In Yogyakarta area, there are many relics or ancient objects that have given rise to legends. What's interesting is that sometimes the legend comes from areas outside Yogyakarta. One example is the legend of Jaka Pekik and Retno Branta. Judging from the location of the events narrated, it is suspected that this legend originates from East Java because the main story revolves around Majapahit.
As the story goes, Majapahit was attacked by enemies from the Wora-Wari Kingdom. The attack with a massive army was led directly by the king of Wora-Wari himself, namely Girindra Wardhana. Various opinions say that King Girindra was very powerful but not arrogant and always upheld the morals of a knight by avoiding devious actions. Perhaps because of this, his attack on Majapahit was able to break down the fort gate because there were some Majapahit people who sympathized with King Girindra. They secretly helped Girindra, for example by showing him roads or alleys that would make it easier for his troops to infiltrate the heart of Majapahit.
Thus, in the third wave of attacks by deploying troops armed with short spears, such as those known as Kyai Bancak and Kyai Palinusan spears, the Wora-Wari army was able to corner the Majapahit troops and force King Brawijaya to leave the palace.
A chase ensued between King Brawijaya V and King Girindra Wardhana. Various sources say that Brawijaya V ran along the flow of the Bengawan Solo, to the west. Of course Girindra also pursued it by following the same flow. Even though Brawijaya has been separated from its troops, its will not to surrender is still strong. In fact, sometimes Brawijaya still challenges Girindra, if he dares to face one on one in a large area.
In the chase scene among the trees of Bengawan Solo, it is said that one of the Majapahit people saw him. His heart felt sorry for seeing his king being chased by enemies, but felt unable to match Girindra's supernatural powers. Therefore, he immediately climbed a tree with thick leaves and prepared his machete which he usually carried to arm himself against attacks by robbers. When King Girindra passed under him, with all his strength the machete which was very well balanced was thrown towards the king of Wora-Wari. The machete hit his right arm. Girindra was surprised. He looked up to look for who had thrown the weapon, but did not see him because the servant of Majapahit had shot the arrow without aiming. Maybe because Girindra was powerful, the arrow also hit the loyal servant's leg. Unable to endure the pain, the loyal servant fell to the ground and groaned. The heart of the king of Wora-Wari was softened. However, what he was hunting had run further, and was becoming increasingly difficult to catch. Perhaps tired, desperate, and sick from the wound on his arm, King Girindra decided to return to Majapahit. He thought, maybe it would be better to immediately fix the Majapahit Kingdom and take away several palace princesses and confiscate their goods rather than chasing the elusive Brawijaya V.
After being far away from the enemy who was not immediately chasing him again, Brawijaya stopped running. He began to think that if Girindra didn't pursue him anymore, it would mean his attention would turn to the palace, his daughters, his possessions, and so on. Therefore, so that this could be prevented, Brawijaya immediately mobilized his supernatural powers and shouted loudly to call Girindra so that he could fight, one on one. Girindra heard Brawijaya's loud voice. As a king who has an honest character and doesn't like being cunning, Girindra felt challenged. He gave up his desire to return to Majapahit. He returned to pursue Brawijaya in the hope of completing his task.
In a short time, Girindra began to see Brawijaya, standing right on the edge of Bengawan Solo and with his hands on his hips. Girindra approached him while chanting a spell kabinian, namely a mantra that can make him authoritative. It is not surprising that a few moments after that Girindra looked very scary, his body had become very large with hands and feet as big as teak trees hundreds of years old. Seeing the changes in Girindra's body, Brawijaya became very afraid. Without thinking, he took a thousand steps.
Girindra laughed out loud seeing his enemy run away. However, in this way, Brawijaya becomes more difficult to catch. Therefore, Girindra said words to shake Brawijaya's feelings. He said that Brawijaya was a cunning king, who dared to challenge him but then ran away. Such methods resemble the behavior of a crocodile. To swallow prey, crocodiles stay still like floating logs. As soon as it hits its prey, it immediately pulls it into the river. That's really sneaky.
"You are like that crocodile, but you, O king of Majapahit, because you have been successful in the kingdom, it would be right if you changed into a white crocodile." Girindra said. While the wounded king of Wora-Wari uttered a curse, he also recited the Ajian Geneng Teles mantra. For a moment, nature seemed to shake, the trees swayed, and the storm blew hard. Brawijaya became panicked and scared. In a state of fear, it is not mentally prepared. His body defenses are weak. It turned into a large white crocodile and was more than ten meters long.
Girindra laughed out loud seeing Brawijaya turn into a white crocodile. Even though the crocodile's form is not too scary, with a shape like that, it is impossible for Brawijaya to return to the throne, unless Lord Vishnu returns to his original form.
How sad Brawijaya was when he realized that his body had changed. The great and majestic king shed tears for the first time because of heavy grief. With slow movements, the crocodile plunged into the Bengawan Solo and from the surface of the water a heart-wrenching song was heard.
Knowing that Brawijaya was no longer dangerous, Girindra returned to Majapahit, continuing his plan to hunt down the palace's princesses and plunder its wealth. Several soldiers were guarding him, including eight female soldiers, known to be greedy and wild, under the leadership of Ni Darijah.
News about King Brawijaya immediately spread throughout the country. This sad news paralyzed the spirit of the remaining soldiers and princes in the palace who were still trying to defend the palace. One by one they ran. Prince Bintang, Prince Samodra, Prince Sardula, as well as several princesses who were still virgins such as Retno Mayang Sari and Retno Tulak Branda and Retno Tetenger also ran.
The owner also told the story that two children who Brawijaya loved very much also left the palace with sad hearts. They were Prince Jaka Pekik who was famous for his beautiful looks and Retno Branta who had a very beautiful face.
When they arrived at the edge of Bengawan Solo, the two nobles were confused. Suddenly they saw a white crocodile floating on the surface of the water. When the crocodile surfaced, a boat equipped with oars appeared. By the white crocodile, the boat was pushed to the edge so that Jaka Pekik and Retno Branta could get down to the boat. Together, they started rowing. Their aim was west, but the current was east so it was difficult for the boat to move. However, once the white crocodile helped push, the boat easily moved east. What's even more surprising is that the boat can run very fast, like a sailboat with a stern wind.
Retno Branta immediately realized that the gods had sent help to them through the crocodile. Therefore, Retno immediately invited him to talk. However, the crocodile remains silent because as an animal it cannot speak human language. It's just that the view is strange. His eyes were glazed and soft. It is known that Retno and Jaka Pekik are the son and daughter of the white crocodile, who before he changed his appearance was King Brawijaya V.
So, the journey by boat went further east. In a village, near the city of Solo, they climbed ashore. The land journey continues westward until entering the Yogyakarta area. They arrived at a village on the edge of the Mentaok forest. In this village, they stayed in a bamboo house belonging to an old woman. The two Majapahit nobles were happy. In that house, there also lived a young, handsome man named Jaka Sabar. He was kind, patient and intelligent, so Retno Branta took him to heart. However, Retno's older brother, Jaka Pekik, was not happy to see this behavior. Therefore, he warned his sister not to waste too much time chatting with this beautiful young man. Retno said yes, but her heart rebelled.
One day Jaka Pekik asked permission to go hunting in the forest. He wanted to find entertainment for seven days and seven nights. Shortly after Pekik left, Retno went into the house and started fasting. Every evening before night, he only eats bitter turmeric. In a short time, his body changed. Her skin became fair, her face glowed, but her stomach grew bigger. On the seventh day as promised, Jaka Pekik went home. Seeing his sister's changing body condition, his suspicions arose. He imagined that while he was away, the relationship between the village youth and his younger brother would definitely be intense. The result of this relationship is a big stomach. Or, their relationship may have been around for a long time, since they arrived in the village, several months ago. Without thinking, Jaka Pekik pulled his magic keris from its sheath. He killed Retno. The whole village was shocked. The old mother who owned the house was also shocked, including the handsome young man. They were angry with Pekik and said he was an unwise older brother. Just with a vague suspicion, he had the heart to take his younger brother's life. Afraid of the villagers' anger, Pekik ran away. Meanwhile, his sister's voice kept ringing in his ears.
For three days and three nights, Pekik was hunted by his own conscience, until finally he arrived lake Pare Anom. Sendhang is a kind of lake with bluish water. In a very thirsty condition, Pekik drank as much of the spring water as he could. A moment later, his throat felt like it was burning. He rolled over the edge of the spring, writhed, then died. Meanwhile, Retno Branta's body was immediately cleaned, purified and finally buried by the residents of the village. The village is now called Godean. In Godean village, Retno Branta's grave can still be seen today. The grave is a grave that the local people hold sacred. Jaka Pekik's body was also buried by residents not far from the Pare Anom spring. Local residents were told that once Jaka Pekik ordered that no one should come to visit his grave, he wanted to be forgotten, just as he wanted to forget the mistakes he had made towards his younger brother.
