![Palmleaf of Kakawin Sutasoma from Java01](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Palmleaf_of_Kakawin_Sutasoma_from_Java01.jpg)
''Kakawin Sutasoma'' is an
Old Javanese
Old Javanese or Kawi is the oldest attested phase of the Javanese language. It was spoken in the eastern part of what is now Central Java and the whole of East Java, Indonesia. As a literary language, Kawi was used across Java and on the island ...
poem in
poetic meters (''
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 ...
'' or ''
kavya''). It is the source of the
motto
A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...
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 Guine ...
, ''
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 Old Javanese, translated ...
'', which is usually translated as ''Unity in Diversity'', although literally it means '(Although) in pieces, yet One'. It is not without reason that the motto was taken from this
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 ...
as the kakawin teaches religious tolerance, specifically between the
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
and
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
religions.
The Kakawin tells the epic story of
Lord Sutasoma, and was written by
Mpu Tantular
Mpu Tantular (c. 14th century) was a famous Javanese poet of Javanese literature who lived in the 14th century, during the reign of king Hayam Wuruk. Tantular was a Buddhist, and was respectful to other religions. This can be seen in two items of k ...
in the 14th Century. The poem is played in
wayang theatre.
Historical context
Kakawin Sutasoma was written by
Tantular during the golden age of the
Majapahit empire, in the reign of either Prince Rajasanagara or 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 ...
. It is not known for certain when the Kakawin was authored, but it is thought most probably between 1365 and 1389. 1365 is the year in which the
Kakawin Nagarakretagama was completed, while 1389 is the year in which King Hayam Wuruk died. Kakawin Sutasoma was written after Kakawin Nagarakretagama.
Existing copies of Kakawin Sutasoma have survived in the form of handwritten manuscripts, written both on
lontar and on
paper
Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distrib ...
. Nearly all surviving copies originated in
Bali. However, there is one Javanese fragment surviving which forms part of the ''Merapi and Merbabu Collection''. This is a collection of ancient manuscripts originating from the region of the mountains of
Merapi and
Merbabu
Mount Merbabu ( id, Gunung Merbabu) is a dormant stratovolcano in Central Java province on the Indonesian island of Java. The name ''Merbabu'' could be loosely translated as 'Mountain of Ash' from the Javanese combined words; ''Meru'' means " ...
in
Central Java. The survival of this fragment confirms that the text of Kakawin Sutasoma is indeed Javanese rather than Balinese in origin.
Tantular is also known to have written
Kakawin Arjunawiwaha. Both kakawin use very similar language and have a very similar style. Kakawin Sutasoma is considered unique in Javanese literature because it is the only Kakawin which is Buddhist in nature. Kakawin Sutasoma is one of the most well-known kakawin in Bali, and was popularised by
I Gusti Bagus Surgriwa, an expert in
Balinese literature
Balinese literature refers to the oral and written Balinese language literature of the people of Bali, an island in Indonesia. It is generally divided into two periods: ''purwa'', or traditional; and ''anyar'', or modern.
Periodisation
There are ...
who included the studies of kakawins.
Summary
![COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Gouden reliëf met de voorstelling van Sutasoma gedragen door Kalmasapada TMnr 2960-319](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/COLLECTIE_TROPENMUSEUM_Gouden_reli%C3%ABf_met_de_voorstelling_van_Sutasoma_gedragen_door_Kalmasapada_TMnr_2960-319.jpg)
The poem starts with a
Bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood.
In the Early Buddhist schools ...
reincarnated as Sutasoma, the son of the King of
Hastinapura. As an adult, he was very pious and devout, and did not wish to be married and crowned king. Therefore, Sutasoma fled from his father. When his absence was discovered, the palace was in tumult, this made his parents sad. When Sutasoma arrived in a forest, he prayed in a shrine. The
Goddess Widyukarali appeared before him and told him that his prayers had been heard and would be granted. Sutasoma then climbed into the
Himalaya
The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...
mountains in the company of several holy men, when they arrived at a certain hermitage, he was told a story of a king who had been reincarnated as a demon who liked eating humans.
In the court of the king, Purusada (or
Kalmasapada), the meat set aside for the king was eaten by dogs and pigs. The chef was concerned, and hurriedly sought out alternatives, but could not find any. In desperation he went to a graveyard and cut off the leg of one of the corpses and prepared it for his king. Because he had been reincarnated as a demon, he enjoyed the food, and he asked his chef what type of meat it was. The chef admitted it was human meat, and from that moment on, the king loved eating humans. Soon there were no people left in his kingdom, either he had eaten his subjects, or they had fled. Soon the king suffered a wound in his leg which would not heal, and he became more demonic and began to live in the jungle.
By the time of Sutasoma's visit to the hermitage, the king had sworn that he would make an offering of 100 kings to the God
Kala if he would cure him of his illness. The holy men begged Sutasoma to kill this demonic king, but he refused. Even the Goddess
Prithvi
Prithvi or Prithvi Mata (Sanskrit: पृथ्वी, ', also पृथिवी, ', "the Vast One") is the Sanskrit name for the earth, as well as the name of a devi (goddess) in Hinduism and some branches of Buddhism. In the Vedas, her cons ...
beseeched him to kill the king, but he would not, since he wanted to be an ascetic. Later, he met a demon with an elephant's head who preyed upon humans. Sutasoma nearly became his victim, but he fought the beast and struck him down.
The demon surrendered and received a sermon from Sutasoma about
Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religions, Indian religion or Indian philosophy#Buddhist philosophy, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha. ...
and that it is
forbidden to kill any living creature. Afterwards, the demon became Sutasomo's disciple. Later, he met a dragon and defeated it to which it also became his disciple. Finally, Sutasoma met a hungry tigress who preyed on her own children, but Sutasoma stopped her and told her why she should not do that. However, the tigress persisted and Sutasoma offered his own body as food for the tigress. She jumped on him and sucked out his blood. The tigress realised she had done was wrong, and began to cry and repent. Then the God
Indra appeared and made Sutasoma live again. The tigress also became his disciple, and they all continued the journey.
By this time, there was a war between the demon king Kalmasapada and king Dasabahu, a cousin of Sutasoma. King Dasabahu happened to meet with Sutasoma and invited him home so that he could marry his daughter. Sutasoma was married and returned home to Hastinapura. He had children and became King Sutasoma. Later, he gathered 100 kings to offer to the God Kala, but Kala did not want to accept them, instead he wanted Sutasoma to be offered instead. Purusada made war with Sutasoma, but because Sutasoma did not resist, he was captured and sacrificed to Kala. Sutasoma was prepared to be eaten so that the 100 kings could go free. Purusada was so affected by this sacrifice that he tried to atone for it, which resulted in the 100 kings to be released.
Publication
Between 1959 and 1961,
I Gusti Bagus Sugriwa worked on an edition of the text which included the Old Javanese version of the text accompanied by a translation into
Indonesian. It was also translated and published in
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
by Soewito Santoso. Extracts of the text were published in 1975. Another English translation was published in 2008 by Kate O'Brien.
There have been many extracts published in Bali, although they have Balinese characteristics and are translated into
Balinese.
References
* Dinas Pendidikan Bali, 1993, ''Kakawin Sutasoma''. Denpasar: Dinas Pendidikan Bali.
* P.J. Zoetmulder, 1983, ''Kalangwan. Sastra Jawa Kuno Selayang Pandang''. pp. 415–437. Jakarta: Djambatan.
*
Soewito Santoso, 1975, ''Sutasoma''. New Delhi: Aditya Prakashan.
*
P.J. Zoetmulder
Petrus Josephus Zoetmulder S.J. (January 29, 1906 – July 8, 1995) was a Dutch expert in the Old Javanese language. He came from Utrecht and was associated with the Society of Jesus by 1925. He worked at Leiden University in the 1930s. His f ...
, 1974, ''Kalangwan: a survey of old Javanese literature''. The Hague : Martinus Nijhoff.
* I Gusti Bagus Sugriwa, 1959–1961 ''Sutasoma / ditulis dengan huruf Bali dan Latin, diberi arti dengan bahasa Bali dan bahasa Indonesia''. Denpasar: Pustakamas.
*
Poerbatjaraka
Poerbatjaraka (alternative spelling: Purbacaraka, 1 January 1884 – 25 July 1964) was a Javanese/Indonesian self-taught philologist and professor, specialising in Javanese literature. The eldest son of a Surakarta royal courtier in the Dutch ...
dan Tardjan Hadiwidjaja, 1952, ''Kepustakaan Djawa'. Djakarta/Amsterdam: Djambatan.''
{{HinduMythology
Hariwangsa, Kakawin
Hindu texts
Buddhist literature