Just a few kilometres away from my parents' place in Kampung Temiang (5km away from main town Muar), on the way to Pagoh one can see the signboard above... Actually the signboard was only recently erected, perhaps at most two months ago. So many might not know about...
I remember going pass this road many times whenever on holiday in Muar... After all, it lies on the shortcut route from Kampung Temiang to Bakri Batu 6 where lies the grave of my dearly departed brother who passed away in a road accident 5 years ago. But I first noticed this signboard just about a month ago. And that's when I promised myself to go and see what it's all about...
Now, I've never been to this part of Muar my whole life. Thank God one of my brothers was around, so I had the benefit of his car... After all, I have none and have been practically travelling on public transport for the last 5 years, that is after my trusty big bike broke down and I haven't got the money to repair it... Until now that is. Still the bike wasn't repaired and that is another story.
Suffice to say, we had to enter a plantation and made a few wrong turns before finally getting it right... Thank God... Otherwise I don't want to burden my brother too much especially since his car got such a low floor that many times it grazed the stones and dirts on the rather difficult plantation roads...
So what is this all about? Is it worth all the trouble? Well I can assure you that if you like old Malay history than this place is worth all the effort.
Now, I'm just too lazy to explain everything here... So I took this picture of the information available where you can have a look at it yourself. What you can do is right-click at the picture and save it inside your computer. Then you can open it and blow the size or make any adjustment necessary to make the text clear enough for reading.
OK... Perhaps I should give my 2 cents worth of explanation alongside. Remember the Malay Sultanate of Melaka said to have been opened by a certain royalty known by Western historians as Parameswara some 600 years ago? Well, before he opened up Melaka, he tried to open a new state in Muar, in a place which later became known as Biawak Busuk (literally translated as rotten monitor lizards). This is because the place was infested with many such creatures which had to be killed but more came along, and on and on... The piles of dead carcasses made it unbearable to stay on and thus Parameswara had to find another place to start a new state.
Oh... Let me be frank. I never really like the term Parameswara. Let's call him by his proper Malay name and honorific ya... Let's call him Sultan or King Iskandar.
After leaving Biawak Busuk, he went a bit upriver and built a new fort to start another state and community centre. The legends goes that all is fine until the next morning. Apparently for no known reason, the fort became ruined... Thus the name name Kota Buruk... Kota (fort) Buruk (ruined) and here is the site of the fort...
Now some believed the fort got ruined because of termite attack. Nevertheless, it is possible that if there was no such problem and Sultan Iskandar stayed one, the state of Melaka could have been started here and the whole Melaka empire story could have taken a different turn!
Next to it lies some foliage and a clearing...
As it is, the site is located next to the rather mighty and full of history Muar river...
The way the branches spreads out and its sheer size reminds me of a similar singular tree at Pulau Besar, Melaka... On the way up on top it's highest peak which leads to the legendary and mystical (and myhtical too) Batu Belah... Do have a look at Batu Belah (split stone) of Pulau Besar, Melaka
Near the clearing lies another curious object...
It is the tomb of someone of stature as denoted by the gravestone known as Batu Aceh or Aceh gravestone, normally used for someone of very high status... The yellow clothes and colour abound signify royalty... Too bad there's no notice saying who it belongs to...
Next to the grave lies this small tree with bits of yellow clothes and some pots and things normally used for worshipping... That is, the kind of worshipping condemned in Islam but practiced by people who believe in magical powers and getting favours from the unseen, even unholy creatures!
2 comments:
hi. i`m a student from Penang. can i have your pictures and content for references? Thank u. :)
Sure. Just give credit to this blogspot.
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