Second stop, Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II Museum.
Housed in the old Dutch resident (colonial governor) house, this small exhibit was interesting for a few reasons,,, most of them confusing to me.
1. Palembang is best known outside of this region as the cradle of the Srivijaya kingdom. Indonesia’s longest running & 2nd largest kingdom was a dominant trading dynasty 1,000 years ago. Buddhism was the dominant religion with various periods of Hindu influence. Its final prince converted to Islam when he was 70 years old (1414). You don’t hear or see much testimony of Srivijaya here, which is surprising. The Muslim kingdom seems to be the only important one.
2. The Palembang sultanate (Muslim) emerged half a century later (1662-1823) as an off-shoot of the Javanese Demak kingdom. It existed for 161 years, as opposed to Srivijaya’s 800-1400 years. You see evidence of this Sultanate everywhere (airport, sultan museums, mosque, burial grounds, face on money, national hero status…) There is Srivijaya airlines & the South Sumatra military symbol is the Srivijaya battalion, but that’s about it.
3. Many artifacts and cultural relics were destroyed in wars, (understood) but being a visitor to Palembang, it would be easy to miss that anything other than the Muslim Palembang Sultanate existed had I not read it somewhere. Few artifacts, symbols or relics testifying that they were even here.
4. Islam is often described as a peaceful religion here, which respects other people’s beliefs, as long as they don’t try to force outside beliefs on Muslims. Ok. Got it. According to the museum guide, Turkey’s Mustafa Amal Ataturk (last Muslim Caliphate) had some influence here in the 1920s, and under orders eminating from Turkey, had all relics of past religious faiths destroyed to prevent “good Muslims” from returning to their pre-Muslim beliefs. The Muslim museum guide described centuries of Srivijayan traditions, culture & artifacts destroyed by Muslims during non-war times.
5. For a nation which prides itself on its rich culture & history, the wiliness to toss away hundreds of years of tradition runs both ways, however. The Muslim Keraton (palace) was demolished & turned into a pempek fish factory in 1959 by Indonesia’s 1st President (Sukarno; a Muslim), according to the museum guide. I asked no fewer than 10 locals if they knew where the old Keraton used to be. “There used to be a Keraton here?” was the response I got from 30 year olds to 19 year olds. Very little sense of history on the street.
6. Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II is celebrated as the last and the greatest of the Palembang Sultanate. Hmm… according to the geneology inside the museum, he was the 2nd last. According to the same geneology, his rule was short lived and frequently interrupted by several brothers (1803-1811, 1813 and 1821). According to google, he spent much of his energy trying to hold onto power, which set him in conflict with his own family, the British, then the Dutch. He was defeated in 1821, exiled, and died 31 years later. Why is he a national hero again? because of fighting the Dutch?
Housed in the old Dutch resident (colonial governor) house, this small exhibit was interesting for a few reasons,,, most of them confusing to me.
1. Palembang is best known outside of this region as the cradle of the Srivijaya kingdom. Indonesia’s longest running & 2nd largest kingdom was a dominant trading dynasty 1,000 years ago. Buddhism was the dominant religion with various periods of Hindu influence. Its final prince converted to Islam when he was 70 years old (1414). You don’t hear or see much testimony of Srivijaya here, which is surprising. The Muslim kingdom seems to be the only important one.
2. The Palembang sultanate (Muslim) emerged half a century later (1662-1823) as an off-shoot of the Javanese Demak kingdom. It existed for 161 years, as opposed to Srivijaya’s 800-1400 years. You see evidence of this Sultanate everywhere (airport, sultan museums, mosque, burial grounds, face on money, national hero status…) There is Srivijaya airlines & the South Sumatra military symbol is the Srivijaya battalion, but that’s about it.
3. Many artifacts and cultural relics were destroyed in wars, (understood) but being a visitor to Palembang, it would be easy to miss that anything other than the Muslim Palembang Sultanate existed had I not read it somewhere. Few artifacts, symbols or relics testifying that they were even here.
4. Islam is often described as a peaceful religion here, which respects other people’s beliefs, as long as they don’t try to force outside beliefs on Muslims. Ok. Got it. According to the museum guide, Turkey’s Mustafa Amal Ataturk (last Muslim Caliphate) had some influence here in the 1920s, and under orders eminating from Turkey, had all relics of past religious faiths destroyed to prevent “good Muslims” from returning to their pre-Muslim beliefs. The Muslim museum guide described centuries of Srivijayan traditions, culture & artifacts destroyed by Muslims during non-war times.
5. For a nation which prides itself on its rich culture & history, the wiliness to toss away hundreds of years of tradition runs both ways, however. The Muslim Keraton (palace) was demolished & turned into a pempek fish factory in 1959 by Indonesia’s 1st President (Sukarno; a Muslim), according to the museum guide. I asked no fewer than 10 locals if they knew where the old Keraton used to be. “There used to be a Keraton here?” was the response I got from 30 year olds to 19 year olds. Very little sense of history on the street.
6. Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II is celebrated as the last and the greatest of the Palembang Sultanate. Hmm… according to the geneology inside the museum, he was the 2nd last. According to the same geneology, his rule was short lived and frequently interrupted by several brothers (1803-1811, 1813 and 1821). According to google, he spent much of his energy trying to hold onto power, which set him in conflict with his own family, the British, then the Dutch. He was defeated in 1821, exiled, and died 31 years later. Why is he a national hero again? because of fighting the Dutch?
posted by jonathan adventures at 1:10 PM
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