The Legend of Riam Mangkikit (Regional Stories of Central Kalimantan)

The following is a folk tale from Central Kalimantan entitled Legend of Riam Mangkikit. The legend of Riam Mangkikit tells the story of a brave village leader. His name is Mangkikit. The nature and character of Mangkikit himself is known as a quiet, honest, brave and authoritative person. He has a very beautiful wife. What's the story? Let's look at the following regional stories.

The legend of Riam Mangkikit takes place in Central Kalimantan, precisely on the Katingan River. In this area there is a rapids called Riam Mangkikit. This cascade is one of the largest among the cascades on the Katingan River. Around the river, there is a place called Batu Tangudau. It is named that way, because according to local residents, under the rock there is a hole for the tangudau fish, which is a type of shark.

It is said that in the middle of the waterfall there was a small village. In the village there is only one betang house (a large family house) and five ordinary houses. The village leader was a brave young man named Mangkikit. Even though he is still relatively young, Mangkikit is respected by people. His rather quiet nature, honest, courageous because he is right, makes him more authoritative. Meanwhile, his wife, Nyai Endas, was a very beautiful woman. Nyai Endas' beauty was famous throughout the region. Many young people deliberately spend the night in betang with the intention of simply witnessing the beauty of Nyai Endas. Moreover, for almost ten years of marriage with Mangkikit they had not yet been blessed with a son. Despite this, the two of them still live happily, safely and peacefully.

It has become a habit, every early morning, Mangkikit goes hunting. He had been preparing his weapons and arrows since yesterday afternoon. As usual, when planning a trip, Mangkikit always wakes up early.

He prepared food and inang (namely calcareous betel with split areca nut) for his provisions. Just before Mangkikit left, Nyai Endas approached him.

"Be careful on the road, Mangkikit. Don't stay in the forest for too long, I hope you come back safely," said Nyai Endas.

“Yeah, Don't worry, I'll be careful. You look after the house well, huh?” answered Mangkikit.

Nyai Endas nodded with a smile. Dungak and Tambi Jongkong were also near them.

"Happy hunting, sir. We will take good care of Nyai Endas and your house," said Dungak, reassuring Mangkikit.

"Yes, sir, I hope you can catch a lot," said Tambi Jongkong.

Mangkikit nodded as a sign of thanks. He took the food he had prepared and put it in the basket.

"Thank you, Dungak. Thank you, Tambi Jongkong. I entrust all this to you, please take good care of Nyai and the house," said Mangkikit.

"Okay sir, we will look after him as best we can. Don't worry," said Dungak, smiling at Mangkikit.

Pontianak (cheapoair)

Dungak (a middle-aged man) and Tambi Jongkong (an old woman) have long been considered members of his family. In fact, Tambi Jongkong himself has been like a nanny since Nyai Endas was little.

After Mangkikit left, the atmosphere in the village seemed to be quiet, leaving Mangkikit behind, the residents of the betang were busy with their respective work. Dungak was busy chopping wood in the back, while Tambi Jongkong was busy cooking in the kitchen. In her room, Nyai Endas is busy weaving rattan mats.

Suddenly there was a knock at the front door. Hearing the sound, Nyai Endas called Tambi Jongkong to see who had come.

"Tambi Jongkong, please look who has come here," shouted Nyai Endas.

An unknown man stood at the door. He has a handsome appearance, with a thin mustache, sturdy body, white and yellow skin, and wears a red headband on his head. Around his waist, hung an heirloom horn-handled mandau with tufts of hair that added a dashing impression.

"Is Mangkikit here?" asked the dashing man.

"Mangkikit has been hunting since morning," answered Nyai Endas.

"Is Nyai Endas there?" the dashing man asked again.

"Oh, yes, I am, what happened? Please come in," answered Nyai Endas.

I don't know what they were talking about at that time.

Nyai Endas called Tambi Jongkong to come into her room. The two of them talked in the room, leaving the man in the living room. A few moments later, Tambi Jongkong went to the kitchen to call Dungak

"Dungak, go home quickly! There are guests looking for Nyai Endas," Tambi Jongkong shouted to Dungak.

Dungak immediately went home and saw the guest with an unhappy expression. Nyai Endas asked the two of them to follow her into the room. After they all gathered in the room, Nyai Endas began to tell a story.

"The man forced me to follow him. I realized that I was married, but I felt like I couldn't refuse his wishes," said Nyai Endas.

Dungak, who was angry when he heard this, grabbed the heirloom mandau hanging on the wall.

"For the honor of Mr. Mangkikit, I will not let him take Nyai away!" Dungak exclaimed.

However, Nyai Endas quickly stopped Dungak.

"Stop! Don't interfere, Dungak, so that later I will explain everything to Mangkikit myself," said Nyai Endas.

Even though his heart was hurt, Dungak relented after hearing Nyai Endas' words.

"Okay, I'll tell Mangkikit when he comes back," said Dungak.

Nyai Endas said again, "Thank you, Dungak. If I have left, follow my footsteps with your eyes. You will know the direction of my departure. Now, I will prepare my things." Nyai Endas prepared her luggage and gave her last message before leaving the room.

"If Mangkikit wants to look for me, follow the direction I went," said Nyai Endas to Dungak and Tambi Jongkong.

They both got out of the betang and went down to the river. Dungak and Tambi Jongkong, who were watching Nyai Endas' departure, were shocked. They saw Nyai Endas and the guest walking on the water as if they were walking on a highway.

 "What happened? They walked on water?" asked Tambi Jongkong full of surprise.

"We must immediately return to the betang and inform the residents," said Dungak.

Tambi Jongkong and Dungak hurriedly ran back to the betang. Dungak took the gong and rang it repeatedly. Residents who were working in the fields heard the sound of the gong and immediately ran back to the village. They believe something extraordinary has happened.

"Nyai Endas was kidnapped by an unknown man! We must be alert," shouted Dungak.

The villagers were in an uproar after hearing the news from Dungak. They were afraid that Mangkikit would get angry and go on a rampage as a result of the incident. The women and children secretly left the village, so that only the adult men remained. Tambi Jongkong cried and felt resigned, while Dungak remained silent with a wounded heart.

Meanwhile, on the way home, Mangkikit rushed with an unusual feeling, feeling that something extraordinary had happened in the village. He ran home at a half trot, his walking speeding up. When he arrived behind the betang, he saw a group of people huddled together. He asked himself, "What on earth happened?"

With a gasp, he climbed onto the trunk and asked, "What's going on? What happened?" However, no one dared to answer. Anger covered Mangkikit because no one gave an answer. Dungak, who witnessed this situation, did not dare to tell the truth about Nyai Endas when asked.

Seeing this situation, an old man appeared and said softly, "My son, try to calm down a bit. It's difficult to talk in a situation like this," he said. Mangkikit relieved his tension and asked the old man. "What really happened, Uncle?" Mangkikit asked with a shaking chest.

The old man then told the whole incident without missing a thing. Hearing his uncle's explanation, Mangkikit took a deep breath. The villagers were relieved because Mangkikit was not angry. Mangkikit only asked the heads of the families to come to his house that night. There, he will tell you his next plan.

That night, they gathered again. Mangkikit suggested that every family prepare palm wine. On the ninth day after that, they will gather again. Mangkikit did not explain what he meant, only told them to prepare everything they needed for the party.

Finally, the long-awaited moment arrived. Mangkikit ordered the party to start from the house located at the very end upstream. After ten days had passed, the last turn arrived at Mangkikit's betang house. Previously, Mangkikit gave a message for everyone to attend on the last day.

Since morning, they ate and drank to their heart's content. When finished, Mangkikit ordered everyone to gather on the river bank. After everyone had gathered, Mangkikit ordered all family heads to burn down their respective houses. In an instant, all the houses in the village burned.

After that, Mangkikit said, "Now go down to the river, walk calmly towards Batu Tangudau." Mangkikit then sprinkled yellow rice into the Batu Tangudau whirlpool. He appointed one of them to jump into the whirlpool first. If they are still alive, they must wait for each other in the new world.

After all the residents jumped in, Mangkikit followed. He saw a clean and neat village. He indicated for everyone to wait quietly. Accompanied by three men he chose, he entered the village. However, no occupants could be seen there. Not far from there, in the yard of a large and beautiful house, was Nyai Endas.

On Mangkikit's orders, they split up and surrounded the house. When he was close enough, Mangkikit signaled Nyai Endas. His wife said that the man who kidnapped her was still sleeping in the room. Mangkikit entered quickly, pulled out the dohong tucked around his waist, and killed the man quickly.

Then, his three bodyguards were told to pick up their families who were waiting outside the village. Nyai Endas said that the village was where the Tangudau fish people lived. During the day, they all went out looking for food, which was why they didn't meet anyone. They only came home in the afternoon.

The end of the story is not told whether Mangkikit and his people stayed in the Tangudau fish village or returned to his village on the banks of the beautiful Katingan river.

Until now, Riam Mangkikit is still an attraction for tourists who want to see its beauty. This is a folk tale from Central Kalimantan entitled the Legend of Riam Mangkikit.