According to a Bruneian oral tradition,[1] the father of Awang Alak Betatar was adopted from childhood by a king of Brunei named Sang Aji and when he reached adulthood he married the king's princess. One day, when the princess was pregnant, she was craving for the meat of tembadau (a wild cattle). To their luck, there was one which happened to be roaming in the backyard of their palace. The husband managed to hit the animal with a spear but unfortunately, it managed to run away. He went on a quest to retrieve the animal, whereby he visited upon a place upon another and inquired the local people about it. It was said that his visit also led him into marrying the daughter of the local leader of every place he had visited.
It is pointed out that the marriage narrative is similar to that of Bo' Dian.[1]
According a Kayan oral tradition from Belaga, Sarawak:[2]
- Bo' Dian was the first king for the ethnic group who lived in the upstream end of the Kayan River.[2]
- Bo' Dian went to Brunei and married the princess of the king of Brunei.[2]
- Bo' Dian did not stay in Brunei for long and left while the wife was still pregnant.[2]
There are similarities between the origin myths of the father of Awang Alak Betatar and Bo' Dian.[1] It is pointed out that both are said to have come from the realm of kayangan[a]. It is also pointed out that there is a connection between the upstream end of the Limbang River, where the father of Awang Alak Betatar 'landed' from the kayangan, and the Kayan River in North Kalimantan where Bo' Dian came from.
It is pointed out that the marriage narrative is similar to that of Bo' Dian.[1]
It is argued that the father of Awang Alak Betatar and Sang Aji did not reign in Brunei.[3]
It is pointed out that Bo' Dian and and I-pai Semaring came from North Kalimantan.[4]
The myth of I-pai Semaring's ability of catching fish with only twigs bears resemblance to the legendary tale of Awang Semaun catching banded archerfish sumpit fish (banded archerfish) in Bruneian oral tradition.[4]
I-pai Semaring married a Bruneian princess.[4] It is pointed out that this marriage tale is similar to the story of Awang Jerambak in the Bruneian oral tradition Syair Awang Semaun.[5] The stories of I-pai Semaring and Awang Jerambak have the same basis, that is dealing with the early history of Brunei.[6]
According to the Syair Awang Semaun:
- Awang Alak Betatar was one of the fourteen brothers.[7]
- Awang Alak Betatar was the eldest.[8]
- Awang Alak Betatar and his brothers lived in different places prior to converting to Islam. [7]
- According to the Genealogy of the Sultans of Brunei, Awang Alak Betatar converted to Islam upon marrying Dang Seri Alam, the princess of the Sultan of Johor.[9]
- According to Syair Awang Semaun, Awang Alak was converted to Islam by Sharif Ali, a descendant of the prophet Muhammad.[10]
- The name Awang Alak is said to be a Murut or Bisaya name.[10]
- Awang Alak was depicted in Syair Awang Semaun to have never travelled anywhere except in the event of migration to Brunei from a place called Garang.[10]
- Donald Brown pointed out this immobility as the characteristic of a "classic Southeast Asian raja".[10]
- Supernatural qualities were used to justify the legitimacy of Awang Alak Betatar in Syair Awang Semaun but not in the Genealogy.[11]
According to Syair Awang Semaun, Awang Alak Betatar was one of the children of a Seri Betara of kayangan.[12]
According to a Bisaya tradition from Limbang, Alak Betatar was the youngest son of a Javanese king named Kiangan.[13] He became the first Sultan of Brunei after winning a boat race against his siblings in Brunei.[13] The race had been commanded by their father to avoid potential disputes as all of them were eager to rule Java.[13]
Alak Betatar was also said to have married a Johorean princess.[14]
The tradition also said that Alak Betatar was the first Sultan of Brunei to wear a crown.[15] It was said that the initial crown was supposedly a gift from the Sultan of Johor for Alak Betatar's son Nuai.[15] Si Maun, a brother of Alak Betatar, was tasked to fetch the crown from Johor but during the journey back to Brunei he dropped the crown into the sea and lost it.[15] He returned to Johor to ask for a replacement but the Sultan advised him to get a new one from Java instead.[15] Upon consent from Alak Betatar, Si Maun managed to get forty Javanese goldsmiths to craft it.[15] The crown was eventually worn by Alak Betatar instead of his son Nuai.[15]
In Silsilah Raja-raja Berunai, Sultan Muhammad, narrated as the first Sultan and Muslim ruler of Brunei, is correlated with Alak Betatar of Syair Awang Semaun.[16] From this correlation, the Brunei History Centre dated the reign of Alak Betatar/Sultan Muhammad to be from 1363 to 1402 AD.[17] However, it is said that Alak Betatar could have predated the advent of Islam in Brunei by centuries.[16]
According to Syair Awang Semaun, Awang Alak Betatar is said to be descended from the clouds.[18] This has been interpreted as having born from a noble and high-ranked social class.[18] The father was a Sultan named Jalilul Alam, whereas the mother was a princess named Permata Nilam.[18]
It is thought that the name Alak means 'human' in Batak language, whereas Betatar means 'strong' in Brunei Malay.[19]
References
edit- ^ a b c d Haji Abdul Rahman 2010, p. 106.
- ^ a b c d Haji Abdul Rahman 2010, p. 102.
- ^ Haji Abdul Rahman 2010, p. 107.
- ^ a b c Haji Abdul Rahman 2010, p. 113.
- ^ Haji Abdul Rahman 2010, pp. 113–114.
- ^ Haji Abdul Rahman 2010, p. 114.
- ^ a b Haji Ibrahim 2010, p. 59.
- ^ Brown 1984, p. 11.
- ^ Haji Ibrahim 2010, p. 65.
- ^ a b c d Brown 1984, p. 13.
- ^ Brown 1984, p. 14.
- ^ Haji Jibah 1980, p. 27.
- ^ a b c Sandin 1971, p. 1.
- ^ Sandin 1971, p. 2.
- ^ a b c d e f Sandin 1971, p. 3.
- ^ a b Saunders 1994, p. 39.
- ^ Saunders 1994, p. 42.
- ^ a b c R. S., Mahadi (15 June 1994). "Cerita Asal Usul Awang Alak Betatar dan Penghijrahannya ke Bumi Brunei Darussalam". Aneka Pelita Brunei (in Malay). p. 3.
- ^ Said 1992, p. 94.
- Haji Abdul Rahman, Haji Abdul Karim (2010). "Brunei sebelum Awang Alak Betatar: Suatu Kajian ke atas Tradisi Lisan Kaum Kayan dan Murut di Sarawak dan Kalimantan Timur". Menyusuri Sejarah Nasional: Kumpulan Kertas Kerja Seminar Sejarah Brunei (in Malay). Bandar Seri Begawan: Yayasan Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah & Persatuan Sejarah Brunei. pp. 101–114.
- Haji Ibrahim, Haji Abdul Latif (2010). "Syair Awang Semaun: Pantulan Pembentukan Awal Brunei". Menyusuri Sejarah Nasional: Kumpulan Kertas Kerja Seminar Sejarah Brunei (in Malay). Bandar Seri Begawan: Yayasan Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah & Persatuan Sejarah Brunei. pp. 59–72.
- Brown, Donald E. (1984). "Brunei through the Sha'er and the Silsilah". Solidarity (99): 10–15.
- Haji Jibah, Matassim (1980). "Shaer Awang Semaun: Suatu Penilaian sebagai Sumber Sastra Rakyat dan Sejarah". Berita Muzium (in Malay). No. 2. pp. 21–28.
- Sandin, Benedict (1971). "The Bisayah of Limbang". Sarawak Museum Journal. 19 (38–39): 1–20.
- Saunders, Graham (1994). A History of Brunei. Kuala Lumpur: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9676530492. OCLC 503953427.
- Said, Sanib (1992). "Pembentukan Kerajaan Brunei Lama: Teori Penghijrahan dari Sumatera". Jurnal Darussalam (in Malay) (1): 88–100.
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