Pramāṇa · Search · About · API

Ancient Indian Colonies in the Far East (Vol. I: Champa; Vol. II: Suvarnadvipa) v2.c13.s1: Appendix: Early Inscriptions in the Malay Peninsula (Up to the Fifth Century A.D.)

Ancient Indian Colonies in the Far East (Vol. I: Champā; Vol. II: Suvarṇadvīpa) v2.c13.s1

Language
English

Contents

Appendix: Early Inscriptions in the Malay Peninsula (Up to the Fifth Century A.D.)

v2.c13.s1.2

Nos. 1-7. "A group of seven inscriptions now extant on the rather weather-worn and sloping side of a granite rock at a place named Tokoon, lying near to the centre of the province (Wellesley) or almost directly east of Penang Town."¹

v2.c13.s1.3

¹ The inscriptions Nos. 1-12 were discovered by Lieut. Col. James Low, and a short account of them was published by Mr. J. W. Laidlay in J. A. S. B., 1848, Part II, pp. 62 ff., pl. IV ; 1849, Part I, p. 247, pl. X. Lt. Col. Low refers to another inscription on the four sides of a brazen ornamented dish, but no facsimile is published. Mr. Laidlay read it as Savita (Samvat ?) 1399. He also notices a brick with two early letters (Jaya ?).

v2.c13.s1.4

Mr. Laidlay's reading of these inscriptions need not be seriously considered. But no attempt has since been made to decipher them. It seems to be impossible to give a reading of the whole inscription—assuming that the seven fragments form a continuous inscription—but several letters are quite clear. In No. 1, the first two letters are certainly *sarvva* and the next three may be conjecturally read as *ār(ā)ma*. In No. 2, the first six letters are quite clear and may be read as "prathame vayasi." The two letters that follow I doubtfully read as *śrame*. In the second line the word '*rājena*' may be noted, but the short stroke before '?' is difficult to interpret. No. 4 is certainly "jayatu." Nos. 3,5,6, and 7 do dot yield much that can be regarded as useful.

v2.c13.s1.5

Now, although the inscription does not yield any definite meaning, several important conclusions can be deduced from it. In the first place, the language is Sanskrit and not Pāli. This is evident from ‘sarvva’ in No. 1 and “prathame vayasi” in No. 2. Secondly, the few letters, that may be read with certainty, place the inscription not later than the fourth century A. D. It is to be noted in this connection that the peculiar characteristics of South Indian alphabet are not very conspicuous in this record. The lower end of the vertical in *k* shows a slight bend to the left, but *a*, *r*, and medial *u* do not show any upward bend.

v2.c13.s1.6

Nos. 8-11. A group of four inscriptions discovered in the northern part of the Province Wellesley, and incised on a piece of stone which Col. Low believes to be the “upper portion of one of those pillars which are set up in the areas of Buddhist temples.” These inscriptions have been studied by Prinsep¹, Dr. R. L. Mitra², Dr. Kern³, and lately by Mr. B. Ch. Chhabra⁴.

v2.c13.s1.7

¹ J.A.S.B., Vol. IV.

v2.c13.s1.8

² J.A.S.B. Vol. XVII, Part II, p. 71.

v2.c13.s1.9

³ V. G., Vol. III, pp. 255 ff.

v2.c13.s1.10

⁴ J. A. S. B. L., Vol. I, pp. 14 ff.

v2.c13.s1.11

The first of these, No. 8, may be definitely read as “Mahānāvika-Buddhaguptasya rakta-mṛttika(ā)vās[tavyasya] (?).” No. 9 has been read by Kern as “Sarvveṇa prakāreṇa sarvvasmāt sarvvathā sarvva……siddhayānāsanna.” Mr. Chhabra reads the third word as ‘sarvvasmin’, and the last word as “Siddhayāt(r)ā (ḥ) santu.” Mr. Chhabra thinks that No. 9 is a continuation of No. 8, and the passage contains a prayer for the successful voyage of Buddhagupta.

v2.c13.s1.12

No. 10. may be read as “ajñānācciyate karmma janmanaḥ karmma kāraṇa…jñānān-na ciyate (?)”

v2.c13.s1.13

As has been pointed out by Dr. Kern, this formula is also found in the Keddah Ins. (No. 12 below).

v2.c13.s1.14

No. 11 I read doubtfully as “…śirasā praṇipata”.

v2.c13.s1.15

Here, again, the sense of the inscription as a whole (assuming the four to be parts of one inscription) is obscure; but it seems to record a gift by, and a prayer for the successful voyage of, the great sailor (captain ?) Buddhagupta, an inhabitant of Raktamṛttikā. The language is Sanskrit, and the characters seem to belong to the fifth century A. D. The characteristics of South Indian alphabets are to be noted in the upward bend of the vertical stroke in *k*, *r*, *a* and medial *u*.

v2.c13.s1.16

No. 12. An inscription of four lines on a slab of stone “lying under the centre of the foundation of a ruin of an ancient brick building in Keddah. It has been deciphered by Mr. Laidlay and Dr. Kern. The latter reads it as follows :

v2.c13.s1.17

L. 1. Ye dharmā hetuprabhavā teṣā(ri) hetu(ṃ) tathāgato (hyavadat)

v2.c13.s1.18

L. 2. Teṣā(ñ) ca yo nirodha eva(ṃ) vādī mahāśramaṇa(ḥ) |

v2.c13.s1.19

L. 3. Ajñānāc=cīyate karma janmanaḥ karma kāraṇaṃ

v2.c13.s1.20

L. 4. Jñānān=na kriyate karmīna karmmābhāvā(n)=na jāyate ||

v2.c13.s1.21

As has been noticed already, the second verse (ll. 3-4) of this inscription is repeated in No. 10 above.

v2.c13.s1.22

The inscription may be referred to the fourth or the fifth century A.D. on palæographic grounds. There are no traces of the peculiar characteristics of South Indian alphabets.

v2.c13.s1.23

No. 13¹. Takua Pa Inscription.

v2.c13.s1.24

¹ The Inscriptions Nos. 13-17 are published in B.C.A.I., 1910, pp. 147 ff. A few other inscriptions, noted therein, are omitted, as they are either doubtful or too fragmentary.

v2.c13.s1.25

This has not been deciphered yet, but the characters are of early Indian type and show no traces of the characteristics of South Indian alphabet².

v2.c13.s1.26

² The facsimile of the inscription has been published in B.C.A.I., 1910, pl. XIII ; *cf.* also Gerini, J. R. A. S. 1904 (p. 242).

v2.c13.s1.27

Nos. 14-16. Inscriptions, discovered at Ligor, of not later than the fifth century A.D. These have not been edited yet, but the characters resemble those of Takua Pa (No. 13)

v2.c13.s1.28

No. 17. An inscription from Caiya engraved on a pillar. It is written in Sanskrit with characters belonging to the fourth or fifth century A.D.

v2.c13.s1.29

EARLY HINDU COLONISATION IN JAVA

v2.c13.s1.30

The island of Java is one of the largest of what are usually known as the Sunda islands, in the Malay Archipelago. It lies between 105°-12'-40" and 114°-35'-38" East Longitude and 5°-52'-34" and 8°-46'-46" South Latitude. It is long but narrow, running nearly east and west with a slight inclination to the south. Its length is about 622 miles, while its breadth varies from 55 to 121 miles. The area of Java, including Madura and adjacent islands, is about 51,000 sq. miles. Java is bounded on the north by the shallow Java Sea which separates it from Borneo. On the south is the deep Indian ocean, stretching as far as the Antarctic Pole without a single patch of land. On the east a narrow strait, about two miles broad, separates it from the island of Bali. To the north-west is the Sunda Strait separating Java from Sumatra. The strait, at the narrowest, is only 14 miles wide, its extreme breadth being nearly 50 miles. There are many islands to the north of Java. Madura, the chief among them, is separated by a strait which, in some places, is less than a mile, and is regarded as a part of Java for all practical purposes. Among other islands may be mentioned the Thousand Islands, north of Batavia, and the Karimon Java Archipelago (27 islands) to the north of Semarang. Java has a long coast-line and many bays on the northern and western sides; but as none of them deeply penetrates into the land, there are no good harbours. The only exception is the excellent harbour of Surabaya, at the mouth of the Brantas river and situated between the mainland and Madura. But there are good anchoring grounds all along the northern coast, and as the sea is generally smooth, and hurricanes practically unknown, a number of ports developed on the northern coast, and served the purpose of commerce quite well. There are only two harbours—Chilachap and Pachitan—on the southern coast, which is exposed to the open sea, with a heavy and dangerous surge rolling on it.

v2.c13.s1.31

An uninterrupted range of mountains, volcanic in character, runs along the whole length of the island through its centre. The peaks of this mountain-range vary in height between 4000 and 12000 ft. No less than 46 of them are volcanoes, and about 20 are yet in a more or less active state. The craters of the volcanoes are sometimes of enormous size, the diameter of the largest, at Tenger, being full three miles. Another low range of mountains, nowhere more than 3000 ft. high, runs along the southern shore.

v2.c13.s1.32

There are innumerable rivers in Java, but, with two exceptions, they are small and not navigable beyond a short distance; besides, they are difficult of entrance on account of the sand or mud-bars at their mouths. The two exceptions are the Solo and Brantas rivers. Both of them rise in the low range of mountains in the south, and, after a long and tortuous course, empty themselves into the narrow strait between Java and Madura. The river Brantas is also known as the Surabaya river from the name of the famous harbour at its mouth. The Solo river is so called from the city of Surakerta (native name Solo) by which it passes. As a rule the rivers in Java are known by the name of the principal city on their banks.

v2.c13.s1.33

Although the rivers of Java are mostly useless for purposes of navigation and commerce, they are excellently adapted for irrigation. Java is one of the most fertile countries in the whole world. Any one who travels in the country cannot fail to be charmed by its evergreen fields, meadows, and hills, with traces of abundant harvest everywhere around him. "Its villages and even its towns are, in a great measure, concealed from view, by the luxuriant abundance and perpetual verdure of its vegetation". Indeed, a railway journey from Batavia to Surabaya is apt to give rise to the impression that the traveller is passing through a well-laid garden.

v2.c13.s1.34

There are five or six extensive plains in Java, such as those of Bandong, Surakerta, Madiun, Kediri, Malang, Bandavasa, and Pugar. These are all girded by high mountains on the east and on the west and irrigated by the streams flowing from them. The valleys in Java are numerous, and some of them, e.g., that of Kedu, are fairly large and very fertile.

v2.c13.s1.35

Java has a rich flora, and ‘hardly any similar area in the world has one of richer variety’. It produces excellent timber, the most important of which is the famous teak-wood. About 40% of the soil in Java is under cultivation, the chief products of agriculture being rice, sugar, cinchona, coffee, tobacco, tea, indigo etc. Java is very poor in mineral products. There is hardly any gold or silver, and only small quantities of coal, sulphur, and manganese. The discovery of petroleum in 1863 has added an important industry. The most well-known industry of Java to-day is the Batik or dyeing of cotton cloth with coloured designs.

v2.c13.s1.36

Both geographically and historically, Java falls into three main divisions. Of the sixteen Residencies, or modern administrative divisions of Java, those of Bantam, Batavia, Cheribon, and the Preangers constitute Western Java. Central Java comprises the Residencies of Pekalongan, Samarang, Banjumas, Kedu, Jogyakerta, Surakerta, Rembang, and Madiun. The remaining Residencies, viz., Surabaya, Kediri, Pasuruhan and Besuki belong to Eastern Java.

v2.c13.s1.37

Java is the most thickly populated country in the Archipelago. The population of Java and Madura numbers over thirty millions of people. Leaving aside the comparatively insignificant number of foreigners (293,100 Chinese, 19,148 Arabs, 2,840 Oriental foreigners, and 64,917 Europeans and Eurasians), the rest may be broadly divided into three classes, all of Malayan stock. These are Sundanese on the western, the Madurese in Madura and the eastern part of Java, and the Javanese proper in the middle. As a matter of fact the western part of the island of Java is known to the natives as Sunda. The Sundanese, numbering about three millions, have their head-quarters in the Residency of the Preangers, but they are also to be found in the Residencies of Batavia and Cheribon. The Madurese, more than three millions in number, are almost the sole inhabitants of the island of Madura and Besuki, the eastern-most district of Java, and occur in large numbers also in the neighbouring district of Pasuruhan. The remaining part of Java, from Cheribon to Surabaya, is inhabited by the Javanese proper. All the three races appear to have a common origin. The Javanese, though less sturdy than their neighbours, are more refined in manners and civilization, and are inspired by the memories of a glorious past, dating back to the period when the Hindu colonists imparted to them the elements of a higher culture and civilization¹.

v2.c13.s1.38

¹ This introductory account of Java is based mainly on the English translation of "Cabaton—Java, Sumatra, and the other islands of the Dutch East Indies" ( T. Fisher Unwin, London, 1911 ).

v2.c13.s1.39

The Hindu colonization of Java is by far the most outstanding event in the early history of that island. Unfortunately, the first stages of this colonization are hidden from our view, and are only echoed in a number of traditions current among the people in a later age. Sir Stamford Raffles has referred to some of these in his well-known History of Java ². Many of these legends associate the original colonists and their leader Aji Saka with the heroes of the Mahābhārata ruling at Astina, i. e., Hastināpura, as their capital ³. A modified version of these legends takes the descendants of these princes to Gujrat, whence a further wave of emigration to Java took place at a later date ⁴.

v2.c13.s1.40

² Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles—'The History of Java'. (2nd Ed., London, 1830), Vol. II, pp. 69 ff.

v2.c13.s1.41

³ Ibid., p. 71.

v2.c13.s1.42

⁴ Ibid., pp. 87 ff.

v2.c13.s1.43

Another cycle of legends gives the credit for the colonization of Java to the people of Kaliṅga ¹. In one of them we read that "twenty thousand families were sent to Java by the prince of Kling. These people prospered and multiplied. They continued, however, in an uncivilized state till the year 289 ( of Javanese era i.e. Śaka era ) when the almighty blessed them with a prince, named Kāno." After describing three generations of kings, who ruled for a total period of four hundred years, the story continues : "Another principality, named Astina, sprang up at this time, and was ruled by a prince called Pula Sara, who was succeeded by his son Abiāsa, who was again succeeded by his son Pāṇḍu Deva Nātha ; the reigns of the last three princes together amounting to one hundred years. Then succeeded Jaya Baya himself (by whom this account is supposed to be written) who removed the seat of government from Astina to Kediri" ²

v2.c13.s1.44

¹ Ibid., pp. 73 ff., 78 ff.

v2.c13.s1.45

² Ibid., pp. 73-4.

v2.c13.s1.46

In the last part of the above story, there is no difficulty in recognising the names of epic heroes like Parāśara (Pula Sara), Vyāsa (Abiāsa), and Pāṇḍu. Thus the two different cycles of legends are combined in one, and they are connected with historical period by Jaya Baya, *i.e.*, Jayabhaya, the famous king of Java, who flourished in the twelfth century A.D., and was the patron of the famous poem, Bhārata-yuddha.

v2.c13.s1.47

The legends naturally give great prominence to Aji Saka, who first civilized and gave the name Yava to the island, which was then called Nusa Kendang, and peopled by a race of Rasaksa (Rākṣasas of Indian legends). Aji Saka is described as the chief minister of a Pāṇḍava king ruling at Astina (Hastināpura), and is said to have landed in Java in the first year of Javan era ³ ( i. e. Śaka era). In some accounts, however, "it is stated, that the religion and arts of India were first introduced into Java by a Brahmin named Tritresta, who with numerous followers landed on Java, and established the era, in consequence of which he is considered the same with Aji Saka.” ¹.

v2.c13.s1.48

³ Ibid., p. 71.

v2.c13.s1.49

¹ Ibid., p. 75.

v2.c13.s1.50

“The accounts of the real character of Aji Saka”, observes Raffles, “are various. Some represent him as a great and powerful prince, who established an extensive colony on Java, which a pestilence afterwards obliged him to withdraw; whilst others consider him as a saint and deity, and believe that on his voyage to Java he sailed over mountains, islands, and continents. Most, however, agree in attributing to him the first introduction of letters, government, and religion; the only trace of anterior civilization being a tradition, that before his time there existed a judicial code, under the title of sun and moon...This code Aji Saka is represented to have reformed; and an abstract collection of ordinances, said to have been made from his instructions, is believed to have been in use as late as the time of Janggala, and even of Majapahit.” ².

v2.c13.s1.51

² Ibid., p. 72.

v2.c13.s1.52

It is not necessary to refer to the different versions of these legends which may be consulted in the pages of Raffles’ monumental work. It will appear from what has been said above, that very little importance can be attached to these stories beyond the fact, that they contain a vague reminiscence of what is undoubtedly a historical fact, viz., the colonization of Java by the Indians. It would be risky, without further evidence, even to deduce that Kalinga and Gujarat formed the main centres of Indian emigration to Java. But, as we shall see later, the Hindus from Kalinga and the Muhammadans from Gujarat may be regarded, on satisfactory grounds, to have taken the leading part in establishing respectively the Hindu and Muhammadan culture in Java. This probably explains the frequent reference to these two places in the legends, while the prominence given to the heroes of the Mahābhārata should undoubtedly be attributed to the popularity of that great epic poem in Java.

v2.c13.s1.53

As to the time when Java emerged from primitive barbarism, we have a tradition preserved in the Chinese work Hsing-ch’a Sheng-lan ( 1436 A. D. ) written by Fei Hsin. “From old records preserved in this county ( i. e. Java)”, says this author, “I learnt that this event took place during the Han dynasty, 1376 years before the present year, the 7th of Hsuan-te of our great Ming Dynasty ( i. e. A. D. 1432 )”.¹

v2.c13.s1.54

¹ T’oung Pao, Vol. XVI (1915), pp. 246-7, f. n. 1.

v2.c13.s1.55

This would take us to the year 56 A. D. But the History of the Ming Dynasty introduces an element of doubt and confusion. Referring to envoys from Java, it says : “When they brought tribute in the year 1432, they presented a letter stating that their kingdom had been founded 1376 years before, that is in the first year of the period Yüan-k’ang of the emperor Hsüan of the Han dynasty ( B. C. 65 ).”². As Groeneveldt has remarked, there is a discrepancy in the above account which it is difficult to explain ; for, counting back 1376 years before 1432, we arrive at 56 A. D., while the Chinese writer calculates back to 65 B. C. ³ We must, therefore, hold that either one of the two figures 1376 and 1432, or the Chinese calculation, is wrong. But in view of Fei Hsin’s statement, the latter seems to be more probable. Thus we may take the Javanese tradition, as handed down by the Chinese, to refer the beginning of the Hindu civilisation to A. D. 56, i. e. only 22 years before the beginning of the Javanese era synchronising with the traditional date of Aji Saka.

v2.c13.s1.56

² Groeneveldt—Notes, p. 39.

v2.c13.s1.57

³ Ibid., f. n. 4.

v2.c13.s1.58

It may be noted here that, according to tradition, the two islands of Bali and Madura originally formed a part of Java, and were only separated from it in the year 202. The formation of Madura as a separate island is referred to in Nāgara Kṛtāgama, ⁴ while a Balinese tradition refers to the separation of Bali, ⁵ both the events being dated in the self-same year.

v2.c13.s1.59

⁴ Nag. Kr., 15,2.

v2.c13.s1.60

⁵ Not. Bat. Gen., Vol, 62 (1923), pp. 297 ff.

v2.c13.s1.61

These traditions have an indirect bearing on the question at issue. For, if we believe in them, we must hold that, at least in Eastern Java, a civilised community existed before the third century A. D.; for, otherwise, such an event would not have been recorded or remembered with any such definiteness. But it is equally or, perhaps, more likely that the tradition is a late fabrication.

v2.c13.s1.62

But apart from these legends and traditions, there are more reliable evidences to show that India and Java must have come into contact from a very early period. We have already discussed above the passage in the Rāmāyaṇa which refers to Java. But the earliest reference to the island by an authority of known date is that by Ptolemy. He definitely mentions Java under the name of Iabadiou or Sabadiou. As he explains it as the ‘Island of Barley,’ the name is obviously a transcription of Sanskrit Yavadvīpa. Ptolemy gives the following information about it: “It is said to be of extraordinary fertility and to produce very much gold, and to have its capital called Argyre (Silver-Town) in the extreme west of it” ¹.

v2.c13.s1.63

¹ M'Crindle's Ptolemy, p. 239. Poerbatjaraka locates Argyre at Dieng (T. B. G., Vol. 69, p. 169.).

v2.c13.s1.64

The obvious identification of Ptolemy’s Iabadiou (=Yavadvīpa) with Java has been questioned by some authorities. ² They point out that the island of Sumatra, or at least a part of it, was also known as Java. Starting from this basis they argue as follows: ‘Now if we have to make a choice between Java and Sumatra, the latter is undoubtedly to be preferred on general grounds, for it being nearer to India must have been better known to the Indians, who could not have reached Java without passing by this great island, and therefore being first acquainted with it. This view is further strengthened by the consideration that Ptolemy’s Iabadiou is said to “produce very much gold”. Java, as a matter of fact, has hardly any gold at all, but Sumatra, which even now produces gold, was named Suvarṇadvīpa for that very reason.’

v2.c13.s1.65

² Cf. Krom—Geschiedenis, p. 55. Ferrand in J. A. 11-XX (1922), pp. 175 ff.

v2.c13.s1.66

A little reflection will, however, show that these arguments are really not as formidable as they appear to be. Sumatra was called *Java*, and never *Yava*, but Ptolemy’s ‘Barley-island’ shows that undoubtedly the latter was meant, and this has all along been the recognised name of the island of Java. Secondly, while it is true that Java does not produce gold, it is equally true that from early times it has enjoyed the reputation of being a gold-producing country. In an inscription¹ of the eighth century A. D. found in Java itself, the country is referred to as Yavadvīpa and praised for its richness in gold-mines. Whether this reputation was well-deserved or not, it certainly explains Ptolemy’s reference to the abundance of gold in Java, as his account must have been based on general popular notions rather than any geological examination of the soil of Java. The fact seems to be that, although Java did not produce gold, it imported large quantities of the metal, and worked them into ornaments and articles of luxury. The countries to which these were exported naturally regarded Java as rich in gold. But whether this explanation be correct or not, we have a sufficient explanation of Ptolemy’s reference to gold in the inscription referred to above.

v2.c13.s1.67

¹ Cangal Inscription, verse 7. Kern. V. G., Vol. VII, p. 118.

v2.c13.s1.68

We may thus accept the view that Ptolemy knew the island of Java under its Hindu name. His account of Java, as quoted above, together with the Latitude of its chief town given by him, certainly shows that he possessed a somewhat detailed knowledge of the place.

v2.c13.s1.69

We may thus hold that by the second century A. D. there was a growing and familiar intercourse between India on the one side and Java and neighbouring islands on the other. But neither the Indian literature nor the account of Ptolemy enables us to say positively that the Indians had already colonised the island of Java by the second century A. D. The use of a Hindu name for Java is the only ground for such supposition, but it may be easily explained by the very natural assumption that that was the name given by Hindu visitors or traders to Java, and there is nothing to indicate that Java was called by that name by its own people. It is true that Ptolemy used that name, but like other informations about the island, Ptolemy might have also got the name itself from Hindu sources.

v2.c13.s1.70

Fortunately the Chinese annals¹ throw more light on this question. In Heu-Han-Shu, reference is made to an embassy sent to China in 132 A. D. by Tiao-Pien, king of Ye-Tiao. Pelliot long ago recognised the identity of Ye-Tiao with Yavadvipa, and Ferrand has explained the name of the king as a Chinese rendering of Sanskrit Devavarman². If the conclusion of these eminent sinologists can be relied upon, both the country and its king had Indian names, and no doubt can then possibly remain about the fact, that by 132 A. D. the Hindus had not only colonised the island of Java, but had also established their political authority there on a firm footing. Further, the Chinese evidence to the effect that the island of Java was known by the name Yavadvipa in the year 132 A. D., certainly supports the view that ‘Iabadiou’ of Ptolemy, who wrote shortly afterwards, refers to Java and not to Sumatra.

v2.c13.s1.71

¹ Cf. Pelliot—B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV. (1904), p. 266. Ferrand—‘Ye-Tiao, Sseu-Tiao et Java.’ J. A., 11-VIII, pp. 521 ff.

v2.c13.s1.72

² Ferrand, op. cit., p. 530, f. n. 2.

v2.c13.s1.73

Now, according to the Chinese authority, king Devavarman sent his ambassador to the Chinese court for offering tributes. The envoy was apparently well received by the emperor, for he sent, as presents to the Javanese king, a golden seal and a violet ribbon. The Chinese historians always represent their sovereign as the suzerain of the world, and any friendly offering, or exchange of produce for commercial purposes, is regarded as tribute¹. In the present instance, also, the word tribute need not be taken in any other sense, and it would be a mistake to infer from this passage that the Chinese emperor exercised any sort of sovereignty over the distant island of Java.

v2.c13.s1.74

¹ For the real meaning of ‘tribute’, cf. Hirth, J. R. A. S., 1896, pp. 64-65; and Groeneveldt—Notes, p. 4.

v2.c13.s1.75

Of all the Hindu colonies in the Far East, the Hindu-ized kingdom of Java thus appears to have been the first to enter into diplomatic relations with China, for the first recorded embassies from Champā and Kāmboja are of later date. This intercourse seems to have been continued in the third century A. D. During the first half of this century two Chinese envoys, K’ang T’ai and Tchou Ying, visited Fou-Nan, and published two books on their return. In K’ang T’ai’s work named ‘Fou nan t’ou sou tchouan,’ a country called Tchou-po is mentioned several times. This country is placed to the east of Fou-Nan, in the Tchang-hai, the Chinese name of that part of the Sea of China which lies between Hai-nan and the Straits of Malacca. It is further said, that to the east of Tchou-po is the island of Ma-wou. Pelliot has corrected this name as Ma-li, and has identified Tchou-po (as well as its variant Chö-p’o) and Ma-li with Java and Bali. Another Chinese work of the third century A. D., named ‘Wai kouo tchouan’, also refers to Tchou-po, and says that its women know how to embroider a cotton cloth with floral patterns². If we accept the identification of Pelliot, it would prove the continuity of the intercourse between China and the Hindu kingdom of Java. On the other hand, Ferrand, although he renders Tchou-po as Jawa, would identify it with Sumatra rather than with Java³.

v2.c13.s1.76

² B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, pp. 269-70.

v2.c13.s1.77

³ Ferrand in J. A., 11—XX (1922), pp. 175 ff.

v2.c13.s1.78

Regular diplomatic intercourse between China and Java (Chö-p’o) was resumed in the fifth century A. D.⁴ We read in the ‘History of the First Sung Dynasty’, that in 430 A. D., the kingdom of Ho-lo-tan, which ruled over the island of Java (Chö-p’o), sent to the imperial court ambassadors offering diamond rings, red parrots, white Indian rugs and cottons, Javanese cottons, and similar articles. Four or five embassies were sent from Ho-lo-tan between A. D. 434 and 452; one authority places these embassies in 433, 436, 449, and 452 A. D., while another authority refers them to 433, 434, 437, 449, and 452 A.D. In addition to the embassies from Ho-lo-tan, Chinese annals refer to two embassies from Chö-p’o in 433 and 435 A.D. In the latter year, the king of this country, named Che-li-p’o-ta-t’o-a-la-pa-mo sent an envoy to the Chinese emperor to present a letter and some presents. The Chinese name of the king has been rendered as Śrī-pāda-dharā( or dhara )-varman by Schlegel, Bhaṭāra Dwāravarman by Ferrand, and Śrī-pāda Pūrṇavarman by Rouffaer. Schlegel points out that this embassy came from Chö-p’o-p’o-ta and not Chö-p’o, and has nothing to do with Java, but Pelliot believes that the Chinese writers have erroneously combined the names of two countries, Chö-p’o and P’o-ta, into one.¹

v2.c13.s1.79

⁴ Java seems to be now referred to as Chö-p’o, although this identification cannot be regarded as certain. On this identification,

v2.c13.s1.80

¹ Groeneveldt—Notes, p. 9; Schlegel—T'oung Pao, Serie 1, Vol. X, p. 251; Pelliot, op. cit. p. 271; Ferrand—J. A. 11—VIII. (1916), p. 526. Rouffaer—'Enc. Ned. Ind'., Vol. IV (1905), p. 367. Rouffaer's construction is, no doubt, influenced by the fact that inscriptions testify to the existence of a king called Pūrṇavarman. This identification is, however, least likely.

v2.c13.s1.81

Now Ho-lo-tan is definitely said to be in Chö-p’o, which is identified with Java. Even assuming the correctness of this identification, which, by the way, cannot be regarded as absolutely certain, it is not clear whether Ho-lo-tan denotes a

v2.c13.s1.82

which is assumed throughout in the text, cf. Pelliot, B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, p. 271. The accounts of the embassies that follow are based on Pelliot's article (op. cit. pp. 271 ff) and Schlegel's notes, T'oung Pao, Ser. I, Vol. X, (1899), pp. 159 ff. Schlegel, however, identifies Ho-lo-tan with Kelantan in Malay Peninsula, and so regards Chö-p’o island as equivalent to this Peninsula ( Ibid.; also, pp. 247 ff. )

v2.c13.s1.83

kingdom comprising the whole of the island of Java, or merely one of the many kingdoms into which that island was divided. The statement in the "History of the First Sung Dynasty", that "the state of Ho-lo-tan ruled over the island of Chö-p'o", would, no doubt, incline us to accept the former view, but certain details, preserved in the same Chinese history, would favour the latter. Thus we read: "In 433 A. D., the king of Ho-lo-tan named Vaiśa (or Vaiśya)-varman presented a letter. The kingdom was afterwards usurped by the son of Vaiśavarman, of which the old king complained in a letter to the emperor of China, dated in the year 436 A. D." Now, as we have seen above, a king bearing a different name was ruling over Chö-p'o or Chö-p'o-p'o-ta in 435 A. D. We must, therefore, presume that Ho-lo-tan and Chö-p'o (or Chö-p'o-p'o-ta) were two distinct kingdoms, and if the latter were in Java, as some scholars have held, Ho-lo-tan could not mean the whole of Java.

v2.c13.s1.84

In any case, these notices in Chinese annals do not furnish us with any definite information regarding the political history of Java. We are, however, more fortunate in respect of our knowledge regarding the spread of Hindu culture there.

v2.c13.s1.85

The first valuable and authentic account of the state of Hindu culture in Java is furnished by Fa-hien. The ship, which that pilgrim took at Ceylon in order to return to his native land, was driven off its course by a storm, and Fa-hien had to stop in Yavadvipa (Ye-p'o-t'i) for five months, in the year 414-15 A. D. Regarding this country he observes that "various forms of error and Brāhmanism are flourishing, while Buddhism in it is not worth mentioning"¹. It appears clearly from this statement, that various forms of Brāhmanical religion were prevalent among the people of Java in general, but Buddhism had no strong hold over them. Fa-hien's remarks would justify the conclusion that Brāhmanical culture was not confined to a handful of colonists, settled among a vast native population, but that it was the prevailing religion of the country.

v2.c13.s1.86

¹ Legge—Fa-hien, p. 113. The scholars are generally agreed that Ye-p'o-t'i of Fa-hien denotes Yavadvipa (= Java). Ferrand, however, identifies it with Sumatra.

v2.c13.s1.87

But that Buddhism soon made its influence felt in Java, appears clearly from the story of Guṇavarman, preserved in ‘Kao seng tchouan’ or ‘Biography of famous monks’, compiled in A. D. 519¹. Guṇavarman (K’icou-na-pa-mo), grandson of Haribhadra (Ho-li-pa-t’o), and son of Saṅghānanda (Seng-kia-a-nan), belonged to the royal family of Ki-pin (Kashmir or Kapiśā i.e. modern Afghanistan). He was of a religious mood from his very boyhood. When he was thirty years old, the king of Ki-pin died without issue, and the throne was offered to him. But he rejected the offer and went to Celyon. Later he proceeded to Java ( Chö-p’o ). During the night preceding his arrival, the mother of the king of Java saw in a dream that a monk was coming to Java in a sailing vessel. Guṇavarman arrived in the morning, and the queen-mother was converted to Buddhism. Gradually the king, too, was persuaded by his mother to adopt the same faith. At this time Java was attacked by hostile troops. The king asked Guṇavarman, whether it would be contrary to Buddhist law, if he fought against his enemy. Guṇavarman replied that it was the duty of everybody to punish the robbers. The king then went to fight and obtained a great victory. Gradually the Buddhist religion was spread throughout the kingdom. The king now wished to take to the life of a monk, but was dissuaded from this course by his ministers, on the express condition, that henceforth no living creatures should be killed throughout the length and breadth of the country.

v2.c13.s1.88

¹ Pelliot, op. cit. pp. 274-5.

v2.c13.s1.89

The name and fame of Guṇavarman had now spread in all directions. In A. D. 424 the Chinese monks requested their emperor to invite Guṇavarman to China. Accordingly the Chinese emperor sent messengers to Guṇavarman and the king of Java named Po-to-kia. Guṇavarman embarked on a vessel, owned by the Hindu merchant Nandin (Nan-t'i), and reached Nankin in A. D. 431. A few months later he died at the age of sixty-five.

v2.c13.s1.90

In spite of its obvious exaggerations, this story may be taken as an evidence, that Buddhism made its influence felt in Java, almost immediately after the departure of Fa-hien. It must be remembered, of course, that when a Buddhist book refers to the conversion of the whole country, or states that no animal was killed throughout the length and breadth of a country, it means no more than that Buddhism and Buddhist practices were prevalent to some extent in that country. Fa-hien, for example, says about the Madhyadeśa (Middle kingdom) in India: "Throughout the whole country the people do not kill any living creature, nor drink intoxicating liquor nor eat onions or garlic¹." This statement is demonstrably false, if it is taken to apply to the whole of that vast region in India which is indicated by Madhyadeśa. It may at best be taken to refer to the practices of the Buddhist section of the community. The references to the abstention of the people of Java from the slaughter of animals can only be taken in a modified sense, as in the case of India.

v2.c13.s1.91

¹ Legge—Fa-hien, p. 43.

v2.c13.s1.92

Having now briefly reviewed the notices in Chinese annals, regarding the Hindu kingdom of Java, we may now turn to a study of the indigenous sources. The earliest epigraphic evidence about the kingdom is furnished by four rock-inscriptions². "These are all found within the boundaries of the Province or Residency of Batavia, and at no great distance from the capital city of that name. Three of them, those of Ci-arutön, Jambu, and Kebon Kopi lie close to one another in the hilly country round Buitenzorg, the residence of the Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies. The site of the fourth inscription, that of Tugu, was near the sea-coast to the east of Tanjong Priok, the port of Batavia. It is now preserved in the Batavia Museum’.

v2.c13.s1.93

² These inscriptions have been published and discussed by several scholars. The latest and most authentic account is that by Dr. Vogel in his article "The Earliest Sanskrit Inscriptions of Java" ('Publicaties Van den Oudheidkundigen Dienst in Nederlandsch-Indie', Deel I—1925, pp. 15-35.) The accounts of the inscriptions given in the text are based on this article. Two other inscriptions discovered at Pasir Awi and Muara Ci-Anten have not yet been deciphered. Facsimiles of these are given by Vogel in his article.

v2.c13.s1.94

The Inscriptions Nos. 1, 2, and 3, refer by name to a king Pūrṇavarman, whose capital was the city of Tārumā (No. 2) or Tārūma (No. 1). He is described as ‘lord of the earth’, and having obtained victories against his enemies’. But, beyond these and similar vague praises, very little, by way of definite information, can be gathered from these records. Inscriptions Nos. 1 and 2 merely refer to the foot-prints of king Pūrṇavarman, and a pair of foot-prints is actually engraved over the inscription in each case. No. 3 similarly refers to the foot-print of the elephant of the king of Tārumā, and here, again, a pair of elephant’s foot-prints is actually engraved above and below the inscription.

v2.c13.s1.95

The Inscription No. 4 is dated in the twenty-second year of Pūrṇavarman, and describes his grandfather as rājarṣi (royal sage), and another ancestor, perhaps his father, as rājādhirāja. The latter is said to have dug the Candrabhāgā (a canal or a river), which reached the ocean after passing by the capital city. In his twenty-second regnal year, Pūrṇavarman himself dug a similar canal, called the Gomatī river, 6,122 dhanus in length, and paid a dakṣiṇā (fee) of a thousand cows to the Brāhmaṇas.

v2.c13.s1.96

Now, several problems arise out of these inscriptions, and we may discuss them separately before drawing general conclusions from the records.

v2.c13.s1.97

In the first place, was Pūrṇavarman a really historical person? The doubt was first expressed by Kern, who regarded Pūrṇavarman as “an ancient hero and sage of Indian origin, whose worship had been introduced in Western Java.” This view, which is accepted by others,¹ is difficult to understand. Perhaps the figures of his foot-prints, and those of his elephants, too, inclined Kern to the above view. But the inscription No. 4, which definitely states that a canal was dug by him in the twenty-second year of his reign, with full details about the time when it was commenced and finished, cannot possibly leave any doubt that he was an historical person. The meaning of his foot-print is not quite clear. Normally, it should be regarded as an object of worship, but then the same view will have to be extended to the foot-print of the king’s elephant. In other words, we have to presume that both the king and his elephant came to be regarded as divine. There is nothing, however, in the inscriptions themselves to indicate that the foot-prints were objects of worship. On the other hand, we must remember that about the time when Pūrṇavarman lived, the theory of a divine origin of kings had been firmly established in India², and no surprise need be felt that it was carried to its logical conclusion in the Hindu-ized Java³.

v2.c13.s1.98

¹ Cf. Veth—Java (2nd Ed.), Vol. I, p. 27.

v2.c13.s1.99

² Cf. Manu-Smṛti, Chap. VII, vv. 4, 8. Allahabad Pillar Inscription, l.

v2.c13.s1.100

³ For the worship of foot-prints prevalent among different communities, cf. Vogel, op. cit. pp. 16-21. According to this scholar, the foot-prints marked ‘certain places hallowed by the presence of Pūrṇavarman’. He also suggests that the Ci-arutön rocks marks the spot of the king’s cremation, and that “the foot-prints of the deceased monarch were credited with a magical power to protect his followers and to hurt his enemies.” (op. cit, p. 20). Stutterheim thinks that the foot-prints were symbols of the king’s supremacy over the land (B. K. I., Vol. 89, pp. 288-9).

v2.c13.s1.101

The next question is, did Pūrṇavarman belong to a royal line? Dr. Vogel remarks: “Nothing is said regarding the king’s lineage. May we infer from the absence of any mention of ancestors...that king Pūrṇavarman could not boast any lofty parentage?” It is difficult to follow Dr. Vogel here.

v2.c13.s1.102

²⁸ (Fleet—Gupta Inscriptions, pp. 8, 15.)

v2.c13.s1.103

The inscription No. 4 refers to *rājādhirāja guru*, and Vogel himself has taken the word *guru* to mean the king's father, on the strength of a Javanese inscription in which the deceased king is designated as *Bhaṭāraguru*. Then the same inscription contains a clear reference to *pitāmaha* or grandfather of the king who is also described as *rājarṣi*, or royal sage. Thus, there can be no doubt, that the family to which Pūrṇavarman belonged could boast of at least three generations of kings.

v2.c13.s1.104

The third question is, can we regard Pūrṇavarman as Indian in origin? The point at issue has been admirably summed up as follows by Dr. Vogel: "It would, perhaps, be equally risky to conclude from Pūrṇavarman's name, that he was of Indian birth or extraction. He may, no doubt, have been an immigrant from some part of the Indian continent, or a descendant of such an immigrant, but equally well he may have been an indigenous prince of Malay race who had adopted Hindu culture and religion and along with it had assumed an Indo-Aryan name. A Sanskritic name in itself would prove as little with regard to the nationality of the bearer as a name in Arabic, Hebrew, Greek or Latin. That Pūrṇavarman, if not a Hindu, was at any rate Hindu-ized, may be taken for granted". Dr. Vogel's position seems at first sight to be quite unassailable. But if we analyse the facts a little more deeply, his conclusion does not seem to be convincing enough. In the first place, it is to be noted that even the four short records of Pūrṇavarman's time show how thoroughly Java was saturated with Hindu civilisation. An intimate acquaintance with Sanskrit language is evinced by the records themselves, which are written in Sanskrit verse, and, with a few exceptions, in correct Sanskrit style. Reference to Viṣṇu's feet and Airāvata, together with the gift of a thousand cows as *dakṣiṇā* or sacrificial fees to Brāhmaṇas, indicate great familiarity with Hindu religion, mythology, and rituals. Reference to Indian months and *tithis*, and to *dhanus* as standard of measurement, show clearly that in these respects the Indian systems had superseded the older ones. Above all, the adoption of geographical names, such as Candrabhāgā and Gomatī, not only indicate a familiarity with Indian geography, but clearly testify to the existence of an Indian element in the settled population. Lastly, the king bears a purely Indian name, without any additional Javanese element, such as comes into vogue in later times. We may add to this, that there is absolutely nothing that is non-Indian in all these records. Now, can we explain all these by merely supposing that the original people of Java were converted to Hinduism by bands of missionaries? Obviously not. Something far more powerful was necessary than mere peaceful propaganda by a band of missionaries. It will be difficult to cite an instance, where similar changes were brought about except by the political domination of the people from whom the culture was borrowed. Now, the political domination of India over Western Java could be exercised in two ways. That region might have been conquered by an Indian king and included in his empire, or a band of Indian adventurers might have seized the political power and authority there by some means or other. All that we know of the history of the time tells against the first assumption, and the latter view alone seems to be probable. If, then, we are convinced that nothing but the political domination of Indians over Java can explain all the facts we know about its culture and civilisation, we must presume the royal dynasty of Java, at least at the beginning of the period when the Hindu culture thoroughly established itself there, to be of Indian origin. It is not, of course, intended to maintain that such Hindu dynasty kept itself strictly aloof from the indigenous population. On the other hand, the Hindu chiefs must have freely mixed with the natives, and intermarried with them, with the result that there was a fusion of blood between the two races. But that Pūrṇavarman’s family was Indian in origin, seems to be the most reasonable presumption, and nothing but the very strongest evidence would rebut it.

v2.c13.s1.105

The last problem in connection with Pūrṇavarman is his date. The only key to its solution is furnished by a palaeographic study of his inscriptions. By comparing these with the Kutei inscriptions of Mūlavarman, Dr. Vogel concluded that Pūrṇavarman is to be placed in the middle of the fifth century A. D. But as the date of Mūlavarman (400 A. D., according to Dr. Vogel) is itself a matter of conjecture, this conclusion cannot be regarded as a very satisfactory one. On the other hand, if we compare the alphabets used in the inscriptions of Pūrṇavarman with those, respectively, of Bhadravarman and Śambhuvarman, rulers of Champā, it is apparent that they fully agree with the latter in all distinctive characteristics, *viz.*, (1) upward curve of the end of the vertical stroke in *k*, *r*, *a* and medial *u*; (2) looped *t*; (3) advanced form of *ṣ*, in which the central stroke, joining the two verticals, is modified to a loop attached to the base; (4) medial *i* denoted by a circle. All these characteristics are absent in the inscription of Bhadravarman, but make their first appearance in the inscriptions of Śambhuvarman¹. Pūrṇavarman may, therefore, be regarded as a contemporary of the latter, rather than of the former. Now Bhadravarman ruled about 400 A. D., while Śambhuvarman ruled from about 565 A. D. to 629 A. D.² It would be reasonable, therefore, to place Pūrṇavarman in the sixth century A. D.

v2.c13.s1.106

¹ The palaeography of the inscriptions of Champā has been discussed by me in B. E. F. E. O., Vol., XXXII, pp. 127ff.

v2.c13.s1.107

² The dates of these kings have been discussed in my work, Champā, Chs. III, IV.

v2.c13.s1.108

To sum up. We may reasonably assume that by the sixth century A. D., king Pūrṇavarman was ruling in Western Java with his capital at Tārumā. He belonged to a Hindu, or at any rate a Hindu-ized royal family, which must have been reigning for at least three generations in Java. Pūrṇavarman ruled for at least twenty-two years. If we are to judge from the find-spots of his inscriptions alone, his kingdom was of a moderate size, comprising the valleys of the Ci-liwong and Ci-tarum¹ rivers, together with the hilly country round Buitenzorg, in Western Java. It is likely, however, that his authority extended further to the east, though no epigraphic evidence of it has yet come to light. At the time of Pūrṇavarman, Hindu culture and civilisation was firmly established in Java. Pūrṇavarman was a follower of Brāhmanical religion, and Sanskrit literature was studied in his court.

v2.c13.s1.109

¹ According to Pleyte, this river has preserved the name of the capital city Tārumā. On the extent of Pūrṇavarman's kingdom, cf. Krom—Geschiedenis, p. 77 ; Vogel, op. cit. p. 16.

v2.c13.s1.110

In addition to the kingdom of Pūrṇavarman, there must have been other kingdoms in Java about this time. This seems to follow indirectly from the Chinese references to the kingdom of Ho-lo-tan in Java, as already discussed before. But the Chinese annals even furnish a more direct evidence of this state of things. Two historical works of the Sui period ( A. D. 589-618 ) give almost identical accounts of a country called Tou-po, which Pelliot has, with good reasons, identified with Java. It is said in these works, that in the country there are more than ten capitals, or at least towns, whose chiefs assume royal titles.² Now, this is a clear indication that the island was divided into a number of petty kingdoms. Whether this statement is true of the Sui period, or the authors borrowed it from an earlier source, as Pelliot thinks possible, it may be taken as reflecting very correctly the normal political condition of Java. Even in the history of the T’ang period reference is made to twenty-eight feudatory kings, acknowledging the supremacy of the king of Java.³ This corroborates the general picture, in so far as it relates to the period of the T’ang dynasty ( 618-906 A. D. ).

v2.c13.s1.111

² B. E. F. E. O., Vol. IV, pp. 275-6.

v2.c13.s1.112

³ Groeneveldt—Notes, p. 13.

v2.c13.s1.113

Another evidence in the same direction is the use, in Chinese annals, of different names for the kingdoms in Java which, for the time being, were in direct intercourse with the imperial court. The name Java, under various forms, occurs throughout as a general appellation for the country, but different specific names are sometimes used, presumably to denote different kingdoms situated in the island. We have already come across one such name, viz., Ho-lo-tan. The annals of the T'ang period (A. D. 618-906) similarly mention Ho-ling as the name of the kingdom of Java, and apparently take the two terms as synonymous, although the form Java again comes into use towards the close of the same period¹. Here, again, Ho-ling was presumably the name of the most important kingdom in Java with which the Chinese had intercourse during the T'ang period, and hence they applied the name to the whole country, a large part of which was subordinate to that kingdom.

v2.c13.s1.114

¹ Ibid., pp. 13-15.

v2.c13.s1.115

Ho-ling has been generally admitted to be a Chinese transcription of Kalinga. It would thus appear that the leading kingdom in Java was named after the well-known province of India, and it may easily lead to the inference that colonists from Kalinga dominated in that quarter. It is generally held that the name of Java was changed to Kalinga about this time, and that this was due to a fresh stream of immigration from Kalinga or the eastern part of India². It is, however, equally likely that the kingdom of Kalinga existed in Java from an early period, but it only attained political importance, and came to be the leading state in Java, during the T'ang period.

v2.c13.s1.116

² Krom—Geschiedenis, pp. 95-102. The transcription of Hiuen Tsang's Yen-mo-na as Yavadvipa shows the prevalence of the name in the 7th century A. D. (B. E. F. E. O. iv. p. 278 ; J. R. A. S., 1920, pp. 447 ff. )

v2.c13.s1.117

If we are to judge from the existing antiquarian remains in Java, we may presume that the kingdom of Ho-lo-tan represents the kingdom in Western Java ruled over by Pūrṇavarman. For that is the only kingdom in Java of which the existence in the fifth century A. D. is established by epigraphic evidence. Arguing in a similar way, it may be held that Ho-ling represents a kingdom in Central Java, which has yielded inscriptions and monuments that may be referred to the seventh century A. D. It should not, however, be forgotten that such a line of argument, based as it is on a sort of negative evidence, cannot be very much relied upon. It is, at best, a working hypothesis, which may be demolished at any moment by the discovery of a single new inscription. Subject to this note of caution, we may regard the two embassies to China sent in 640 (or 648) and 666 A. D., as having proceeded from Central Java¹. The New History of the T'ang Dynasty has preserved a tradition about a queen of Java which deserves particular notice. It runs as follows ²:—"In 674-5 A. D. the people of this country took as their ruler a woman of the name Si-ma. Her rule was most excellent. Even things dropped on the road were not taken up. The Prince of the Arabs (Tazi), hearing of this, sent a bag with gold to be laid down within her frontiers : the people who passed that road avoided it in walking, and it remained there for three years. Once the heir-apparent stepped over that gold and Si-ma became so incensed that she wanted to kill him. Her ministers interceded and then Si-ma said : "Your fault lies in your feet, therefore it will be sufficient to cut them off". The ministers interceded again, and she had his toes cut off, in order to give an example to the whole nation. When the prince of Tazi heard this, he became afraid and dared not attack her."

First 116 of 698 passages. Read on

Cites (12)