BALAMBAN IN SOUTHEAST ASIAN CONTEXT FROM ANTIQUITY TO RENAISSANCE (4/6)

The Disintegration of the Empire and the Rise of the Sultanates

In 1401, Sang Nila Utama’s great grandson, Dharmaraja (Desia Raja) who after succeeding his father to the throne his name was officially styled as Paduka Sri Maharaja Parameswara was expelled from Temasek by a Madjapahit invasion. He later headed north and founded Malacca in 1402.⁹⁶ At that time Brunei was a vassal to Malacca.

In 1403, the first official Chinese trade envoy lead by Admiral Yǐn Qìng 尹慶 (Wade-Giles:Yin Ch'ing) arrived in Malacca.

In 1404 with the arrival of Maulana Malik Ibrahim As-Samarkandy (also known as Kakek Bantal, Syeikh Maghribi, and Sunan Gresik), an Uzbek who was born in Samarkand, a descendant of Ahmad al-Muhajir -- a Hadhramaut saint who migrated from Basra (now in Iraq) to Yemen to avoid strife during the Abbasid Caliphate -- the spread of Islam had spread to Java, though there were already existing Muslims in Java during the reign of Hayam Wuruk (even he was suspected to be a Muslim convert since his tomb was surrounded by Muslim tombs within his complex). Prior to his arrival to Java he had lived in Champa for 13 years from 1379 until 1392. Within that period, he married the princess of Champa and begot two sons from her, namely Raden Abdul Rahman (also Rahmat, Rakhmat, Mamat, and Mahmud) and Raden Abu Bakr Santri. Maulana Malik Ibrahim As-Samarkandy engaged in small business by opening a small shop selling sundries and treated sick people in the community. He founded the first Islamic school or pesantren in Java. He taught people of new techniques in agriculture and accepted people of lower castes outcasted by Hinduism.

In 1405, Paduka Sri Maharaja Parameswara visited China. He was known at that time to have attained sainthood in Islam so in order to test his wisdom the Chinese emperor asked him whether her daughter’s confession that she was pregnant  was true or not. When Parameswara answered that princess was pregnant the emperor laughed; declaring the Parameswara was not a true maulana and denouncing him a liar asked him to leave China immediately. But later on that year, the emperor had found out that her daughter was pregnant. He told his daughter to surrender herself to the maulana. Beforehand the emperor had sponsored for a treasure fleet not only to find for treasures or get tributes as far as Syria but also to seek out Zhu Yunwen or Jianwen -- the previous emperor whom Zhu Di, crowned as Yongle Emperor, had usurped and who was rumored to have fled into exile – possibly the "largest scale manhunt on water in the history of China". The Yongle Emperor called out Ma He, the court’s Eunuch Grand Director (太監, taijian), who after promoting the latter into the Chief Envoy (正使, zheng shi) – he was later popularly known as Zheng He (Admiral He), the great great great grandson of Sayyid Ajjal Shams al-Din Omar, a Persian who served in the administration of the Mongolian Empire and was appointed governor of Yunnan during the early Yuan Dynasty. -- ordered him to dispatch the treasure fleet at night to avoid detection with his daughter so nobody would know. The “Yongle-poh” (which means literally as “Yongle’s precious treasure” which was referring to his daughter) was to be sent, at night to avoid detection, to the Parameswara for marriage to save her from disgrace.

Traditional and popular accounts of Zheng He's voyages have described a great fleet of gigantic ships, far larger than any other wooden ships in history. Some modern scholars consider these descriptions to be exaggerated. Chinese records assert that Zheng He's fleet sailed as far as East Africa. According to medieval Chinese sources, Zheng He commanded seven expeditions. The 1405 expedition consisted of 27,800 men and a fleet of 62 treasure ships supported by approximately 190 smaller ships. The fleet included:

• Treasure ships (Chinese:宝船), used by the commander of the fleet and his deputies (nine-masted, about 126.73 metres (416 ft) long and 51.84 meters (170 ft) wide), according to later writers[citation needed]. This is more or less the size and shape of a football field.

• Equine ships (Chinese:馬船), carrying horses and tribute goods and repair material for the fleet (eight-masted, about 103 m (339 ft) long and 42 m (138 ft) wide).

• Supply ships (Chinese:粮船), containing staple for the crew (seven-masted, about 78 m (257 ft) long and 35 m (115 ft) wide).

• Troop transports (Chinese:兵船), six-masted, about 67 m (220 ft) long and 25 m (83 ft) wide.

• Fuchuan warships (Chinese:福船), five-misted, about 50 m (165 ft) long.

• Patrol boats (Chinese:坐船), eight-oared, about 37 m (120 ft) long.

• Water tankers (Chinese:水船), with 1 month's supply of fresh water.

Parameswara married the Chinese princess while the sister of Parameswara who was the princess of Brunei was married to Zheng He who was known there in his royal nickname – “San Bao” (三寶/三宝, or 三保) which means “three jewels” or to the Indians as “Sinbad” who later when he had his hajj in Mecca was known in Brunei as Ahmad after his Muslim name Hajji Mahmud Shamsuddin (Persian: حاجی محمود شمس الدين).

The said series of the Ming armada naval expeditions with a total of seven voyages which was led by Zheng He – the China-born Persian mariner, explorer, diplomat and fleet admiral, who commanded voyages to Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and East Africa – had only arrived in Java during its second voyage in 1407 and a span of visits which lasted until its the seventh voyage in 1433 since there was a civil war, called Paregreg, in Java from 1405 to 1406,⁹⁷ of which Wikramawardhana was victorious and Wirabhumi was caught and decapitated. The said civil war had weakened Madjapahit grip on its outer vassals and colonies.

In 1409, Parameswara married the princess of Pasai and established the Sultanate of Malacca. The Sultanate of Malacca succeeded Şrivijaya Empire as a Malay political entity of the archipelago. ⁹⁸

In 1411, at the end of the third voyage of Zheng He, Zheng He and his treasure fleet escorted Parameswara and his wife, the “Yongle-poh”, together with 540 officials from Malacca who sailed to China to pay homage to the Yongle Emperor with a tribute which included agate, carnelian, pearl, hawksbill, coral, crane beak, golden female crane beak, suit, white cloth, Western fabric, Sa-ha-la, rhino horn, ivory, black bear, black ape, white muntjac, turkey, parrot, pian-nao, rosebush dew, su-he oil, gardenia flower, wu-ye-ni, aromatic wood, incense sticks, gold silver incense sticks. Upon arrival in China, a grand welcome ceremony was done along with animal-sacrifice. The historical meeting between Parameswara and the Yongle Emperor was recorded accurately in the Ming chronicle.

The Geoff Wade translations:

“You, king (Parameswara), travelled tens of thousands of li across the ocean to the capital, confidently and without anxiety, as your loyalty and sincerity assured you of the protection of the spirits. I (the Yongle Emperor) have been glad to meet with you, king, and feel that you should stay. However, your people are longing for you and it is appropriate that you return to soothe them. The weather is getting colder and the winds are suited for sailing south. It is the right time. You should eat well on your journey and look after yourself, so as to reflect my feelings of concern for you. Now I am conferring upon you, king, a gold and jade belt, ceremonial insignia, two "saddled horses", 100 liang of gold, 500 liang of silver, 400,000 guan of paper money, 2,600 guan of copper cash, 300 bolts of embroidered fine silks and silk gauzes, 1,000 bolts of thin silks ...” ⁹⁹

In 1414, Parameswara was reported dead by his son at the Chinese emperor’s court. ¹⁰⁰

Wikramawardhana ruled to 1426 and was succeeded by his daughter Suhita, who ruled from 1426 to 1447. She was the second child of Wikramawardhana by a concubine who was the daughter of Wirabhumi. ¹⁰¹

The Majapahit kingdom in the mid-15th century was divided into nine provinces: Trowulan (the capital), Daha, Balambangan (also spelled Blambangan), Matahun, Tumapel, Kahuripan, Lasem, Wengker, and Pajang.

It was during this period that the spread of Islam in Java became inevitable which eventually extended to other areas in Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia, and the southern Philippines.

By 1430 Zheng He's expeditions has established Muslim Chinese and Arab communities in northern ports of Java such as in Semarang, Demak, Tuban, and Ampel, thus Islam began to gain foothold on Java's northern coast.¹⁰² It was during this period between 1430-1433 that Zheng He ordered his men and Muslim local officials to “Javanize” or assimilate into the culture of Java¹⁰³ like adopting their culture and transliterating their names into Javanese to hide their Persian and Chinese identities so that they would be accepted by the people more easily and the spread of Islam would run smoothly. Within this period, an Egyptian, Syeikh Maulana Idhofi, arrived in Java from his trip in Baghdad and settled in Sayid Kamil where he was called by the local villagers as Syeik Datu Khafi. At first, he used the area for meditation until he began to preach Islam. ¹⁰⁴ It was also during this year that Parameswara who had been converted to Islam and had become a syeik and assumed the name Mansur Shah preached Islam in Tidor.

In 1443, according to Cirebon account, a fleet of three Arab ships had arrived in Java. A group of Arab immigrants who were called as the “Bani Israil of Mesir (Egypt)” led by Raden Abdul Rahman (Syeikh Maulana Mas Huda Ishaq ul-Hashim) -- who had followed his cousin, Syeikh Maulana Idhofi, together with his sister, Siti Baghdad (it means “widow queen of Baghdad”), and his brother, Raden Abu Bakr Santri (Syeikh Abdul Ibrahim Maulana Sharif ul-Hashim) – who after a royal protocol visit had settled separately in Sembung, Muara Jati, Junti and Japura.¹⁰⁵ 

This “Bani Israil of Mesir” or “Israelite Tribe of Egypt” must not really be Egyptians but it could be the “lost tribe of Israel” that had migrated from Egypt and Persia to Southeast Asia. Interestingly enough, it could mean that the Malay race was actually the lost tribe of Israel. It could be very probable that the said migrants especially the nobles and merchants who could afford to sail to other lands had gone to Arabia to escape the plague that hit Egypt for almost the entire 15^th century but began to migrate to Southeast Asia in the late 15^th century from Arabia since the Ottoman Turks had started to conquer the lands previously dominated by the Persians especially Baghdad which is the second largest city of the Arab world in comparison with Cairo.

The foreign policy of Suhita in allowing the Muslim migrants to live in Java and freely spread Islam set discontentment among her Hindu followers which slowly weakened the empire.

In 1447, Suhita died and was succeeded by Kertawijaya, her brother.⁹⁷ In that year, Raden Abdul Rahman was given authority over Ampel region by his uncle, Kertawijaya. At that time Ampel region has about 30,000 inhabitants. Ampel was located next to the main port of the kingdom, Jenggala Manik, which made it a strategic place to spread Islam with aid from the Moslem merchants in Java. These merchants had already made smalll communities along the northern coast of Java since the 11th century.

In 1451, Kertawijaya was assassinated by a certain Rajasawardhana. Rajasawardhana who was the Bhre of Keling, Pamotan, and Kahuripan became king but it seems that he was not recognized by the empire; his domain was only over the three districts already mentioned.

It is very probable that this Rajasawardhana who was not in the Madjapahit bloodline was Raden Abu Bakr himself for at that time he was the Bhre Keling according to Cirebon account. There is a Bornean tradition somewhere which relates that Raden Abu Bakr who after intoxicating or poisoning his uncle killed him with a kris and usurped the throne. But in other account the deed was done through the advice of his Chamese aunt. Raden Abu Bakr was a nephew-in-law of Kertawijaya since his mother and the wife of Kertawijaya were sisters and both were Muslim princesses from Champa. He was also a member of the Bhayangkara Ishlah. Bhayangkara Ishlah was actually an octogenarian organization -- composed of the Arabs, Egyptians, Persians, Israelites, and Chinese migrants -- which aimed to spread Islam in the islands by creating family ties with the nobles through marrying their daughters and through assimilating teachings to local culture and beliefs.From this principle, Raden Abu Bakr, in 1452, married the Hindu princess of Balambangan named Sekardadu Dewi, daughter of Prabu Sembuyu Menak Balambangan (Sadmuddha).

In 1453, when Constantinople fell on the hands of the Ottoman Turks and Sekardadu Dewi was already pregnant a plague had infested the land. Abu Bakr had also troubles with the nobles of Daha when he tried to build a mosque there. One of the officers of the king accused Raden Abu Bakr and his companions to have brought the plague from Egypt. And more local Hindus blamed this with the construction of mosques. In Pajang, Syeikh Suta Maharaja's base was attacked by the army of Prabu Andayaningrat from Pengging, who did not like the growth of Islam in that area. Syeikh Suta Maharaja escaped to Demak and died there.¹⁰⁶ The Hindus believed that they were cursed by the goddess Durga. The Hindus revolted. A battle ensued. Raden Abu Bakr had to flee leaving his wife behind. Soon, Sekardadu Dewi had given birth to a son. But her father had ordered that her baby must be killed for the people of Balambangan believed that it was the new-born babe who had brought the curse of plague in Java. To keep his son safe, Sekardadu Dewi set him adrift on a wooden box to the strait of Bali. The baby was seen by the sailors floating on the Indian Ocean near Sumatra. He was rescued and brought to the Madjapahit princess, Dewi Candrawati, the owner of the ship. Dewi Candrawati was also known in other accounts as Dewi Condrowati, Dayang Merah Wati (“Red Pious Princess”), Dang Merduwati, Ratu Dwarawati, Ratu Anarawati, Nyi Gede Manila, Nyai Ageng Maloka, Nyai Gede Maloka, Nyai Pinatih Gede, Nyai Ageng Tandes or simply Nyai Ageng. She was a daughter of Zheng He (known in Java as Gan Eng Cu) who had married a Madjapahit princess during his last voyage in 1430. Dewi Candrawati gladly adopted the child and named him “Joko Samudra” for he was “raised up from the river-ocean”. Raden Abdul Rahman probably saw the opportunity to marry a princess who had “raised a son of the river-ocean” who needed a father. During that year Raden Abdul Rahman and Dewi Candrawati were married and the boy who was named by Raden Abdul Rahman as Raden Abdul Faqih Ainul Yaqin was taken to Gresik.¹⁰⁷

As Raden Abu Bakr was ousted, the Madjapahit throne was left kingless and the minor kingdoms were struggling for succession which ended to a three-year civil war. If the Cirebon account would be considered, it must be understood that Raden Abu Bakr had gone to Mecca for a pilgrimage which was not only a dream for every Muslim to do the hajj but it was also part of the celebration of the Muslim world at that time over the fall of Constantinople to the Muslims and sooner would lead to the capture of Jerusalem. It must be understood that while the Hindu-Buddhist heirs and usurpers to the Madjapahit throne were busy struggling for power, the Muslim nobles were away on a pilgrimage and probably on refuge.

Girisawardhana (a title referring to the mountains), son of Kertawijaya, came to power in 1456. Nevertheless, Madjapahit's power had declined through these dynastic conflicts and the growing power of the north-coastal kingdoms in Java.

In 1457, Raden Abu Bakr had returned from his pilgrimage to Mecca and established the Sultanate of Sulu and assumed the title of Paduka Batara Mahasari Maulana al-Sultan Sharif ul-Hashim. He preached Islam in Buansa and even erected a mosque at Tubig-Indangan.¹⁰⁸

During that period there was an existing belief among the Hindu Javanese that the miserable state of Madjapahit was the result of the Batari Durga’s curses brought upon the empire by the policies of Suhita, and the empire would be released from this state of suffering by Bhre Daha, its “liberator” incarnated as Sadeva – who would become the instrument in bringing  harmony and peace into the land troubled with the dynastic conflict between the royal house of Madjapahit and the scion of the Kadiri (Daha) royal house.¹⁰⁹

In 1466, after the death of Girisawardhana, Raden Abdul Rahman, being the husband of Dewi Candrawati, assumed the Madjapahit throne in Tumapel with the regnal title Singhawikramawardhana.¹⁰¹ The royal family had just returned from Egypt with their children Prabu Cakrabuana (WalangSungsang), a title previously held by Gadjah Mada; and Putri Syarifah (also known as Nyai Rarasantang, i.e. “beautiful Sundanese lady”); and their adopted son Raden Fatah (the “Joko Samudra”).¹¹⁰ 

In 1468, Raden Abdul Rahman in fulfillment of the Hindu prophecy, probably to gain recognition and full support from Hindu constituents as cultural assimilation would apply, moved the kingdom’s capital further inland to Daha to appear that he was the Batari Durga incarnated into the warrior prince Sadeva – in Javanese belief Sadeva was a warrior prince who after marrying the daughter of a hermit slay the giant demon Kalanjaya from which the celestial being Citrasena who had been cursed was liberated.¹⁰⁹ 

Raden Abdul Rahman assumed the regnal title of Prabhu Bhattara Brawijaya Ranawijaya Kertabhumi Budaya (Brawijaya V).

In 1474, upon the advice of his council known as the Walisongo, Raden Abdul Rahman had moved the capital to Demak. Daha was a Hindu capital with little Muslim community and the Muslim council needed a place away from it so that Islam could grow stronger.¹¹¹

The new formation put all member of Walisongo at every important seaport in Java. The strategic locations, with the help from Muslim merchants, enabled them to gain more control to the economic system of the island and strengthened the position of Walisongo and the Muslim communities. The economic control in the northern seaports and the strong military power in Demak and Giri were needed to anticipate the political heat in Madjapahit. For centuries, the Javanese Muslims were always protected under the rule of Madjapahit, which was tolerant to them, while most of the rebels did not like Islam. Should anything happen to Madjapahit, the Walisongo was already prepared to build an independent state to protect the growth of the new religion. ¹¹²

On the other hand, during this period, the Ming Empire further limited the number of tribute missions from overseas when it did not compensate the cost of maintaining foreign embassies and entertaining foreign envoys. ¹¹³

In western part of the crumbling empire, Madjapahit found itself unable to control the rising power of the Sultanate of Malacca that in mid-15th century began to gain effective control of Malacca strait and expand its influence to Sumatra. Several other former Madjapahit vassals and colonies began to release themselves from Madjapahit domination and suzerainty.

In 1478, Raden Abdul Rahman abdicated the throne in favor of Raden Fatah who then established the Sultanate of Demak and declared its freedom from Madjapahit. He then built the Demak Masjid Agung Demak in 1479. ¹¹⁴

Demak was a busy harbor with trade connection to Malacca and the Spice Islands. It was located at the end of a channel that separated Java and Muria Island (the channel is now filled and Muria joined with Java). In 15th century until 18th century, the channel was wide enough and important waterway for ships traveling along northern Javanese coast to the Spices islands. In the channel is also located Serang River, which enabled access to rice producing interior of Java. This strategic location enabled Demak to rise as a leading trading centre in Java. According to Tome Pires, Demak had more inhabitants than any port in Sunda or Java. Demak was the main exporter of rice to Malacca. And with the rise of Malacca, so did Demak rise into prominence. Its supremacy also enhanced with claim of direct decent of Raden Fatah to Majapahit royalty and his marriages ties with neighboring city-states.¹¹⁵

In 1480, Abu Bakr abdicated the throne of Sulu Sultanate in favor of his new-found son, Fatah -- who assumed the royal title of Sultan Kamalud-Din (in Demak account he was also known as Kamiruddin; in Tidor, he was known as Djamaluddin) and married the Johor princess Juzul Asiqin (known in Sulu as Putri Paramisuli), daughter of Zainul Abiddin and descendant of Iskandar Dhul-Qarnayn (i.e., Cyrus the Great of Persia). Afterwards, in 1481, Abu Bakr had gone to Egypt with Fatah and his family to introduce them to his people – the Bani Israil.

In the same year, Prabu Cakrabuana had gone on a pilgrimage to Mecca with his younger sister Syarifah. According to the Cirebon account (Babad Tjeribon), when they were in Arabia they made a visit to Baitulmaqdis (Jerusalem) at the time when Sultan Abu Bakr, who was there too on a hajj, was in mourning for the death of his wife.  Sultan Abu Bakr instructed his minister (qadi or penghulu), Fatah (Jamal ud-Din in Sulu tarsilas; and Tjiliati, Tjiliatu, and Tjeri Leliatu were his non-Muslim titles and Djamaluddin was Muslim title in Tidor accounts) and his family, to find for him a woman whose appearance was like his former wife. It happened that the qadi met with Cakrabuana and Syarifah who were on their way to Baitulmaqdis. The minister found that Syarifah and Sultan Abu Bakr's former wife were alike and reported the matter to him. Upon learning this, Sultan Abu Bakr asked the minister to summon Cakrabuana and Syarifah to his palace and thence, after Syarifah stated her requirements and Sultan Abu Bakr granted them, the marriage occurred. Among the requirements was that Syarifah wished to have a son to become a wali who would preach Islam on Java. After his pilgrimage Cakrabuana took a new name, Hajji Abdullah Sulayman; Syarifah, upon marriage, took the new name, Syarifah Muda’im; while Abu Bakr was also known as Usman Hajji after marrying Syarifah. After marriage, Sultan Abu Bakr and Syarifah went to Mecca on another pilgrimage. They reached Medina in the month of Rabi'ulawwal, visited the Prophet's tomb and stayed in Medina until the month of Shawwal. They continued their journey to Mecca and did an umrah. They stayed in Mecca for a period of time where, on the month of Safar, Syarifah bore a child. ¹¹⁰ After nine months Syarifah had delivered a healthy baby boy they named Tullah which means “sign of God” from the Arabic “ayat Allah” which is a shortened form of ayatollah, an honorific title bestowed upon every Muslim student who receives the ijaza (license) that makes him a mujtahid (jurist). Tullah was born in Taif, Arabia on April 2, 1482 (3 Safar A.H. 887). It was also during that period that Trenggana was born to Juzul Asiqin.

In 1490, Sultan Abu Bakr together with his wife Syarifah, an 8-year-old son Tullah, Hajji Abdullah Sulayman (Cakrabuana) with his adopted daughter named Putri Mesir Gandasari, Fatah, and the whole royal retinue had arrived in Aceh, Sumatra. In some account, it was said that the boy Tullah was snatched by a garuda (probably a monkey-eating eagle) and was taken to its nest in Mt. Ledang at the Johor-Malacca border which story was later corroborated with Pigafetta’s account on a conversation with Tullah himself later in 1521. The boy was found by Raden Abdul Rahman with his wife Dewi Candrawati, hiding inside a hatched giant egg that was dropped from a tree. The boy was returned to his father. The young boy Tullah was then made as the new bupati of Aceh by the name of Arya Damar Abdullah, a title originally used by Rajadewi Wiyat when she conquered Bali and its subordinate states, which would indirectly mean for the Hindu Javanese who were waiting of a liberator as “Sadeva, the male incarnation of the Bhre Daha, has been born to liberate us!”  

Abdullah Sulayman was assigned as the adipati solok of Jefara (or Japara), the adipati agung of Brunei and Aceh, the rajah (i.e, “warrior-prince commander”) of Luzon, and the hyang wisesa (“army commander”) of Cirebon.

Raden Abdul Rahman had built another school in Mactan, Cebu (which was a naval base of the Madjapahit Empire at that time and a old political seat of the Sultanate of Sulu while Buansa was its religious seat). It was not only a school for preaching the sermons on Islam but a school of martial art called arnis. Arnis -- which is a combination of the Japanese martial arts "budō" (武道), "bujutsu" (武術), and "bugei" (武芸); the Chinese kungfu; and the mimicry of the movement of the winds on falling leaves and the current of the river (kali) smashing to and flowing away from the rocks -- at that time was considered as the finest form of the silat in Southeast Asia. As a guru Raden Abdul Rahman assumed the title Guru Adiputra Budaya who was named in Pigafetta’s account as “Bulaya”. Among his students was his nephew-grandson Tullah whose interest in religious knowledge and skill in the art of self-defense became apparent at a very young age. ¹¹⁶

As evidenced by history, the country that succeeded in controlling the narrow strait between the Malay Peninsula and the island of Sumatra would gain complete control of China's maritime silk route and thus become a thalassocracy - a maritime trading empire. The Şrivijaya of South Sumatra did so in 670, the Chola of Southeast India in 1026, the Madjapahit of Java in 1343, the Sultanate of Malacca in 1400, and finally the Portuguese in 1512.