THE HINDU JAVANESE LITERATURE.
The Hindu Javanese literature concerned with the
past--Javanese alphabet--Extent of Javanese works--
Kavi dialect--Krama and Ngoko--The Mahabharata and
the Ramayana in Kavi--Native Kavi works--The Arjuna
Vivaya--The Bharata Yuddha--Episode of Salya and
Satiavati--Ethical poems--The Paniti Sastra--
Localization of Hindu mythology in Java.
The literature of a country reflects its life, but under certain
conditions. The literature of Java is mainly, but not entirely,
concerned with the distant past, when the quiet tide of Eastern life had
received as yet no disturbing impulse from the stream of Mohammedan and
European conquest. This Hindu Javanese literature tells us of a people
far advanced in the essentials of civilization, and reveals the
existence of a social system which, though undoubtedly primitive, was
at the same time complete and homogeneous. From the date of the
Mohammedan conquest onwards, that is to say, for the last four
centuries, the national life has been directed by alien forces. During
this period but little or nothing has been added to the literature of
the country, since the fresh ideas which have been introduced have come
from Mohammedan conquerors, who were themselves provided with a
sufficient medium of expression, and one which they sought, as a matter
of policy, to impress upon the subject races of the island. Beyond
enlightening us upon the social system prevalent many hundred years ago,
it would seem that a knowledge of their literature could contribute but
slightly towards a comprehension of the Javanese. This opinion, however,
is modified by the fact that the Kavi literature has been popularized by
translation into modern Javanese, and that the mass of the population
are still acquainted with its main features by means of these versions
accompanied by the representations of the theatre and the wayang. The
ideals of conduct conveyed in these epics, romances, legends, and
ethical treatises will, therefore, be those with which the Javanese are
still familiar, and presumably such as still enlist their sympathies.
Besides this general insight into native methods of thought, there are
also certain features of their life and of their present relationship to
their European conquerors upon which interesting lights are thrown by an
acquaintance with the traditions and beliefs enshrined in the ancient
literature.
The Javan alphabet, according to the native idea, consists of only
twenty consonants. But as a matter of fact, each of these consonants is
credited with an inherent vowel sound of _a_ (often written _o_) as in
_water_; and there are five vowel signs which are attached to the
consonants, and so vary the inherent _a_. There are also twenty
auxiliary consonant forms, corresponding to the original twenty
consonants, which are used in all combinations of consonants. Even this
does not exhaust the list, for there still remain a number of double
letters, while modifications of the letters of the alphabet are
employed for numbers. Speaking of this alphabet as a whole, Crawfurd
says[21] that it reaches perfection, since "it expresses every sound in
the language, and every sound invariably with the same character, which
never expresses but one." He concludes, "In splendour or elegance the
alphabet of the Arabs and Persians is probably superior to that of the
Javanese; but the latter, it may be safely asserted, surpasses in beauty
and neatness all other written characters." Some idea of the extent of
the Javanese literature may be gained from the fact that M. Vreede's
recently issued account of the Javanese manuscripts in the Leiden
University Library[22] gives the names of some five hundred manuscripts,
containing no less than one hundred and fifty separate works. And--to
come nearer home--the collection of the Royal Asiatic Society contains
as many as forty-four Javanese manuscripts, for which the society is
mainly indebted to the generosity of Lady Raffles. No little interest
and learning have been displayed by continental scholars in the study of
these works; but, unfortunately, their valuable treatises, written in
German, French, and Dutch, are not easily accessible to English readers.
In order to find an account of the Javanese literature in English, we
have to go back more than half a century to the works of Raffles and
Crawfurd. Fortunately, the former has enriched his "History" with
unusually full and interesting extracts from Javanese works. But since
Raffles was in Java immense advances have been made, not only in our
general knowledge of oriental languages, but especially in the
interpretation of literature by means of antiquarian remains. It is not
that his account is rendered worthless by these recent researches. On
the contrary, in this latest work, Vreede's "Catalogue," we find
frequent quotations from Raffles' appendices. At the same time, when we
see how much he achieved with his inadequate materials, it is difficult
to suppress a feeling of regret that the fuller information, which is
available to-day, was not at the disposal of the author of a "History
of Java." As I have embodied in the text some extracts from Raffles'
translations, it may be well to say a word as to the value of these
versions. What Vreede says of a particular passage is true of these
renderings in general: "They are not literal translations, but the
spirit of the work is well rendered."
[Footnote 21: "Indian Archipelago."]
[Footnote 22: "Catalogus van de Javaansche en Madoereesche
Handschriften der Leidsche Universiteits-Bibliotheek door A. C.
Vreede. Leiden: 1892."]
In the present chapter we are concerned only with those Hindu Javanese
works which are properly entitled to be classed as "literature." They
are written in the Kavi or literary language. The term "Kavi" means the
language of poetry, and this dialect is composed, to a great extent, of
words of Sanscrit origin. Although the knowledge of Kavi was gradually
lost after the Hindu supremacy was overthrown by the Mohammedans, modern
Javanese contains but few Arabic words, especially differing in this
respect from Malay. Two forms of modern Javanese are employed in
everyday speech. First, the language of ceremony, called Krama; and,
secondly, the common speech, or Ngoko (meaning literally the thou-ing
speech). The Krama contains a considerable number of words derived from
Sanscrit and introduced through the Kavi, and an admixture of Malay. It
is used by the peasants and artisans in addressing the native princes.
The Ngoko is spoken by the common people among themselves, and by the
native princes in communication with their inferiors. The existence of
this double language explains the fact (of which I have already spoken)
that the Dutch have established Malay, and not Javanese or Sundanese, as
the medium of communication between Europeans and natives.
The modified Hinduism which existed at the epoch of the Mohammedan
conquest (1400-1500, A.D.) retreated very gradually in an easterly
direction before the new religion. At the end of the eighteenth century
there were still Hindus in Java, and to-day the ancient religion lingers
in Bali, a small island off the south-eastern coast. In Bali, therefore,
it is natural that we should find the fullest remains of such parts of
the Kavi literature as are most closely identified with that of
Continental India. Only fragments of the two great Indian epics, the
Mahabharata, or "Great War of the Sons of King Bharata," and the
Ramayana, or "Adventures of Rama," are found in Java; but in Bali Kavi
versions of both appear. Neither of these versions, however; bears the
Indian title of the original work. The Mahabharata, which, with its
220,000 lines, is the longest epic in the world, and which Sir Monier
Williams calls "a vast cyclopædia of Hindu mythology," is known as "the
Parvas." Of the eighteen parvans, or divisions, of the original, eight
only are in existence in the Kavi version. Of these the first,
_Adiparva_, is the best preserved, says Dr. Van der Tuuk; "but this
also," he adds, "abounds in blunders, and especially the proper names
have been so altered from their Indian originals as to be hardly
recognizable."[23] As the name "War of the Bharatas" is applicable,
strictly speaking, to only one-fifth part of the whole poem, it is
probable that the great epic was not yet known under this title at the
time when it was transported from India to Java.
[Footnote 23: In the _Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society_,
xiii. N.S. 1881.]
The Ramayana appears in a slightly changed form in the Kavi version. The
original Indian epic is divided into seven _Kandas_, or volumes, which
are again subdivided into chapters. The Kavi version, entitled "the
Kandas," contains the narrative of the first six Kandas. The seventh,
the _Uttara-Kanda_, or supplementary volume, which gives an account of
the descendants of Rama after his death, appears in the Kavi as an
entirely separate work. It would appear, therefore, that neither of the
two Indian epics had reached their final form when they were carried by
Hindu colonists to Java. That part of the Mahabharata which afterwards
gave the poem its distinctive title had not yet been written, or at
least added to the central myth; and the Ramayana then contained only
the history of Rama. Both poems appear, however, to have acquired a
reputation for unusual sanctity. In Java and Bali both "the Kandas" and
"the Parvas" are used as synonymous terms, and mean "the Sacred Books."
The difference between the Kavi and Indian versions of these epics seems
to afford additional evidence--if any such were needed--that neither the
Mahabharata nor the Ramayana is the work of a single mind, but that both
are a collection or compilation of myths.
It is noticeable also that, in spite of the love of dramatic
representation manifested so universally among the Javanese, the Indian
dramas were not transplanted to Java. Dr. Friederich[24] offers an
explanation of this. "Most of the Indian dramas," he says, "are of late
times, and perhaps, at the time the Brahmans came to Java, were
exclusively found at the courts of the princes."
[Footnote 24: In the _Journal of R. A. S._ vii. N.S.]
We come now to the consideration of what may be called, by
contradistinction to the direct versions of the Indian epics, the native
Kavi works. The character of these poems--for all the Kavi literature is
alike written in metre--is in the main mythological and romantic; but
there are also to be found among them certain ethical and religious
works. Although the subjects, the heroes, and even the metre in many
cases, are still Indian, these subjects and heroes have been so
completely identified with the local life that the poems are essentially
Javanese.
Of the native Kavi works the "Arjuna Vivaya," which gives an account of
the ascent of Arjuna to Indra, and of his love for the nymph Urvasi,
deserves to stand first from the purity of the dialect in which it is
composed. The Indian hero Arjuna, the son of Pandu, who is called by Sir
Monier Williams, "the real hero of the Mahabharata," was adopted by the
Javanese, and his name was given to one of their mountains. The metre of
the poem is Indian in form, and not Javanese, and the date of its
composition is fixed by Professor Kern in his "Kawistudien" as the first
half of the eleventh century of our era. The fact that it contains but
slight traces of Buddhistic thought is important as giving some hint of
the date at which Buddhism was introduced in the island. In this
respect it differs from the "Arjuna Vijaya," a later poem celebrating
the triumph of the same hero over Ravan, the demon king of Ceylon.
The "Bharata Yuddha," or war of the Bharatas, is so closely connected
with the sacred Parvas, that it is generally placed by the Javanese at
the head of the native Kavi works. It is esteemed the greatest work in
the Javanese literature, but it yields in point of antiquity to the
"Arjuna Vivaya." Its language also is less pure, and contains a certain
admixture of ordinary high Javanese or Krama. A definite date (1195,
A.D.) is assigned to it, and the name of its author is said to be Hempu,
or M'pu, S'dah. The subject of the poem is identical with that of four
of the parvans of the Mahabharata, but the scene is changed from India
to Java. It contains an account of the struggle between the Pandavas, or
five sons of Pandu, and the Kauravas, or hundred sons of Dhritavashtra,
in which the latter are ultimately defeated in their attempt to obtain
the kingdom of Ngastina. The scene is laid in the plains around the
city Ngastina, or in the city itself. The poem opens with the following
lines:--[25]
"In war 'tis the prayer of the brave to annihilate the foe;
To see the braids of fallen chiefs scattered like flowers before
the wind;
To rend their garments, and burn alike their altars and their
palaces;
Boldly to strike off their heads while seated in their chariots,
and thus to obtain renown."
The episode of King Salya, one of the Kaurava princes, and Satiavati,
his queen, is singularly romantic, and reveals a high ideal of wifely
devotion. The poem relates how Salya steals away from his wife, and
sacrifices himself on the field of battle. Then Satiavati wanders over
this same field of battle by night in quest of his corpse. A flash of
lightning is sent to direct her steps, and when she has found the body
of her husband, she addresses the corpse in a speech in which she
declares her intention of following his spirit.
"But earth has lost its fleeting charms for me
And, happy spirit, I will follow thee."
She continues--
"Though widadaris[26] should obey thy call
Reserve for me a place above them all,"
and finally stabs herself.
To her faithful maid Sagandika she says--
"Tell them to think of Satiavati's fate,
And oft the story of her love relate."
But Sagandika also kills herself.
"Then did their happy spirits wing their way
To the fair regions of eternal day."
I conclude the episode by a quotation from the prose rendering given by
Raffles, which keeps more exactly to the original, and gives a
characteristically Eastern picture of heaven.
"The astonished spirit of Prince Salya quickly said--
"'Uneasy and impatient have I waited for thee among the clouds,
with many widadaris, panditas, and diwas.'
"Having taken the princess in his arms, he returns with her by
the road which leads to heaven.
"There arrived, they find it extremely beautiful.
"Of silk were the houses, and brilliant were the precious
stones.
"Amusing herself, the princess was delighted with the abundance
of food which was there.
"Great being the bounty of the Almighty to mankind. And there
was no difference susceptible in the ages of those that were
there."
[Footnote 25: I am indebted for this and the subsequent versions
in the text to Raffles' "History of Java."]
[Footnote 26: Angels.]
I have already mentioned that among the Kavi poems are contained various
ethical works. Of these the "Paniti Sastra," or Manual of Wisdom, will
serve as an example. Raffles, in his account of this work, says that it
contains one hundred and twenty-three stanzas, and that it is said to be
contemporary with the Bharata Yuddha. Vreede, in his "Catalogue," says
in a note,[27] "Winter mentions the 'Niti Sastra Kawi,' and as its
author Prabu Vidayaka, in the time of Aji Saka." As Saka was the
commencement of all things in Java, to refer the work to the time of
Aji Saka, is practically to say that it is of unknown antiquity. It
belongs to the second class of _Tuturs_, or sacred writings, _i.e._
those which were not kept secret by the priests, but which might be read
by other castes beside the Brahmans; and there are several versions and
translations of it in modern Javanese. The following lines are taken
from the Kavi text of this work:--
"As the suraya flower floats in the water, so does the heart
exist in a pure body; but let it not be forgotten that the root
of the flower holds to the ground, and that the heart of man
depends upon his conduct in life.
"As the moon and the stars shed their light by night, and the
sun giveth light by day, so should the sayings of a wise man
enlighten all around him.
"Deprive not another of the credit which is due to him, nor
lower him in the opinion of the world; for the sun, when he
approaches near the moon, in depriving her of her light, adds
nothing to his own lustre."
[Footnote 27: Page 262.]
There is a modern Javanese version of the "Niti Sastra," of which the
following passages are specimens:--
"A man who is ignorant of the sacred writings, is as one who has
lost his speech; for when these become the conversation of other
men, he will be under the necessity of remaining silent.
"No man can be called good or bad until his actions prove him
so.
"It is well known that a man cannot take the goods of this world
with him to the grave, and that man, after this life, is
punished with heaven or hell, according to the merits of his
actions in this life: a man's duty, therefore, requires him to
remember that he must die; and if he has been merciful and
liberal in this life to the poor, he will be rewarded
hereafter."
One and the same principle governs the composition of the mythological
and romantic literature of the Hindu epoch, and that of those somewhat
similar works in modern Javanese composed after the Mohammedan conquest.
The authors of both alike set one main object before them--to exalt the
reigning princes by identifying them with the heroes or princes of an
anterior epoch; only in the case of the Kavi poems, this anterior epoch
is fixed in the cloud-land of Hindu mythology, while after the
Mohammedan conquest it becomes merely the preceding era of the Hindu
supremacy in Java, which is used as a ladder by which the Hindu
cloud-land may be reached. But the nature of the _babads_, or
chronicles, the medium by which this object was subsequently effected,
and the interesting question of their historical value, are subjects
which I must reserve for the succeeding chapter.