HIGHLAND FREEDOM

HIGHLAND FREEDOM A Minangkabau Legend "Who won't pay?" his voice rang out through the dark stone hall. "Who won't pay?" he repeted impatiently. The metal blade of his tucked securely in his batik wrapped waist,caught the small stream of sunlight that shone in through the narrow slit window above, blinding the messenger who huddled in the shadows below. "I… It's the west Sumatran people again, General Gadjah Mada," the messenger stammered, huddling in the shadows. "They refuse to pay the tribute." "Then they must learn that King Hayam Wuruk," General Gadjah Mada roared, slamming down his great fist and tensing his broad, chiseled face. "We will send a force they cannot refuse. Call admiral Nala of the Royal Navy." "I will tell him to go, my great general," the messenger answered, straightening himself to leave, but added under his breath, "I do not think it will help." So Admiral Nala of the Great Majapahit Empire was sent at once with his fleet of strong, wooden sailing vessels from Mojokerto, the capital of the Empire in East Java, to the outpost of the troublesome, independence-loving rebels on the Island of Sumatera. "Run, Ujang ! Tell Father she is ready!" abang yelled to his 11 year old brother. Ujang raced through the open field, quickly hopping and jumping his way across the grass hedges dividing the rice paddies and burst breathlessly into his home in the village. "The calf is almost here!" With Father pulling his sarong tightly around his waist, they ran to the grassy field, arriving just in time to see the mother water buffalo give one last groan and one last push, and a new baby water buffalo plopped onto this West Sumateran highland. The baby struggled to stand, fell, stood again and, on shaky legs, wobbled his way over to his mother and took his first nourishing drink of milk. Water buffalo were important to Ujang and his family. From pulling the muddy earth to make v\clay for bricks, to pulling their carts to market, the buffalo was a highly prized part of ant man's family. Ujang and his famili were proud of his new baby water buffalo.He was big and strong and would serve them. Several weeks later.on one very hot afternoon, Ujang and his brother were bathing the young water buffalo with lots of splashing and laughing and scrubbing, "Di you see that?" Ujang asked his brother. "see what?" his brother answered, taking advantage of the moment to throw a fistfull of water into Ujang's concerned face. "Don't do that! I'm trying to see. Over there.. do you see the lights I the jungle, like sun reflecting off metal… no, over there." The two boys turned to look, and, there among the many varied jungle trees, they saw columns of hundreds of marching soldiers. "the Majapahit have returned!" Ujang yelled to his brother. Quickly, they pulled the water buffalo out of the stream and ran home. There were already soldiers in their village when the boys arrived. Ujang coul hear a tall, handsome soldier talking to the aged Village Chief. He is Admiral Nala of the Great Majapahit Empire. "Old man," the soldier was saying,"If you do not pay the taxes you owe to Empire, General Gadjah Mada will command me to fight you. I do not want to kill my brother here in sumatera. Let us settle this peacefully. "Well, my brither, Admiral Nala," the old man started slowly," we have heard the oath of your great General gadjah Mada, that he will not eat the fruit of the palapa tee until all of Nusantara is one. But we are not a people who can be ruled from an island so far away. We have our own ways, our own tradition, that have served us for hundreds of years." Ujang was proud of village Chief. He understood that the people had to say free to make their own choices with their own customs. Ujang listened carefully as the old man continued,this time with a twinkle in his wizened eyes. "Why don't we have a contest? Your water buffalo against our water buffalo. If you buffalo wins. Then we will faithfully pay tribute to your empire; but if our animal wins then you will leave in peace and never bother u sagain." The Village Chief finished, and all eyes turned to look at the bewildered Admiral Nala. Slowly, a smile crossed the soldier's face, "So be it. One week from to day, our water buffalos will meet in the open field at the corner of your village. Be ready, old man, the greatness of the Majapahit Empire extends even to its buffalos." The Admilral was obviously pleased with his proud talk and he was probably right: the Majapahit could bring a water buffalo from any corner of its enourmous empire, while here they were but a small number of poor farming villages. For four days the village Chief lokked at many strong water buffalo, but everyday he shook his head and said, "The Majapahit can find one bigger than this." On the fifth day, the Village Chief went to Ujang's father's house, and together the two old men headed out to the grassy field with Ujang running alongside. When they came to where the mother water buffalo stood nursing her baby, the two men suddenly grabbed the calf and ran to the stream near the jungle's edge. "ujang," his father said breathlessly," you must keep this baby here in the stream away from his mother until the day the Majapahit soldiers return to our village for the contest. The village Chief has chosen our calf to fiht the challenger of the empire. For two days Ujang kept the calf in the water and wondered how this poor baby water buffalo who langed only for mother and milk could fight a big bull water buffalo. In the village, the men sharpened their knives on whetstones; the village chief had a secret plan. True to his word, Admiral Nala returned in one week's time. Into the village marched one hundred of the finest soldiers of the Majapahit Kingdom. In the middle of these glorious troops twenty men led an enourmous water buffalo. His monstrous size sook the earth as he walked, and he snorted as they tugged at the rope tied to the ring in his nose. Admiral Nala led his troops to spot they had agreed on, and stopped with an air of complete confidence. On the other side of the open field stood the village Chief and the villagers."bring out your champion!" Admiral Nala cried. The villagers parted and from behind them walked Ujang with the baby water buffalo. A roar of laughter went up from the soldiers. But they didn't notice the sharp knives pointing upwards that had been tied to the calf's barely formed horns.The great water buffalo moved slowly into the middle of the ring of onlookers. "now!" the Village Chief cried from the side. Ujang let go of the baby's rope without stopping, the small water buffalo ran straight for the bull. The monster buffalo never moved. As the starving baby reached with his mouth to try and find milk, the knives scraped the belly of the giant watre buffalo, sending the bull running through the crowd and out into the fields of the west Sumatran highlands. The villagers cheered and put Ujang and the calf on a dozen shoulders. Admiral Nala shook the hand of the village Chief and left the West Sumatran highlands never to return. Since that day, the people of his region have called themselves the Minang (victorious) kabau (water buffalo) to make sure they never forget that their freedom was given by one small baby water buffalo.