Ch. 9–2: How the Melakans Responded to the King of Majapahit’s Practical Jokes

The chapter continues with Sultan Mansur Syah determined to get hold of the Majapahit princess Radin Galuh Cendera Kirana’s hand (and other body-​parts). He instructs his Bendahara Paduka Raja to get a fleet ready.

Bendahara Paduka Raja gets a fleet of 500 large vessels and an uncountable (“tiada terbilang”) number of smaller ones. The fleet also includes 40 ships from Singapura. (Honestly, I know the sultan wants to make a good impression and all, but isn’t this going overboard? Were there no other duties that these ships could have been assigned to? But I digress.)

The sultan leaves his most important chiefs Bendahara Paduka Raja, Seri Nara Aldiraja and Seri Bija Aldiraja to take care of Melaka in his absence. Sultan Mansor Syah then selects 40 youths of noble birth, together with 40 of his warriors, and they are all under the leadership of Tun Bijaya Sura. (Among them) Hang Tuah, Hang Jebat, Hang Kasturi, Hang Lekir, Hang Lekiu, Hang Khelembak, Hang Ali and Hang Iskandar have no peers and can perform amazing feats. [This is the first time Hang Tuah’s name is mentioned in the manuscript; he doesn’t get a solo intro. Unfortunately the beginning of the sentence is missing, so we can only guess it is something like “Among them”.]

Hang Tuah is the most clever and mighty when it comes to competing. If he is engaged in playful fights with youths his own age, he would roll up his sleeves and say “Only a Laksamana (Admiral) can challenge me!” And this is how his friends came to call him ‘Laksamana’, and the name stuck to him.

Sultan Mansur Syah sends messengers to the outlying territories of Indragiri, Palembang, Jambi, Lingga and Tungkal for their rulers to accompany him to Majapahit to aid in his quest. (I told you, overkill.) This very large entourage, which includes Rajas and chiefs from other territories, sets forth to Majapahit.

When Batara Majapahit hears of their arrival, he orders his ministers to welcome the delegation. (Does he realise how large this delegation is? Does Majapahit have enough five-​star hotels for them?). It happens that, at that moment, Batara Majapahit has two guests: his younger brother, who is the Raja of Tanjung Pura, and the Raja of Daha. When the king of Melaka arrives, he is greeted with great fanfare and given robes of honour studded with “ratna mutu manikam” (gems of all kinds), he is seated above the other dignitaries, and given a keris with a fretted pattern along its collar-​guard (“keris kunca kerawang”).

Batara Majapahit also gives 40 other keris to the Melaka posse … but these keris all have broken sheaths! The keris given to Sultan Mansur Syah had initially been given by Batara Majapahit to the Raja of Daha, just as the 40 keris with broken sheaths were initially given to the Daha followers. The Raja of Daha had then ordered 40 new sheaths to be made, but Batara Majapahit got all 40 to be stolen back (“perlente”). Batara Majapahit then gave the 40 broken-​sheathed keris to the Tanjung Pura delegation, and the same thing happened: when the Raja of Tanjung Pura had fresh sheaths made, Batara Majapahit got all of them stolen back.

However, when it is the turn of the Melaka delegation, the king of Melaka orders Tun Bijaya Sura to have the replacement sheaths made, and Tun Bijaya Sura orders each of the 40 young noblemen to be responsible for one keris. And when they take the sheaths to the sheath-​makers, they stand over the craftsmen until the job is done. All 40 are finished in one day, and the Javanese didn’t manage to steal any. And so Batara Majapahit says: “The Raja of Melaka is smarter than other kings.”

The place in which Batara Majapahit sits when facing an audience is three steps higher than the floor. A dog is tied by a gold chain to this structure, and so the dog is seated right in front of the king of Melaka. When Tun Bijaya Sura sees this, he dresses up as a swordsman, carries a shield with bells (“perisainya bergeta”) and performs a sword dance (“berlayamlah”) in front of Batara Majapahit, who is so enter­tained by this that he bids Tun Bijaya Sura to come up, closer to him. Tun Bijaya Sura obliges with various other sword dances, during which he brandishes the sword (“dikirap-​kirapnya”) at the dog several time. The poor dog gets so frightened that it strains against its chain and breaks it, before running to the jungle. After that, Majapahit never again ties a dog there to face its visitors.

Next to the audience hall is a forbidden pavilion (“balai larangan”); perhaps it is meant only for the women of the court. Anyone else entering the pavilion would be speared by the Javanese, and so no one dares. But Hang Jebat dares Hang Kasturi: “Let’s go the forbidden pavilion!” and Hang Kasturi replies “You’re on!” So one day, while Batara Majapahit is giving an audience, together with all the other dignitaries, Hang Jebat and Hang Kasturi go into the pavilion. When the Javanese see them, they thrust their spears at Hang Jebat and Hang Kasturi; there are so many spears that the faces of the two men cannot be seen. But Hang Jebat and Hang Kasturi draw their keris and chop all the spears until they are in pieces; and so none of the spears injure them. The spear-​heads that are collected afterwards weigh several catties, and there is a great outcry. Batara Majapahit wonders what the loud fuss is about, and he is told what Hang Jebat and Hang Kasturi did. Batara Majapahit says, “Let them be in the pavilion, don’t stop them.” When the Javanese hear this, they stop their aggression; and the two men continue to hang out in the pavilion. That’s how it goes everyday: Batara Majapahit gives an audience in the hall, and Hang Jebat and Hang Kasturi stay in the pavilion.

As for Hang Tuah, he causes a commotion (“terlalu gegak”) wherever he goes because people are so impressed by his bearing. If he enters the audience hall, there will be excitement in the hall. If he goes to the market, everyone in the market will be thrilled. If he goes to a village, all the villagers will practically wet themselves, because they’ve never seen anyone so awesome. Javanese maidens who see him in the market all fall in love with him. And married Javanese women tear themselves away from the embrace of their husbands just go rush outside and get a glimpse of him. The Javanese compose many songs (“diguritnya”) about him. The manuscript sets down 10 examples of these Javanese lines in praise of Tuah; they are all very fulsome and remind me of the adulation that screaming girls accord to visiting pop stars:

Justin Bieber

The first line that is quoted: “Onya suruh tanggapan penglipur; saben dina katon parandede onang uga” (Here is sireh for you to allay the pangs of a whole day’s love, but you’ll still yearn for him!) It continues in that vein but, trust me, you really don’t want to know.

That is how the men of Melaka pass their time in Majapahit. When Batara Majapahit realises how clever and well-​behaved Sultan Mansur Syah is, more so than any other king, and also how quick-​witted his followers are, he thinks to himself: “Sultan Mansur Syah would make a great son-​in-​law, so I should marry him to my daughter Radin Galuh Cendera Kirana.” So he orders a celeb­ration that lasts 40 days and 40 nights. The kingdom comes alive with the sound of music: gongs, drums, clarinets, trumpets, and many more instruments, including really exotic-​sounding ones like the dandi, udipan, madali, masti and gumala, are played. People celebrate in many ways: they dance, tell stories, put up shadow-​plays, sing romances (“berkekawinan”), and so on. The people of Majapahit know how to party.

Batara Majapahit then says to Sultan Mansur Syah, “The Javanese have put up so many shows, but the men of Melaka have done nothing!” And Sultan Mansur Syah tells Tun Bijaya Sura, “The king of Majapahit would like to see the men of Melaka perform.” But Tun Bijaya Sura answers, “The only performance we Malays know is ‘sapu-​sapu rengit’.’” When Batara Majapahit has this conveyed to him, he says, “WTH is ‘sapu-​sapu rengit’? Show us. Radin Galuh would like to see.”

Tun Bijaya Sura then chooses 14 or 15 noble youths for the performance. It involves advancing (or kicking?) their legs towards the direction of Batara Majapahit, with their sarong rolled up to their knees. When the Javanese guards see this, they forbid it to continue and say, “We will whaaack you nicely! How dare you stretch out your legs towards the king of Majapahit!” And so Tun Bijaya Sura replies, “We’re performing to fulfil the request of Batara Majapahit. We’re not bonkers enough to do this on our own accord. But if you want us to stop, we’ll stop.” And Batara Majapahit says, “Let them perform, don’t stop them.” So they go ahead; and when it is over, Tun Bijaya Sura and the other Melaka men are given robes of honour. Batara Majapahit says, “The men of Melaka are more cunning that those of other kingdoms; whoever pits his wits against them will surely lose.”

But Batara Majapahit, secretly, does not want to admit defeat. He calls for a thug (“penjurit”) who is good at dirty tricks, and commands him: “Steal the keris of Tun Bijaya Sura, because he’s too clever.” And the thug says, “How am I supposed to do that? The Malays wear their keris in front of them. If he wears it behind him, I can steal it.” And Batara Majapahit says: “Very well, I’ll tell him to wear the keris behind him.” The following day, Batara Majapahit gives an audience in which all the dignitaries (including Sultan Mansur Syah) are present. The Majapahit king says to Tun Bijaya Sura, “Do you know how to dress the Javanese way?” Tun Bijaya Sura says, “If it would please you, I would learn if I am taught.” So Batara Majapahit orders robes of honour in the Javanese style to be made, and Tun Bijaya Sura is made to dress in the Javanese way, with his keris at the back. Then Batara Majapahit leaves the hall to look at a cock-​fight, which would not have looked like this French painting:

Cock Fight

The cock-​fight is intense; the shouts and cheers seem to reach the sky. In the excitement of the moment, the thug manages to steal Tun Bijaya Sura’s keris. Tun Bijaya Sura looks behind him when he senses his keris is gone, and says, “Damnit! I’ve been robbed by a Javanese!” He then goes up to Batara Majapahit’s sireh-​bearer and manages to steal from him the Majapahit king’s keris, which Tun Bijaya Sura then wears.

When the cock-​fight is over (no, not because the RSPCA came to break it up), Batara Majapahit is seated once again at the head of his hall, with all the other dignitaries in their rightful places. Batara Majapahit keeps Tun Bijaya Sura’s keris under his thigh and says, “Come here, Tun Bijaya Sura.” When the Melakan man is seated in front of him, the king of Majapahit brings out Tun Bijaya Sura’s keris and says: “I just obtained this very well-​made keris. Have you ever seen a keris like this?” And when Tun Bijaya Sura sees that the keris is his own, he brings out the keris belonging to the king of Majapahit that he had taken from the betel-​bearer. When Batara Majapahit sees that keris, he instantly recognises it as one of his own, because of the distinct royal markings. And Batara Majapahit says, “This Bijaya Sura is too sharp, I can’t trick him!”

After the 40 days and 40 nights of celeb­ration, Sultan Mansur Syah duly marries Radin Galuh. After the wedding, the good-​looking couple goes into their bridal chamber and has really hot sex (“terlalu sangat berkasih-​kasihan”). Batara Majapahit is also very fond of his son-​in-​law, and he would make sure that the younger man sits with him whenever he gives an audience, and that they always eat together.

After some time, Sultan Mansur Syah wants to return to Melaka, and so he asks permission from his father-​in-​law to take his new bride Radin Galuh Cendera Kirana with him, and Batara Majapahit agrees. Once they are ready, Sultan Mansur Syah gets Tun Bijaya Sura to ask Batara Majapahit if the territory of Inderagiri could be given to Melaka. Tun Bijaya Sura goes to the king of Majapahit and says, “Your Majesty, your new son would like to have Inderagiri. If it is granted, that would be good; but even if it’s not granted, that would be cool, too.” So Batara Majapahit asks all his chiefs: “What say all of you? My new son wants Inderagiri.” And his chiefs say, “It would be good to let him have it, so that there will be no bad blood between you.” So Batara Majapahit says to Tun Bijaya Sura, “Alright, we will give it; because we think that it’s not only Inderagiri, but the whole dominion of Java, that also belongs to my new son, the Raja of Melaka.” So Tun Bijaya Sura takes his leave and reports the answer to Sultan Mansur Syah, who is pleased as punch.

Sultan Mansur Syah then gets Hang Tuah to ask for the territory of Siantan. So Laksamana Hang Tuah presents himself before Batara Majapahit and says, “Your Majesty, we humbly ask for Siantan. If it is granted, that would be good; but even if it’s not granted, that would be cool, too.” And Batara Majapahit replies, “Alright! It’s not just Siantan, I would gladly also give Palembang if you ask for it.” And that is how Siantan became the territory of the Laksamana, for himself and then for his descendants.

After this, Sultan Mansur Syah and his entourage return to Melaka … where something terrible will happen.

Aug 29, 2010 – 7:44 AM | By Amir Muhammad | Posted in Blog Post | Comments (701)

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?

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