got to do the best that he can, yeah!
A man left lonely, Lord, that lonely boy,
Lord, Lord, Lord!

* a modification of "A Woman Left Lonely" by Janis Joplin

Then Che Asked #3

2010-09-08T10:38:00.002+07:00

Photo: Mahatma Putra's Personal Archive

The room was black, as black as his past. He sat there alone, in his black Victorian-chair, accompanied only by his books. He had no friends, for he thought there were no one he could speak to, he thought everyone else was dumb and that if he socialize with them, it could lead him away to reach enlightenment. So he locked himself in his black painted office, where he could spoke and listened to Heidegger and Machiavelli -some of his few imaginary friends. They told him -and he believed- that when he had enlightened, his black-painted office would transform itself into a brilliant white box. When someone was too lonely, sometimes there was a voice that one couldn’t differ whether it was real or not.

He had been a director in Mayhem-Factory for almost a thousand years. This job was no different than any other job; it had its ups and downs, and maybe this time, right now was the most-down side his job. He mourned a lot, for everything around him, it seemed like forever for him.

He had a good taste in music though; he needed it very much to entertain him. Music could take him anywhere he wanted to be, even into different universes. He liked Janis Joplin very much, and Radiohead too, of course. His favorite was “Ball and Chain” by Janis, and “No Surprises” by Radiohead, those songs confronted his monotone tasks at the factory, to forget that he was a slave. Yes, he was nothing but a slave to this factory -even the “director” titled gave him slice of difference though.

Today he listened again to “Ball and Chain.”

“I don’t understand how come you’re gone, man. I don’t understand why half the world is still crying, man, when the other half of the world is still crying too, man, I can’t get it together. I mean, if you got a cat for one day, man, I mean, if you, say, say, if you want a cat for 365 days, right, You ain’t got him for 365 days, you got him for one day, man. Well I tell you that one day, man, better be your life, man. Because, you know, you can say, oh man, you can cry about the other 364, man, but you’re gonna lose that one day, man, and that’s all you’ve got. You gotta call that love, man. That’s what it is, man. If you got it today you don’t want it tomorrow, man, ’cause you don’t need it, ’cause as a matter of fact, as we discovered in the train, tomorrow never happens, man. It’s all the same fucking day, man!”

He liked this part so much, in this part Jan did not sing at all, it was only her kind of speech, but her voice flowed to his ear more beautiful than an angel’s voice. He met an angel once, and it was not better than Janis. The angel’s voice was so tender, but he’d prefer a hoarse voice, the one just like Janis. If he could meet Janis he would ask her to have dinner with him and thank her for this song that helped him not to count the days that passed him by. Unfortunately he could never leave this factory.

“Its all the same fucking day, man!” He sang that part loudly. Danced with his imaginary Janis, a voice from a 1983 gramophone.

He never thought that his life would change, that he would never live more lively. Not until his butler came to him and whispered him gently.

“She is already on her way here!”

He had been waiting for her for thousands years. He was relieved; finally the one that would free this factory is about to come.

“This is not the same fucking day man!” He shouted loudly and kissed his butler’s cheek. His butler startled. He had never seen his master smile, laugh or that happy!

The director ran to the front office of the factory, and waited at the front gate. There was a barbed-wire fence that was built not to prevent the factory from burglary, but to prevent its worker from escape. He saw the fence and imagined, that in a little time, there will be no more of that. He would replace the barbed wire with the jasmine creepers.

He waited there anxiously. He forgot to use his shoes, and today was cold, the cold stone beneath his feet spread its coldness to his neck, to confirm that he was nervous. When he was anxious or nervous his hands were always wet and his neck were always cold.

Finally, he saw two shapes of people flying across the chimneys around the factory. He was very curious to see the girl he had been waiting for. He hoped that she was a bit like Janis Joplin.

He was a bit disappointed when the two of them landed. The girl he expected was nothing like Janis Joplin. She was Asian, black-eyed, black-haired, and tan-skinned, but she was pretty enough though. Exotic.

Then she introduced her self with a bit hoarse voice,

“Hello my name is Che.”

The director accompanied Che to tour around the Mayhem Factory. Che was very excited. She was curious what they build in such mega factory. She remembered she use to watch National Geographic Channel and amazed with program such as 'mega factory’ that always show her how things like car and other heavy tools were built.

Che never been to a real factory before, so she walked behind the director, she did not want to interrupt the workers there, they all looked very serious. Like a documentary films she used to watch, the situation in the room she were into was looked like a footage from Chinese labor issue film. There were so many workers in a huge room. The film set looked the same.

"Why they all looked so serious?" asked her.

"They have been told to make such expression when I walked them over. They will look happier when I wasn’t around"

"Why? Is it because they hate you?"

"No, because they are all afraid of me, and that’s how I make everything in order around here"

Che used her favorite blue-converse shoes, the only bright color she saw around there beside her red socks. It was very dark and gloomy there. The only bright color in there was tungsten yellow from the desk lamp on every worker's table. The rest of the factory was painted black and gray.

From the moment Che arrived, there were hardly any people around her tried to make a conversation with her. Che knew from the aura of the room, and how the director spoke to her, that implicitly the director wanted her to obey him, so things around her would become orderly too, but Che did not like order; she was the one who everyone should obey. That what was happened in her world, and should be happen in this world too.

Che tried to see what the workers doing in their desk. Seem like they were writing something, but even they didn’t know what each other wrote. The workers separated about two meters distance, so they must work on their own. They even couldn’t speak to each other.

"What are they doing? Are they writing something?"

"Yes,

I will show their work to you later." Said the director gently.

The room was very huge. Che felt exhausted just to walk to the door in front of her. It looked very far, perhaps around ten kilometers, yes it was very big room, and every ordinary person will exert to cross that room, including her. She could not stand to walk again, she wanted to fly, but it was not polite to leave the director alone, maybe he couldn’t fly, and she did not know exactly where she wanted to go. So she stopped.

"Let me rest, and maybe have a simple chit-chatting with some of the worker," asked Che. She was very curious about what they were doing.

"Ok then, please yourself."

"Thank you!"

Che walked approaching the worker nearest to her, she stepped very quietly tried not to interrupt them. She knows that when someone is working seriously, she must not bother him or her. So she looked for the one who were not looked too serious in their writing task.

She saw someone around the corner. He was having a conversation with his mobile phone in his work time. He looked young and wise –some quality you rarely found in the age of early twenty.

Che knew that this was the one she should approach. She heard his flirty sound flowing to his 1990’s mobile phone. He was an old-school type of person, she thought.

The young guy then finished his conversation and back to his chair with his smiley face –maybe he was happy after talked to someone he missed so much- when suddenly he saw Che stood in front of him and tried to make some conversation.

“Hello, my name is Che, what is yours?”

The Rise of Fashionistas

2010-09-06T13:41:00.004+07:00

Photo courtesy of Change! Magazine. Photographer: Mahatma Putra. Model: Astrid. Make-up Artist: Alya. Fashion Stylist: Arfa Suci

So, what is fashion?

Literally fashion was translated as a mode for people to dress, and fashion always come to the term of noun. It is a thing that cycling around the era, something abstract that tells people how to dress properly and in the end is accepted as a trend. Fashion is a trend on how people should dressed around their time, and the person who could afford to follow the trend literally -some called them the ‘fashion victim'- called fashionista.

Quoting from wikipedia:

"Fashion is the style and custom prevalent at a given time, and it commonly refers to current clothing styles." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fashion on September 6th, 2010.

Even the open-source encyclopedia mentions it ignorantly, forgetting its own roots and history, and deviate from the origin of itself.

From Oxford English Dictionary, we could find that the etymology of fashion was from the Latin word factio, means making and doing, and the word facere means to make or to do. It was a ‘verb' not a ‘noun.' It was a performance not just a condition or a mere clothing trends.

According to Heidegger, existentialism is a term to refer a verb of become exist, and humans find their existence through the essence of other things around them. They could see the essence of thing, but they could not see through themselves, to look for the essence for themselves.

I was alone in the bathroom. I unzipped my thorned jeans, lifted my tie-dye shirt a bit, lowered my square-patterned boxer pants, and finally I peed. After that, I was preparing myself to go out while my bag's belt twisted by my own headset wire, which I usually connect to my mobile phone, to listen to my choice of music. In the end I must placed my shoulder belt bag around the back of my hip, and left the bathroom.

I startled for a while. I was very conscious at that time. I realize that I, myself was full of attributes, and I never be what I am without my attributes, whether it was real or abstract. I was happy to know that I am a mere human. Ironic. Are you happy as a human?

That was my personal experience. It was a recalling moment of a memory, a moment some kind like a "wrong" de-javu. I have been on that bathroom before, and maybe I will always be. Ever since I was a boy, I often asked myself for who am I and how can I become me. I knew nothing about existentialism back them, but I knew that I was in need to search where I was from, and most importantly the origin of myself.

Consciousness born in a different way for each person. Some people realize their existence when they knew that they were only a person given in the situations and attributes by some higher power, like god or destiny. In the other hand, some realize it when they knew that all they had to do was to create their own identity, free from an imaginary form of a creator or fate who ‘gave' them their attributes and situation, they are the people of freedom, they have choose, not be chosen by. Actually, it does not matter what was the choice, as long as the result was the consciousness. The choice could be the topic of another dialectics.

So, fashion is a state of people consciousness in how they express themselves to exist. Fashion is more than just a trend or how people should get dress according to the trend. Fashion is a condition when people realize that there is something in this world that can represent them, or honestly, something that can build their image and perhaps their character and their life.

Secondly, fashionista was the avant-garde of a fashion. They are a person who could presents themselves well, fits with what are the truly things they want to express. They are the creator, the one who invents the essence of being, able to understand what was the society wants and translated it into a fashion object, or maybe subject, if they are treat them like they've treat their own body. They understands semiotics very well and able to speak it through style, mainly from the attributes they wear. To express it to others with certain symbol -such as color and shape in this matter- to provoke society, whatever the purpose they have. In the 60's people used bright colors to present themselves, especially in western countries. That was the era of the darkness, it was post-war society in Europe and America, everything was sad and gloomy, and fashion, in this matter, gave them hopes through colors, bright and funky colors. The person who invented that style in the 60's was the person who had woke the society's consciousness of the dark era and they had to do something to make some changes, that person was the fashionista of the 60's era. That was just one of the example of the fashion-power.

So, it doesn't really matter if fashion was translated by the society as an object or subject; the hipsters will accepts it and conveys the message virally. Conclusively fashionista is the person who wakes other person's consciousness through their attributes.

They could wake almost everyone's consciousness because they were conscious at the first time. They knew and they loved it. They treated the conscious feeling like they have guarded and served themselves. They have united with them.

If we go back to the existentialism, we could find that the essence of things could be found when we were outside of them. Humans found their meaning and love for themselves through others. To love others made them unintentionally loved themselves. They wouldn’t create a line between ‘me’ and ‘them’, they become one. The way human to exist is through love, to love others. Maybe. This mumbo-jumbo was nothing but my personal opinion.

Personally, I think there are none in this world who could describe the fashion. Actually there are no definitions of everything, because once you defined it, the things you defined lost its meaning. Definition always develops following its time, but through existence we could overstep the time. This, my writing too, was subjective; I did not know whether these fonts will also adventuring that far time. This was nothing but a sprinkle in the fountain of postmodernism.

*Inspired by a conversation with Dwi Ajeng Asmarandhany & Anindita Dwi Puspita

4 September 2010, Membendakan Manusia

2010-09-05T04:49:00.004+07:00

Kamu menggerayangi tubuhku,

dengan sepoi hembus nafas angin sore.

Kamu, teganya,

sekarang kamu membuatku masuk angin.

Hebat kamu, tuhan.

Photo: Mahatma Putra's Personal Archive

Ini adalah sebuah kisah fiksi dan opini pribadi. Pengandaian pemikiran manusia masa depan. Mari sekarang saya bawa anda semua berkelana mengarung samudera masa -karena sepertinya kemarin saya berhasil menembus dimensi. Nah. Sekarang indonesia sedang berada di penghujung tahun 3000 masehi, apa yang berubah? Salah satu yang signifikan adalah ilmu pengetahuan.

Sebenarnya eksperimen ini sudah ditemukan umat manusia sekitar tahun 2000 masehi. Dengan alat-alat canggihnya, mereka telah membelah atom menjadi bentuk terkecilnya, yaitu ketiadaan, manusia telah menemukan tentang ketidakberadaan yang ada. Karena ternyata pecahan terkecil dari proton dan elektron adalah ketidakberadaan. Manusia berada karena pada dasarnya mereka adalah bentukan partikel ketidakberadaan, mereka tidak ada. Manusia melihat benda lain tidak bereksistensi, setidaknya itu yang diakatakan Heidegger. Tidak, manusia bukan bereksistensi terlebih dahulu, baru kemudian dia menemukan esensi dirinya. Manusia mengobjekkan esensi itu sendiri. Sedangkan mungkin, kursi dan bangku, keyboard yang saya ketuk, atau layar monitor di depan saya mencoba menemukan cara untuk bereksistensi, melalui manusia. tapi manusia menganggap sesuatu yang diluar manusia bukan benda yang, atau tidak lagi melakukan kegiatan bereksistensi. Pada kesimpulannya manusia bereksistensi karena mencari esensi manusia, atau setidaknya konsep tentang manusia itu sendiri, padahal menurut pernyataan di atas, maka yang sebaiknya manusia lakukan adalah menjadikan diri mereka sama dengan gelas, es krim, keping dvd, gelang, atau apapun. Menjadikan benda mati sebagai kita, sebagai subjek, sebagai persona, diri manusia itu sendiri. Tetapi bahkan saat manusia menjadikan benda di luarnya sebagai sebuah subjek, sebenarnya mereka mencari eksistensi mereka dalam kekecewaan dan keputusasaan, karena pada hakekatnya mereka tidak bisa bereksistensi tanpa menjadi sebongkah benda, selama masih ada predikat transendensi adalah sesuatu yang diluar objek dan subjek tersebut, manusia tidak pernah mencapai tahap keberadaannya. Objekkanlah dulu subjek manusia tersebut, baru kemudian manusia bisa mensubjekkan objek2 tersebut di atas.

Itulah manusia masa depan, tetap berkutat tentang pencarian diri mereka. Karena sesungguhnya, seajaib apapun masa depan itu. Bahkan jika mesin waktu pun, dapat dicptakan pada akhirnya, manusia tetap bereksistensi untuk mengartikan hidup pada suatu masa. Eksistensi tidak akan terjadi tanpa adanya masa, zaman, atau waktu. Waktu terjadi karena kesinambungan objek 3 dimensi yang terjewantahkan lewat pengelihatan kita, termasuk indera-indera lain selain pengelihatan. Sehingga dengan indera manusia tidak akan pernah bisa bereksistensi secara sempurna, karena tanpa waktu, tanpa massa, hanya dengan ruang, segala bentuk adalah dua dimensi. Dimensi menjadi tiga karena adanya waktu. Maka kemudian indera yang dihilangkan justru akan mengantar pada kekosongan. Manusia menjadi benda, benda mati tentunya, dan dengan berada di luar diri sendiri, dengan tidak merasakan tangan, kaki, bahkan akhirnya ruang dan waktu, manusia akan merujuk pada ketiadaan yang membawa kepada suatu keberadaan. Ada karena tidak ada, dan tidak ada karena ada.

Mungkin, manusia menjadi tua setelah mereka menemukan ketidak-beradaan mereka di dunia. Anak muda selalu ada. Mereka vokal dan bereksistensi. Mencoba menenggelamkan diri dalam ideologi. Mereka bukan diri mereka. Mereka adalah ideologi mereka, dan idiologi mereka adalah mereka. Setidaknya ini contoh termudah dan tersederhana yang bisa saya berikan. Jauh berbeda dengan pengandaian di atas, tapi masalah menjadi tua di sini adalah contoh semata.

Seorang manusia masa depan tidak akan pernah tua. Setidaknya, setelah mereka akhirnya bisa menemukan bahwa ketidakberadaan adalah sesuatu yang ada. Pasti. Seribu tahun lagi manusia bukan hanya bisa terbang ke bulan, tapi ke surga. Meraih sel tuhan. Menggapai sel lain dari tuhan, yang kemudian mengejewantah dalam diri manusia. Ya, manusia akhirnya bereksistensi untuk menjadi tuhan, untuk menjadi alam semesta, untuk menjadi satu dengan alam semesta ini.

Di tahun 3000 masehi, mungkin ada manusia yang menulis hal yang sama dengan yang saya tuliskan sekarang. Seribu tahun lagi, bahkan saat manusia bisa berkelana melampaui waktu dan dimensi. Tetap, persoalan eksistensi akan selalu menjadi diskursus abadi. Atau seandainya, jika mereka semua berhasil menemukan esensi manusia segamblang manusia menemukan esensi televisi, mereka tidak perlu lagi bereksistensi. Mereka lenyap. Seperti yang dulu pernah dilakukan bangsa Maya. Mungkin.

Jubilating Kala

2010-09-01T12:52:00.011+07:00

Photo: Mahatma Putra's Personal Archive

The room was black,
as black as my past.
The memories were dark,
glancing in a blast.
From an old clock rack,
tick-tocked in a rush.

_

It was rainy today, I saw at the weather forecast.
It was wet and cold, yet we ate Haagen-Dazs.
We were together, yet we listened to Radiohead's 'Just.'
Finally you said that I had life none could adjust.
You left me alone like that girl in Bang-Bus.
I shocked, nearly stopped my pulse.

It was on that park,
I remembered that dog's bark,
I felt that cold spark.

_

It was on that grass,
we met and talked, it was all about us.
Sipped some wine each a glass,
until your cheek's blushed.
We toasted to a past,
for the life we have passed.

Then Che Asked #2

2010-09-01T12:11:00.004+07:00

The stone-shaped man answer her question gently,

“We were going to a place called Mayhem-Factory!” said stone-shaped man gladly.

Che liked to watch nasty-b-movie-sadistic films, but she did not like to be in a chaotic situation. She liked to watch butchers cutting their meats, but she could not stand to see her friends cries for a mere broken heart. She could stand blood, but not tears.

She would like to go there, Mayhem-Factory seems to be a very strange, exciting, and mystical place, but she felt that maybe if she came back to the school now, was not too late. There still must be a celebration party, and she loved party. Che did believe in astrology, her zodiac was Leo; perhaps that’s why Che liked party very much, because according to her belief, Leo was popular and liked to be the center of attention.

The stone-shaped man could read her mind -it was a mystical creature, eh? It knew that Che did not want to miss the party, but it also knew that Che also liked new things, it knew some about zodiac and astrology as well -that Leo was a born sensation-seeker.

Che was a lioness; in the real world she could be everything she wanted to be, and always get everything that she wanted, but today Che confused. She never realized that she never had to choose anything before. Today she understood perfectly that every decision in her life was always chosen for her by something -or she’d like to say, some figures- she did not knew at all, she felt everything was pre-determined for her, that she was a doll played by an invisible hand only for the purpose the doll itself would never knew, but not today. Today was all about her own and only decision. She was facing her life.

She was looking at her body, lie there, soiled around the puddles, and there was a stone-shaped man waiting for her. Either she could dive back to possess her body and ran to school, or she could go with the stone-shaped man into the ‘Neverland.’

“We could fly if you like.” Said the stone, try to tempt her.

Che smiled and hold its hand, a jelly-solid hand.

“Teach me to fly!” Said Che excitedly.

Then so, there was a brilliant white light surrounding them, and Che was lifted from the ground. This is her first, and first-timer always felt the excitement-nerve. She did not know that it was so easy to fly!
Now she was flying for real! Che laughed loudly, for her to fly was like to be tickled by air, especially when you moved very quickly. So Che increased her speed now -for she liked to be tickled- tried to race the Russian MIG she met -usually first-timer was also a tinhorn. It was very lovely; Che would never forget that amazing feeling.

After Che satisfying herself -by flying around wherever she wanted- she landed near the puddle where her body lied. She thought this was a dream, but the more she thought that it was a dream, she become more conscious, more than ever, she knew that this was not a dream. Now, she understood that her life before was nothing but a dream, for she never chooses anything. Life is to choose, and she was ready to choose now.

Then, briefly, Che asked the second question.

“How do we get there?”
_
*to be continued.

Then Che Asked

2010-08-28T14:09:00.003+07:00

Her name was Che. Che was nothing but an ordinary good-girl; she always sleep at ten o’clock and never forget to brush her teeth. She studied diligently, and took an oath to become a nun when she grew up. Che is a lovable daughter, sister, and friends. No one in this world would love her not.

This summer, she was still at high school, but in a blink of an eye she would attend college, majoring politic. Her childhood dream to become a nun vanished, although she still admired Mother Teresa, one of her role models beside Diana Krall and Che Guevara. If she could, she would like to become the fusion of them. She wanted to play jazz-piano to entertain the poor while she wrote and led a revolution war -an ordinary dream for a smart sixteen-year-old child.

She admired Che Guevara very much beside of the fact that her father named her after him. She was very proud of her name. She built her confidence through Che Guevara, and was influenced by him. On her sixteenth birthday she organized her friends to make an anti-war protest in front of mayor office. She celebrated her birthday in revolution spirit, celebrating Independence Day; her birthday was August the 17th, the same as her dear country, Indonesia.

Che graduated first rank in her batch. All she has to do now was concentrating on her study so she could be accepted at one of the best universities in Indonesia. She never meet any obstacles in her road, especially everything academic, until one day, life revealed itself to her.

Life came to her as a dirty old stone, right beside the fishpond, on the street near her school. She lived in luxurious residence in Kemang area in Jakarta, in her residence everyone tried to lead a green life. Although her complex is not very broad, it was wide enough to built some fishponds and miniature forest -a small garden that intentionally built to look like a forest.

She used to walk to school, but today was her graduation day, and she did not have enough sleep last night; she couldn’t sleep, too excited imagining that tomorrow must be great to be called to the podium as a first rank student, she got up late, so today she ran.

Last night was raining, so today there were a slippery puddle in front of the face of dirty old stone. Life made her slipped. She knocked her head to the ground. She passed out, while the stone laughed, happily accomplished its mission.

In such luxurious residence no one passing around and noticing that there was a nice girl fell down and passed out. Everyone already left for work; they who stayed in the house was to busy watching TV, swimming behind their houses, or just relaxes and do nothing -including her mom.

After three hour passed out on the street, the stone woke her up. Laughing at her, told her for she had not attended her own graduation day. Che shocked, it was late, she looked at her watch, but what made her shocked the most was the speaking stone; but she wasn’t afraid.

The stone transformed into man-shaped stone; it moves very chewy like a jelly but as solid as a stone; and helped her to stand on the ground. It told her that someone who had been waiting her for thousand years was expecting her now. Che looked around and then she saw herself lying on the ground, while the man-shaped stone held her hand and asked her to move away from there.

Then Che asked the first question.

“Where are we going?”
__
*to be continued.

It

2010-08-22T16:51:00.001+07:00

From the day all the planets formed, lived a creature that until now no one ever knew what really created it, like it was exist eternally. It was not a man nor woman, some people now will called it 'she-male,' or 'hermaphrodite.' It color always changed. Sometimes it was blue, but on the dawn of a man it skin turned black and red, when it walked around dessert its color turned green. It always shaped according to the universe needs, sometimes it was like bull, there was a time it shaped like fish and cross, but usually it shaped like a ball, a perfect circular ball. It had no eyes, no ears, nor a heart, but people now still talks to it, wanted it to watch what they do, and begged for its mercy. No one knows what the creature name. Some people called it god.

An Alien that Leaving Soon

2010-08-22T14:21:00.002+07:00

He lighted his cigarette and sucked it deeply. He felt relieve tonight he could go to a bar in Jalan Jaksa to met his loyal friends, Jack and Johnny. Jack Daniels always brought him back to his small and peaceful garden at his home in rural area of London, where he usually spent his time laying around, drinking, and wandering of a new places, while Johnny Walker usually walked his way home to a small flat in south Jakarta, Johnny helped him to sang on his way back home.

Few hours later he arrived at “Kosmos,” his favorite bar, although he still did not know what is the essential meaning of such as “favorite” or “truth,” because for him to know what is “favorite” and “truth” means you have to choose one absolute thing. Anyway, he stepped in, grabbed some beers -for starter, sat, and waited. He waited for Dini.

Dini left her Mini Cooper around the corner of Jalan Jaksa and walked to “Kosmos”. Likewise, every Saturday night was hard to find a parking lot at Jalan Jaksa. Dini came to “Kosmos” shivering. It was very cold that night, and she did not wear any jacket, she only wore her favorite blue tank-top and skinny jeans. She knew her favorite clothes, and also her favorite color, and she knew that not the cold that made her shivering tonight. She was nervous.

While in “Kosmos,” Jack’s and Johnny’s best friend already finished his beers, and now was asking for two shot of Jack and Johnny, as the song played.

“Oh, I’m an alien I’m a legal alien

I’m an Englishman in New York”

He did not like that song, it made him home-sick, and also he thought that song is so gay-ish. He did not like Sting. He sighed, and drank his first shot.

Dini still waited at the front door, she was afraid to continue her step. She knew that he was already there for nearly an hour, waiting for her.

Inside, he almost drank his fifth shot when suddenly he saw Dini sat next to him, almost cried.

“Hey, what happen?” He said, try to become sober as much as he could.

“I’ve done a terrible thing to you.” Dini replied, cried softly.

“Calm down Dini.

What can be worse? Life is happening to me.” He said gently, like there was nothing could hurt him.

“I had AIDS.” Said Dini calmly, paced, her heart was numb this time. She did not know what she expected to hear. Her confession may not change anything now, her guilt may not be erased, but at least she told him the truth. Last month she was drunk, it was not her justification, she still knew that she was the one that responsible.

He stunned.

Dini knew his feeling right now; it was the same as when her ex-boyfriend told him the same thing. Dini closed her eyes; she didn’t know what she was going to do, until his laugh startled her.

“Why are you laughing?” Asked Dini spontaneously. She thought maybe he liked to laugh to an irony, or maybe he thought this was only a joke. She felt real bad for him. She did not know how to express her own feeling right now.

Suddenly he kissed Dini passionately. He felt love flowing out of her, so was her.

“I have cancer,” he said gently. He was happy to feel that from this moment on, he could sing with Dini to his way home. He was bored to sing with Johnny.

He held her hand, and walked outside the “Kosmos”. They stepped into Dini’s Mini Cooper and start driving around. They did not know where they would go tonight. But it was not a problem at all as long as Dini was always by his side. She knew the word “dini” means “soon” in Indonesia. He and Dini now on the same boat, they will be leaving the Cosmos sooner than other, soon.

A Tender Loan

2010-08-20T17:37:00.003+07:00

Once upon a time lived a man that never took a bath. He hates water as much as he hates time. He didn’t like the flow of them both because they always led him to the end, end of everything, and the beginning of the greater mystery. Water will led him into an open ocean, place that led him to nowhere, while time will led him to an oldness, a wisdom. But he did not want to become old. He wants to be an idiot, a stupid person who always curious about wisdom itself.

He had a round face with funny-looking glasses. His hair was long, not as long as his penis. He wants a longer and bigger penis, but his god turned him down. His god thinks that he would not able to control his penis, so he gave him a short and tiny penis, to prevent him from getting syphilis. Because if you shy of the size of your penis, you wouldn’t dare to use it carelessly, you will use is wisely.

His name was Daud. Like in the bible, Daud likes women very much. He could spend his time wandering around his neighborhood to find a new uptown girl to get slept with. He was an Indonesian -a society that always come to moral values first- so it’s a little hard for him to found a mere woman who’d like to sleep with him. Even though it was only his apologi, to say that Indonesian girl is not likely to be with him on the same bed. He already realized that his funny looking face is one of the reasons why most of the girls did not want to get laid with him -beside of his non-bathing habit. Daud fully understood his situation.

One day he met a woman named Susan. Susan was the same like Daud. She likes to get laid, but no one could stand her situation. She was a squirt, and she likes to have fun a lot. Most Indonesian thinks she was a bitch, but not until she met Daud.

Susan likes water. She could stands alone in the beach just to recollect her self, to imagine herself as a flowing water, a river which could reach the ocean. She wants to get old, but her god prevents her from getting old. Her god thinks it will be best for her to overcome her age, it will make her a better person if Susan still thinks that she always stupid and curious, same as Daud.

Daud met Susan in a crowd place at the heart of Jakarta. Daud lived around Bekasi, while Susan lived around Pasar Minggu. It was a long trip from Bekasi to Pasar Minggu, nearly two hours. They met at Pasar Senen in central Jakarta. They fell in love. They did not know how to describe one’s feeling, but they realized that they were made for each other. Susan immediately like his long hair and funny face, while Daud immediately like her youth. They both were 35 by the way.

Daud asked Susan to eat at a restaurant near his house. He’d like to treat her a nice beef tenderloin steak. He thought that meat will unite them, because according to what he believes, all human is nothing more than a bunch of meat with brain, trying to find their purpose in life. He believes Susan was a beautiful meat.

Susan gladly accepts Daud’s invitation. She believes a man is nothing more than a bunch of meat trying to find a hole to made them warm. And she could provide a shelter, a warm hole for them.

Daud was a man of science. Although he was a believer, he would count on his knowledge more than his god, but this time there was nothing he could do. He needs money, no one would lend him money to treat Susan a nice tenderloin steak. The only loan-shark possible for him now was god. So he started to pray.

God listens to him. So god came down to earth, met Daud in a form of a dying rich man, and gave Daud a contract form. Daud signed it without hesitation, he did not read the agreement carefully. His only purpose was to get a loan, so he could spend the night with Susan, tenderloin steak, and the most important, a tender kiss, skin, and love.

Daud didn’t know, that in exchange, god wants his most valuable thing, his desire.

The Man Who Sold The World

2010-08-20T17:35:00.003+07:00

We passed upon the stair, we spoke in was and when
Although I wasn’t there, he said I was his friend
Which came as a surprise, I spoke into his eyes
I thought you died alone, a long long time ago
Oh no, not me
We never lost control
You’re face to face
With The Man Who Sold The World
I laughed and shook his hand, and made my way back home
I searched for a foreign land, for years and years I roamed
I gazed a gazeless star, we walked a million hills
I must have died alone, a long long time ago
Who knows? Not me
I never lost control
You’re face to face
With the Man who Sold the World
Who knows? not me
We never lost control
You’re face to face
With the Man who Sold the World

The Man

“The Man Who Sold the World” is a song written by David Bowie and popularized by Nirvana. Kurt Cobain sang this song a moment before his suicide action. Implicitly, maybe Kurt wanted to tell the people that he‘d already sold the world. Personally, I think he overstepped David Bowie, who originally wrote this song. At some point, Kurt understood this song better than Bowie.
Influenced by Nietzsche, in this song Bowie told us a lot about the Super-Human concept, or I’d like to say it “Superman”. A man who’d overstepped all other man. A man who had a better consciousness and understanding of the universe. A figure like Buddha, Jesus, Mohammad, Janis Joplin, and Ken Arok perhaps? Figure mentioned before just an example about the Superman figure although I’m not literally saying that the person I mentioned is the superman figure, but in a simple way, they had some similar characteristic with the Super-Human concept. They all were men (or women) who had a better understanding.

The World

The world’s values and wisdom have been evolving for ages. From one’s truth transform into others. It’s nothing more than buying and selling. To sell one’s belief and buy the new one. To sell one’s truth and bargain for a new one. In the middle age, every European kings believe that mercantilism is the only powerful economic system to conquer the world, but then it had been evolved into capitalism. Genghis Khan invaded another country to enslaved them. Nowadays, USA invades another country to gave them freedom.

The Men Who Sold It

The world always change its value depends on the man who owns it, and to sell the world means you must own it first. Of course, how could you sell something that did not belong to you? In the song Bowie describes the man who sold the world as a friendly figure, who had an understanding about one’s search in life. Who had died, but still lives. Bowie did not say explicitly about the super-human figure that resurrect from their tomb, and then speak to him about wisdom. In my personal opinion they live forever through their works, their memoirs, their songs, their paintings, and saying absurdly, their souls. Then, they can speak eternally, still take part in bargaining and selling the world.
__
Quoting Nietzsche “There are no facts, only interpretations,” this is just my interpretation. This is my personal opinion. But again, the personal is political.

Amir

2010-08-20T17:33:00.002+07:00

Amir is a title for Arabic nobleman. Around Jakarta, there was a man named Amir. He was not a nobleman, and not an Arab as well. He was a plain Javanese, flat-nosed, and a bit flat-minded.

Amir like to hunt. In his spare time, he went to the jungle in Karawang, riding his old Volkswagen car, side by side with his rifle. An ordinary air-rifle inherited from his late father. For Amir, to hunt is to control, to conquer, to become god.

Amir believes in god, his religious dogma, and he also believes in his dear country. He was lucky, he never doubt. He was not choosing to believe, he had been chosen. By his god and his country. In his mind at least.

Beside his great devotion to his god, Amir is a mere human. A human who wants power and greatness. He wants people to envy him. Amir felt power-hunger for the first time when he was a boy. One day Amir went fishing at the lake near his school. He’s good at fishing. But today he realized something extraordinary. When he saw a fish struggled, begged for its life, he saw himself as a god. He knew what the fish feel, and it’s now up to him to decide. At that time, he decides to become a good-god. He returned the fish back to the lake.

Today, Amir was on his way to the jungle. He’d been hungry for weeks, for food and power. A godly feeling increased his appetite. He yearned the smell of a roast-bunny. He’d like to kill a bigger animal, but his rifle only able to kill small animal like rabbit and duck. Someday Amir would afford a more appropriate rifle, but not today. He wasn’t ready to kill a bigger animal.

Poor Amir, he did not find any prey today. There were few birds flying around, but it’s very hard for Amir to shoot a flying bird. He’s not a professional hunter. So, upon his failure, he went back to his car to find some instant noodles. He ate to satisfy his stomach, not his hunger.

Before going to sleep in his exotic Volkswagen Combi, Amir prayed. He asked his god, so tomorrow he can become god.
__
Some people think it’s okay to play god in front of their own god.

Di Sebuah Kotak Telepon Umum

2010-08-08T14:12:00.002+07:00

Temanku panik, ia berlari sampai terengah, putus hampir nafasnya. Ia bingung mencari eskrim paddle pop yang tadi pagi dibelikan ibunya. Seingatnya eskrim itu ia letakkan di atas kulkas sesudah ia mengeluarkannya dari freezer. Ia tidak suka eskrim saat terlalu padat, ia siangi dulu di atas kulkas supaya lebih creamy dan giginya tidak sakit karena harus menggigit krim beku. Maklum giginya sensitif.

Aku masih tujuh tahun, aku ikut sedih ia menghilangkan eskrimnya, padahal aku sudah bilang nanti aku juga mau minta cicip sedikit. Maklum saat itu aku tinggal di Kalimantan, jarang ada eskrim lezat bisa tinggal di kulkas teman-temanku.

Temanku sedang memakai kostum batman, aku sendiri sedang memakai baju dengan lambang huruf “S” di dadaku. Aku masih bingung itu baju Superboy atau Superman. Tapi tidak kenapa, toh aku suka dengan keduanya, aku tetap si manusia super.

Akhirnya kami berdua mengeluarkan kendaraan kami masing-masing. Ia dengan bat-mobile nya, sepeda federal usang tahun 1990, sementara aku menggenjot polygon keluaran terbaru, seakan sedang meluncur terbang diantara angin. Kami tahu sekarang saat untuk mencari siapa penjahatnya, siapa pencuri eskrim yang seharusnya kami nikmati bersama.

Selang tiga rumah ada sebuah kotak telepon umum. Kadang aku suka melihat tingkah bermacam orang saat merasa sendiri dan terlindungi di kotak itu. Salah satu teman kami sedang berdiri di dalam sana, menghadap ke arah telepon, tapi tidak satu dari kedua tangannya menggenggam gagang. Setahuku ia adalah seorang Esper (walaupun ia laki-laki), jadi wajar jika menggunakan kemampuan telepatinya untuk berbicara tanpa memegang gagang.

“Ya sudah, ayo kita masuk lebih jauh ke hutan!” seruku.

Aku dan temanku kemudian menggenjot sepedaku lebih jauh ke jantung hutan. Maklum di kompleks tempat tinggalku, hutan memang ada di kanan kiri setiap rumah. Biarpun kami tinggal di daerah yang khusus dirawat oleh perusahaan pupuk tempat ayah kami bekerja, babi hutan tetap akan datang saat malam untuk mencari sisa makanan di tong-tong sampah perumahan kami.

Aku curiga dengan temanku Si Buta dari Goa Hantu. Sepulang sekolah ia pasti mampir sebentar ke rumah temanku, tapi kemudian selalu pergi ke hutan untuk bermain voli. Kalau saat itu usiaku sudah 20 tahun, aku pasti bingung kenapa ada lapangan voli di tengah hutan. Tapi saat itu yang aku tahu lapangan voli itu tempat Si Buta dari Goa Hantu berkumpul bersama gerombolannya. Aku sebal karena ia selalu mampir untuk main Sega di rumah temanku (sehingga merebut jatah giliranku bermain), lalu setelah puas ia langsung pergi tanpa mengajak aku dan temanku.

Aku yakin sekarang dia sedang menikmati eskrim kami itu dengan gengnya. Sampai akhirnya begitu sampai di sana aku kecele. Lapangan itu kosong, rupanya aku salah, setelah aku sampai ke rumah si Buta, aku baru tahu kalau ia sedang demam, sudah dua hari tidak masuk sekolah. Pantas aku tidak bermain Sega dengan dia tadi siang. Aku lupa. Temanku makin sedih di sampingku, seakan aku sudah mengajak dia pergi hanya untuk mendapat sia.

Aku tidak habis akal,

“Ayo sekarang kita kembali ke arah rumahmu, ada yang mau aku perlihatkan!” ajakku.

Kemudian kami kembali meluncur. Sesekali tanganku kulepas dari stang sepeda untuk direntang ke depan meniru gaya Superman (atau Superboy) terbang. Tidak berapa lama kami sampai. Aku duluan karena terbang tentu lebih cepat dibanding bat-mobile.

“Aku punya ide, kita minta tolong Esper untuk mencari pelakunya dengan kekuatan telepatinya!” jelasku penuh semangat.

Esper masih berdiri di dalam kotak telepon, kemudian dengan kencang aku ketok kaca penutupnya, meminta ia segera membukakan pintu. Tapi ia tetap berdiri tanpa berbalik muka ke arahku, sampai tiba-tiba ia berlari keluar menubruk aku dan temanku. Ia lari ke rumahnya yang sangat dekat dengan kotak telepon sakralku itu.

Aku heran kenapa dia tidak melakukan teleportasi seperti biasanya. Tetapi kemudian segala pertanyaaku terjawab. Ia telah menodai perjanjian kita sendiri sebagai pembela kebenaran. Ada banyak tetes krim dan sebungkus kosong paddle pop, yang sudah kami cari ke jantung hutan sampai ke Goa Hantu kediaman Si Buta.

Ia menodai kotak teleponku. Aku selalu meninggalkan baju dan kacamataku di situ, karena tentu itu adalah satu-satunya tempatku berganti baju sebelum menjadi manusia super.

Aku sedih kemudian aku berkata pada temanku.

“Pantas ia tidak bisa teleport ke rumahnya, ia sudah menggunakan kekuatan supernya untuk mencuri eskrim kita! Sekarang dia sudah kehilangan kekuatannya!”

Aku lihat temanku mau menangis melihat eskrimnya sudah lumat. Aku jadi menangis duluan. Aku gagal menyelamatkan dunia kami, padahal sebagai seorang manusia super seharusnya aku lebih kuat dari temanku yang cuma seorang manusia biasa dengan lambang kelelawar.

17 tahun kemudian aku bertemu lagi dengan temanku si manusia biasa itu.

“Seorang Esper telah menghancurkan mimpi kita,” kenangku kembali mengingat saat kami masih sesama rekan pembela kebenaran.

‘”Dia bukan Esper bodoh! Aku lihat dia diam-diam mengambil eskrimku dari atas kulkas!”
“Sejak kapan kamu tahu?” tanyaku terheran.

“Sejak saat aku lari kesana-kemari mencari eskrimku,” jawabnya santai.

“Kalau kamu sudah tau kenapa kamu mau aku ajak ke hutan, lapangan voli, sampai ke rumah si Buta?!” agak emosi aku mendengarnya.

“Aku ingin bermimpi lebih lama, percaya kita semua masih pahlawan pembela kebenaran,” ucapnya miris.

Aku tersenyum, ingat tempatku dulu melepas seragam sekolah kemudian mengenakan kaos biru dengan “S” warna merah di dada.

—
*untuk satu penjahat di gerombolan pembela kebenaran

Primata, Blues dan Bir*

2010-08-08T14:11:00.002+07:00

There Must be A Better World Somewhere, ketukan lambat dan lengkingan gitar Riley B. King menggiring bias sinar diantara kepulan asap rokok yang memenuhi ruangan berbau bir, berbau blues.

Seperti apa bau blues itu? Entah, aku hanya ingat bau blues itu mirip bir. Pahit tapi menyegarkan.

Pertama kali aku mengenal blues di remang malam Passer Baroe, di sebuah galeri foto tua. Tempat aku biasa melihat foto hitam putih yang menyanyikan kebiruan yang sedang aku dengarkan. Sebuah blues. Sebuah kenyataan.

Pertama kali aku mengenal bir di Bali. Saat itu seharusnya aku sedang senang, tapi aku sedih. Aku meniru adegan di film. Sedih kemudian minum alkohol.

Tapi kemudian aku tidak menjadi senang. Aku menikmati kesedihanku. Luar biasa. Disinilah blues dan bir bertemu.

Itu sudah lama sekali. Wajar, pikiranku memang suka kemana-mana. Kembali ke ruanganku sekarang diantara para manusia yang sibuk mendengar B.B King. Mereka asyik menuang bir, bercumbu dan berbual. Entah dimana pikiranku sekarang. Mataku berkeliling. Aku tidak suka berbicara saat mendengar musik dan menegak bir. Aku suka melihat, aku suka bebincang, tapi dengan otakku sendiri. Kadang aku jadi merasa sangat sepi. Sangat sendiri.

Untukku rimba kota sama dengan hutan belantara. Aku tetap sepi, tetap sendiri. Sekelilingku isinya cuma binatang lain yang susah diajak bicara.

Di kanan aku melihat seekor bapak tua berhidung besar berwarna merah, seekor bekantan bongsor. Menegak bir sambil memangku seekor moyet kecil berpantat merah, bersiap untuk menjantaninya. Setahuku bekantan punya sistem harem dalam kehidupannya. Mungkin ini salah satu calon penghuni haremnya nanti kupikir.

Di kiri aku melihat gorila hitam. Membanggakan banyaknya bir yang berhasil dia tegak kepada teman-teman gorilanya juga. Seekor lemur lewat kemudian ditendangnya, dilludahinya, dipukuli beramai-ramai. Gorila tidak memakan lemur, hanya ingin bersenang-senang, menjadi jantan.

Di depanku gerombolan orangutan bergoyang, bertepuk tangan, menari, tertawa. Aneh, apa yang dirayakan dari sebuah blues?

Di belakang aku melihat gerombolan kera betina sedang bergunjing. Aduh, senang sekali mereka bergunjing dan tertawa-tawa. Aku lihat mata mereka melirik-lirik ke arah si bekantan bongsor itu. Mungkin salah satu penghuni haremnya adalah teman mereka, dan para betina itu senang saat ada sesamanya yang lebih tidak sesempurna dirinya. Mungkin. Aku bukan kera betina. Tapi aku juga primata.

Tenggelam aku dalam lamunan dan lantunan. Primata mungkin satu-satunya mahluk yang mengerti blues. Mengerti bir. Mengerti bagaimana menikmati rasa sakit.

Bagiku lucu jika golongan primata disebut primata. Dalam bahasa latin kata “primata” itu sendiri adalah “yang pertama, terbaik, mulia.”

Ah sudah, jangan dipikirkan lagi. There Must be A Better World Somewhere sudah hampir selesai, mungkin B.B King juga sudah cape dengan harapan akan dunia yang lebih baik. Cukup blues dan bir untuk para primata, yang semoga kelak menjadi manusia.

* Terinspirasi dari karya Seno Gumira: Jazz, Parfum dan Insiden

2009-07-08T11:14:00.003+07:00

Launching website baru.. http://www.mahatmaputra.com/ silahkan dilihat-lihat.. dalam web baru ini saya ingin menampilkan konsistensi saya di foto-foto hitam putih. Sehingga tidak ada foto-foto & portfolio komersial. Untuk bagian komersial rencananya akan dibuat di http://commercial.mahatmaputra.com/

Tunggu kelanjutannya...

Iree feat Ares The Serigala kampus -2006

2009-01-22T18:27:00.007+07:00

Sebuah videoklip iseng2 kebut semalam sambil nungguin Tito yang tidak dateng-dateng ke latihan ulang tahun komika. Inilah saat-saatnya Saturday Movie sedang getol-getolnya bikin2 video, pegang handycam mulu!!
Bravo buat Ares dan Iree yang berhasil membuat lagu tidak sampai setengah jam!!

Untuk Naga (supaya tetap di atas sana) -2008

2009-01-16T19:47:00.014+07:00

Ilutrasi: http://www.temptatts4u.com

Macan legam, berhati segenggam, melihat Naga dan terpesona,

Naga merah, melihat Macan, terperangah, kemudian tersenyum bergairah.

Ingin saling menaklukkan, dan menjadi Tuan.

Tetapi seperti lukisan di tembok Vihara,
Mereka tidak saling gigit dan terluka.

Hanya berdamping dan saling mengejar,
saling gemas untuk saling mencakar.

Karena Macan di hutan, dan Naga di langit,
Macan bukan letnan, dan Naga bukan bandit.
Naga bukan mahasiswi kedokteran, dan Macan bukan penyakit

Mereka perawan, bukan preman.
Tidak mau tunduk, tapi berharap ditakluk

Karena Naga terbang, diatas jernih awan dan cahaya terang,
Dan Macan berlarian, dalam kemurnian dan keliaran hutan.

Sehingga mereka menjadi suci, tanpa kehilangan birahi.

Saling ditakluki, tanpa saling menguasai

Sebuah puisi untuk Dira, oleh Mahatma Putra.
Pasar Minggu, 2 Februari 2008

Petak Milo

2009-01-04T14:53:00.004+07:00

Milo event advertisement in Jakarta. The concept of this advertisement is Indonesian traditional game. In this ad is engklek, one of Indonesian traditional game (stone throwing and jumping game).

Project Name: Petak Milo
Photographer: Mahatma Putra
Digital Artist: Mahatma Putra
Art Director: Mahatma Putra
Copywriter: Raja Tasha
Creative Direction: Panjalu Murti
Client:

Mbah Prawiro -2006

2008-12-30T13:32:00.010+07:00

Portrait of a fortune teller whom usually practicing at Fatahillah Museum. Mbah Prawiro ask for Rp 25.000,00 (about 2,5 USD) for reading your prevision. He's a popular photo subject (I prefer to call him photo subject rather than object) among the Jakarta's photographic community. Based on info among the community, Mbah Prawiro passed away in 2007.

Potret seorang peramal yang biasa berpraktek di Museum Fatahillah. Mbah Prawiro meminta bayaran Rp. 25.000,00 untuk membaca masa depan anda. Dia terkenal sebagai subjek foto (saya lebih suka menyebutnya subjek foto daripada objek) diantara komunitas fotografi Jakarta. Berdasarkan info dari komunitas, Mbah Wiro meninggal di tahun 2007.

Praying for guidance before begin to read prevision, usually by reading face or palmistry.
Photo by Mahatma Putra.

Mbah Wiro, his eyes and every line in his face tells history. Photo by Mahatma Putra.

Advertisement/Annual Report Cover -2007

2008-12-30T02:57:00.010+07:00

Plain photograph, later will be converted into Annual Report Cover 2008 and Advertisment for PT Pupuk Kaltim, one of the biggest fertilizer company in Indonesia. But actually, in realization they only paid for the concept.

Project Name: Annual Report & Advertisement
Photographer: Mahatma Putra
Digital Artist: Mahatma Putra
Art Director: Mahatma Putra
Creative Director: Moch. Haris Suryana
Achievement: Pupuk Kaltim Annual Report Design Award
Client:

FIM Asia Gudang Garam Motocross -2006

2008-12-24T20:55:00.005+07:00

Photo by Mahatma Putra

Para pembalap dari 11 negara ambil bagian dalam FIM Asia Gudang Garam Motocross Championship 2006 yang berlangsung 4-6 Agustus 2006 di sirkuit Rasuna Epicentrum, Kuningan Jakarta.

Sirkuit ini dulu terletak di tempat Rasuna Epicentrum sekarang berdiri. Dan kemudian dibongkar di tahun 2007 untuk pembangunan apartemen megah tersebut.

A racer from 11 countries compete in FIM Asia Gudang Garam Motocross Championship 2006 that were held from 4-6 August 2006 in Rasuna Epicentrum circuit, Kuningan, Jakarta.

This circuit were reside in Rasuna Epicentum now take place. And later demolished in 2007 for the erection of that luxurious apartment.

9000 (short movie) -2007

2008-12-24T12:38:00.003+07:00

9000 adalah film pendek kedua dari Saturday Movie. Film ini menjadi runner up dalam FilmIX Film Festival di FIB (Fakultas Ilmu Budaya) Universitas Indonesia.
Film ini mengisahkan refleksi Sita, seorang scriptwriter dalam 9000 hari hidupnya. Penuh dengan konsep absud & mistis.

9000 was the second shot movie created by Saturday Movie. This film goes as a runner up at FilmIX Film Festival in Faculty of Culture & Literature Universitas Indonesia.
This film tells a story of Sita's reflection, in 9000 days of her life. Full of absurd & myst concept.

SATURDAY MOVIE PICTURES Presents A MUTTAQIENA/WICAKPRADANA Production A MAHATMA PUTRA Film DWI SITI AISYAH ARES SURYANA MUTTAQIENA IMAAMAA “9000” Written By MAHATMA PUTRA STEPHANY MAMONTO Assistant Director RIO FEROLI Creative Crew & Camera Person MOCH HARIS SURYANA ARYA WICAKPRADANA MAHATMA PUTRA TITO ANDRIO MUTTAQIENA IMAAMAA Director of Photography TITO ANDRIO 2nd Director of Photography DAVID PARLUHUTAN Storuboard Artist DESIREE STEPHANY Production Assistant & Art Direction ADITYO WIBY PUTRANTO DIEGO NELWAN Still Photographer DIEGO NELWAN Sound Director ARYA WICAKPRADANA Film Editor MAHATMA PUTRA Wardrobe Director & Makeup Artist RADEN ZETTA GUSTRIN Original Scoring ARIA PARA DIGDAYA (LOCALADS) SIGUR ROS Subtitling Team MAHATMA PUTRA ARYA WICAKPRADANA

9000 (part 1)

9000 (part 2)

9000 (part 3)

Watch high quality @youtube:
9000 (part 1)
9000 (part 2)
9000 (part 3)

Screening @ filmIX 2008 FIB UI

SENAT MAHASISWA FAKULTAS ILMU PENGETAHUAN BUDAYA
MEMPERSEMBAHKAN
FILMIX “DEDIKASIKU KEPADA BANGSA”
12-14 Februari 2008
AUDITORIUM Gedung IX, FAKULTAS ILMU PENGETAHUAN BUDAYA,
UNIVERSITAS INDONESIA

Kampung Naga (Dragon's Village) -2006

2008-12-22T22:23:00.001+07:00

Photo by Mahatma Putra

Seorang Ibu menggendong anaknya dalam keheningan Kampung Naga. Kampung Naga adalah sebuah desa reservasi budaya yang terletak Garut, Jawa Barat.
Foto ini memenangkan Lomba Foto Kementrian Perumahan Rakyat sebagai Runner Up, dan dipamerkan di Perpustakaan Nasional pada tahun 2006

A mother carrying her child tranquilly in Kampung Naga. Kampung Naga is a culture preservation village located in Garut, West Java.
This Photograph won a contest from the Ministry of Civil Housing as a Runner Up, and exhibited at Indonesia's National Library in 2006.

Indosiar Boxing Championship -2006

2008-12-22T18:42:00.000+07:00

Photo by Mahatma Putra

Pagelaran tinju di Indosiar, partai pembukaan sebelum mulai partai besar.
Boxing match in Indosiar (one of Indonesia national TV Station), opening session before the major match begin.

Manusia -2007

2008-12-22T14:22:00.000+07:00

Sebuah esai tentang eksistensi manusia dan kebenaran sejati.
An essay about human existance and unmitigated truth.

Manusia

Aku, Manusia, sebuah jiwa yang ada dari raga, rasa dan logika.
Tubuhku duduk di sini, pikiranku meresap logika, sementara hati tertuju pada sebuah citra.
Sebuah kerinduan manusia untuk bersatu dengan alam, dengan dirinya.
Dengan alasan itu manusia berdoa. Mecari saat dimana jiwanya menjadi satu.
Dikala raga, rasa dan logika membaur menjadi satu jiwa.
Aku membaur di dalam ruang gelap, menghisap asap harapan. Ingin mencoba mencicipi sedikit keabadian.
Untuk menjadikanku sempurna. Menyatukan raga, rasa dan logika. Mengarahkan hati, menyatukan segala dengan tubuh dan pikiran. Denganmu aku berdoa.
Di tengah keheningan, aku sadar tentang betapa hidupnya aku, betapa utuhnya aku, sebagai manusia.
Tetapi manusia lain meliatku berbeda.
Mengapa kamu menilaiku?
Menghakimiku di saat kau menjadi sempurna?
Mengatasnamakan norma dan menjadikan kebenaranmu sejati?
Mengapa doa sebuah nista?
Menjadikan kebenaranku sampah?
Bukankah kebenaran sejati menyisakan ruang-ruang kosong bagi kebenaran -kebenaran lain?

Text & Photo: Mahatma Putra

English Translation: soon

Foto dan tulisan telah dipamerkan pada pameran:
Photos & essay already exhibited in:

"UNBREAKABLE"
PAMERAN UMUM:
5 APRIL - 6 MEI 2007
PUKUL 09.00 - 20.00 WIB

GALERI FOTO JURNALISTIK ANTARA
JL. ANTARA NO. 59, PASAR BARU
JAKARTA 10710, TELP/FAX: [021-3458771]
www.gfja.org

BIntang Zero - 2006

2008-12-22T12:41:00.001+07:00

Salah satu beer Indonesia (0% Alkohol). Bintang Zero.
Ini juga adalah salah satu tugas saya dulu di kuliah.

Photographer: Mahatma Putra
Digital Imaging: Mahatma Putra
Art Direction: Mahatma Putra
Client: D3 Advertising Universitas Indonesia

One of Indonesian beer (but 0% Alkohol) brand. Bintang Zero.
One of my assignment when I was still in college.

Photographer: Mahatma Putra
Digital Imaging: Mahatma Putra
Art Direction: Mahatma Putra
Client: D3 Advertising Universitas Indonesia

Play PUMA - 2006

2008-12-22T12:12:00.000+07:00

Versi 1 / Version 1

Versi 2 / Version 2

Konsep: "Play PUMA"

Salah satu tugas kuliah saat masih Kuliah di D3 Iklan Universitas Indonesia
Photographer: Mahatma Putra
Digital Artist: Mahatma Putra
Art Direction: Mahatma Putra & Moch. haris Suryana
Creative Direction: Moch. Haris Suryana

Concept: "Play PUMA"

One of my college assignment when I was in college (Universitas Indonesia)
Photographer: Mahatma Putra
Digital Artist: Mahatma Putra
Art Direction: Mahatma Putra & Moch. haris Suryana
Creative Direction: Moch. Haris Suryana

Opera Celana Bolong (Thorned Pants Opera) - 2007

2008-12-20T09:53:00.000+07:00

Film pendek pertama dari Saturday Movie (tim produksi saya) yang mendapatkan penghargaan dari ANTV, dalam Short Movie Contest with Handycam. Dalam film ini saya adalah Sutradara, Pengarah Fotografi, dan Editor Film. Film ini berkisah tentang konflik antara ibu dan anak, di mana dalam setiap konflik selalu ada kasih sayang di sana. Inti cerita ini hanya satu: celana bolong.

Pemain & Kru: Pemain Moch. Haris Suryana, Muttaqiena Imaamaa, Mrs. Naziarti, Konsep Kreatif Muttaqiena Imaamaa, Moch. Haris Suryana, Mahatma Putra, Arya Wicakpradana, Rio Feroli, Script & Dialogue Muttaqiena Imaamaa Moch. Haris Suryana, Producer Arya Wicakpradana, Muttaqiena Imaamaa, Sutradara Mahatma Putra, Co Sutradara Moch. Haris Suryana, Camera Person Mahatma Putra, Pengarah Fotografi Mahatma Putra, Film Editor Mahatma Putra, Still Photographer Rio Feroli, Lighting & Equipment Rio Feroli, Special Thanks Mrs. Naziarati & Keluarga, Izin Musik Ikang Fawzi, Poison, Blur.

First film from Saturday Movie (my production team) which got an award from ANTV (one of Indonesian national television), in Short Movie Contest with Handycam. In this film I'm the director, dop (director of photography), and the film editor. This film tells a conflict of a son and a mother, that in every conflict there's love. Only one simple conflict in this film: thorned pants.

Cast & Crew: Starring Moch. Haris Suryana, Muttaqiena Imaamaa, Mrs. Naziarti, Creative Concept Muttaqiena Imaamaa, Moch. Haris Suryana, Mahatma Putra, Arya Wicakpradana, Rio Feroli, Script & Dialogue Muttaqiena Imaamaa Moch. Haris Suryana, Producer Arya Wicakpradana, Muttaqiena Imaamaa, Director Mahatma Putra, Co Director Moch. Haris Suryana, Camera Person Mahatma Putra, Director of Photography Mahatma Putra, Film Editor Mahatma Putra, Still Photographer Rio Feroli, Lighting & Equipment Rio Feroli, Special Thanks Mrs. Naziarati & Family, Music Courtesy Ikang Fawzi, Poison, Blur.

Watch high quality @youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ch_xZbiYgCo