Ch. 9–1: How the Queen of Majapahit Chose Her Husband

The chapter begins with the news that the ruler Batara Majapahit (whose ancestor we met in Chapter 4) has died. He had no sons but leaves a daughter, Radin Galuh Awi Kesuma, and she is made to occupy the throne by the Prime Minister, whose title is Patih Aria Gajah Mada.

One day, a toddy-​tapper (“penyadap”) goes sailing with his wife, and sees a boy drifting on a plank in the open sea. He rescues the boy and brings him into his boat. The boy is uncon­scious from being at sea without food and water for so long, but his life isn’t yet over, as that saying of Ali (may God be pleased with him) goes: ‘Death only comes at the appointed hour.’ So the tapper drips rice-​broth water into the boy’s mouth, and the boy comes to his senses and realises he is on a boat. The tapper takes the boy to his home and cares for him.

After a few days, the boy is well again, and the tapper asks: “Who are you, and how did you come to be adrift on a plank?” The kid replies: “I am a prince of Tanjung Pura, a descendant of Sang Maniaka, who first came down from Bukit Si Guntang Maha Miru. My name is Radin Perlangu, and I have two brothers and a sister. One day my father, the Raja of Tanjung Pura, set out on a leisure trip to an island, but in the middle of the sea, a big storm broke and the waves were huge; my father’s vessel couldn’t be controlled by anyone, and it sank. My parents had no time to get into another boat but they swam towards another ship. I could only cling to a plank, and I was borne by the current further out to sea. I stayed like that for seven days and seven nights, with nothing to eat or drink. but you found me in the nick of time and you have treated me so nicely. But if you want to be even nicer to be, you would send me back to my parents in Tanjung Pura, and they will richly reward you.” Well, that’s quite a speech! He must be making up for all that time, when he was at sea and then recuperating on land, when he could not speak at all.

The tapper replies, “I am unable to take you all the way to Tanjung Pura. Stay with me and let me adopt you, as I am childless and I enjoy looking at your handsome young face.” Oh dear, is the tapper some kind of paedophile? But as there were no Welfare Departments at that time for the kid to run to, he merely says, “OK, I will do as you wish.” So the tapper adopts the boy and names him Ki Mas Jiwa (the name is also spelled Kiai Mas Jiwa slightly later). The tapper and his wife take good care of the kid (and we are relieved to find no accounts of ‘inappro­priate’ touching). Often the man would playfully say to the boy: “You will grow up to be the Raja of Majapahit, after marrying Puteri Nai Kesuma, but once you become Batara Majapahit, you have to elect me as Aria Gajah Mada!” And so the kid replies: “Yes, if I ever become Batara Majapahit, I will elect you to be Patih Aria Gajah Mada.” This seems like a weird game for them to be playing, but maybe the tapper couldn’t afford any other type of amusement like a congkak board.

Puteri Nai Kesuma (formerly known as Radin Galuh Awi Kesuma) reigns for some time, with Patih Aria Gajah Mada as her regent. Some people, intending to compliment him, tell Patih Aria Gajah Mada that he is about to marry her! One day, Patih Aria Gajah Mada puts on grubby clothes and travels incognito while rowing with people from the lower classes,. And the young commoners around him are gossiping: “If I were Patih Aria Gajah Mada, I’d sweep the queen off her feet, and enjoy the good life!” And another bloke says: “Of course they will get hitched. He’s a big honcho around here and is like a de facto king already. Who would dare to refuse him?” After overhearing this chatter, Patih Aria Gajah Mada thinks: “Well, so much for all my loyal service!”

The next day, Patih Aria Gajah Mada goes to meet Puteri Nai Kesuma, and says “Your Highness, it seems to me that since you’re already grown-​up, you should get married because it is not proper for you to be without a man.” And so Puteri Nai Kesuma replies, “If you want me to get a husband, gather together all the men in this country, and I will take my pick from among them.” And Patih Aria Gajah Mada says, “Alright, I will indeed gather everyone, and even if you were to pick a dog or a cat to be your husband, I will agree with your choice.” Wait a minute. Why this mention of dogs and cats? Is he insinuating that her sexual tastes are so unorthodox that she dabbles in bestiality?

Anyway, Patih Aria Gajah Mada orders the drums to be banged throughout Majapahit and even the neigh­bouring territories, for all men to gather near the palace so that the ruler can pick a husband. So all the nearby kings, chiefs, heralds, warriors and commoners, be they tall or short, young or old, including those who are crippled, gather in Majapahit. They came not because they were forced to but because they each had hopes of getting chosen by Puteri Nai Kesuma. The manuscript stays silent on whether any domestic animals turned up for this 15th century Javanese episode of:

The Bachelorette

When they are all gathered, Puteri Nai Kesuma gets on a balcony (“ke atas peranginan”) and looks to the road, where the men were instructed by Patih Aria Gajah Mada to file past one by one. She looks at so many men but doesn’t fancy any of them. After a while, the tapper files past, and she notices his son, and she decides he’s the right guy for her. Puteri Nai Kesuma tells Patih Aria Gajah Mada: “That tapper’s son. He’s the one I want.” Patih Aria Gajah Mada says, “OK, anyone would be fine, as long as you have a husband.” So he sends for the tapper’s son (we are not told how old he is, but we can guess, or hope, that he has gone through puberty) to be brought to his home, and the potential groom is taken care of.

Patih Aria Gajah Mada plans the week-​long festivities that will accompany this wedding. After the week is over, the tapper’s son is paraded around the city in a procession, and then married to Puteri Nai Kesuma. After the marriage, the couple is blissfully happy together. And so the tapper’s adopted son does become the new Batara Majapahit, with the title of Sang Aji Ningrat.

The tapper then comes to see his adopted son, and says, “Do you remember the promise you used to make, that if you ever became Batara Majapahit you would appoint me as Patih Aria Gajah Mada?” And Batara Majapahit says, “Be patient please, I need to think about it.” So the tapper goes back to his house, and Batara Majapahit thinks to himself: “The current Patih Aria Gajah Mada is doing such a great job; if I were to fire him, Majapahit would fall apart. But I’d also made a promise to my adoptive father. What do I do now?” He’s so conflicted that he stays indoors for three days to brood.

When Patih Aria Gajah Mada sees the king behaving oddly, he asks, “Why have you not left the palace in three days?” Batara Majapahit says, “Erm, ahh, I’m not well.” But Patih Aria Gajah Mada is no fool, and says “I can tell something is troubling you. Tell me, and I could perhaps help you.” And so Batara Majapahit says, “Well, here’s the thing. I’m not really the tapper’s son. I’m actually a prince of Tanjung Pura, and I am descendant from the Raja who came down from Bukit Si Guntang Maha Miru.” And so Batara Majapahit blabs out everything —the storm at sea, the plank, the rescue, the promise — and concludes “So now my adoptive father wants me to fulfill my promise to have him replace you, and this is why I am troubled.”

Patih Aria Gajah Mada is thrilled to find out that Batara Majapahit is actually a prince of Tanjung Pura, and he says, “Your Majesty, it would be best to appoint the tapper to replace me; let me retire as I am already old.” But Batara Majapahit refuses: “I can’t fire you for him, because he won’t be nearly as skilled.” (Well, so much for loyalty to the man who raised him!) Patih Aria Gajah Mada then offers a suggestion: the next time the tapper comes to see him, Batara Majapahit is to say, “The office of Patih Aria Gajah Mada is a very distin­guished one, but it’s also very challenging, and I fear it may be beyond your scope of expertise, my dear old friend. But there’s an even greater distinction that I can give you: I will put you in charge of all the tappers in this country, and you can be their chief.” The next day, the tapper comes to see Batara Majapahit, who says exactly what he was advised to say. Whaddaya know, the tapper is thrilled to hear it!

Majapahit then became an even greater empire, and it extends its dominion over the whole of Java. And the Raja of Tanjung Pura hears that the current Batara Majapahit is his own son, so he sends his people to Majapahit to take a look at this king. The messengers return to Tanjung Pura and tell the Raja, “Yup, he’s your son alright.” The Raja is thrilled, and word spreads throughout Java that this prince of Tanjung Pura (who may have been presumed lost at sea) is now Batara Majapahit.

Batara Majapahit then has a daughter, a real stunner (“terlalu baik parasnya”) named Radin Galuh Cendera Kirana. News of her beauty even reaches Melaka, where Sultan Mansur Syah (who was introduced to us at the end of Chapter 8–2) gets the hots (“berahi rasa hati”) for her.

What will the Sultan of Melaka do now? Stay tuned for the next part of this chapter!

Aug 28, 2010 – 3:30 AM | By Amir Muhammad | Posted in Blog Post | Comments (961)

Previous Chapters

  • CH 15–2: How Kampar Got Steamrolled by Melaka
  • CH. 15–1: How a Melakan Warrior Had to Wait Before Kicking Haru Asses
  • Ch. 14–5: Why the Bendahara Mentions Royal Horniness on His Deathbed
  • Ch. 14–4: How Melaka Delivered a Smackdown to Pahang
  • Ch. 14–3: How the Sultan of Melaka Turned into a Kick-​ass Vigilante
  • Ch. 14–2: How a Grandmother From Hell is Stopped from Committing Regicide
  • Ch 14–1: How the People of Campa Ended Up in Melaka
  • Ch. 13: How the Pasai King’s Uppity Words Lost Him a Valuable Ally
  • Ch. 12–3: How the Sultan of Melaka Got Cock-​Blocked
  • Ch 12–2: How The Pasai Philosopher Answers (or Not) a Riddle from Melaka
  • Ch. 12–1: Why the Horny Prince of Mengkasar Goes on a Destructive Spree
  • Ch. 11: How a Game of Sepak Raga Turned Deadly
  • Ch. 10: How the Raja of China Cured His Skin Problem
  • Ch. 9–5: How the Sultan of Melaka Got His Elephant Back
  • Ch. 9–4: How the Raja of China’s Daughter Came to Melaka
  • Ch. 9–3: How Hang Tuah Killed Hang Kasturi
  • Ch. 9–2: How the Melakans Responded to the King of Majapahit’s Practical Jokes
  • Ch. 9–1: How the Queen of Majapahit Chose Her Husband
  • Ch. 8–2: How Melaka Became Siam’s BFF
  • Ch. 8–1: How the Siamese Were Fooled
  • Ch. 7: Why The Bendahara of Melaka Committed Suicide
  • Ch. 6–3: How Melaka was Founded, and Then Became Muslim
  • Ch. 6–2: How a King’s Horniness Got Him into Trouble with His Brother
  • Ch. 6–1: How Islam Came to the Malay World
  • Ch. 5: How Eating Vomit Can Make You A Superman
  • Ch. 4: How Singapura Repaid Majapahit’s Insult
  • Ch. 3: How Singapore Got Its Name
  • Ch. 2: How China Saved Itself
  • Ch. 1: Alexander?

    • 961 Comments