In one annual wrestling competition held during pagan Arabian time, emerged two young fighters attracting attention of the crowd. Both were at the similar age, similar appearance of strong and determined, shaped by the wild desert life. From a distance, both looked a lot alike. The first boy was taller with broad shoulder and sharp eyes. The second was a bit shorter, and though having small scar on his left cheek, was apparently charming.
Along the course of the tournament, both dominated the stage, till they had to meet in one decisive match. As everyone expected, the match was tight, until in one occasion, the taller boy was knocked down and badly injured. A cracking sound when the taller boy struck the ground indicated a broken bone in one of his legs. The shorter boy looked at his opponent in horror, since he never meant to hurt that much. Immediately he rushed to help and carried the taller boy back to his tent, without noticing much to the triumph ceremony he would get. Actually, the boys had known for each other since their childhood, and the event that day brought their relationship even closer. As the time went by, the taller boy healed and came back to fight, gaining lots of victories before turning his interest to merchant, while the shorter boy had more interest in the art of desert warfare.
At that time, no one thought that those boys would grow as prominent figures in history. In the later days, the taller boy would be remembered as a prolific administrator in a young emerging civilization. In his time, the nation he led sparked dazzling light much brighter than those of the two great empires existed in the ancient worlds, the Persian and the Eastern-Roman Byzantine. The shorter boy was well-known as one of the finest military generals the eastern world has ever possessed. Islamic tradition praises both figures highly as the title of ‘may God be pleased with him’, always follows every time their names are mentioned.
The taller boy was Umar Ibn Al Khattab, and the shorter boy was Khalid Ibn Al-Walid.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Friday, November 19, 2010
Sriwijaya, Past and Forgotten Glory
“swasti sri sakrawarsatita 605 ekadasi su-klapaksa wulan waisaka dapunta hyang najik di,samwa mangalap siddhayatra di saptami suklapaksa. Wulan jyetha dapunta hyang marlepas dari minanga,……sriwijaya jaya siddhayatra subhiksa”
[Joyful in the year of 605 the day of eleven of the bright month of Waisaka, Dapunta Hyang boarded on the boat to travel on the day of seven of the bright month of Jyestha, Dapunta Hyang departed from Minanga (Tamwar(n))…Sriwijaya performed a perfect victorious journey..]
*excerption of the Kedukan Bukit inscription 605 Caka / 683 AD, translated by Prof Slamet Muljana (1960)
Kedukan Bukit inscription was often cited by our history teachers during high school classes to describe a cheery festival in Sriwijaya time. That was the time when a powerful maritime empire based in Sumatra roared a very thunderous sound in the South East Asia circumference. Sriwijaya,simply means ‘splendid victory’, a name reflecting plentiful achievements the empire has accomplished for about 600 years of existence from 7th- 13th AD. During her finest hours, Sriwijaya stretched her wings from Sumatra and Java to the Malaysian Peninsula, some parts of the Philippines, Thailand and Cambodia. Some evidences even show that the atmosphere of the empire might reach even further, at distant range across the high seas to Sri Lanka and west coast of Africa.
There are no certain records the time Sriwijaya started to organize as civilization, though experts commonly predict that the existence has established as early as 600 AD. The chronicle of the T’ang dynasty recorded that Sriwijaya envoy had arrived at T’ang capital of Chang-an, modern day of Xian, in 670s. Sriwijaya reached the apogee when Syailendra family ascended to the elite of the empire, unifying Sriwijaya at Sumatra and Mataram in Java under one administration in 800s. Prosperity and richness were manifested into gigantic Buddhist temple known in the later day as Candi Borobudur, established at the time of Shri Samaratungga. The temple of Borobudur with its massive structure probably becomes the most grandiose building has ever been built by Indonesians. Under Syailendra ruling line, Sriwijaya established strong alliance with southern Indian kingdoms such as Chola and Pala. That explaines the reason why the name of Syailendra princes, like Dharanindra (believed to be the titular name of Rakai Panunggalan) and Balaputradewa, were so much well-known in India that the names (of the Syailendras) had appeared in several Indian inscriptions. A strong relationship was also developed with Chinese rulers as it had been evidenced from cultural and religious remnants found and documented in Chinese journals. Sriwijaya began to fade in the mid of 13th century as a result of repeated raid of alien forces and inability to maintain agricultural development rate to feed such a large territory. By the last quarter of 14th century, Sriwijaya was completely dissolved and transformed into smaller kingdoms or [Islamic] sultanates.
At this moment, Sriwijaya seems to be too far to reach by our memories. It is true Sriwijaya name has been immortalized as the name of streets or companies, but it does not frequently go beyond that. Spirits and dedications as the most essential parts from the olden days prove to have long gone from our hearts. The endless chaotic of national life may become strong evidence to the lost of those features. Glorious life our ancestors have achieved seems to be difficult to revive by our modern generation due to our failure to inherit those legacies. The closest, and maybe the easiest we can do these days, probably is just to remember the name, the story and the glory surround it.
Remembering Sriwijaya or any other ancient kingdoms maybe will not give much direct influence for the current national life. However the efforts to appreciate, and more importantly succeed achievements obtained by our ancestors are certainly very worthwhile to carry out, especially in preserving our current decaying national pride. If the expectation to be too much, maybe we just have to keep in mind that once in our grandparents’ backyard, there was a glowing social order encompassing a vast area and time, such as the one has been performed brilliantly by Sriwijaya, in her time.
[Joyful in the year of 605 the day of eleven of the bright month of Waisaka, Dapunta Hyang boarded on the boat to travel on the day of seven of the bright month of Jyestha, Dapunta Hyang departed from Minanga (Tamwar(n))…Sriwijaya performed a perfect victorious journey..]
*excerption of the Kedukan Bukit inscription 605 Caka / 683 AD, translated by Prof Slamet Muljana (1960)
Kedukan Bukit inscription was often cited by our history teachers during high school classes to describe a cheery festival in Sriwijaya time. That was the time when a powerful maritime empire based in Sumatra roared a very thunderous sound in the South East Asia circumference. Sriwijaya,simply means ‘splendid victory’, a name reflecting plentiful achievements the empire has accomplished for about 600 years of existence from 7th- 13th AD. During her finest hours, Sriwijaya stretched her wings from Sumatra and Java to the Malaysian Peninsula, some parts of the Philippines, Thailand and Cambodia. Some evidences even show that the atmosphere of the empire might reach even further, at distant range across the high seas to Sri Lanka and west coast of Africa.
There are no certain records the time Sriwijaya started to organize as civilization, though experts commonly predict that the existence has established as early as 600 AD. The chronicle of the T’ang dynasty recorded that Sriwijaya envoy had arrived at T’ang capital of Chang-an, modern day of Xian, in 670s. Sriwijaya reached the apogee when Syailendra family ascended to the elite of the empire, unifying Sriwijaya at Sumatra and Mataram in Java under one administration in 800s. Prosperity and richness were manifested into gigantic Buddhist temple known in the later day as Candi Borobudur, established at the time of Shri Samaratungga. The temple of Borobudur with its massive structure probably becomes the most grandiose building has ever been built by Indonesians. Under Syailendra ruling line, Sriwijaya established strong alliance with southern Indian kingdoms such as Chola and Pala. That explaines the reason why the name of Syailendra princes, like Dharanindra (believed to be the titular name of Rakai Panunggalan) and Balaputradewa, were so much well-known in India that the names (of the Syailendras) had appeared in several Indian inscriptions. A strong relationship was also developed with Chinese rulers as it had been evidenced from cultural and religious remnants found and documented in Chinese journals. Sriwijaya began to fade in the mid of 13th century as a result of repeated raid of alien forces and inability to maintain agricultural development rate to feed such a large territory. By the last quarter of 14th century, Sriwijaya was completely dissolved and transformed into smaller kingdoms or [Islamic] sultanates.
At this moment, Sriwijaya seems to be too far to reach by our memories. It is true Sriwijaya name has been immortalized as the name of streets or companies, but it does not frequently go beyond that. Spirits and dedications as the most essential parts from the olden days prove to have long gone from our hearts. The endless chaotic of national life may become strong evidence to the lost of those features. Glorious life our ancestors have achieved seems to be difficult to revive by our modern generation due to our failure to inherit those legacies. The closest, and maybe the easiest we can do these days, probably is just to remember the name, the story and the glory surround it.
Remembering Sriwijaya or any other ancient kingdoms maybe will not give much direct influence for the current national life. However the efforts to appreciate, and more importantly succeed achievements obtained by our ancestors are certainly very worthwhile to carry out, especially in preserving our current decaying national pride. If the expectation to be too much, maybe we just have to keep in mind that once in our grandparents’ backyard, there was a glowing social order encompassing a vast area and time, such as the one has been performed brilliantly by Sriwijaya, in her time.
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