The Legend Of Dewi Anjani

Twenty noble genie couples were transformed into humans. This incarnation was the culmination of the wrath of Dewi Anjani, the queen of the jinn who reigned at the top of Mount Rinjani. This legend about Dewi Anjani’s supernatural powers gave birth to the story of Doyan Nede. This is where speculation suggests that the Sasak people on Lombok Island are descendants of the jinn! 20 elf lord couples

IN the book Wisdom of Indonesia Today, Wisdom of the People’s Past, published by the Realino Study Institute and Kanisius Publishers in 2005, it is written about the origins of the Sasak people which originate from two legends, namely Doyan Nede and Gunung Pujut.

In the Doyan Nede legend, the first ancestor of the Sasak people was the incarnation of 40 genies who gave birth to leaders or founders of kingdoms in various regions on Lombok Island, including Selaparang, Pejanggik, Langko, and Bayan. Meanwhile, the legend of Mount Pujut tells the story of a prince from Majapahit who wandered to Lombok Island. Around Mount Pujut, he founded a country called the Pejanggik Kingdom.

These myths and legends have not yet left the minds of some Sasak people, referring to the mythology of Dewi Anjani who is believed to be the initial inhabitant or first generation of the Sasak people.

Historical speculation based on this mythology disturbed Sasak cultural observer H Lalu Agus Fathurrahman. “Well, if the Sasak people are from the Jinn nation, that doesn’t make sense,” said Agus, who had done research on the legend of Dewi Anjani.

Agus started searching from the word “goddess”. As far as he knows, in Sasak tradition there is no term “dewi” which means beautiful princess. Sasak also doesn’t know the word “siti”. For example, the name Hawa becomes Siti Hawa, Maryam becomes Siti Maryam, or Aisyah becomes Siti Aisyah. “Whose job is this? “The words goddess and siti do not exist in Sasak tradition,” he said.

Likewise when he found out about the word “Anjani”. It is not even found in the Sanskrit dictionary. “The only time I found it was that Anjani was Hanoman’s mother. Not as a language. However, I tried to use a linguistic approach. I met Anjarun. That’s Arabic. It means boat anchor. “It could be, Anjarun, there is a morphological process, Anjari becomes Anjani,” explained Agus Fathurrahman.

There are several versions of the Dewi Anjani myth. Apart from those who say that the genie’s daughter controls Mount Rinjani, there are also other versions. In Sembalun, for example. Some people call Anjani the Mother of Waliyullah.

Meanwhile, in the more hidden areas around Rinjani, the older community category calls Dewi Anjani the Prophet of Insun. “Well, let’s try using the philological method. “Who is Dewi Anjani and her relationship with the twenty pairs of noble genies,” he said.

Myth, is the science of its time. It must be dissected using the methodology of that time. “Use the standard method. Hermeneutical method, dig into it. “Twenty is what it means, then there was the birth of Pengulu Alim as the first leader who is believed to still exist, and that is the leadership of the Sasak people, namely the pengulu,” explained Agus.

According to Agus, after the colonial era, many of the chiefs’ roles were eliminated. Then a new leader was appointed who was given the title demung.

Then, the leadership of the pengulu metamorphosed. In the southern part of Lombok they become kiyai, while in the northern part they become lokaq, “Until now that is still alive. That was Pengulu Alim who gave birth to Doyan Nede. Or Temelak Mangan in mythology,” he added

Agus reminded him of the need for a special method to translate myths, so this is what encouraged him to study philology and write about the epistemology of myths and legends.