A History of Sarawak under Its Two White Rajahs 1839-1908Baring-Gould, S. (Sabine)
History
A History of Sarawak under Its Two White Rajahs 1839-1908
Baring-Gould, S. (Sabine)
Charles, Rajah of Sarawak, 1829-1917; James, Rajah of Sarawak, 1803-1868; Sarawak (Malaysia) -- History
The Hindu-Javan empire of Majapahit in Java certainly extended over
Borneo, but it left there no such stately temples and palaces as those
that remain in Java, and the only reminiscences of the Hindu presence in
Sarawak are the name of a god, Jewata,[47] which lingers among the
Dayaks, a mutilated stone bull, two carved stones like the lingams of
the Hindus; and at Santubong, on a large immovable rock situated up a
small stream, is a rudely carved statue of a human figure nearly
life-size, with outstretched arms, lying flat, face downwards, in an
uncouth position, perhaps commemorative of some crime.[48]
Santubong is at the eastern mouth of the Sarawak river, and is prettily
situated just inside the entrance, and at the foot of the isolated peak
bearing the same name, which rises boldly out of the sea to a height of
some 3000 feet. This place, which apparently was once a Chinese, and
then a Hindu-Javan colony, is now a small fishing hamlet only, with a
few European bungalows, being the sea-side resort of Kuching; close by
are large cutch works. In ancient days, judging by the large quantity of
slag that is to be seen here, iron must have been extensively mined.
Recently some ancient and massive gold ornaments, seal rings, necklets,
etc., were exposed by a landslip at the Limbang station, which have been
pronounced to be of Hindu origin; and ancient Hindu gold ornaments have
been found at Santubong and up the Sarawak river.
[Illustration:
FIGURE ON ROCK—SANTUBONG.]
Bruni had been a powerful kingdom, and had conquered Luzon and the Sulu
islands before it became a dependency of Majapahit, but at the time of
the death of the last Batara[49] of that kingdom, Bruni ceased to send
tribute. The empire of Majapahit fell in 1478[50] before the Mussulman
Malays. The origin of the Malays is shrouded in obscurity; they are
first heard of in Sumatra, in Menangkabau,[51] from whence they
emigrated in A.D. 1160 to Singapura, "the Lion city." They were attacked
and expelled in 1252 by the princes of Majapahit, when they settled in
Malacca. There they throve, and embraced the religion of Islam in 1276.
From Sumatra and the Malay peninsula the Malays continued to spread, and
gradually to establish sultanates and states under them. The process by
which this was effected was seldom by conquest, but by the peaceful
immigration of a few families who settled on some unoccupied part of the
coast within the mouth of a river. Then, in the course of time, they
increased and spread to neighbouring rivers, and formed a state. By
subjecting the aboriginal tribes of the interior, and by compulsion or
consent, including weaker Malayan states of like origin, by degrees some
of these states expanded into powerful sultanates with feudal princes
under them.
So the Malayan kingdoms arose and gained power; and strengthened by the
spirit of cohesion which their religion gave them, they finally
overthrew the Hindu-Javan empire of Majapahit.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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