History of Medang (Mataram) Kingdom in Central Java

Medang Kingdom

The Medang or Mataram Kingdom was a Hindu–Buddhist kingdom that flourished between the 8th and 10th centuries CE. It was based in Central Java, and later in East Java. Established by King Sanjaya, the founder of the Sanjaya dynasty, the kingdom was ruled by the Sailendra and Sanjaya families. By 850, the kingdom had become the dominant power in Java and was a serious rival to the hegemonic Srivijaya Empire.
The earliest account of the Medang Kingdom is in the Canggal inscription, dated 732, discovered in Canggal village, southwest of the town of Magelang. This inscription, written in Sanskrit using the Pallava script, tells of the erection of a lingga on the hill in the Kunjarakunja area, located on a noble island called Yawadwipa (Java) which was blessed with abundance of rice and gold. This inscription tells that Yawadwipa was ruled by King Sanna, whose long reign was marked by wisdom and virtue. After Sanna died, the kingdom fell into disunity. Sanjaya, the son of Sannaha (Sanna's sister) ascended to the throne. He conquered the areas around his kingdom, and his wise reign blessed his land with peace and prosperity for all of his subjects.

Sanna and Sanjaya are Parahyangan, a book from a later the history of Pasundan . Sanna was defeated by retreated to Mount Merapi. Later, kingdom and ruled West Java, Bali. He also battled the their king, Sang Srivijaya).

also described in the Carita period which mainly describes This book mentions that Purbasora, King of Galuh, and Sanjaya reclaimed Sanna's Central Java, East Java, and Malayu and Keling (against -

Bosch in his book "Srivijaya, de Sailendravamsa en de Sanjayavamsa" suggested that king Sanjaya was the progenitor of the Sanjaya Dynasty, and there was two dynasties that ruled Central Java; the Buddhist Sailendra and the Shivaist Sanjaya dynasty. The inscription also states that Sanjaya was an ardent follower of Shaivism. From its founding in the early 8th century until 928, the kingdom was ruled by the Sanjaya dynasty. The 1st king was Sanjaya, who ruled in the Mataram region in the vicinity of modern Yogyakarta and Prambanan, and left the written records on the Canggal inscription. However, around the mid 8th century, the Sailendra dynasty emerged in Central Java and challenged Sanjaya domination in the region.

According to the CE and written in the Kalasan temple was erected by Sailendravamxatilaka , who persuaded to construct a holy (boddhisattvadevi) Tara and build a vihara the Sailendra realm. village to a sangha (Buddhist

Kalasan inscription, dated 778 Pranagari script in Sanskrit, the the will of Guru Sang Raja Panangkaran (Sanjaya's successor) building for the goddess (monastery) for Buddhist monks from Panangkaran also awarded Kalaxa monastic community).

The prevailing historical interpretation holds that the Sailendra dynasty co-existed next to the Sanjaya dynasty in Central Java, and much of the period was characterized by peaceful cooperation. The Sailendra, with their strong connections to Srivijaya, managed to gain control of Central Java and become overlords of the Rakai , including the Sanjayas, thus making the Sanjaya kings of Mataram their vassals. Little is known about the kingdom due to the dominance of the Sailendra, who during this period constructed Borobudur, a Buddhist monument. Samaratungga, the monarch of the Sailendra, tried to secure the Sailendra position in Java, cementing an alliance with the Sanjayas by arranging the marriage of his daughter Pramodhawardhani with Pikatan.

Around the middle of the between the Sanjaya and the the Sanjaya ruler, the offspring of the and the princess Tara. This in Java; Balaputra capital in Sumatra, where he The Balaputra defeat and recorded in Shivagrha Rakai Kayuwangi, Pikatan's

9th century, relations Sailendra deteriorated. In 852, Pikatan, defeated Balaputra, Sailendra monarch Samaratunga ended the Sailendra presence retreated to the Srivijayan became the paramount ruler. the victory of Pikatan was inscription dated 856, edicted by successor.

However, this dual proposed by Bosch and De Casparis Indonesian historians in later proposed by Poerbatjaraka, kingdom and one dynasty, the capital in the Mataram area , and the Sailendra.

Sailendra—Sanjaya dynasties theory was opposed by some period. An alternate theory, suggests there was only one kingdom called Medang, with the the ruling dynasty being -

This theory is supported with Boechari interpretation on Sojomerto inscription and Poerbatjaraka study on Carita Parahyangan manuscript, Poerbatjaraka holds that Sanjaya and all of his offspring belongs to the Sailendra family, which initially was Shivaist Hindu. However, according to Raja Sankhara inscription ; Sanjaya's son, Panangkaran, converted to Mahāyāna Buddhism. And because of that conversion, the later series of Sailendra kings who ruled Medang become Mahāyāna Buddhists also and gave Buddhism royal patronage in Java until the end of Samaratungga's reign. The Shivaist Hindus regained royal patronage with the reign of Pikatan, which lasted until the end of the Medang Kingdom. During the reign of Kings Pikatan and Balitung, the royal Hindu Trimurti temple of Prambanan was built and expanded in the vicinity of Yogyakarta.

Most of the time, the was located in Mataram, near modern Yogyakarta and reign of Rakai Pikatan, the Later, in the reign of this time to Poh Pitu. Unlike unable to pinpoint the exact although most historians agree Kedu Plain, somewhere Temanggung regencies. Later, court was moved back to the

court of the Medang Kingdom somewhere on the Prambanan Plain Prambanan. However, during the court was moved to Mamrati. Balitung, the court moved again, Mataram, historians have been locations of Mamrati and Poh Pitu, that both were located in the around the modern Magelang or during the reign of Wawa, the Mataram area.

The complex stratified refined aesthetic taste in art through the various scenes in various temples dated from the

ancient Javan society, with its and culture, is evidenced narrative bas-reliefs carved on Medang era.

The common people of Medang mostly made a living in agriculture, especially as rice farmers, however, some may have pursued other careers, such as hunter, trader, artisan, weaponsmith, sailor, soldier, dancer, musician, food or drink vendor, etc. Rich portrayals of daily life in 9th century Java can be seen in many temple bas-reliefs. Rice cultivation had become the base for the kingdom's economy where the villages throughout the realm relied on their annual rice yield to pay taxes to the court. Exploiting the fertile volcanic soil of Central Java and the intensive wet rice cultivation enabled the population to grow significantly, which contributed to the availability of labor and workforce for the state's public projects. Certain villages and lands were given the status as sima (tax free) lands awarded through royal edict written in inscriptions. The rice yields from sima lands usually were allocated for the maintenance of certain religious buildings.
The bas-reliefs from temples of this period, especially from Borobudur and Prambanan describe occupations and careers other than agricultural pursuit; such as soldiers, government officials, court servants, massage therapists, travelling musicians and dancing troupe, food and drink sellers, logistics courier, sailors, merchants, even thugs and robbers are depicted in everyday life of 9th century Java. These occupations requires economy system that employs currency. The Wonoboyo hoard, golden artifacts discovered in 1990, revealed gold coins in shape similar to corn seeds, which suggests that 9th century Javan economy is partly monetized. On the surface of the gold coins engraved with a script "ta", a short form of "tail" or "tahil" a unit of currency in ancient Java.
The King was regarded as the paramount ruler or chakravartin, where the highest power and authority lies. The king, the royal family and the kingdom's officials had the authority to launch public projects, such as irrigation works or temple construction. The kingdom left behind several temples and monuments. The most notable ones are Prambanan, Sewu, and the Plaosan temple compound. The palace where the King resided was mentioned as kadatwan or keraton, the court was the center of kingdom's administration. Throughout its history, the center of Medang kingdom was mostly situated in and around Prambanan Plain, named as Mataram, however during the reign of other kings, the capital may shifted to other places. Several other courts and capital cities were mentioned, such as Mamrati and Poh Pitu, location unknown but probably somewhere in Kedu Plain. In later Eastern Java period, other centers were mentioned; such as Tamwlang and Watugaluh (near Jombang), also Wwatan (near Madiun).

The Wonoboyo hoard to the wealth, art, and achievement of the Medang Kingdom. intricate artwork and technical goldsmith. The hoard was estimated King Balitung. The treasure belonging to a noble or a member of

golden artifacts also attest culture as well as the aesthetic The artifacts show the mastery of the ancient Javanese to date from the reign of has been identified as the royal family.

Since the beginning of Mataram kings seemed to favour construction of Gunung Wukir Hindu inscription by king Sanjaya. Panangkaran and the rise of Buddhism began to blossomed and Kalasan, Sari, Mendut, Pawon and and Sewu temples testify in Central Java. The court from the reign of During the reign of Pikatan, regain court's favour, grand Shivagrha .

its formation, the Medang Shivaist Hinduism, such as the temple as mentioned in Canggal However during the reign of Sailendras influence, Mahayana gain court favour. The the magnificent Borobudur the Buddhist renaissance patronage on Buddhism spanned Panangkaran to Samaratungga. Shivaist Hinduism began to signified by the construction of -

Other Hindu temples dated from Medang Mataram Kingdom era are: Sambisari, Gebang, Barong, Ijo, and Morangan. Although the Shivaist regain the favour, buddhist remain under royal patronage. The Sewu temple dedicated for Manjusri according to Kelurak inscription was probably initially built by Panangkaran, but later expanded and completed during Rakai Pikatan's rule, whom married to a Buddhist princess Pramodhawardhani, daughter of Samaratungga. Most of their subjects retained their old religion; Shivaist and Buddhist seems to co-exist in harmony. The buddhist temple of Plaosan, Banyunibo and Sajiwan were built during the reign of King Pikatan and Queen Pramodhawardhani, probably in the spirit of religious reconciliation after the battle of succession between Pikatan-Pramodhawardhani against Balaputra.
From the 9th to mid 10th centuries, the Medang Kingdom witnessed the blossoming of art, culture and literature, mainly through the translation of Hindu-Buddhist sacred texts and the transmission and adaptation of Hindu-Buddhist ideas. The bas-relief narration of the Hindu epic Ramayana was carved on the wall of Prambanan Temple. During this period, the Kakawin Ramayana, an old Javanese rendering was written. This Kakawin Ramayana, also called the Yogesvara Ramayana, is attributed to the scribe Yogesvara circa the 9th century CE, who was employed in the court of the Medang in Central Java. It has 2774 stanzas in the manipravala style, a mixture of Sanskrit and archaic Javanese prose. The most influential version of the Ramayana is the Ravanavadham of Bhatti, popularly known as Bhattikavya. The Javanese Ramayana differs markedly from the original Hindu.

The name of the Medang Laguna Copperplate discovered in Manila, inscriptions, written in the Kawi containing numerous loanwords non-Malay vocabulary elements between Old Javanese and Old people or officials of the inter-insular trade and foreign the Philippines, and that kingdoms in Indonesia and the

Kingdom was written in the Inscription, dated 822 saka , Philippines. The discovery of the script in a variety of Old Malay from Sanskrit and a few whose origin is ambiguous Tagalog, suggests that the Medang Kingdom had embarked on relations in regions as far away as connections between ancient Philippines existed.

Around the year 929, the centre of the kingdom was shifted from Central Java to East Java by Mpu Sindok, who established the Isyana Dynasty. The exact cause of the move is still uncertain; however, a severe eruption of Mount Merapi volcano or a power struggle probably caused the move. Historians suggest that, some time during the reign of King Wawa of Mataram , Merapi volcano erupted and devastated the kingdom's capital in Mataram. The historic massive volcano eruption is popularly known as Pralaya Mataram (the death of Mataram). The evidence for this eruption can be seen in several temples that were virtually buried under Merapi's lahar and volcanic debris, such as the Sambisari, Morangan, Kedulan, and Pustakasala temples.

Another theory capital city eastward was to or was motivated by river valley was considered for the control of maritime parts of archipelago, being Maluku spice trade.

suggests that the shift of avoid a Srivijaya invasion, economic reasons. The Brantas to be a strategic location trade routes to the eastern especially vital for control of the -

Sindok moved the moved it again to Watugaluh. with the Tambelang and Jombang, East Java. A later king, to Wwatan, identified as Madiun. Dharmawangsa also Mahabharata into Old Javanese in

capital to Tamwlang and later Historian identify those names Megaluh area near modern Dharmawangsa, moved the capital again the Wotan area near modern ordered the translation of the 996.

Related Sites for Medang Kingdom

• Java Indonesia History: Prehistory and Early Kingdoms | Java … read Medang Kingdom
• History of Mataram Hindu - Free Book Reviews | Book Summaries ... read Medang Kingdom
• Indonesia History - Mataram / Medang - 752-1045 read Medang Kingdom