Story telling "The Legend of Tangkuban Perahu"

The Legend of Tangkuban Perahu

Once upon a time, in heaven there are a pair of gods goddesses who made a mistake and all of them convicted by Sang Hyang Tunggal down to Earth and condemned to be animals. “You have been staining this heaven with your behavior, you do not deserve to live in this heaven”. The deity is cursed to become a dog by the name of Tumang and the goddess is cursed to be a boar with the name Wayung Hyang.

One day a boar or Wayung Hyang that thirst and drinking water which it was found in the Woods in a coconut shell. It did not know if those water was actually urine from the king whose name is Sungging Perbangka that can not hold pee when hunting in the forest. “What happens with my stomach? Dewata Agung, what happens to me?”. Miraculously, it was directly pregnant and gave birth to a beautiful baby. However, Wayung Hyang leave that baby in the middle of the forest which was later found by the King Sungging Perbangka. “waah.. who is left this baby in the woods here? Why her mother dared to leave this baby in the middle of the forest here? I should be informed my mother at the palace.”

Then, the King Sungging perbangka brought the baby into the Palace to be raised. “My son, what do you bring it? And he answered, I found this baby in the woods when I was hunting. Please, take care of this baby, mom. And I will be stopped for hunting start from now. Because I have became a father right now. and this baby will be given a name is Dayang Sumbi aka called Rarasati, mom”. Dayang Sumbi grows into a very beautiful girl and so many men who would like to ask for her hand. However, Dayang Sumbi was not interested them.

She liked weaving very much.  Once she was weaving a cloth when one of her tool fell to the ground.  She was very tired at the time so she was too lazy to take it.  Then she just shouted out loud.

‘Anybody there?  Bring me my tool, please.  I will give you special present.  If you are female,  I will consider you as my sister.  If you are male, I will marry you

Suddenly Tumang came.  He brought her the falling tool.  Dayang Sumbi was very surprised. “Why is the tumang that carying my tool?”. She regretted her words but she could not deny it.  So, she had to marry Tumang and leave her father.  Then they lived in a small village. Once Dayang Sumbi shocked when she saw the tumang changed to the original form. “Who are you?” then he tells everything going on himself to Dayang Sumbi.  Several months later they had a son. They gave his name was Sangkuriang.  He was a handsome and healthy boy.

Sangkuriang liked hunting very much.  He often went hunting to the wood using his arrow.  When he went hunting Tumang always with him.  In the past there were many deer in Java so Sangkuriang often hunted for deer.

One day, Dayang Sumbi wanted to have deer’s heart so she asked Sangkuriang for hunting a deer. “Sangkuriang, I want to eat a deer’s heart. Can you bring the deer’s heart to me?” Then Sangkuriang went to the wood with his arrow and his faithful dog Tumang.  But after several days in the wood Sangkuriang could not find any deer.  They were all disappeared.  Sangkuriang was exhausted and desperate.  He did not want to disappoint her mother so he killed Tumang.  He did not know that Tumang was his father.  At home he gave Tumang’s heart to his mother.

But Dayang Sumbi knew that it was Tumang’s heart.  She was so angry that she could not control her emotion. “You are rebilious son! You have killed your father”. She hit Sangkuriang’s head.  Sangkuriang was wounded.  There was  a scar in his head. She also repelled her son. Then, Sangkuriang left her mother in sadness. “This impossible, my father is a dog.. I don’t believe it!”

Many years passed and Sangkuriang became a strong young man.  He wandered  everywhere.     One day he arrived at his own village but he did not realized it.  He met Dayang Sumbi in there.  At the time Dayang Sumbi was given an eternal beauty by God so she stayed young forever.  Both of them did not know each other.  So they fell in love and then they decided to marry.

But then Dayang Sumbi recognized a scar on his Sangkuriang’s head.  She knew that Sangkuriang was his son. “Oh my gosh, you are my son Sangkuriang. I can’t marry you” he answered “No, I’m Sangkalana not Sangkuriang. And my mother passed away, I will marry you”. Dayang Sumbi gave a very difficult condition. She wanted Sangkuriang to build a lake and a boat in one night!  She said she needed that for honeymoon.

Sangkuriang agreed. With the help of genie and spirits Sangkuriang tried to build them.  By midnight he had finished  the lake by building a dam in Citarum river.  Then he started building the boat.  It was almost dawn when he nearly finished it.  Meanwhile Dayang Sumbi kept watching on them. She was very worried when she knew this.  So she made lights in the east. Then the spirits thought that it was already dawn.  It was time for them to leave.  They left Sangkuriang alone.  Without their help he could not finish the boat.

Sangkuriang was very angry.  He kicked the boat.  Then the boat turned out to be Mount Tangkuban Perahu.  It means boat upside down.  From a distant it looks like a boat upside down.