Keris Mas, born Kamaluddin Muhamad, was a prominent Malaysian literary figure and was one of the founders of the Asas '50 literary movement. His numerous contributions to Malay language literature led him to become Malaysia's first National Laureate in 1981.
Biography
Born in Kampung Ketari, Bentong, Pahang. Keris Mas received his early education at the Malay School in his village, before going to the Tawalib school in Sumatra, and the Muallimin Al-Islamiah College. After World War II, he joined the Parti Kebangsaan Melayu Malaya wing in Pahang, and was actively involved in its branch in Singapore. In the party, he held the Information Officer post. He also worked with several newspapers, such as the Melayu Raya, Warta Negara, and Utusan Melayu in Singapore. He is credited with contributing a lot towards the development of Mastika magazine and Utusan Zaman, a Malay-language newspaper in Jawi script. He joined the Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka in December 1956 as an editor, and his highest post, before his retirement on 10 June 1977, was as the head of the literary development section. After his retirement, he continued to be a Penulis Tamu at the University of Malaya and Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka.
Literary career
Keris Mas main contribution in the field of local literature was in short stories. By the end of the 1960s, he had written about 60 short stories. His first short story was Wasiat Orang Bangsawan, published in the magazine Suluh Malaya in 1946. His works are now contained in the following anthologies: Mekar dan Segar ; Dua Zaman ; Patah Tumbuh ; and Pertentangan . He is also the author of four novels: Pahlawan Rimba Malaya ; Korban Kesuciannya ; Anak Titiwangsa ;Saudagar Besar dari Kuala Lumpur ; and Rimba Harapan'' . His works are distinguished by their themes of addressing social injustice and strong and lively characters that resonate with the reader.
Asas 50
Asas 50 came to existence on 6 August 1950. Keris Mas was one of the 19 founding members of the movement, which includes Usman Awang, Abdul Samad Ismail, Masuri SN and others. With the motto Seni Untuk Masyarakat, it was inspired by the Indonesian writers movement, Angkatan 45, and has been described as a watershed moment for the development of Malay literature in the region. Seen as an angry young men movement, it championed several aims:
To free Malay society from those elements of its culture which was obstructing or negating the pursuit of modernity and progress;
To advance the intellectual awareness of the rakyat towards the ideals of social justice, prosperity, peace and harmony;
To refine and promote the Malay language as the lingua franca of Malaya.
To that end, members employed a realist style in their writing, deliberately going against established genres that they felt were too preoccupied with stylistics and the trivial aspects of human life, thus not reflecting the reality of human life. Keris Mas himself described the movement as follows:
"In the field of literature, the proponents of ASAS 50 adopted a new breathe of style, employing a mode of language that is fresh, departing from the preceding genre of writers, propounding the themes of societal awareness, politics and culture with the aim of revitalising the spirit of freedom, the spirit of independence of a people of its own unique sense of honour and identity, upholding justice and combating oppression.
.... We criticised societal backwardness and those whom we regard as the instruments responsible for the birth of such backwardness. We criticised colonialism and its instruments, that is, the elite class, those whose consciousness have been frozen by the influence of feudalism and myths, and superstition that has been enmeshed with religion."
It is still a registered body until today. Its motto however has since developed to "Seni Bina Manusia" or "Literature develops humanity". Its primary philosophy however still maintains. ASAS 50 has also since developed its youth wing to develop and nurture budding talents. Today, its youth wing is led by highly motivated individuals who each is developing their own identity, approach, and style towards the Malay literature, language and culture.
Awards
In 1976, he was given the Pejuang Sastera award by the third Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tun Hussein Onn. In 1981, he became the first recipient of the Sasterawan Negara award. In 1989, he was also conferred an honorary doctorate in literature by Universiti Sains Malaysia.
Death
Keris Mas died on 9 March 1992 from a heart attack at the Kuala Lumpur General Hospital, at 3am. At the time of his death, he was survived by his wife, Roswita Ali and two children, Hayati and Amir, and seven grandchildren. He was buried at the Bukit Kiara Muslim Cemetery, Kuala Lumpur.
Legacy
Several places and honours were named after him, including:
