Tragedi Ajisaka

Once upon a time, a Javanese king named Ajisaka intended to undertake a long journey. To do so, Ajisaka entrusted his heirloom weapon to his trusted aide, Sembodo, with the instruction that he not hand it over to anyone except Ajisaka himself.

Some time passed, and Ajisaka returned from his journey, intending to retrieve the heirloom entrusted to Sembodo. To do so, he sent Dora to retrieve it.

Dora then met Sembodo, intending to take the heirloom on the king's orders. However, Sembodo didn't believe Dora and remained steadfast in the king's command not to give the heirloom to anyone but himself. Eventually, the two fought, clashed, killed each other, and died together.

King Ajisaka, who had been waiting for a long time, felt anxious and worried because Dora hadn't returned immediately to give the heirloom. So he followed Sembodo and found that both of them had died, in order to uphold the mandate and trust he had given him earlier.

Out of grief, Ajisaka then composed verses of poetry, which later became the basis of the Javanese alphabet. Hana caraka, there was a messenger. Data sawala, fighting with each other. In their glory, they were equally strong. Maga bathanga, fell together.

This is the Javanese alphabet that is recognized and studied today. A tragic and ironic tale of the messengers' loyalty that ends in sorrow.

From this story, we can learn that two people or two parties who both feel they hold the same trust and truth can end up fighting and quarreling. Neither one was at fault. Perhaps the one who could be found guilty is the king, who failed to realize that his orders contradicted each other, leading his envoys to conflict.

What are the implications and anticipations for today? Perhaps people today think that coordination and communication issues can be easily resolved with the development of information and communication technology. However, even with the proliferation of information and communication technologies such as the internet and social media, we are often confused about how to distinguish between accurate and reliable information. Good intentions alone are not enough to understand accurate information, especially when we receive false and misleading information.

It takes clarity to understand the whole story, but sometimes time and circumstances are so pressing that we end up drawing wrong or incomplete conclusions and decisions.

It turns out that, after so long in human history, the problems faced haven't changed much. Information and misinformation, understanding and interpreting commands, and hermeneutics remain crucial issues in the dynamics of human life. Yet, this is still within a neutral context. When emotions and intentions come into play, the complexity of understanding increases, and what arises is intercultural conflict, or a clash of civilizations.

Indeed, humans were created into tribes, nations, and different races, religions, and cultures so that they could get to know each other. However, oftentimes, identity is used to reinforce disputes and differences, and to assert one's own right.

Perhaps we can learn from Ajisaka's policy, which later realized its error. The most important thing in efforts to unite differences and establish communication is language and writing. Therefore, the Javanese alphabet created by Ajisaka is expected to be able to bridge these differences. Written commands can be clearer than verbal ones, and understanding can be improved to avoid future disputes and conflicts. That's all for now, because there will always be those who fish in troubled waters by creating misunderstandings, especially intentional ones.