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This blogspot is a medium to share my thoughts and adventures apart from promoting my books. Below are the books which have been written or authored and published by myself.


"Berpetualang ke Aceh: Mencari Diri dan Erti".

ISBN 983-42031-0-1, Jun 2006


"Berpetualang ke Aceh: Membela Syiar yang Asal"

ISBN 983-42031-1-x, May 2007


"Berpetualang ke Aceh: Sirih Pulang ke Gagang?"

ISBN 978-983-42031-2-2, November 2007


It is interesting to note that while these books were written in Malay it has gained enough attention to merit being part of the collections of the American Library of Congress and National Library of Australia. Look here and here.


While the first three books were published by my own company, the fourth titled "Rumah Azan" was published in April 2009 by a company called Karnadya with the help of the Malaysian national literary body Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka. It features beautiful pictures along with stories behind selected mosques which could be related to the history of Islam and the Malays alongside the formation of the Malaysian nation. Look at the article A collaboration of old collegemates - the book "Rumah Azan".


My fifth book "Ahlul Bait (Family) of Rasulullah SAW and Malay Sultanates", an English translation and adaptation of the Malay book "Ahlul Bait (Keluarga) Rasulullah SAW dan Kesultanan Melayu" authored by Hj Muzaffar Mohamad and Tun Suzana Othman was published early 2010. Look here... My 5th book is out! Ahlul Bait (Family) of Rasulullah SAW and the Malay Sultanates... . For more information check out my Malay blogspot CATATAN SI MERAH SILU.



Like my fourth book "Rumah Azan", the sixth book "Kereta Api Menuju Destinasi" is also a coffee-table book which is published by the company Karnadya with the cooperation of Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (the main Malay literary body in Malaysia). Coming out January 2011 it features pictures and stories on the adventure travelling by train to all of Peninsular Malaysia along with the interesting places which could be reached this way.


My seventh book "Jejak keluarga Yakin : Satu sketsa sejarah" in turn is a coffee-table book which is written, editted, designed and has pictures taken by me. Coming out of the factory October 2011, this book which combines family history with history of places such as Singapura, Johor, Batu Pahat, Muar and in fact the history of the island of Java and England has been reviewed with me interviewed live in the program Selamat Pagi Malaysia at RTM1. Look at the article Siaran langsung ulasan buku "Jejak keluarga Yakin : Satu sketsa sejarah" dan temu ramah di Selamat Pagi Malaysia. Some selected contents have been featured in Sneak peek "Jejak keluarga Yakin : Satu sketsa sejarah".


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The "Berpetualang ke Aceh" series of novels could be obtained in e-book form. Enter http://www.e-sentral.com/, click general novel and go to page 4. You can also type the word "Aceh" at the search box. Or click straight Book 1, Book 2 and Book 3.


Sunday, January 24, 2010

Linggiu, the site of an ancient Malay kingdom now taken over by Singapore?

Peace be upon you all. Previous articles in this blogspot related to my travels to the south in November 2009 have so far covered places in Pontian, Singapura and Kota Tinggi although the actually travelling also included places in Muar, Batu Pahat and Johor Bahru. Now, let us visit one more place in Kota Tinggi before we move on to the next Johor district, Kluang.


On the way to Kluang from the town of Kota Tinggi, one could take a right turn pass the small town of Bandar Tenggara and get into this dusty road...

Actually the road started quite normal and decent before one gets to the dusty parts apparently because of heavy vehicles used mostly for plantation works. The road heads to the east. To the north one could see the 3,300-feet high or so Gunung (Mount) Belumut situated in Kluang near the district borders of Kota Tinggi and Mersing.


Thank God, soon the dusty parts began to gave way to normal road again...



In fact the road a few kilometres later turned out to be rather smooth and of good quality...








Soon we could see the intended destination...




Welcome to the Linggiu Dam which if I'm not mistaken is situated on top of the site of an ancient Malay kingdom which have existed more than 1,000 years ago!



However entry is restricted. I understand the whole area is under Singaporean hands because it provides water for most of the island republic.



So I have no choice but to turn back and at least find a point where I can see the dam from afar...





There, a close-up picture from where I was standing. Can you see the waters of the dam?


OK. This Google Earth satellite picture should give an idea how big is the area covered by water. You see, a few years back there was a big hoo-haa when a local private researcher claimed to have found the site of an ancient Malay kingdom around here. He referred to verses from the old Malay text Sulalatus Salatin (also known in Malay as Sejarah Melayu, in English the Malay Annals) where it is said that a Hindi conqueror called Raja Suran (believed to be a certain Rajendara Chola who attacked Peninsular Malaysian 1000 years ago) once defeated a kingdom called Gelanggayu or something like that. The kingdom is said to lie somewhere inland of Kota Tinggi and the site in Linggiu fits the description. However for reasons not so clear, his findings was soon dismissed. Nevertheless, I do believe that the kingdom once existed and its main location is now submerged in the waters of the Linggiu dam.

For those who wonder why do I start this article using the Malay word Singapura while at the end I used the Anglicised Singapore? Well, as I've mentioned in some articles before, I've always preferred to used the word Singapura. But here, in the context of a selfish republic controlling land in another sovereign country, the word Singapore is more apt bearing in mind that it is the creation of the English colonialists who turned a once Malay-controlled Singapura into a main centre to destroy Islam and undermine the original Malay population of the whole Malay Archipelago. There, I've said my mind. Enough...



3 comments:

ahmad said...

Assalamualaikum,
Sabri Zain cari Kota KeDuabelas, tetapi hendak cari Kota tersebut kena jumpa Kota KeTigabelas dahulu.

Radzi Sapiee said...

Wassalam. Ceritalah lagi tentang kota-kota ini! :]

Unknown said...

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