Sangkuriang, famous tales from West Java, Indonesia.

Hundreds of years ago, the Galuh kingdom in west java, was ruled by a king of great wisdom namely Prabu Sungging Perbangkara. Not only was he famous for his wisdom but also for his love of hunting. Once a month, along with some of his guards he explored the hunting grounds all over the kingdom from prairies, forests, hills, mountains, valleys to steep slopes!

One day when the king was going hunting, suddenly nature called. A toilet was certainly unavailable in such a place. So he found himself bushes where a coconut laid under unnoticed and accidentally peed on the coconut. As a result, his urine got mixed with the coconut milk.

As soon as The king and his guards had left for the palace, a wild pig came to the bushes. It may have looked like most wild pigs, but it was actually Celeng Wayung Yang, a sow which was said to be the reincarnation of a goddess, she was so thirsty so her eyes soon laid on the coconut. What a coincidence! without thinking any further, she drank up all the coconut milk.

Months passed by and Celeng Wayung Yang found herself pregnant. A few months later she gave birth to a baby girl. Unlike her, the baby was amazingly human-like!

Not long after the baby was born, The King returned into the same forest. While he was hunting, he was in such a shock to find a tiny baby. The baby looked so sweet and adorable that he fell in love with her. So he took her for his daughter and named her Dayang Sumbi.

Dayang Sumbi grew up a radiantly beautiful princess. Her beauty was well-known all over the Galuh kingdom and the other kingdoms! So princes from the pour corners of the region came to propose to Dayang Sumbi.

But Dayang Sumbi was not interested in their proposal, for her mind was occupied with anxious about finding out her own origin. Who is her parents? Dayang Sumbi only knew that she was found in the forest by The King. Finally, she decided to venture out into the forest, hoping that she might get the answer. The king disagreed on this at first for he was worried about his daughter’s safety but in the end he let her go reluctantly.

The King’s guards built then a house in the forest for Dayang Sumbi to live in. The house was not big but quite comfortable. It was also furnished with domestic appliances for daily activities. What would she do there? Well, she would weave. Other times, she would meditate in the praying room. She always meditated for Enlightenment.

At one point, she felt really tired of doing anything for her prayer went unanswered. One day when she was weaving, a roll of yarn slipped off her hand and fell on the floor.

Dayang Sumbi was not in the mood to pick it uf so she said whoever picked it up for her, if a woman, would be taken for her sister and if a man, would be married to her. She did not think clearly apparently when she said it. The wise king of gods heard her sigh of laziness. He wanted to teach her a lesson so that she understood her responsibility and did not do things carelessly. Thus he sent….

While waiting for someone who would pick up the yarn, she heard someone coming her way. Wonder who it was? A woman? Or a man? She held her breath, full of hope, as it was getting nearer. And suddenly…. what?? She was dumb-founded. It was neither a man nor a woman. It was a dog! She passed out instantly when the dog picked up the yarn!

Promise is a promise. From the day on, the dog she named Tumang became her husband. No one knew this. Shortly after the wedding, she gave birth to a son whom she named Sangkuriang. Although his father was a dog, Sangkuriang was human-like. But Dayang Sumbi never told him his true father.

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