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Monday, January 26, 2004
sam po kong (part 5)
Semarang is actually a commercial city, not a tourism destination. But the old city's name has been stamped internationally since the early 15th century when Admiral Cheng Ho (Zhenghe), a Muslim eunuch envoy from the Ming Dynasty, visited Semarang. He was sent on a mission to re-establish diplomatic and trade links with countries in Southeast Asia, India and eastern Africa. His huge fleet was comprised of 62 ships and almost 28,000 men.
Soon after he stepped ashore in Semarang, he is said to have meditated in a cave nearby the beach. The Chinese in Java deified him as the god Sam Po Kong and later erected a memorial temple at the site of the cave. In present day Indonesia, the temple, known locally as Gedung Batu, has become unique since it is a sacred place where the local Confucian Chinese and Javanese Muslims come together to worship their beliefs in peace. Buddhist ceremonies often take place here too.
The temple has become a kind of unifying symbol, mending the often strained relationships among different races and religions that were deliberately politicized by the old Suharto regime. Although the political situation has begun to change recently, the stigma left by the old regime cannot be removed in just a few years.
On entering the Sam Po Kong Temple, we can see the stone carving depicting Admiral Cheng Ho aboard his ship along with some of the Ming Dynasty's soldiers. Two of the soldiers are represented in life-sized sculptures, standing with very determined facial expressions. There are several shrines clustered in the main temple containing an altar for Sam Po Kong. In each shrine is an altar dedicated to a certain deity; one altar is to worship the temple's guardian spirit (toapekong) and another is for Confucius.
There is also the grave of Kyai Juru Mudi Dampoawang, Cheng Ho's Muslim helmsman. Both Chinese and Javanese believers often sleep by this grave to obtain his blessings. A guardian, whose job is assisting those who look for blessings, makes the grave his second home since he spends most of his days here. Believers who come usually give him some offerings for his service.
(words: http://www.thingsasian.com)
stelly @ 10:23 AM
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