The Semantic Structures Of Balinese Verb: Mabersih ‘To Clean’ Conveying Profane- Sacred Values

Abstract

There are a number of lexicons relating to the meaning of to clean translated into mabersih or nelain in Balinese language. The fact shows that such lexicons are not only used to express the daily routine activities in Bali-Indonesia, but also to accommodate various values. This article aims at describing the semantic structures of Balinese verbs in order to find out the profane and sacred values. The data was taken from daily conversations and Balinese texts as the written data. The oral data was collected through interview and the written ones by observation and note-taking. The collected data was analyzed by using the metalanguage approach, proposed by Allan (2001). The result showed that most of the encountered verbs being used are carrying profane nuance, among others: mandus, mambuh, masugi, mabaseh, masikat, nyampat, ngepél, ngumbah. Some lexicons are implying sacred values, as the lexicon ngingsah ‘cleaning and washing rice’ carries two possible values, both profane and sacred in certain activities done for the different purposes (a) rice for cooking daily food or (b) rice for making ritual ceremony substances. The lexicon malukat, mabayuh, and masapuh are used to express the nuance done by people to clean them spiritually.

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