The Legend of Tangkuban Perahu

 re-told by

Lian Gouw

     Dayang Sumbi, a beautiful Sundanese queen, was married to Tumang, a demigod, whose appearance was that of a dog. When their son, Sangkuriang, was born with a human form, the couple decided not to tell him that Tumang was his father. Sangkuriang became an excellent hunter at a very young age.

     One morning Dayang Sumbi woke to the fancy of having venison for dinner and asked her son to go hunting for deer.

Sangkuriang, who adored his mother, took off immediately with Tumang in his wake.

     When dusk began to fall and he still had not spotted a deer, Sangkuriang worried he’d have to go home empty handed and disappoint his mother. Desperate, he shot Tumang. He dressed the dog and presented the meat to his mother as that of a new-born deer.

     During dinner, Dayang Sumbi questioned Sangkuriang relentlessly about Tumang’s absence and the youth finally had to confess the truth.

     The queen became so distraught she struck Sangkuriang, scarring his temple. Overcome by the turn of events, Dayang Sumbi sent her son into exile and went into mourning.

     During the many years that followed, Sangkuriang wandered around the country side protected by the spirits of his father, while the gods took pity upon Dayang Sumbi and blessed her with eternal youth and beauty. Her virtues attracted many suitors, but the grief-struck queen rejected all of them.

     Then, one day, Dayang Sumbi’s servants announced the arrival of a young, handsome man at her court. Much to her surprise, the queen felt a strong attraction to the traveler and not only did she allow him to court her, she also accepted his marriage proposal. Soon the preparations for a lavish wedding were well on their way.

     Dayang Sumbi watched her lover proudly as he participated in the many grueling tasks. On the day before the wedding, wiping the sweat off his forehead, she noticed a large scar on his temple. The sight jolted her. She suddenly understood her innate attraction to the handsome stranger. He was no one else but Sangkuriang, her long estranged son. The marriage had to be prevented at all cost.

     Under the pretense of not feeling well, Dayang Sumbi retreated. Close to dusk, she summoned Sangkuriang. Trembling with anxiety, she told him that she had received a vision. They were to celebrate their wedding on a boat which he had to build overnight. Further more, they were to set sail at sunrise on a lake he had to create out of the nearby river. Only if he accomplished these tasks before the first crow of a rooster, could she marry him.

     Driven by his passion for Dayang Sumbi, Sangkuriang ran out to the forest to find a tree large enough to make into a boat. He called upon the forest spirits and earthly demons for help and worked furiously through the night. By the time the moon began to descend, the demons had shook the earth so much, the river banks were broken and the water flowed freely into a bowl created by surrounding piles of dirt. Sangkuriang, standing in the hollowed out tree trunk, began to trim his sails.

     Dayang Sumbi followed Sangkuriang’s progress from her window. It was clear that Sangkuriang would accomplish his tasks.

     Dayang Sumbi prayed to the gods to spare her the shame of a marriage to her own son. Cloaked in red silk shrouds, she walked east until she reached the top of the dam Sangkuriang’s earth demons built and called for the wind spirits. She unwrapped herself and handed each piece of red silk to a wind spirit with the request to drape the hills with it. The fluttering cloth awakened the fowl and covered the eastern hills in a red glow.

     As Dayang Sumbi walked toward the place where Sangkuriang stood working, the cocks started to crow.

Sangkuriang stumbled out of his unfinished boat. Angered by his defeat, he kicked the boat so hard it turned over and rolled down the hillside. He tried to grab it, but lost his balance and fell into the demon made lake with his boat on top of him.

     Struck by remorse and grief, Dayang Sumbi jumped onto the boat’s hull which cracked upon the impact. She fell through the hole and was swallowed by the lake.

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     Today, Sangkuriang’s capsized boat is known as Mount Tangkuban Perahu. The hole Dayang Sumbi made into the boat’s hull is its main crater, Kawah Ratu. (Queen’s crater.)