The Life and Times of Airlangga
Posted By Drs. H.Mutawalli,M.Pdi
Airlangga (Erlangga) was a turn-of-the-millenium king of both East Java and Bali.
Born on Bali circa 1001 CE, the son of King Dharmodayana Warmmadewa (Udayana) and Queen Gunapriyadharmapatni (Mahendradatta), his was a dual heritage. His father was Balinese, his mother hailed from Javanese royalty.
At this time, Java was ruled by the Mataram kingdom, headed by King Dharmavamsa. Java exerted a strong influence over Bali, which could be considered a vassal state of the former. Airlangga was sent to the court in East Java, to complete his education and eventually to marry. However, when Airlangga reached the age of fifteen or sixteen, the ongoing conflict with Srivijaya erupted into an attack by the latter on Mataram -- the attack was very successful, and left King Dharmavamsa and much of the inhabitants of his city, dead. Indeed, reports stemming from the time talk about the red of the fires that were lit. Airlangga fled into the forest, where he survived for four years. Eventually, he returned to claim the throne, as the son-in-law of King Dharmavamsa. The accounts searched so far indicate that his ascension to the kingship was not seriously contested, if at all, by the rulers from Srivijaya, as their main purpose had been to stop Dharmavamsa's incursions on their own lands and waters. Peace was obtained.
Airlangga rebuilt the Javanese empire, known as the Kahuripan kingdom, ushering in an era of arts and literature. He annexed his homeland of Bali, and appears to have ruled the latter through regents. First was his brother, Marakata, followed by Anak Wungsu. The ties engendered between the two islands were to last at least a couple of centuries, providing for both political and cultural linkages.
In an era where religious tolerance was rare, Airlangga fostered it. The situation arose out of a religious conflict between the Vishnu cult of Hinduism and Mahayana Buddhism. He recognized both religions as valid, and would not set up either as a state faith. In order to cut the power of the priests of either religion, he appropriated their lands, thus keeping them from building up threatening power bases. A tolerant approach to conflicting faiths has followed Indonesian history down to this day.
King Airlangga promoted the arts, establishing an environment for the production of some of the earliest literature available from these islands. Around 1035, the court poet, Mpu Kanwa, penned the Arjuna Wiwaha (Arjunavivaha), an important Javanese classic. It was adapted from the similar Indian work, Mahabharata. In it, the hero Arjuna is glorified; some read Arjuna as being a poetic "stand-in" for Airlangga. In respect, this figure is seen as an incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu, and it may be that Airlangga himself was so percieved.
Also of interest - some of the irrigation and aqueduct systems he instigated are still in use on Java today. During his reign, peace was at hand, and trade was encouraged.
in 1030, he married the Malay daughter of Sangrama Vijayottungavarman, King of Srivijaya. Of this marriage, a daughter was born. Princess Sanggramawijaya turned down the throne when that time came, choosing rather to live as a hermit. Airlangga's only other potential heirs were two sons he'd sired with different concubines.
Airlangga decided to retire his kingship early, to pursue the life of a hermit himself; and so he divided his empire between these two sons in 1045 (or possibly 1042, depending on source): Kediri and Janggala became the kingdoms. He hoped that the two kingdoms would cooperate in their independence; such peace did not last for long. He died in 1049.
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