Aji Saka

A long time ago there was a kingdom called Medang Kamulan. The kingdom of Medang Kamulan was ruled by Prabu Dewata Cengkar. The people in the kingdom were very scared by the king. It was because the king liked to eat human flesh. Once a week, he commanded his messenger, Patih Jugul Muda, to find him a human to eat.

Far away from the kingdom of Medang Kamulan, there was a village called Medang Kawit. A young man named Aji Saka lived there. Aji Saka was a brave young man. He loved to help people who needed help. One day, Aji Saka saw an old man lying unconscious on the ground. The old man was wounded. Some thieves just hit him and stole his money. Aji Saka then carried the old man to his hut. Soon after, the old man started to regain consciousness. “Where…am I?” he asked. “You’re in my house. You’re safe now,” said Aji Saka. It turned out that the old man was from the kingdom of Medang Kamulan. “Everybody was leaving Medang Kamulan,” the old man told Aji Saka. He also told him about Prabu Dewata Cengkar’s bad habit. “We were terrified, that’s why we left,” The old man said.

After he heard the explanation from the old man, Aji Saka decided to go meet Prabu Dewata Cengkar and make him stop the menace. With his magical white turban on his head, Aji Saka went to the kingdom. The turban was a gift from his Guru that could be used to fight evil. On his journey to Medang Kamulan, Aji Saka passed through a very dark forest where he met an evil genie. The genie blocked his path. “If you want to get through this forest, you must be my slave for ten years,” the genie demanded. Aji Saka refused to be the genie’s slave. The two of them then fight for seven days and seven nights, until at last Aji Saka came out as winner. The genie finally allowed Aji Saka to pass through the forest.

When Aji Saka arrived in the kingdom of Medang Kamulan, the king was angry to Patih Jugul Muda. He was not able to find the king some humans. “If you can’t find me any humans, I’ll eat you instead,” Prabu Dewata Cengkar said to Patih Jugul Muda. After Patih Jugul Muda left, Aji Saka revealed himself. Prabu Dewata Cengkar’s eyes suddenly widened upon seeing Aji Saka. He could already imagine how delicious his meat would taste. “Who are you?” asked Prabu Dewata Cengkar. “I am Aji Saka from the village of Medang Kawit,” Aji Saka answered. “Ha...ha...ha.... I’m glad you came here. You would be my meal. I'm starving,” said the king.

“I would gladly let you eat me, but I want something in return.” Aji Saka said. “What is it that you want?” asked Prabu Dewata Cengkar. “I want a land as large as my turban,” said Aji Saka. He then took off his turban and threw it on the ground. Prabu Dewata Cengkar agreed. He himself would measure the land with Aji Saka’s turban. Suddenly the turban grew bigger and bigger. It just kept on stretching until it finally covered the whole kingdom. Prabu Dewata Cengkar was angry. He then attacked Aji Saka. But, then the turban wrapped itself around him and began to strangle him. The turban then threw the king’s body to the South Sea. The waves carried Prabu dewata Cengkar away until he finally drowned and died.

Aji Saka then asked the people of Medang Kamulan to come back to the kingdom. They all thanked the brave Aji Saka. They also agreed to make Aji Saka to be their king. Aji Saka then ruled the kingdom wisely. Under the leadership of Aji Saka, Medang Kamulan become a peaceful and prosperous kingdom.

Jaka Tarub and Nawang Wulan

Jaka Tarub was a handsome and diligent young man. He lived in a village near a lake. One day, when Jaka Tarub passed the lake, he heard some giggles and laughs of some girls who were bathing in the lake. He was curious, so he peeped through the bushes. There were seven beautiful girls in the lake. They’re fairies from the heavenly kingdom of kahyangan. Jaka Tarub saw a scarf near the bushes. It belonged to one of the fairies. Jaka Tarub then took it and hid it.

Crack!!! Accidentally, Jaka Tarub stepped on a twig. “There’s someone!” said one of the fairies. “Let’s get back. Hurry!” she said. They pulled over and wear their scarf. “Where is my scarf?” one of the fairies couldn’t find her scarf. She was the youngest fairy called Nawang Wulan. They tried to search for it, but it was no where to be found. “We’re sorry, Wulan. We have to go back to kahyangan,” said the eldest fairy. “You’ll have to find it by yourself. We’ll wait for you in kahyangan,” she said in empathy. The other fairies then flew to the sky leaving Nawang Wulan behind. Nawang Wulan saw them leaving in tears. She was so sad.

“Excuse me …,” said Jaka Tarub, startling Nawang Wulan. “Are you okay?” he asked. Nawang Wulan moved backward, “Who are you?” she asked. “My name is Jaka Tarub. I was passing by and I heard you crying, so I came to see what happen,” Jaka Tarub lied. Nawang Wulan then told him about her problem. “I can’t fly without my scarf,” she said. Jaka Tarub then asked Nawang Wulan to come home with him. At first, Nawang Wulan refused the offer. But since she didn’t have anywhere else to go, Nawang Wulan then decided to follow Jaka Tarub.

Nawang Wulan stayed with Jaka Tarub in the village. A month passed, and they decided to get married. Nawang Wulan was willing to marry a human because she fell in love with Jaka Tarub. After a year, they had a beautiful daughter. They named her Kumalasari. They lived happily.

Jaka Tarub was also happy to live with Nawang Wulan and Kumalasari. Especially because he always got a lot of harvest since he married Nawang Wulan. He couldn’t even keep all of his harvest in the barn because it was always full. “It’s so weird. Nawang Wulan cooked everyday, but why is my barn always full,” Jaka Tarub mumbled to himself. He was so curious. One day, Jaka Tarub stayed at home. “I want to stay home today. I’d like to play with Kumalasari,” he said to his wife. “Well, I’ll go to the river to wash the clothes. Please keep an eye on Kumalasari,” asked Nawang Wulan. “I’m cooking rice now. Please do not open the pan cover before it’s done,” she said just before she left. “Could this be the secret?” Jaka Tarub thought. After Nawang Wulan left, he curiously opened the pan cover. He found only one single paddy. “How come?” he wondered.

Before lunch, Nawang Wulan came home. She headed to the kitchen to see the rice she had cooked. She found that the rice turned into only a few grains. “Did you open the pan cover?” she asked her husband. “I… I’m sorry. I was curious,” Jaka Tarub said as he realized his fault.

Ever since, Nawang Wulan had lost her power. She couldn’t cook rice with only a single paddy. Their paddy supply was slowly lessened. Their barn was almost empty. One day, Nawang Wulan went to the barn to get some paddy. When she took one of them, she found a scarf. “What’s this? This is my scarf,” said Nawang Wulan startled.

That night, Nawang Wulan asked her husband about the scarf. Jaka Tarub’s eyes widened, “You found it?” he asked. Jaka Tarub looked down and asked for her forgiveness. “Because I’ve found my scarf, it’s time for me to go back to where I belong,” Nawang Wulan said. Jaka Tarub tried to stop her, but Nawang Wulan had made up her mind. “Please take good care of Kumalasari,” she said. “If she wanted to see me, take seven grains of candlenut and put it into a basket. Shake it as you play the bamboo flute. I’ll come to see her,” she explained.

Jaka Tarub promised to take good care of their daughter. He once again asked for forgiveness for all of his mistakes. “I’ve forgiven you, so you don’t have to feel guilty. I must go now. Take care,” said Nawang Wulan as she flew to the bright full moon.

Telaga Warna

Long time ago there was a kingdom in West Java. The kingdom was ruled by a king called Prabu. He was a kind and wise king. Under Prabu’s leadership, the kingdom grew into a prosperous kingdom. There’s no hunger in the kingdom. Everybody in the kingdom loved their king. But, there’s one problem. The king and his queen hadn’t got any children. It made the couple very sad. That was why Prabu decided to go to the jungle. There, he meditated and prayed to God. Everyday he begged for a child. His dream finally came true. A few months later, the queen got pregnant. All people in the kingdom felt very happy. They sent many presents to the palace to express their happiness. Nine months later a baby girl was born. The baby grew as a beautiful teenager then.

Prabu and his queen loved their daughter so much. They gave what ever she wanted. It made the princess grew into a spoiled girl. When her wish couldn’t be fulfilled, she would be very angry. She even said bad things often. Even though the princess behaved badly, her parents still loved her, and so did the people in the kingdom.

Time passed and the princess grew more beautiful. In a few days, the princess would be seventeen years old. That’s why people of that kingdom brought many presents for her. They bring gold and beautiful jewelries. Prabu collected the presents. Then Prabu stored them in a special room. Some times he would take them to give to his people who needed it. Prabu only took a few gold and jewels. Then he brought them to a goldsmith. “Please make a necklace for my daughter,” said Prabu. “My pleasure, Your Majesty,” the goldsmith replied. The goldsmith worked with all his heart and his ability. He wanted to create the most beautiful necklace for the princess.

The birthday came. People gathered in the palace field. Then Prabu and the queen appeared. They waved to their beloved people. Cheers were loud and louder when the princess appeared. Everybody admired her beauty. Prabu got up from his chair and took a small pillow. A beautiful necklace was on the pillow. Prabu took that necklace. “My beloved daughter, today I give this necklace to you. This necklace is a gift from people in this country. They love you so much. They presented it for you to express their happiness, because you have growing to a woman,” said Prabu. The princess accepted the necklace. She looked at the necklace in a glance. “I don’t want this necklace! It’s ugly!” shouted the princess as she threw the necklace away. The necklace hit the floor and was broken. The gold and jewels were spread out on the floor.

No body dared to speak. They never thought that their beloved princess would do such a cruel thing. In their silence, people heard the queen crying. Every woman felt sad and began crying too. Then everybody was crying. Suddenly, from the middle of the field, a spring emerged. It quickly became a pool. The palace was getting flooded. Soon the place became a big lake.

Nowadays the water on that lake is not as full as before. There is only a small lake now. People called the lake Telaga Warna (it means lake of colour). On a bright day, the lake is full of colour. These colors come from the reflections of forest, plants, flowers, and sky around the lake. But some people said that the colours are from the princess’ necklace, which spreads at the bottom of the lake