The island of Java, local people calls it Java since the ancient time. The name of Indonesia did not exist yet at that time. Since a long time ago, island of Java is exceptionally beautiful and fertile with pleasant climate. This condition has made the island to be comfortably to live in, this is the island of gods. This might be true. The Javanese people in Javanese language are (they have graded language: alus means soft and polite to be used when speaking with elder men or respected people and kasar or rough to be used by common people).
Tiyang from Ti Hyang (alus)
Uwong from Wahong (kasar)
Both have same
meaning, the descendants of gods.
According to wayang
kulit stories and some people believe that the first kings or rulers in ancient
Jawa were gods themselves descending from kahyangan (Heaven Kingdom).
Java was almost uninhibited.
The first kingdom in
Java was Medhang Kamulan (kamulan from mula – beginning) means a man who has
begun to create life existance. The location of Medhang Kamulan was in the mountain of Mahendra
(now, Gunung/ Mount Lawu) in the border of Surakarta and Madiun regencies. The king was
S.H. Guru himself descended from Kahyangan, his name was Sri Paduka raja
Mahadewa. He moved his kingdom to Mount
Gede in Bogor,
West Java, with his assistant Narada, as Patih
(chief minister). In Mount
Gede, the court ranking
were :
1. King
2. Patih
3. Brahmana (priest)
4. Senopati (chief
warrior)
5. Jaksa (judge)
Then he moved back to
Lawu. He began to construct his palace with building imitating the ones in
kahyangan. For cultural entertainment he created gamelan (Javanese music
instruments) by the name of Lokananta to accompany gods while they were dancing
(beksan).
To guard his palace,
he assigned two giants to stand in front of the entrance gate. Their names were
Cingkarabala and Balaupata (nowadays, the Karatons in Java have giant statues
with same names to be placed in front of the entrance gates).
The heirloom master,
he was also a god or Jawata (also means the teacher of Javanese people), Empu
Ramadi or Ramayadhi were instructed by king Mahadewa (Guru) to make heirlooms
for gods, such as keris (dagger), cakra, arrows, etc. Up to now, Empu Ramadi
was considered as the first Keris maker in Java.
After several years
ruled in Java, Guru returned to kahyangan. He sent five of his sons to rule in
several places :
1. God or Sang
Hyang (S.H.) Sambo in the kingdom of Medhangprawa (Mount
Rajabasa) in Sumatra.
His name was Sri Maharaja (S.M.) Maldewa.
2. S.H. Brahma
in Medhang Gili in Mount
Mahera (Anyer) by the
name of S.M. Sunda. That's why the people of West Java
are called Tiyang (people) of Sunda.
3. S.H. Endra
in Mount Mahameru
(now, Mount Semeru - East Java) by the name of
S.M. Sakra. The kingdom was Medhang Gana.
4. S.H. Wisnu
in Mount Gora
(now, Mount Slamet, nearby Tegal Central Java, the
kingdom was Medhang Puro, his name was S.M. Suman).
5. S.H. Bayu in
Mount Karang
(Bali). His name was S.M. Bimo of the kingdom of Medhang Gora.
He sent also several
dewas to become Penditas and that was the beginning of Darma (religious)
teaching in Java, the local name was Pranata Gama (organizing of religious
teaching).
Audience among gods
(right to left :
Guru, Kamajaya, Narada, Wisnu & Yamadipati)
Semar (S.H.) Ismoyo
the elder brother of guru, he himself become Ponokawan and he sent nine sons to
become Pendita in Mount
Lawu to strengthen the
pranata Gama in Java.
The five divine kings
they enjoyed dancing accompanied by gamelan Lokananta. After the dancing, they
spread art of self-defense, gave lessons of some supernatural power. They
enjoyed living in Java, especially Wisnu who married with Dewi Pratiwi (goddess
of earth). Thus, their descendants become rulers of Java.
Batara Kala from time to time disrupted the peaceful life in
Java, making trouble to others. Kala was afraid of Wisnu and Semar, several
times he had been defeated in battles. When someone is careless, he could be
easily be victim of Kala. Many people up to present date make Slametan (slamet
: safe and sound) such as food offerings called 'Ruwatan' to protect from
Kala's disturbance.
Batara Endra had instructed the planting of two waringin
(banyan) trees in front of the Palace
Square like in Kahyangan. The Kalpataru, by the
name of Dewandaru and Jayadaru. This also could be seen nowadays in Javanese
Karatons.
Bedaya, at present is
a sacred court dance, performed by seven beautiful ladies, in the ancient time
were performed by seven goddesses such as Dewi Supraba, Dewi Wilatama, etc. It
was the favorite entertainment of King Dewa Esa (Wisnu) in his kingdom in
Parahyangan (the domain of gods), West Java.
Court titles
The sons of gods were
called Raden for the male (from Rahadi - Rah means blood or life, adi means
precious), - the precious man. The female were called Dewi. This title was also
given to the wives of gods.
Mount
Merapi
Its name in the old
days was Candrageni, north of Yogyakarta. Geni
means fire, the fire mountain was dangerous since ancient time. One big explosion
occurred, the thunderous voice raised to the sky with burning fire for forty
consecutive days. The village on the top of the mountain ruin to ashes, turn to
be the crater.
Batara Panyarikan,
'secretary of Guru', descended also in earth, to join Wisnu. Thus in Java,
knowledge, art and literature began to develop.
Seeing the above
explanation, wayang kulit has a deep root in Java, even become part of their
daily life. It is usual that someone's behavior, physical beauty and
achievement are compared with those figures in wayang. A beautiful lady is
compared to Dewi Supraba. Someone would say, "She is very beautiful like
Dewi Supraba". A career and intelligent women should be called Srikandi.
For male, if someone
is honest as Yudistira, a handsome man should be praised as Arjuna. A strong
young man or an air force officer is called Gatotkaca. A tall, strong, big man
is compared with Bima, and a tricky man is like Sengkuni.
People, for instance,
do not like greedy and cruel leaders because they are resembled to Rahwana and
Duryudana.
A wise man is valued
as Kresna. When a man and a woman are in a deep love, as if can not be
separated from each others, people would say, "They are a loving couple,
like Dewi Ratih (goddess of love) and Batara Kamajaya (god of love).
(Suryo S. Negoro)
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