'Kanjeng' Rara Kidul from the South: A queen for all kings
By Wahyuni Rizkiana Kamah and Iwan Satyanegara
SUKABUMI, West Java (JP): Queen Rara Kidul walked towards Prince Senopati, bent over his feet and joined her hands in a sembah (greeting signing of respect) and said "Your prayer to God has been granted. You and your descendants after you will rule Java. You will also rule the spirits, the jinn and the fairies, and they will help you against your enemies. You will be like the father of Java."
The passage is from the Babad Tanah Jawi (The Chronicles of the Land of Java), a masterpiece of history mixed with legend which narrates the first appearance of Ratu (Queen) Rara Kidul after Senopati, the founder of the Mataram empire, prayed to God in Parangkusumo on the southern coast of Central Java.
Although some people don't believe in such tales, the majority of Javanese people worship Ratu Rara Kidul, a supernatural creature, as the ruler of the south sea of Java. Their belief stems from Senopati's success in fulfilling his dream to be the King of Mataram. Every Mataram king must take Ratu Rara Kidul as his wife, so she has become the subject of a debate where myths and superstition defeat logic and reality, where tradition strikes down modernity.
Isaac Asimov listed in his Book of Facts that the Samudra Beach Hotel outside of Pelabuhan Ratu on the southern coast of West Java has furnished a room for Ratu Rara Kidul. Asimov, a Russian-American born author, considers the existence of Ratu Rara Kidul as a Believe It Or Not case.
The connection
The Islamic kingdom of Mataram dominated much of Java in 16th century until it was split into four kingdoms in the 17th century. As a result, there are now four kingdoms under four kings: the kingdom of Surakarta (Kasunanan Surakarta) under King Pakubuwono XII (since 1944); the Sultanate of Yogyakarta (Kasultanan Yogyakarta) under Sultan Hamengkubuwono X (since 1989); the Principality of Surakarta (Puro Mangkunegoro) under King Mangkunegoro (since 1988); and the Principality of Yogyakarta (Puro Paku Alaman) under King Paku Alam VIII (since 1937). All of the kings are direct descendants of Prince Senopati.
The right of kingship is traditionally conferred by Ratu Rara Kidul and her sanction is a prerequisite for building a palace. The architecture and alignment of all four palaces are based on esoteric knowledge and Javanese-Hindu cosmology.
"All of the palaces' yards are covered with the sand taken from Parangtritis. It is a symbol that the palaces have relationship with the south sea, the mystical home of Ratu Rara Kidul," explained a guide at the Yogyakarta palace.
The north entrances of the Surakarta and Yogyakarta palaces face Mount Merapi in Central Java, which is the realm of the gods. The palaces' southern gates look toward the south sea, the mystical home of Rara Kidul.
"The governmental system run in Ratu Rara Kidul's kingdom is fairly similar to the system of the real world government," said a paranormal, a close friend of both the late Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX and the present Hamengkubuwono X. "The highest occupation is ruled by Kanjeng (form of address for a high- ranking noble) Rara Kidul, whereas her ministers are Nyai (Javanese noble woman) Rara Kidul as the chief minister and Mbok (form of address for Javanese woman of humble origin) Rara Kidul. Both are assigned as guards. They often recruit drowned people as subjects in their underwater kingdom," said the paranormal who asked not to be identified.
He further explained, "There are three determinate 'gates' to enter this supernatural kingdom which are situated in Pelabuhan Ratu, Pangandaran and Parangtritis."
In the Sultanate of Yogyakarta, there is a special ceremony connected for Ratu Rara Kidul called nglarung (offering). This sacred ceremony is performed every Islamic New Year (1 Muharram) or 1 Suro (Javanese calendar) in Parangkusumo, one kilometer east of Parangtritis.
"The offerings consists of food, various live birds including doves and finches, holy water, jasmine petals, the Sultan's cloth, and hair and clipped nails from the Sultan. The offerings are arranged in a raft and are delivered to the sea at Parangkusumo," said Wahyo, a delman (horse cart) driver who lives in Parangtritis. A former prayer-site of Prince Senopati at Parangkusumo has become a sacred site for semedi (prayer) for people wishing to encounter Ratu Rara Kidul. Now, the spot is surrounded by the wall and can only be entered with the juru kunci's (key keeper) permission.
The four Mataram palaces are not the only ones to perform the nglarung. Most farmers and fishermen in Cilacap on the southern coast of Central Java give offerings to the sea or sedekah laut every 1 Suro or 1 Muharram.
"The offering consists of a bull's head or a cow's head, chicken, vegetables, some women's cloth and other worthy gifts. The aim of the offerings is to avoid disasters to get luck," said Nunik, a Cilacap resident who has participated in the offering ceremonies. "The fishermen and citizens in Cilacap truly believe that disaster will come unless they perform the ceremony," she said.
Permission
Ratu Rara Kidul has a malevolent disposition. Swimming on her rough southern sea is dangerous, particularly if her territory is entered without her permission. Offenders are frequently drowned. The Bulgarian ambassador to Indonesia drowned at Pelabuhan Ratu beach in 1965. Many inhabitants of Java's southern shore meet the same fate every year.
"Green is the color of the sea, so seeing anything similar to its color, the sea will seize it," explained Wahyo when asked why people in green suits are taken. "Ratu Rara Kidul's favorite color is green, particularly pale yellow green known as gadung melati," added Mbah Joyo, who lives in Kulon Progo, Yogyakarta. "Twenty years ago, my teenaged daughter was wading in Kali (river) Kulon Progo which runs to the south sea. At the time, she was trying to help her friend who had drifted away but she failed. Then they were both carried by the current. The villagers in my neighborhood believed Nyai Rara Kidul selected my daughter and her friend as her assistants in her underwater kingdom," she said. "The river recruits assistants every year," she added.
The Javanese therefore avoid wearing green when visiting the shore. For those who don't know about this taboo, things may be different. Gerrit, a German tourist who swam in the sea in Pelabuhan Ratu said, "I was wearing a green swim suit, but nothing happened to me. It might be because I knew nothing about Ratu Rara Kidul or her love of green. I have learned about the tale so I won't swim in a green swim suit again."
Nunik said, "A friend of mine who had learnt about the taboo tried to challenge the mystic rule by wearing a green T-shirt to the Cilacap coast in West Java. He cannot look backwards now, because all he sees are monsters."
When asked about this story, Farida Harum, an Islamic preacher, explained, "In Islam we recognize creatures other than human beings, namely the living matters such as plants and animals, the non-living matters, and the invisible ones such as the angels and the genies. I'd say it is a genie that people consider as Ratu Rara Kidul. Whether you believe or not depends on our conviction. If you are a Moslems, you'd better stay away from such mystical practices."
Legend or no legend, the rips, the violent currents, and the heavy surf obviously make swimming on most of Java's southern beaches dangerous. The seascape is supported by forbidding shorelines of jagged cliffs and the dunes of shifting iron gray sand.
Marshall Green, the U.S. ambassador to Indonesia in 1966-1967, joked that Ratu Rara Kidul liked him because his name was Mr. Green. Though he didn't believe in the superstition, he understood why Samudra Beach Hotel keeps a room for Ratu Rara Kidul.
After Sultan Agung, the late Sri Sultan Hamengkubowono IX of the Sultanate Yogyakarta was the greatest king that Mataram had ever had. He was also the former Indonesian Vice President (1973- 78), one of the nation's founding fathers and a national. He once announced that he saw Ratu Rara Kidul by a specific requisition and dawn-to-dusk fasting and meditation. The Sultan's motto Tahta untuk Rakyat (Throne for the People) ruled his life. In his book, the Sultan said that Ratu Rara Kidul's face changes. At the new moon, she appears as the most beautiful young lady in the universe. At full moon, however, she turns to into an ugly, old woman. He also said that Ratu Rara Kidul is the spiritual wife of the Mataram kings.
When Sultan Hamengkubowono IX died in October 1988 in Washington, D.C., President Ronald Reagan ordered Air Force Two, the U.S. presidential plane, to carry the Sultan's body to Honolulu, Hawaii. Reagan also expressed his condolences to the Indonesian government, which declared a week-long mourning.
That was the greatest honor ever given to a husband of Ratu Rara Kidul, the queen for all kings.