The Folktale of “Nyi Roro Kidul” Queen of the Coast of South Sea

 

 

A long time ago, in the area of ​​West Java, there is a kingdom called Pakuan Pajajaran. The kingdom was led by a very wise king. The people under his rule were very happy and respected by the king because his leadership made the lives of the people prosperous. The king was named Prabu Siliwangi. The King had quite a several children, one of whom was named Putri Kandita. She is a very beautiful girl, kind and has the same nature as her father. Prabu Siliwangi loved her very much, and as she got older, Kandita's daughter increasingly had a beautiful face and if she was the only child, she was the future heir to the throne of Prabu Siliwangi.

Hearing Prabu Siliwangi's wish to make Putri Kandita the successor to the throne, the concubines and their children did not agree. They are not willing if Putri Kandita will become Queen in the future.

One day, the concubines and their children gathered to plan an evil ploy to get Putri Kandita and her mother out of the Palace. To carry out their plan, they ask for help from a magic magician who lives in a small village, who has various kinds of black magic.

One day, unbeknownst to the king, the concubines and their children came to the Witch and by giving the Witch's requested reward, the concubine and her son wanted Kandita's daughter and her empress to be cursed so that they would not become heirs to the king's throne.

Without waiting long, the Witch carried out her task. With black magic, he bewitched Putri Kandita and her mother to suffer from leprosy. One day, when Kandita and her mother woke up from their sleep, they turned ugly. Their bodies, which were originally smooth, clean, and olive, immediately changed; their bodies were filled with ulcers and emitted an unpleasant odor.

Putri Kandita and the empress suffer from leprosy that will not heal. Prabu Siliwangi, who was surprised to see the strange disease in his two favorite people, immediately called the palace physician to perform the treatment. But after trying various kinds of potions, the court healer still couldn't cure them.

Putri Kandita and her mother's illness got worse. Their bodies are getting weaker because they can't digest food and drink. Kandita's young daughter can survive the illness she is suffering from. However, the old mother was unable to survive until she finally breathed her last.

Putri Kandita and the king were devastated by the death of the empress. For days, King Prabu Siliwangi pensive alone, he felt very sad because the person he loved the most had left the world first. However, the King also felt very, very burdened to see the condition of Putri Kandita who did not show signs of recovery. He felt very anxious because Putri Kandita would succeed to continue the throne of the Kingdom.

One day, the concubines and their children came to see the King incite Putri Kandita to be expelled. At first, the King refused. However, for fear of the disease is contagious, Prabu Siliwangi was forced to agree to the proposal.

Unbeknownst to the King, Concubines, and Brothers, Putri Kandita who heard the conversation was very disappointed and she decided to run away from the palace. In a sad, confused, and uncertain mood Putri Kandita walked out of the palace with no definite purpose.

For days he walked aimlessly until he finally arrived at the southern coast of Java Island which had many rocks and big waves. On one of the rocks, he then rested until finally fell asleep from exhaustion. In her sleep, Putri Kandita dreamed of hearing a magical voice telling her to throw herself into the sea so that her illness would be cured and healthy as usual.“Plunge yourself into the sea, Putri Kandita, if you want to recover from your illness your skin will be as smooth as ever.”

Putri Kandita woke up from her sleep. He then pondered the magical words because he doubted whether the voice was an inspiration or just a prankster whispering while he was asleep. But after looking around, as far as the eye can see there is only a stretch of white sand and waves rolling around it. Therefore, Putri Kandita rest assured that the magical voice was an idea that she had to carry out for her recovery.

Believing that the voice was an inspiration, Putri Kandita immediately did what she was told. So magical! When she touched the water, Putri Kandita's entire body which was plagued with ulcers gradually disappeared and became smooth again.

Putri Kandita's healing did not make her return to the palace. She prefers to settle on the south coast and mingle with the local people, most of who work as fishermen.

Since living there, Putri Kandita is very famous for her beauty. Many Princes from various kingdoms came to propose to her. However, of the many who proposed to him, Putri Kandita was not at all interested. Some of them withdrew because Putri Kandita put forward very difficult conditions. One of the conditions is to complain about his magic on the waves of the sea coast. However, some of them accepted the terms.

It turned out that, of the many men who competed with supernatural powers, no one was able to beat Putri Kandita. They eventually became loyal followers who always escorted the Putri wherever she went. Since then, Putri Kandita is known as the Queen of the South Seas of Java, namely Nyai Roro Kidul.

 

 

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