On the edge of a river in Labuhan Batu, North Sumatra, there lived a very poor widow and her child. Her son is named Si Kantan. According to North Sumatera folklore, The Kantan and his mother live in a rickety and shabby hut. They live in misery. Si Kantan's father has long since passed away. To fulfill daily needs, the mother of Si Kantan looks for firewood in the forest to sell to the market. The Kantan often helps its mother to bring firewood from the forest to the market. The Kantan is known as a child who is diligent and obedient to his mother.
Dreaming of Meeting Old Grandpa
When night fell, the mother of Kantan had a dream. She met an old man who told them to dig the ground at a place in the forest. When morning arrived, the mother told about her dream to the kantan. The Kantan advised his mother to obey what the old old man ordered.
"Mom, let's try to carry out the old man's orders, which one knows will bring us luck. Hopefully our fate can change for the better,” said the Kantan hopefully.
They finally went to the forest with tools to dig the ground. Mother’s Kantan recalled the place where the old man had shown him to dig the soil. When she is in the right place, the mother of Kantan exclaims to her child.
"My son, maybe this is the place. Let's dig the ground!" said the mother hopefully.
"If you believe the place is here, I will immediately dig it up, Mom," said the kantan, no less enthusiastic.
The Kantan Finds the Golden Stick
With enthusiasm, the Kantan dug the ground under a large, shady tree. Not long after, he found an object wrapped in a worn white cloth. The Kantan shouted to his mother, because he had found something that he thought might be the thing that was told by the old man in his mother's dream.
They opened the object wrapped by the white cloth. How amazed and happy they are. It turned out that this object was very valuable. It was a golden stick decorated with jewels. They are in awe of it. The Kantan and his mother hope that this object can change their fate.
After arriving home, they discussed to determine the fate of the object. Are they going to store or sell these objects.
"My son, this thing should be sold. The proceeds from the sales will be for the mother to buy a good house and the rest to meet daily needs. "
The Kantan pondered, then said, “Mom, if you sell this thing, then who will buy it? this thing was too precious and very expensive of course. The people of this village won't be able to buy it."
"That's right, my son, then you must sell these objects to other islanders," said his mother.
They finally agreed that the object would be sold outside the island where they settled. The kantan finally said goodbye to his mother to sell the object. To be honest, the Kantan was sad to leave his mother who was alone. Moreover, his mother was very old and did not have enough energy to work alone. However, in order to improve their life, the Kantan must sell the magic stick to be used as money that can make them happy. His mother finally let go of the Kantan with sadness mixed with emotion.
"If you have sold that thing, go home as soon as possible, my son, I always miss you," said the mother of the Kantan, sobbing.
"Mom, i will come back to this house as soon as possible," said the Kantan as he returned his mother's hug.
The Kantan Goes to Malacca
The kantan finally went to Malacca to sell the stick. On the way, he had to cross the Barumun River and then pass through the open sea. He had to use a sailing ship and was willing to be swayed because of a very violent storm. The Kantan always hopes that the gold stick he carries will be sold at a reasonable price.
After arriving in Malacca, Si Kantan tried to offer these items to traders. All traders in Malacca were offered the Kantan to buy the stick. It turned out that all the merchants in the city couldn't afford it. The stick was too expensive because it was of such high value. Finally, Si Kantan intends to go home because no one has bought the object. When he arrived at the port to return to his village, Si Kantan met the chiefs of the Malacca Kingdom.
The warriors of the Kingdom of Malacca saw the object brought by the Kantan. They asked the Kantan, what kind of object did he bring, considering that the object was still covered by a cloth.
"This is a golden stick, sir. I want to sell it," replied the Kantan.
"You must try to bring the stick to our king. Maybe, our king wants to buy it,” said one of the commander-in-chiefs.
The Kantan Married the Princess of the King
The Kantan and the hulubalangs went to the palace to meet the king. At the palace, the king was amazed by the beauty and luxury of the golden stick.
"How beautiful this golden stick is, I am interested in having it," said the king. "Listen, young man, I'm not going to buy this stick. But in exchange, I will make you son-in-law, I have a beautiful daughter who has not been married to anyone. "
Hearing the king's words, the Kantan said, "Forgive your noble honor, if that is your wish, I am willing to be married off to your daughter."
The Kantan finally married a daughter of the king of Malacca. They finally got married. Their wedding party was very grand. Kantan has become one of the royal family. In the palace, Si Kantan and his wife live in luxury. With a very luxurious life, the Kantan finally forgot about his mother in the village. The Kantan forgot his promise. In fact, day after day the mother is still eagerly awaiting the return of the Kantan. However, not long after the Kantan married, the wife kept insisting that she wanted to meet the Kantan's mother. She wants to be introduced to her mother-in-law. Moreover, this wish was also approved by Si Kantan's father-in-law, the king. After being pushed continuously, finally the Kantan was willing to return to the village to introduce his mother to his wife, even though the desire was very heavy for the Kantan.
In the morning, a large, magnificent ship took the Kantan and his wife to go to the village to meet the mother of the Kantan. They brought dozens of bodyguards. They traveled for days, until they came to an area called Labuhan Bilik. Labuhan Bilik is a small town located at the mouth of the Barumun River.
The inhabitants of the mouth of the Barumun River were amazed by the splendor of a ship that the Kantan and his wife were carrying. They wonder who the person who uses this magnificent ship is. How surprised they were, that the ship was boarded by a young man and his beautiful wife. The young man and his wife were wearing luxurious clothes. One of the villagers exclaimed that he recognized the young man.
“Hey, it's the Kantan. A young man who lives with his mother by the river," said one of them.
"Yes, it is the Kantan," said another.
The Kantan Does Not Recognize His Mother
The news of the arrival of the Kantan was finally heard by his own biological mother. The mother is happily and joyfully waiting for her child in her rickety hut. However, the child did not come. The mother finally decided to meet her son at the port.
The mother uses an old canoe to cross the Barumun River, she wants to meet her child. With a heart that is pounding and full of hope, the mother wants to hug her child to let go of her longing. Not long after, the mother arrived at the port. There was a large, magnificent ship leaning in the harbor.
"If indeed it is the ship of the Kantan, how happy I will be," said the mother.
The mother with all her strength pedals the old boat to get close to the big ship in the harbor.
"Kantaaan ... Kantaaan ..., Kantan my son," called the woman excitedly but full of emotion. "This is your mother, my son ...."
Kantan's wife heard her mother-in-law's scream. He then asked Kantan to confirm whether the voice was true of his father-in-law.
“My husband, someone shouted calling you. Is that your biological mother?" asked the wife of Kantan.
"No, it might be a lunatic I don't recognize," answered Kantan. The Kantan actually knows his mother's voice, but he is ashamed to admit that the old woman is his mother.
The mother keeps calling her child. He hoped that the Kantan would come to see him.
"This is your mother, my son ..., come here Kantan," his mother kept calling.
The wife finally got out of the ship and headed for the bridge. She was curious and wanted to meet her mother-in-law. The exit of the wife was followed by the Kantan. There was an old woman with dirty clothes waiting towards the Kantan’s ship.
Seeing this situation, the Kantan threw out a loud voice towards the old woman.
"Hi, ugly old woman. You just confessed to my mother. My mother is not like you!" rebuked the Kantan.
The wife reassured the Kantan that maybe it could be his mother. However, because he was ashamed and did not want to give his mother who was old and poor, the Kantan still insisted that it was not his mother.
"She is not my mother, my mother is beautiful and young," said Si Kantan to his wife.
The origin of Si Kantan Island
The Kantan continues to berate a woman who is actually her own biological mother. With the help of bodyguards, the Kantan ordered them to expel their own mother.
The mother reluctantly returned to her rickety hut, while the Kantan and his wife returned to the palace.
With a very sad feeling because she was kicked out by her own biological child, the mother prayed to God Almighty.
"O God Almighty, my son has disobeyed his mother. Give him a reward in kind. She does not know the reciprocation of her mother who was pregnant, gave birth, and raised her,” full of unstoppable sobs, the mother prayed to God.
Not long after, the sky darkened, lightning flashed, and then a thunderstorm fell. The water in the Barumun River is curling. The big ship that Si Kantan and his wife boarded began to drift in the water. After that, the ship was hit by a very powerful wave of water. The ship finally sank to the bottom of the Barumun River. The Kantan finally died. Not long after the incident, an island appeared in the middle of the Barumun River. By the community, this island is given the name Si Kantan.
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