06/01/2026
The Origin of the Malay Kings
It is told that there was once a great state in the land of Andalas, called Palembang. Its ruler was Demang Lebar Daun, said to descend from the line of Raja Syulan. A river there was called Muara Tatang; in earlier times it was known as the “Malay River.” In that river stood a hill called Bukit Seguntang Maha Meru. On that hill lived two widows, Wan Empuk and Wan Malini, who farmed a very large field. Their rice grew so abundantly it was beyond description.
When the rice was nearly ripe, one night Wan Empuk and Wan Malini saw a blaze of light from their house on Bukit Seguntang, glowing like fire. They said to each other, “What light is burning so brightly? It frightens me to look at it.” Wan Malini replied, “Let us not go near it, perhaps it is a great dragon’s jewel.” In fear, they fell silent and went to sleep.
At daybreak, Wan Malini rose, washed her face, and Wan Empuk said, “Come, let us see what was shining last night.” Wan Malini agreed, and they climbed Bukit Saguntang. There they saw that their rice had turned extraordinary: its grains were like gold, its leaves like silver, and its stalks like copper alloy. They said, “This is what we saw last night.” As they walked further, they saw that even the soil of the hill had become like gold; and it is said that to this day the earth there still appears golden in colour.
On the golden ground they then saw three young men, exceedingly handsome, dressed in royal attire and wearing crowns set with gems. The three sat upon a white elephant. Wan Empuk and Wan Malini stood stunned in amazement, struck by their beauty, their bearing, and their splendid clothing. They thought to themselves that these three young princes must be the cause of the rice turning to gold and silver and the hill’s earth becoming gold.
Wan Empuk and Wan Malini asked them, “My lords, from where have you come? Are you children of jinn or sea-spirits? For we have long lived here and have never seen any human come to this place, only today do we see you.”
The three young men answered, “We are not of the jinn or sea-spirits. We are descendants of Iskandar Zulkarnain. Our lineage is from King Nusyirwan, ruler of East and West, and our line springs from King Sulaiman (peace be upon him). Our names are: one is Mancitram, one is Paladu Tani, and one is Nila Asnam.”
Wan Empuk and Wan Malini asked, “If you are descendants of Iskandar Zulkarnain, why have you come here?” The princes then related their story, how Iskandar Zulkarnain married an Indian princess, and how a descendant of Raja Chulan went down into the sea, recounting these matters to the two widows.
Wan Empuk and Wan Malini asked, “What is the sign that proves who you are?” The princes replied, “This crown is our sign, the mark that we are descendants of Iskandar Zulkarnain. If you do not believe us, then let the sign be this: because we have descended here, your rice has borne golden grain, silver leaves, copper stalks, and the soil of this hill has become gold.” Wan Empuk and Wan Malini believed them, rejoiced greatly, and brought the three princes into their home. They harvested the miraculous rice and became wealthy, because they had found royal princes.
Now the story continues: Palembang in those days was a vast and unmatched kingdom in Andalas. When Demang Lebar Daun heard that Wan Empuk and Wan Malini had discovered royal princes, he came to their house. He brought the three princes back to his court, and the news spread far and wide that descendants of Iskandar Zulkarnain had descended at Bukit Seguntang, now dwelling in Palembang.
Rulers from many regions came to pay homage. The eldest prince was invited by the people of Andalas and made king in Minangkabau, bearing the royal title Sang Sapurba. Later, envoys from Tanjung Pura invited the middle prince and installed him there as king, with the royal title Sang Maniaka. The youngest remained in Palembang with Demang Lebar Daun, who installed him as ruler there with the title Sang Nila Utama, while Demang Lebar Daun stepped down to become chief minister (mangkubumi).
It is then told that a white cow belonging to Wan Empuk and Wan Malini, white as silver by the will of God - vomited foam, and from that foam emerged a man named Batho. He stood and proclaimed a long ceremonial formula of royal titles and praises. Batho then gave the ruler the name Seri Teri Buana, and it is said the descendants of Batho became those who recite the old tales.
The fame of Seri Teri Buana’s kingdom spread. Men and women from all directions came before him, and he bestowed robes and gifts upon them. Once established on the throne, Seri Teri Buana desired to marry a princess of great beauty. Yet when he lay with a princess at night, by morning she would be afflicted with a skin ailment; in this way many princesses were dismissed.
Then it was said that Demang Lebar Daun had a daughter of unmatched beauty, named Wan Sandari. Seri Teri Buana sought to marry her. Demang Lebar Daun pleaded, “If my daughter becomes your wife, she too may be afflicted, unless Your Majesty will make a covenant with me. If you agree, I will present my daughter to you.” It is also said that Demang Lebar Daun was the one who established the courtly terms “Your Majesty” and “your servant.”
Seri Teri Buana asked what covenant he desired. Demang Lebar Daun replied: “My descendants will be servants to Your Majesty’s descendants, but let them be treated well. Even if they commit grave faults, do not shame them publicly or insult them with harsh words. If their offence is great, let punishment follow proper law.” Seri Teri Buana accepted, and in return said, “In the last days, let your descendants not betray mine, even if my descendants become unjust and wicked.” Demang Lebar Daun agreed, adding that if the ruler’s descendants broke the covenant first, then the subjects’ descendants would also break it. They swore solemnly, invoking divine punishment upon whoever violated the agreement.
After the covenant, Wan Sandari was presented to Seri Teri Buana, and they married. After their wedding night, Wan Sandari did not suffer the ailment, and the king rejoiced. Demang Lebar Daun came and saw his daughter safe and unharmed, and he too was overjoyed.
Demang Lebar Daun then prepared a grand ceremonial bathing and installation rite. A seven-tiered ceremonial platform was built. For forty days and forty nights there was vigil, feasting, celebration, and music that roared like thunder. Many animals were slaughtered; the piles of meat were like hills, the blood like a sea, and the heads like islands. When forty days were complete, the bathing water was carried in procession amid music; the vessels were of gold and jewels. Seri Teri Buana and Wan Sandari circled the platform seven times and were bathed, then dressed in royal garments and seated upon a golden throne. Ceremonial food was presented; they ate, and further rites were performed. After that, the king bestowed gifts of robes upon his nobles, and the audience dispersed.
After some time in Palembang, Seri Teri Buana wished to see the sea and seek a good place to found a kingdom. He summoned Demang Lebar Daun, who pledged to accompany him. They prepared ships in great number, so many they could not be counted—masts like forests, banners like moving clouds, royal umbrellas like a sky of canopies, until the sea seemed filled with vessels. They sailed out from Palembang through various straits.
News reached Bintan (Bentan) that a ruler from Bukit Seguntang, descended from Iskandar Zulkarnain, was now in Selat Sambar. In Bintan ruled a queen named Wan Seri Beni (in another account, Permaisuri Sekandar Syah), a powerful monarch. It is said she was the first to have the nobat (the royal ceremonial music), and other rulers followed her example. She sent two ministers, Indera Bupala and Aria Bupala, to Seri Teri Buana with instructions: if the visiting ruler was old, address him as a child addressing a father; if young, address him as a child addressing a mother.
When the envoys met Seri Teri Buana and saw he was very young, they greeted him with “Your mother sends her salutations, and invites you.” Seri Teri Buana went to Bintan and entered Wan Seri Beni’s audience hall. She had intended to take him as a husband, but seeing he was young, she instead took him as an adopted son and loved him greatly. She installed him in Bintan as her successor.
After some time, Seri Teri Buana asked permission to go with the queen to Tanjung Bemban for a festive outing. Wan Seri Beni questioned why he wished to go so far when there were gardens, animals, and pleasures closer at hand. Seri Teri Buana insisted he would wither if he could not go; so she relented and ordered preparations.
They sailed to Bemban with countless vessels. The women went ashore to play on the sand and gather ornaments; Seri Teri Buana and the men hunted and gained much game. During the hunt, Seri Teri Buana speared a deer and killed it. He climbed a great rock and looked across the water and saw a shore of strikingly white sand, like bleached cloth. He asked what land it was, and Indera Bupala replied, “That is the land called Temasik.” Seri Teri Buana declared, “Let us go there,” and they crossed.
In mid-sea, a violent storm struck. Water flooded the vessel; they bailed but could not save it. The ship’s leader said, “Perhaps this is because of the power of the crown. All our cargo has already been thrown overboard, yet the ship still will not rise. If the crown is not discarded, we will not be saved.” Seri Teri Buana ordered the crown thrown into the sea. At once the storm calmed, the vessel rose, and they rowed safely to shore.
They landed near Telok Belanga, hauled the vessel up, and Seri Teri Buana stepped onto the white sand and walked inland. There they saw a swift, powerful creature...reddish in colour, with a black-striped body and a white chest, larger than a goat. It vanished as soon as it saw the crowd. No one knew what it was, but Demang Lebar Daun said he had heard of such a beast: it must be a lion. Seri Teri Buana sent Indera Bupala back to Bintan with a message: “We will not return. If our mother loves us, send people, elephants, and horses, for we will build a kingdom in Temasik.” Wan Seri Beni agreed and sent abundant support.
Seri Teri Buana then founded a kingdom in Temasik and named it Singapura.
After many years in Singapura, Seri Teri Buana had two sons with Wan Sandari. When he had ruled for forty-eight years, the turn of fate came: Seri Teri Buana and Demang Lebar Daun died and were buried on the hill of Singapura.
His eldest son succeeded him, taking the royal title Paduka Seri Pekerma Wira, while the younger became bendahara (chief minister). The story then lists court customs and officers of the time, and concludes that Singapura grew great and crowded with traders, its renown spreading throughout the world - God knows best what is right.
(From the Sejarah Melayu / Malay Annals, Royal Asiatic Society edition, as noted in your excerpt.)
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