Kiskenda Cave: A Tale of Gods, Mortals, and the Colors of Perspective
Gua Kiskenda | Edisi Indonesia
Folklore from Yogyakarta
KISKENDA Cave was a home for Maesasura and Lembusura. They were brothers and they were strange creatures. They had human bodies but they had animal heads. They were the kings of all the wild animals in the jungle. They were also immortal. When one of them was dead, the other just had to step over the dead body then the dead one would come back to life!
Maesasura fell in love with Dewi Tara, she was a goddess and the daughter of Bathara Indra. The two brothers went to the heaven and talked to Bathara Indra. The god refused their proposal. He had heard how bad they were. It made them become very angry! The two strange creatures attacked all the gods and the goddesses in the heaven. All the gods and the goddesses were helpless. They gave up!
Maesasura and Lembusura kidnapped Dewi Tara and brought her to their home in Kiskenda Cave.
Bathara Guru, the god of gods, found a way how to bring Dewi Tara back to the heaven. There was a magic weapon named Aji Pancasona. The problem was that no one could handle the weapon. Only a man who had pure heart could possess it. All the gods and the goddesses looked for the man and they finally agreed to give it to Subali. He was the son of a holy man named Resi Gotama.
Subali was meditating when the gods came to him. They told him about how Maesasura and Lembusura kidnapped Dewi Tara. He agreed to help. He asked his younger brother, Sugriwa, to go with him.
Sulali and Sugriwa arrived at the Kiskenda Cave. Subali asked his brother to wait outside the cave.
He said, "If you see red blood flowing, it means they are dead. But if you see white blood, it means I'm dead. After that you have to close the cave with a big stone."
Sugriwa understood. Later Subali went inside the cave. He saw Dewi Tara and then he immediately brought her outside the cave. The two strange creatures were angry! They attacked him. With his magic weapon, Subali fought back. Maesasura was hit terribly. He was dead! Lembusura immediately stepped over his brother's dead body. Amazingly Maesasura was back to life! Subali was thinking. He knew it was useless if he killed one of them. He had to kill both of them at the same time!
And it worked! Maesasura and Lembusura were dead! Their blood mixed with their brain and it changed the color into white.
Sugriwa saw the 'white blood'. He thought his brother was dead. So he immediately closed the cave.
Su.bali was angry when the cave was closed. He thought his brother betrayed him. In the mean time, all the gods and the goddesses were happy when Dewi Tara was back home.
Bathara Indra was so grateful and he planned to set the wedding of Sugriwa and Dewi Tara. However during the wedding Subali came! He was so angry! He accused his brother for betraying him. He fought Sugriwa!
Their father stopped their fight. He asked what happened. Sugriwa told him about the "white blood" flowing and he thought Subali was dead.
The father was angry at Subali.
He said "Why do you think you have white blood? What makes you think you are special and different from us? All humans have red blood!"
The father asked Subali to continue meditating. He hoped Subali to be wiser. Subali did what his father said. He went back meditating.
Later the gods asked Sugriwa and Dewi Tara to live in Kiskenda Cave and build a kingdom. The cave still exists until now. It is located in Kulon Progo, Jogjakarta. ***
Folklore from Yogyakarta
KISKENDA Cave was a home for Maesasura and Lembusura. They were brothers and they were strange creatures. They had human bodies but they had animal heads. They were the kings of all the wild animals in the jungle. They were also immortal. When one of them was dead, the other just had to step over the dead body then the dead one would come back to life!
Maesasura fell in love with Dewi Tara, she was a goddess and the daughter of Bathara Indra. The two brothers went to the heaven and talked to Bathara Indra. The god refused their proposal. He had heard how bad they were. It made them become very angry! The two strange creatures attacked all the gods and the goddesses in the heaven. All the gods and the goddesses were helpless. They gave up!
Maesasura and Lembusura kidnapped Dewi Tara and brought her to their home in Kiskenda Cave.
Bathara Guru, the god of gods, found a way how to bring Dewi Tara back to the heaven. There was a magic weapon named Aji Pancasona. The problem was that no one could handle the weapon. Only a man who had pure heart could possess it. All the gods and the goddesses looked for the man and they finally agreed to give it to Subali. He was the son of a holy man named Resi Gotama.
Subali was meditating when the gods came to him. They told him about how Maesasura and Lembusura kidnapped Dewi Tara. He agreed to help. He asked his younger brother, Sugriwa, to go with him.
Sulali and Sugriwa arrived at the Kiskenda Cave. Subali asked his brother to wait outside the cave.
He said, "If you see red blood flowing, it means they are dead. But if you see white blood, it means I'm dead. After that you have to close the cave with a big stone."
Sugriwa understood. Later Subali went inside the cave. He saw Dewi Tara and then he immediately brought her outside the cave. The two strange creatures were angry! They attacked him. With his magic weapon, Subali fought back. Maesasura was hit terribly. He was dead! Lembusura immediately stepped over his brother's dead body. Amazingly Maesasura was back to life! Subali was thinking. He knew it was useless if he killed one of them. He had to kill both of them at the same time!
And it worked! Maesasura and Lembusura were dead! Their blood mixed with their brain and it changed the color into white.
Sugriwa saw the 'white blood'. He thought his brother was dead. So he immediately closed the cave.
Su.bali was angry when the cave was closed. He thought his brother betrayed him. In the mean time, all the gods and the goddesses were happy when Dewi Tara was back home.
Bathara Indra was so grateful and he planned to set the wedding of Sugriwa and Dewi Tara. However during the wedding Subali came! He was so angry! He accused his brother for betraying him. He fought Sugriwa!
Their father stopped their fight. He asked what happened. Sugriwa told him about the "white blood" flowing and he thought Subali was dead.
The father was angry at Subali.
He said "Why do you think you have white blood? What makes you think you are special and different from us? All humans have red blood!"
The father asked Subali to continue meditating. He hoped Subali to be wiser. Subali did what his father said. He went back meditating.
Later the gods asked Sugriwa and Dewi Tara to live in Kiskenda Cave and build a kingdom. The cave still exists until now. It is located in Kulon Progo, Jogjakarta. ***
Reading the Signs: Kiskenda Cave and Reflections on Appreciation and Perspective
The moral of the story seems to highlight themes of loyalty, sacrifice, and the consequences of rash judgments. It could convey the message that appearances can be deceiving, and decisions based on assumptions may lead to misunderstandings. Additionally, there may be a lesson about the importance of communication and trust among family members.
