HISTORY OF MALAYSIAN INDIANS
Long Live! Year of Siyaka 822, month of Waisaka, according to astronomy. The fourth day of the waning moon, Monday. On this occasion, Lady Angkatan, and her brother whose name is Buka, the children of the Honourable Namwaran, were awarded a document of complete pardon from the Commander in Chief of Tundun, represented by the Lord Minister of Pailah, Jayadewa.
By this order, through the scribe, the Honourable Namwaran has been forgiven of all and is released from his debts and arrears of 1 katî and 8 suwarna before the Honourable Lord Minister of Puliran, Ka Sumuran by the authority of the Lord Minister of Pailah.
Because of his faithful service as a subject of the Chief, the Honourable and widely renowned Lord Minister of Binwangan recognized all the living relatives of Namwaran who were claimed by the Chief of Dewata, represented by the Chief of Medang.
Yes, therefore the living descendants of the Honourable Namwaran are forgiven, indeed, of any and all debts of the Honourable Namwaran to the Chief of Dewata.
This, in any case, shall declare to whomever henceforth that on some future day should there be a man who claims that no release from the debt of the Honourable…
The above is a translation from a plate found in the Philippines, written in the Kavi script, dating back to 1100 CE (Common Era),one of the examples of our long history here ;
“The Dravidian influence on the ancient Filipino scripts was obviously of Tamil origin,” wrote V.A. Makarenko, in advancing another view on the origin of Philippine scripts. Based primarily on the work of H. Otiey Beyer, this theory argues that these scripts reached the Philippines via the last of the “six waves of migration that passed through the Philippine archipelago from the Asian continent . . . about . . . 200 B.C.E (2200 years ago) . . . .,” constituting the Malayans and Dravidians, “primarily the Tamil from Malaya and the adjacent territories and from Indonesia and South India as well.”
When does our history in this land begin? Should we begin with the migration of our immediate forefathers 200 years ago or with the founding of Malacca by a Prince called Parameswara 600 years ago, or should we start with the physical evidence of an ancient Hindu Kingdom in Lembah Bujang 1600 years ago? Or can we go even further back, viewing the influence of Indians in South East Asia, which made historians call it “Greater India” or as the “Indianised States of South East Asia”.
If we view ourselves as a poor migrant community, then we should only look at our history over the past 200 years or so. If we consider ourselves as the descendents and the guardians of the great culture that ruled this part of the world for more than a thousand years, then our history here begins when our ancestors gave this land its name.
Until at least 23 years ago, our school history books said that the name Malaya, comes from a combination of the words “Malai” and “Ur”, given to it by the Indian seafarers. Though this is probably no longer what is taught to our children, along with other omissions, it does not change the fact that the Indian community living in Malaysia today, are of the same stock as the Indians that provided the foundations of civilisation to this country. Should we then continue to view ourselves as third class citizens?
But the reality remains that when we returned to the very shores that our ancestors had civilized, we returned as indentured labourers. And today we find ourselves in the increasingly difficult position of being left behind, despite having contributed so much. We must take upon ourselves the burden of rediscovering and remembering our true history, for our history in this country in not just our legacy, but the true story of how this nation came into being.
To lay the groundwork and approach our history here with the correct perspective, we can look at certain aspects of the national culture to gain an idea of how much it has been influenced by our own.
It is impossible to treat the story of Sang Sapurba, the first Malay King, as strictly historical, for it seems more mythological. Three young men descend from the heavens of Indra upon the mountain Maha-Meru, on the slopes of which they meet two women who support themselves by planting hill-padi. Supernatural incidents mark the appearance of the strangers. The very corn in the ground puts forth ears of gold, while its leaves become silver and its stalks copper. One of the new-comers rides on a white bull, and carries a sword called Chora samandang-kini. They are received by the natives of the district (Palembang) and made Rajas. He who rides the bull becomes king of Minangkabau, and the other two receive minor kingdoms.
The white bull of Sang Sapurba is evidently the vehicle of Siva, and the name of the sword bears a close resemblance to manda-kini, the name given in heaven to the sacred Ganges, which springs from the head of Siva. The title given to the queen, Permaisuri, is in turn derived from the word Parameswari, the wife of Siva, as logic and custom dictates.
Study a Keris carefully, and you will see a small protuberance in the shape of a tapering and sinuous hook at the base of the Keris, just after the hilt. It is called “Belalai Gajah” and it signifies the proper obeisance that has to be paid to Ganesha, before the start of any venture, in this case, the business end of the Keris. It is taboo to point the Keris straight up to the sky, or straight down to the ground, as pointing it up signifies “murka” and down shows great disrespect, as the Keris is also a symbol of the Siva Linga.
There are numerous examples such as the ones above, which makes it difficult to answer exactly where Indian history ends and South East Asian history begins. If we embrace the distant past, we deny the hardship and the struggle of the present, if we only look at the recent history, we will be guilty of selective perception, which is a sin that we cannot commit, because we have not earned the right to do so.
We can ask ourselves why a great portion of this region’s history is denied by a great portion of its own people, and is replaced by an increasing emphasis to history from elsewhere, but that is beyond the scope of our responsibility at the moment. What we must do, is rediscover and remember the full history of “Greater India” for that is our debt to our ancestors, our responsibility as patriots and our duty to our children.
© Jeevindra Kumar
