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In an essay entitled “The Identification of ‘Holotan Country’ recorded in the Chinese Book of Sung with reference to the Wangsakerta Manuscripts”[1], the present author had determined that the country written in Chinese as “呵羅單國” was the transliteration of “Aruteun Country” which was presumably the synonym of Tarumanagara, or Taruma Country that had prospered in the 4th – 5th century in the west part of Java Island, and that the country had inherited the properties of Salakanagara founded earlier in the 2nd century. It was evident that the founders of those countries were immigrants from India, who gradually merged with local inhabitants who had come from the Asian continent and settled there in prehistoric times.

In the central and east part of the Island, a legend has it that Prabu Isaka, or King Aji Saka of Surati in India brought civilisation to Java in the first century AD, as written in Mahaparwa Document in 879 AD[2], and the year of Aji Saka’s arrival or death, 78 AD, was allegedly defined as the first year of the Saka Calendar, although the fate of Aji Saka’s kingdom is quite obscure[3].

In China, it was recorded in The Old Book of Tang(舊唐書, Vol. 197, Biography Series 147, South Barbarians, West South Barbarians, 945 AD) [4] that a certain country called “訶陵”, usually written in alphabet as “Ho-ling” according to the modern Wade-Giles phonetic system, had existed in the southern sea with some information about the geographical relationships to other countries and the sea, the castle and large buildings, the culture of people and the three-time arrivals of missions. The New Book of Tang (新唐書, Vol. 222, Biography Series 147 2/2, South Barbarians 3/3, 1060 AD) [5] supplemented more details about a queen named Sima (悉莫), the result of latitude measurement at summer-solstice, etc.

Note: The original title of this book compiled in 945 AD during the age of Later Jin (後晋) was "The Book of Tang (唐書)" but became called "The Old Book of Tang (舊唐書)", after "The New Book of Tang (新唐書)" was issued in 1060 during the time of Northern Sung (北宋).

The abovementioned accounts had caught attention of historians ever since the late 19th century. In his Notes on the Malay Archipelago and Malacca compiled from Chinese sources (1877)[6], W. P. Groeneveldt had surveyed a great many Chinese documents and discussed the history of whole ancient countries that had risen and declined in the region. With regard to “Ho-ling”, he pointed out the description in the New Book of Tang that the country was alternatively called Djava (社婆 or 闍婆), implying that it was different from or a part of Java (爪哇). He read the Chinese transcription, 訶陵, as “Ka-ling”, instead of “Ho-ling” and wrote that the country was named after Kling or Kalinga in India where the family of the founder came from. Other alphabetical readings of “訶陵” include He-ling or Ha-ling[7].

As to the location of the “Ho-ling”, Groeneveldt placed the country’s centre on the Island of Java, especially around the Central Java, and most scholars agreed, whilst some others speculated it to be outside of Java, as discussed by W. J. van der Meulen[8]. For instance, J. L. Moens[9], assumed “Ho-ling” was to be found in Malaya, although it was immediately controverted by other scholars. Even in a recent year, T. Suzuki voiced that Ho-ling had not been in Java Island but in Kelanten in the Malay Peninsula[10].

Those misplacement was presumably related to the description in The New Book of Tang that “On the summer-solstice a gnomon of 8 feet cast a shadow of 2.4 feet on the south side”, which led to the latitude of 6°8″ N, according to the tentative calculation by J. Takakusu [11] in 1896. The geometrical calculation examined in this study has confirmed that the direction of the shadow was “north”, without regard to the observation point, whichever in the northern or southern hemisphere. For the mismatch with “south” in the New Book of Tang, the present author has assumed because the Chinese at that time still believed the earth was a flat body, as will be detailed in Chapter 3. The value of latitude obtained is 6° 55' 59" S that passes around Semarang on the north coast of Central Java.

The texts of The Old Book of Tang (舊唐書) and The New Book of Tang (新唐書) were translated or interpreted in the past, e.g., by W. P. Groeneveldt[12], Geoffrey Goble [13] and W. J. van der Meulen [14] but the present author has translated them in a rather literal manner, dividing the texts into fourteen paragraphs, as will be given in Chapter 2.

The accounts on “Ho-ling” are found also in some other Chinese chronicles, viz, Tongdian - Bianfang 4 （通典 - 邊防四, Comprehensive Encyclopaedia: Borders, 801AD）[15], Tang Huiyao - Vol. 100 (唐會要卷一百, Institutional History of Tang - Vol 10, 961 AD) [16] and Taiping Huanyu Ji - vol 177（太平寰宇記卷一百七十七, Universal Geography of the Taiping Era - Vol. 177, late 10th century） [17] Chronologically The Book of Tang was the oldest and the description about Ho-ling in it seems to have been inherited by other books, save the records of sending missions to China.

In Indonesia, no documents written in ancient times remain, presumably neglected or destroyed in the course of Islamic Invasion. In fact, even copies of such chronicles or books of historical interest, such as Pararaton[18], Nagarakertagama [19] and Kidung Sunda[20], written in the Majapahit Period, that remain to date, are those discovered after the late 19th century in Bali or Lombok, where Javanese nobles had evacuated to with their belongings. Such epics as the Javanese-version Ramayana, Bharatayuddha, Krsnayana, Bhomakawya (Bhomantaka) etc. composed between the 9th and 12th century did not remain either in Java[21]. The copy of Bujangga Manik, a story of pilgrimage of a prince and monk of Pajajaran Kingdom that gives useful knowledge about the topography as well as the customs and manners of the 15th-16th centuries Java was somehow taken to England and stored in a library at Oxford since 1627 or 1629[22].

Nevertheless, the so-called Wangsakerta Manuscripts (Naskah Wangsa-kerta) which are said to have been compiled in the 17th century in Cirebon by Prince Wangsakerta (Pangeran Wangsakerta) and his committee, assembling old fragmental records and oral traditions, include significant information about the Ho-ling country, Queen Sima and her family line that had led to the Sanjaya and Sailendra dynasties.

The authenticity of the manuscripts elaborately collected by Drs. Atja in the 1970s and intensively studied by Dr. Edi S. Ekadjati[23], Dr. Ayatrohaedi [24] et al, whether the contents were not fake, was argued after the 1980s by senior archaeologists, viz. Dr. Boechari[25], Prof. R. Soekmono[26], Prof. R. P. Soejono[27], et al. They suspected the manuscripts were not written by Prince Wangsakerta and his team in the 17th century but were fabricated by someone in the early 1960s after the publication of Prasasti Indonesia IIby Prof. J. G. de Casparis in 1956[28]. Even the existence of Prince Wangsakerta was questioned. The fact that the manuscripts gathered were not the originals but copies was also the reason for their dissatisfaction.

These criticisms were countered by Drs. Atja[29], Dr. Ayatrohaedi[30], Prof. Edi S. Ekadjati[31], Prof. Nina, H. Lubis[32], et al., verifying that the Prince Wangsakerta was a real character and that his purpose was basically to “reproduce” the history, as such deeds were undertaken in the East and Central Java and elsewhere. It was also claimed that the availability of old documents only in the form of the copy of copy was common elsewhere in the world. Assuming that Wangsakerta Manuscripts were created by some other person, a question would remain on why the writer had a reason not to publish the works of more than 50 volumes, each consisting of 150 to 280 pages, by his/her own name. Most relevant articles have been compiled in Polemik Naskah Pangeran Wangsakerta. [33] The contents of Wangsakerta Manuscripts have been reviewed by Drs. Saleh Danasasmita [34] with reference to Chinese sources and stone inscriptions [35] remained in the Java Island and its neighbours.

As a whole, the present author has an impression that negative opinions were more or less conservative and fundamentalistic.

Descriptions relevant to Keling, adopted as such instead of Ho-ling, and subsequent dynasties in:

translated into English by the present author (Appendix 1, 2 and 3) will be discussed in Chapter 4 with more insight into the details to supplement the knowledge from Chinese chronicles.

Figure 1-2 shows the collection of Wangsakerta Manuscripts held in The Ajip Rosidi Museum, Bandung and the book, Edi S. Ekadjati, Polemik Naskah Pangeran Wangsakerta (2nd Edition), Dunia Pustaka Jaya, Jakarta, 2017.

Figure 1-2 The collected Wangsakerta Manuscripts and translated books in The Ajip Rosidi Museum, Bandung [36] (left) and the book, Edi S. Ekadjati, Polemik Naskah Pangeran Wangsakerta (2nd Edition), Dunia Pustaka Jaya, Jakarta, 2017 (right).

Figure 1-4 shows a part of Lontar Pustaka Carita Parahiyangan (Kropok 406) and the image of deciphered document.

The chart of Royal Genealogy in Ancient Java[40]has been revised with information from Kalingga in Keling Kepung, Kediri [41] and other Internet articles.

Hereinafter “Keling” will be used in this book as the backward transliteration of “訶陵”.

[1] Masatoshi Iguchi, The Identification of “Holotan Country” recorded in the Chinese Book of Sung with reference to the Wangsakerta Manuscripts, Japan E-book Technology Dissemination Association, 30 April 2021.

[2] Serat Mahaparwa, authored by Empu Satya in 851 Saka (929 AD) during the Kediri Period.

[3] A tradition in Johannes Hageman’s History of Java (Johannes Hageman, Handleiding tot de kennis der geschiedenis, aardrijkskunde, fabelleer en tijdrekenkunde van Java, Lange & Co., Batavia 1852) is as follows:

This first major inhabitant was called Hadji Soko, abbreviated Adji Soko, the son of a Javanese princess named Bramaniwati of the fable age. He went overseas under the name of Tritroestho and at the coast of Coromandel he accomplished the worship of Buddha and returned to Java under the name of Hadji Saka (Adji Soko), the teacher or priest of the worship of Buddha. Adji Soko landed in Central Java with a number of immigrants and founded the first known state, Mendang, also called Kamulaan in the present-day Blora. There he introduced regular laws, an alphabet and a calendar, the beginning of which was on the 2nd October, or 16th October 125 in the second century of our era (usually considered 78 in the first century AD). Gradually the population grew with those who came from the main coast of Java and lived in the area of Mendang under the rule of Adji Soko. Many settlements occurred on the surrounding coasts and islands, as the chronological survey indicates. After the first prince, Adji Soko, six more princes from his family ruled Mendang... After then, the seat of government was moved to another place, the present-day Dieng Mountains, and the seat was named Ngastino or Gadja-hoeya, around Anno 500. The present author’s note: Whether the descendant of Aji Soko (Saka) was related to the Ho-ling family is not certain, rather dubious.

[4] 舊唐書, 卷一百九十七, 列傳,第一百四十七, 南蠻, 西南蠻, Tang-shu. The chronicle of Tang Dynasty (618 – 907), comprising 200 volumes, authored by Liu Xu (劉昫) and several other authors in the Later Jìn (後晉) period during the reign of Emperor Chu (出帝, 942 – 946).

[5] 新唐書卷二百二十二下, 列傳, 第一百四十七下, 南蠻下. The second chronicle of Tang Dynasty (618 – 907), comprising 225 volumes, authored by Ouyang Xiu (欧陽脩) and others in the Northern Sung (北宋) period during the reign of Renzong (仁宗, 1010 – 1063). In the Section for Holing (訶陵) is added such details, as the transfer of the capital eastward, measurement of latitude with a gnomon, the reign of a queen named Sima.

[6] W. P. Groeneveldt, Notes on the Malay Archipelago and Malacca / compiled from Chinese sources, W. Bruining, Batavia 1877

[7] Damais, L-C. “Etudes sino-indonésiennes: III. La transcription chinoise Ho-ling comme désignation de Java”, Bulletin de l’Ecole française d’Extrême-Orient (Sino-Indonesian Studies: III. The Chinese transcription Ho-ling as a designation of Java”, Bulletin of the French School of the Far East) 52-1, pp. 93–141, 1964 -- Sited in: Geoffrey Goble, “Maritime Southeast Asia: The View from Tang-Sung China”, 1NSC Working Paper No. 16, (May 2014)

[8] W. J. van der Meulen S.J., “In Search of ‘Ho-ling’”, Indonesia (Cornell University Press), No. 23 (Apr., 1977), pp. 86-111.

[9] J. L. Moens, “Crivijaya, Yava en Kataha,” Mjdachrift voor Indieone taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde, Bataviaasch Genootschap (TG). LXXVII (1937), pp. 317-486 -- In: Reference 8.

[10] S. Suzuki, http://www7.plala.or.jp/seareview/newpage5UnsolvedSrivijaya.html

[11] I-Tsing; J. Takakusu (trans.), A Record of the Buddhist Religion as Practised in India and the Malay Archipelago (A. D. 671 –695), Clarendon Press, London, 1896.

[12] Reference 6.

[13] Geoffrey Goble, “Maritime Southeast Asia: The View from Tang-Sung China”, 1NSC Working Paper No. 16, (May 2014)

[14] Reference 8.

[15] 通典卷第一百八十八，邊防四，南蠻下. Lit. Comprehensive Encyclopaedia: Borders. An institutional encyclopaedia consisting of 200 volumes which covers the period from prehistoric time to the era of Emperor Xuanzong (玄宗, 685 – 762) of Tang Dynasty, written by Du You (杜佑) between 766and 801AD. The encyclopaedia was divided into such chapters as foods and currencies, election, official posts and ranks, salutation, music, military, punishment, districts, and bordering countries. The last chapter included Ho-ling (訶陵).

[16] 唐會要卷一百. Lit. Institutional History of Tang. A comprehensive geography book comprising 100 volumes written by Yue Shi 樂史 (930-1007) in 961 AD during the Northern Sung (960 – 1127) period. In addition to the 13 provinces of Chinese territory, the book wrote about a number of bordering countries including the Ho-ling country (訶陵國).

[17] 太平寰宇記卷一百七十七. Lit. Universal Geography of the Taiping Era. A 200 volume geographical treatise written by Chinese scholar Yue Shi (樂史, 930-1007 AD) in 976-983 AD, to commemorate the unification of the country by Emperor Taizong (太宗) of Northern Sung Dynasty

[18] Pararaton, a biography and genealogy of Ken Arok who founded the Singasari Kingdom, allegedly written in 1481-1600 by an anonymous author. The copy was found in Bali by J. L Brandes in 1890th (J. L. Brandes, Pararaton (Ken Arok): of het Boek der Koningen van Tumap ĕ l en van Majapahit, Bataviaasch Genootschap, 1920). Although in some books are written that Pararaton was found earlier by Stanford Raffles and published in his The History of Java (1817), it does not seem to be correct. Full English translation: I. Gusti Putu Phalgunadi, The Pararaton: A Study of the Southeast Asian Chronicle, Sundeep Prakashan, New Delhi, India, 1996.

[19] Nagarakertagama (Desawarnana), a homage and travelogue of King Hayam Wuruk of Majapahit who travelled around the kingdom’s territory, authored in 1365 by Mpu Prapanca who accompanied the king. The copy was discovered in Lombok by Dr. J. L Brandes in 1890s (J. L. Brandes, “Nagarakertagama: Lofdicht van Prapanjtja op Koning Radjasanagara, Hajam Wuruk, van Madjapahit, naar het eenige daarvan bekende handschrift, aangetroffen in de puri te Tjakranagara op Lombok”, Verhandelingen van het Bataviaasch Genootschap van Kunsten en Wetenschappen, LIV, Part 1.Nijhoff, 1902). Full English translation: Stuart Robson (trans.), Desawarnana (Nagarakertagama) by Mpu Prapanca, KITLV Press, Leiden, 1995.

[20] Kidung Sunda, a semi-fictional tragic epic of King Linggabuana of Kawali (Sunda) and his family who visited Majapahit for his daughter’s wedding with King Hayam Wuruk but were massacred at Bubat Field by Gajah Mada in 1357, written afterwards by an anonymous author sometime. The book was first published by Dr. C. C. Berg (C. C. Berg, “Kidung Sunda, inleiding, tekst, vertaling en aanteekeningen”. BKI vol. 83, 1927). Abstract: Claire Holt, Art in Indonesia: Continuities and Change, Cornell University Press, 1967; P. J. Zoetmulder, Kalangwan, A Survey of Old Javanese Literature, Martinus Nijhoff, The Hague, 1974. Full Indonesian Text: Haksan Wirasutisna, Kidung Sunda I–II, Departmen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan Jakarta: 1980.

[21] See, e.g., J. Zoetmulder, Kalangwan, A Survey of Old Javanese Literature, Martinus Nijhoff, The Hague, (1974).

[22] J. Noorduyn and A. Teeuw, Three Old Sundanese poems (Leiden: KITLV, 2006), Chapter 4.

[23] Agus Aris Munandar, Edi Suhardi Ekajati, Pustaka pararatwan i bhumi Jawadwipa, parwa 1, sargah 1-4: rangkuman isi, konteks sejarah, dan peta, Yayasan Pembangunan Jawa Barat, 1991 (https://galuhkiwari.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/ppbj-1-1.pdf).

[24] Ayatrohaedi, Sundakala: Cuplikan sejarah Sunda berdasarkan naskah-naskah Panitia Wangsakerta Cirebon, Pustaka Jaya, Jakarta 2005 (Google Books).

[25] Boechari: “Beberapa kritik atas naskah-naskah sejarah dari Jawa Barat”, in, Edi S. Ekadjati, Polemik Naskeh Pangeran Wangsakerta (2nd Edition), Dunia Pustaka Jaya, Jakarta, 2017, 70-82.

[26] R.Soekmono: “Beberapa catatan tentang naskah sumber sejarah Kerajaan Tarumanagara”, in, Edi S. Ekadjati, Polemik Naskah Pangeran Wangsakerta (2nd Edition), Dunia Pustaka Jaya, Jakarta, 2017, 70-82.

[27] R. P.Soejono, “Konsep prasejarah Naskah Wangsakerta mendahului zaman”, ibid. , 70-82.

[28] J. G. de Casparis, Prasasti Indonesia II: Selected Inscriptions from The 7th to The 9th Century A.D., Masa Baru, Bandung 1956.

[29] Atja: “Beberapa catatan tentang tanggapan terhadap pustaka karya pangeran Wangsakerta” (1981), in Edi S. Ekadjati, Polemik Naskeh Pangeran Wangsakerta (2nd Edition), Dunia Pustaka Jaya, Jakarta, 2017, 70-82.

[30] Ayatrohaedi, “Kebenaran Sejarah’ Naskah-Naskah Panitia Wangsakerta” (1988); “Mengapa dipermasalahkan? - Keaslian Kitab Wangsakerta digugat para ahli Purbakala” (1988), ibid, 61-69, 116-118.

[31] Edi S. Ekadjati, “Tiap-tiap disiplin ilmu mempunyai metodologi masing-masing” (1988), ibid, 147-152.

[32] Nina H. Lubis, “Naskah Wangsakerta sebagai sumber sejarah?” (2002), ibid, 217-225.

[33] Edi S. Ekadjati, Polemik Naskeh Pangeran Wangsakerta (2nd Edtion), Dunia Pustaka Jaya, Jakarta, 2017. The first edition was published in 2005.

[34] Edi S. Ekadjati, Polemik Naskeh Pangeran Wangsakerta (2nd Edtion), Dunia Pustaka Jaya, Jakarta, 2017. The first edition was published in 2005. 4 Drs. Saleh Danasasmita. “Pangeran Wangsakerta Sebagai Sejarawan Abad Ke-17 (Prince Wangsakerta as a Historian of the 17th Century)”, in: Reference 33

[35] Among stone inscriptions created in the 8th and subsequent centuries found in the Central and East Java, are Prasasti Canggal, dated 732 AD (654 Saka) and Prasasti Kalasan, dated 778 AD (700 Saka) described about the Sanjaya Dynasty and the Sailendra Dynasty, respectively, the age of Queen Sima’s great grandchildren.

[36] Reproduced from: https://www.kairaga.com/2019/08/01/naskah-kuno-koleksi-perpustakaan-ajip-rosidi/

[37] Reproduced from: http://serpihan-sejarah.blogspot.com/2015/04/kontroversi-seputar-naskah-wangsakerta.html

[38] https://www.scribd.com/document/510276421/cupdf-com-carita-parahyangan-sunda-buhun: The manuscript consists of 47 sheets of lontar leaves measuring 21 x 3 cm. On each back and front of sheet contains 4 lines of writing. The language used is Sunda Buhun (Old Sundanese) with Sundanese script. This manuscript is now held in the National Museum of Jakarta with the registration number Kropak 406.

[39] The image has been presented by courtesy of Mr. Ilham Nurwansah, MA, a member of Wikimedia Indonesia, through private communication.

[40] http://www.maiguch.sakura.ne.jp/ALL-FILES/ENGLISH-PAGE/JAVA-HISTORY/default-java-history-e.html

[41] Dr. Priyaji Agung Pambudi, Kalingga di Keling Kepung Kediri, http://agungpambudi72-sejarahdanperistiwa.blogspot.com/2011/04/women.html

Chapter 2