Jayabaya

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Jayabhaya or Jayabaya (Javanese spelled: Ratu Jayabaya), was the Javanese king of the Kediri Kingdom in East Java, Indonesia, who ruled from around 1135 to 1159 CE. With the title of abhiseka used is Sri Maharaja Sang Mapanji Jayabhaya Sri Warmeswara Madhusudana Awataranindita Suhtrisingha Parakrama Uttunggadewa. The reign of King Jayabhaya is considered the zenith of the Kediri Kingdom.^[1]: 168

King Jayabaya is credited with the reunification of the Kediri Kingdom following a division caused by the death of his predecessor, Airlangga. Known for his just and prosperous rule, King Jayabaya was reputed to be an incarnation of the Hindu deity Vishnu. He epitomized the archetypal Ratu Adil, the just king who is reborn during a "Jaman Edan" (Era of Madness)—a dark age of suffering—to restore Jaman Raharja: a time of social justice, order, and harmony. The Javanese believed in a cyclical history, where epochs of prosperity (Jaman Raharja) are followed by eras of suffering (Jaman Edan), eventually returning to prosperity again.

Jayabaya named his kingdom Widarba, meaning "a thousand cities," centered in Pamenang, modern-day Kediri Regency. Records, blending fact and myth, indicate that his father, Gendrayana the Revolutionary, claimed descent from the Pandavas. He was said to be the son of Yudayana, son of Parikshit, son of Abhimanyu, son of Arjuna, from the Pandava lineage.

From Jayabaya's queen consort, Dewi Sara, he had four daughters: Jaya Amijaya, Dewi Pramesti, Dewi Pramuni, and Dewi Sasanti. Jaya Amijaya married King Astradarma Pramesti Yawastina, with whom she bore Malawapati, the King of Anglingdarma.^[2]

In his old age, Jayabaya abdicated and chose a life of meditation as a Hindu recluse, seeking moksha (spiritual liberation) and embracing his role as an incarnation of Vishnu. He retreated to the village of Menang, in the Pagu sub-district of Kediri Regency, which remains a revered pilgrimage site according to the Kejawen belief system. In later history, both Sukarno and Suharto meditated extensively in Menang^{[citation needed]} to seek an aura of kingly legitimacy, supernatural abilities, and Jayabaya's blessings or powers.