Wahmuka - (Wayang Kulit)
| Title | Wahmuka - () - Mahabharata |
|---|---|
| Other names | |
| Size | 60 cm |
| Personal data | Wahmuka and Arimuka were the sons of Prabu Darmamuka or Prabu Darmahambara from the Kingdom of Giyantipura or Kasipura. They are twin-giants that share the same history and cannot be separated. Wahmuka had four siblings, namely Arimuka, Dewi Amba, Dewi Ambika, and Dewi Ambalika. Arimuka and Wahmuka were born in the form of giants, while their sisters were born as beautiful princesses. |
| Appearance | Wahmuka has wide eyes, teeth and fangs are visible. He wears a jamang with a garuda on the back and a sekar kluwih (flower fruit emerging, seeded breadfruit). He wears a necklace of birawa ulur-ulur, bracelets and berpontoh as the clothes of the king's giant. Wahmuka wears a grand cloth. Only the front hand can be moved. |
| Collection | Private collection |
Wahmuka - () - Mahabharata
Wahmuka came from a crater (amniotic fluid) the child of triplets, named Dewi Amba, Ambika and Ambalika, the daughters of the king in Giantipura.
Regarding these three princesses, their names differ from one book to another. Some say their names are Dewi Ambalmi, Ambiki, and Ambaliki; while other books say their names are Dewi Amba, Ambahini, and Ambaliki.
Both, Arimuka and Wahmuka, appear in the play Alap-alapan Triputri, which is what happens when there are three twin daughters who want to get married together. The both giants always obstructed if the three daughters were proposed to by others and because of their supernatural powers no one's proposal was granted.
When their sisters grew up, with the permission of Prabu Darmamuka, Arimuka and Wahmuka agreed to hold a competition to find prospective husbands for Amba, Ambika, and Ambalika. It became the Pandansurat state competition. The meeting succeeded in attracting the attention of the kings and knights who on average were attracted to the truth of the three twin daughters. Only the suitor who is able to defeat Arimuka and Wahmuka will be married to the three princesses.
Wahmuka and Arimuka had great supernatural powers. If one of them dies, and the other jump over his corpse, then the dead one will come back to life. So, to kill them, it must only be done together. But that is also not easy, because Arimuka and Wahmuka have invulnerability.
Many knights and kings participated in the contest, but all of them were defeated by Arimuka and Wahmuka. Those who had not yet competed immediately retreated when they saw the strength they had. It was only natural that the opponents' knees were shaking.
However, none of the kings and knights who participated in the battle could defeat the power of Wahmuka and Arimuka.
At that time, Dewabrata ( Resi Bisma) was sent by his father, Prabu Santanu, king of Astina, to participate in the battle for his sisters, Citragada and Wicitrawirya. Bhishma then faced Wahmuka and Arimuka. The three of them then fought a very noisy duel. Initially Dewabrata was overwhelmed because both of them were very powerful. But Dewabrata got the secret about how to kill the two giant siblings.
Semar, who accompanied Dewabrata, gave advice. "Arimuka and Wahmuka are very powerful because they are the incarnation of the placenta and crater water of the three princesses of Prabu Darmamuka," he said. "Both of them are invulnerable, not affected by all kinds of weapons. If your Majesty wants to kill them, both of Dewabrata's palms must be smeared with turmeric and apu (betel lime) when using a dagger to break the connection between the two," added Semar. If Dewabrata could hit them together at once, then Wahmuka and Arimuka would definitely die.
It turned out that Semar's suggestion was proven. The two giants died at the same time, and did not get up again, when Dewabrata slapped them at the same time. Wahmuka then returned to his original form, which is the crater, while Ditya Arimuka also returned to his original form, which is ari-ari.
The story of Arimuka and Wahmuka is very different from the storyline in the Mahabarata Book. In that book, the characters Arimuka and Wahmuka do not exist. Moreover, to be able to marry Dewi Amba, Ambika, and Ambalika, what was held was not a duel, but a selection contest. In that selection contest, the suitors would sit in a row, then the king's daughters would put a garland of flowers on the suitors they chose. But what happened in the selection contest in the Giyantipura Kingdom (in the Mahabarata Book called the land of Kasi) was that suddenly Dewabrata entered the room, and took the three princesses by the hand.
Source: History of Wayang Purwa - Hardjowirogo - PN Balai Pustaka - 1982
