Malay Annals. Anonymous

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СКАЧАТЬ it up first." The Kling champion began, and proved unable to lift it up; at last, exerting all his strength, he lifted it up to his knee and then let it fall. " Now take your turn," said he to Badang; " Very well," said Badang, and taking up the stone, he poised it easily several times, and then threw it out into the mouth of the river, and that is the rock which is at this day visible at the point of Singhapura or Tanjong Singhapura. Then the Kling champion delivered up to Badang the seven ships which had been staked with their contents, and owned that he was conquered. He then returned with great sorrow and shame to the land of Kling.

      The fame of Badang now reached far and wide, and at last extended to the land of Perlac, where there was a celebrated champion, named Bandrang, of great strength and high reputation. When the champion heard of the fame of Badang, he presented himself before the raja, and requested his permission to visit Singhapura, and enter the lists of play with him. The raja of Perlac consented, and sent a mangcu-bumi, named Tun Parpatih Pendek to conduct him to Singhapura, and sent a letter along with him. When they arrived at Singhapura, they were conducted into the presence of Sri Rama Vicrama, surrounded with all his inferior rajas, paramantris, seda-sidas, banderas and champions, by Maha Indra B'hupala, mounted on an elephant of state, and presented the letter of the raja of Perlac, where it was read by the khateb, and appeared to be couched in the finest terms. Then the raja, after Tun Parpatih Pendek had paid his respects to him, ordered him to be seated beside Tun Janboga Dinding, while Bandrang seated himself with Badang.

      Then the raja enquired of the ambassador on what business his brother raja had sent him. He replied, "he has sent me to conduct this champion, Bandrang, to essay his strength with Badang: if Bandrang is conquered, my master is content to quit one store-house full of commodities, and if Badang is worsted do you the same." Sri Rama Vicrama assented, and appointed them to play next morning: then the raja retired, and the assembly retired to their place. Then Sri Rama Vicrama summoned Badang, and told him that he was to play with Bandrang tomorrow. Badang represented that Bandrang was the most powerful champion of the time, and that no one was reckoned equal to him ; " if therefore I should be conquered, do not be disconcerted: perhaps, therefore, it may be best for you to invite him this evening to an entertainment, when I shall endeavour to discover if I can contend with him." The raja assented, and immediately invited Tun Parpatih Pendek and Bandrang, with their Followers, to an entertainment.

      They came accordingly, and Bandrang and Badang were seated together. Then Badang approached Bandrang, who immediately pressed his knee down upon that of Badang, but Badang quickly extricated himself, and having raised his own knee pressed down that of Bandrang, who could not, with all his efforts, raise his knee: this was done so secretly, that none observed it except themselves. After an hour's sitting, the ambassador and all his men were intoxicated, and asked permission to retire to their prow. Then Sri Rama Vicrama asked Badang if he was ready to engage Bandrang, to which he said, " If it be your Majesty's pleasure, I will encounter him tomorrow." When Tun Parpatih Pendek returned on board his vessel, Bandrang requested him to find some method of breaking off the contest with Badang, for he perceived his strength to be superior.

      Next morning the raja rose, and when he saw the ambassador he said, "now let us have the contest between Bandrang and Badang:" " perhaps," said the ambassador, " it were better to put it off altogether, as it may possibly excite dissatisfaction between your Majesty and your younger brother the raja of Perlac." Sri Rama Vicrama smiled and assented. The raja then desired Bandrang and Badang, to fix a large and heavy iron chain behind the streight of Sri Kama, to prevent the passing of vessels, and they fixed it accord-ingly. Then Tun Parpatih Pendek asked permission to take his departure, and was furnished with a letter by the raja for his master the raja of Perlac, and was honoured with rich presents, after which he set sail and returned to Perlac. The raja of Perlac had the letter brought upon an elephant, and read, at which he was greatly delighted. He then asked Tun Parpatih Pendek, why he had prevented the contest between Bandrang and Badang. He related what had happened at the entertainment, when the raja was silent.

      After a long time, Badang also died, and was buried at the point of the streights of Singhapura, and when the tidings of his death reached the land of Kling, the raja sent two stone pillars, to be raised over his grave as a monument, and these are the pillars which are still at the point of the bay. Sri Raja Vicrama reigned a long time, and had two children, a son and a daughter. The name of the son was Dasya Raja, who was extremely handsome, and in beauty of countenance excelled all his contemporaries. When he grew up, he married the daughter of Tun Parpatih Parmuka Rar-jaja, who was named Dasya Putri. The raja's daughter also married the son of Tun Parpatih Parmuka Rarjaja, named Tun Parpatih Tulos, and all the parties lived long in great success. After a long time, the end of the earthly period of Sri Rama Vicrama arrived, and he departed from this vain world, and was succeeded by his son Dasya Raja, under the title of Paduca Sri Maharaja. His queen, Dasya Putri, became pregnant, and produced a son, whose skull was flattened in the birth by the midwife, and who was named Raja Secander Zulkarneini.

      Chapter 7

       Table of Contents

       Of the Raja of Pasi.

      THERE were two brothers named Marah who lived at Pasangan, who derived their origin from the mountain Sangkung. The name of the elder was Marah Chaka, and that of the younger, Marah Silu. The younger, Marah Silu, gained his livelihood by keeping fish-weirs on the shore of the sea, and he repeatedly found in them kalang-kalang, or biche de Mar, which he rejected into the sea. No sooner, however, had he adjusted his weirs, but he found they had returned.

      On this being several times repeated, he got angry and boiled them when he found that the kalang-kalang had been converted into gold, while the foam of the water in which they had been boiled was converted into silver. After this he again adjusted his weirs, and again found kalang-kalang in them, when he immediately repeated the process of boiling, and they were again converted into gold and silver. In this manner Marah Silu procured a great quantity of gold. At last Marah Chaka was informed that his brother Marah Silu was in the habit of eating kalang-kalang. Marah Chaka was enraged at this, and wanted to kill him. When Marah Silu heard of his intention, he fled to the forest of Jaran. The field beside which Marah Silu caught the kalang-kalang, is still denominated Padang kalang-kalang.

      Marah Silu lived for a long time in the forest of Jaran, and gave liberally of the gold which he had acquired to all the people who lived in his vicinity, and they all became obedient to him. On a certain day, Marah Silu went a hunting, and his dog, named Sipasei, gave tongue on an elevated piece of ground. When Marah Silu had ascended the eminence, he observed a huge ant which was as large as a cat; he took this ant and ate it, and this eminence he made his residence, and named it Semadra *, which signifies the great ant.

      * The name is certainly Samatra, being compounded of semut, an ant, and raya, which in the Achi dialect signifies great.

      It is related in the hadis of the prophet Muhammed, that he said to his companions, "In the latter times men shall hear of an island under the wind, named Samadra; as soon as this shall happen, go and convert it to Islamism, for the island shall produce many Wali-alah, or persons of gifted piety; but there is a putri of the land of Matabar, whom you must carry along with you. It happened a long time after the time of the prophet, that tidings were heard of the land of Samadra at Mecca, along with the names of other countries. Then the sheref of Mecca sent a vessel properly fitted out, and ordered the mariners to proceed to the land of Matabar, and the name of the Nakhoda was Sheikh Ismail.

      When they reached the land of Matabar where they found a raja reigning, named Sultan Muhammed, who enquired whence they had come, and whither they were going. They informed him of their intention of going to the land of Samadra, by the order of the prophet Muhammed. The raja was descended from Abubacar, and when he was informed of their intention, he appointed his eldest son to the government of the land of Matabar, СКАЧАТЬ