Mpu Tantular (c.

14th century As a means of recording the passage of time, the 14th century was a century lasting from 1 January 1301 ( MCCCI), to 31 December 1400 ( MCD). It is estimated that the century witnessed the death of more than 45 million lives from political and n ...

) was a famous Javanese

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

Javanese literature Javanese literature is, generally speaking, literature from Java and, more specifically, from areas where Javanese is spoken. However, similar with other literary traditions, Javanese language works were and not necessarily produced only in Java, ...

who lived in the 14th century, during the reign of king

Hayam Wuruk Hayam Wuruk (Sanskrit: हयम् वुरुक्, Kawi: ꦲꦪꦩ꧀ꦮꦸꦫꦸꦏ꧀) (1334–1389), also called Rajasanagara, Pa-ta-na-pa-na-wu, or Bhatara Prabhu after 1350, was a Javanese Hindu emperor from the Rajasa Dynasty and th ...

. Tantular was a Buddhist, and was respectful to other religions. This can be seen in two items of

kakawin Kakawin are long narrative poems composed in Old Javanese, also called "'' Kawi''", written in verse form with rhythms and meters derived from Sanskrit literature. Poets used a formalized literary language, rather than the vernacular. Poets c ...

poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings i ...

, the

Kakawin Arjunawijaya Kakawin are long narrative poems composed in Old Javanese, also called "'' Kawi''", written in verse form with rhythms and meters derived from Sanskrit literature. Poets used a formalized literary language, rather than the vernacular. Poets c ...

and

Kakawin Sutasoma ''Kakawin Sutasoma'' is an Old Javanese poem in poetic meters (''kakawin'' or '' kavya''). It is the source of the motto of Indonesia, ''Bhinneka Tunggal Ika'', which is usually translated as ''Unity in Diversity'', although literally it mea ...

. One of the verses from the Kakawin Sutasoma was later taken as the motto or motto of the

Republic of Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guinea. Ind ...

: "

Bhinneka Tunggal Ika ''Bhinneka Tunggal Ika'' is the official national motto of Indonesia, inscribed in the National emblem of Indonesia, the Garuda Pancasila, written on the scroll gripped by the Garuda's claws. The phrase comes from the Kawi language, Old Javanes ...

" or different but one. The name Mpu Tantular itself means, tan (not) and tular (affected). Thus, the image of Mpu Tantular as his name implies is that of a mpu (scholar, thinker, poet) who has a firm stand, and is not easily influenced by anyone.

Bhinneka Tunggal Ika

Mpu Tantular's

was quoted by

Mohammad Yamin Mohammad Yamin (24 August 1903 – 17 October 1962) was an Indonesians, Indonesian poet, politician and National Hero of Indonesia, national hero who played a key role in the writing of the draft preamble to the Constitution of Indonesia, 1945 c ...

in formulating the nation's motto, namely

. The quote from the phrase Bhinneka Tunggal Ika is found in the canto 139

stanza In poetry, a stanza (; from Italian language, Italian ''stanza'' , "room") is a group of lines within a poem, usually set off from others by a blank line or Indentation (typesetting), indentation. Stanzas can have regular rhyme scheme, rhyme and ...

5. Translated word for word, the word ''bhinnêka'' means "variety" and consists of the words ''bhinna'' and ''ika'' , which are combined. The ''single'' word means "one." The word ''ika'' means "it". Literally, Bhinneka Tunggal Ika is translated as "The Diversity of One," which means that despite being diverse, the Indonesian people are still one unit. This motto is used to describe the unity and integrity of the Nation and the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia which consists of various cultures, regional languages, races, ethnicities, religions and beliefs. As head of the

Faculty of Philosophy A faculty is a division within a university or college comprising one subject area or a group of related subject areas, possibly also delimited by level (e.g. undergraduate). In American usage such divisions are generally referred to as colleges ...

Gadjah Mada University Gadjah Mada University ( jv, ꦈꦤꦶꦥ꦳ꦼꦂꦱꦶꦠꦱ꧀ꦓꦗꦃꦩꦢ; id, Universitas Gadjah Mada, abbreviated as UGM) is a Public university, public research university located in Sleman Regency, Sleman, Yogyakarta (special region) ...

Rizal Mustansyir Rizal, officially the Province of Rizal ( fil, Lalawigan ng Rizal), is a province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region in Luzon. Its capital is the city of Antipolo. It is about east of Manila. The province is named after José R ...

, writes, "the motto of Bhinneka Tunggal Ika explains clearly that there is diversity in various aspects of life that makes the Indonesian nation a unified and unified nation."

References

Indonesian poets 14th-century poets Indonesian writers Indonesian Buddhist monks Majapahit 14th-century writers Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Indonesian Buddhists {{Indonesia-poet-stub