Page:Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje - The Achehnese - tr. Arthur Warren Swete O'Sullivan (1906).djvu/243

 Mohammad's death—it is in fact accepted as obligatory, especially in the Indian Archipelago, and entirely overshadows the so-called "great feast" of the 10$th$ of the 12$th$ month.

The Achehnese regard the observance of the Mòʾlōt as specially binding on the people of their country. To account for this they refer to a historical legend connected with a certain cannon, which before the coming of the Dutch to Acheh formed part of the defences of the Dalam.

It is well known how common has been the custom amongst native peoples of giving proper names to certain cannons, which they regarded more or less as personified and even worshipped as sacred after a time. We may instance Si Penjagur at Batavia, and its consorts Si Amok in Banten and Sětomi at Surakarta, with many more.

Similarly in Acheh there were many such guns with proper names, among them that mentioned above, which bore the title Lada Sichupaʾ = "a chupaʾ of pepper . The origin of this name, according to the popular tradition, was as follows:

In the course of the sixteenth century, when Acheh began to grow powerful, one of the Sultans—we know not which—thought that the time had come to bring his kingdom to the notice of the lord of all believers, the Raja Rōm, i. e. the Sultan of Turkey. He caused one of his biggest ships to be laden with pepper, the principal product of the country, as an offering expressive of homage to the supreme lord. Some say that he made the journey himself; according to others he sent an embassy of wealthy chiefs.

At Stambul (Eseutambōy) no one had ever heard of the existence of Acheh. So when the ambassadors arrived there, though they found it easy enough to get a lodging in return for their money, all their efforts to induce the officials to ask an audience for them of the Sultan proved of no avail. Thus they remained there a year or two, and as their means soon became exhausted, they had gradually to sell their pepper to supply themselves with the necessaries of life.

In the end, as chance would have it, the Sultan while returning one Friday from the mosque to his palace, espied our Achehnese among the crowd of respectful spectators. They attracted his attention by their peculiar dress, and he enquired whence they came and what had brought them to Constantinople.