Ancient Indian Colonies in the Far East (Vol. I: Champa; Vol. II: Suvarnadvipa) v2.c14.t6.69

v2.c14.t6.69

The Balinese records from 989 to 1001 A. D. refer to both Guṇapriyadharmapatnī and her husband Dharmodāyanavarman, but the name of the latter alone appears in two records, dated 1011 and 1022 A. D. The natural presumption, therefore, is that the queen died some time between 1001 and 1011 A.D., and since then her husband alone ruled in Bali.² But a Sembiran copperplate, dated 1016 A.D., refers to a queen (ratu) Sang Ājñādevī. It has been suggested that Ājñādevī was but another name of Guṇapriyadharmapatnī.³ But, then, it is difficult to explain why she alone is mentioned, under a different name and with a lower title ‘ratu.’ An alternative suggestion would be to regard Sang Ājñādevī as a vassal chief, or one ruling independently in some parts of the island.⁴ In any case Udayana must have regained his authority before 1022 A.D. He evidently died in that year, some time between the months of Caitra, when he issued the edict, and Pauṣa, when a record was issued by Śrī Dharmavaṃśavardhana Marakatapangkaja-Sthānottunggadeva. This king ruled at least till 1025 A.D. His name indicates that he belonged to the family of Dharmavaṃśa and was thus a member of the Javanese royal family. It is, of course, equally possible to hold that Dharmavaṃśa was originally a ruler of Bali and then obtained the throne of Java, possibly by marrying the daughter of king Makuṭavaṃśavardhana. The relationship between Udayana and his successor Marakatapangkaja-Sthānottunggadeva is not known, nor is it possible to decide if the latter ruled as an independent king, or acknowledged the suzerainty of Airlangga, the Javanese king.¹ The absence of any royal title lends support to the latter view, and in that case we may hold that in spite of the catastrophe which overwhelmed the kingdom of Java about this time, she still maintained her hold over the island of Bali. In any case, Airlangga ultimately asserted his full suzerainty over Bali; so much so, that once he even planned to divide his kingdom among his two sons by giving Java to one and Bali to another. This, however, did not take place, and instead Java itself was divided into two kingdoms, Janggala and Kaḍiri, as we have seen above.