Folklore: The Origin of the Name Batu Gajah

Long ago, Sang Kelembai was very popular in our society, especially in the state of Perak. For those who do not know what Sang Kelembai is, in short, Sang Kelembai is an extraordinary creature associated with celestial beings, possessing a large and tall body, and having the power to curse and turn objects or humans into stone.

This is part of the folklore and myths associated with magical creatures that have become synonymous with our society. Such stories have become common and are a belief within the Malay community and throughout the Nusantara region. Sang Kelembai signifies that the region or district in question had not yet been influenced by Islam; in other words, Islam had not yet arrived in the Nusantara region when this myth was told.

Returning to the story of how

Batu Gajah

got its name. It is said to be entirely related to the story of Sang Kelembai. Once upon a time, there was a Sang Kelembai who was grieving because their child had just passed away after being struck by a fallen tree. It is said that Sang Kelembai could not accept the reality that their child was gone and cried every moment. To heal their grieving heart, Sang Kelembai went for a walk along the river. As fate would have it, Sang Kelembai encountered three elephants bathing in the river. For your information, loyal readers of orangperak.com, it is said that Sang Kelembai also had the ability to speak and understand the language of all types of animals.

Depiction of Sang Kelembai

Returning to the three elephants bathing earlier, one of them was a fat and large elephant. Another elephant had a thin and small body, while the last elephant had a medium-sized body but short tusks. The three elephants bathed in the river happily, spraying water at each other with their trunks like children, while chatting among themselves. Sang Kelembai, who was passing through the area, heard the elephants speaking rudely about other animals in the area.

Thin Elephant :

The monkeys here don't know how to swing; I've seen many of them fall to the ground so many times..

Fat Elephant :

How stupid those monkeys are..

Medium Elephant :

They should just walk on the ground; they have the nerve to jump here and there.. Sang Kelembai ignored the elephants' dialogue and continued walking to pass them as quickly as possible. While Sang Kelembai was passing, the elephants greeted and teased Sang Kelembai who was passing by.

Medium Elephant :

Your face is so ugly, Sang Kelembai. What are you doing at this river?

Thin Elephant :

Your face looks as miserable as if you were abandoned by your husband.

Fat Elephant :

If you don't know how to keep a husband, of course, he would run away. The elephants laughed loudly at their own teasing of Sang Kelembai. Sang Kelembai remained silent and shed tears, saddened by the elephants' teasing, as they did not respect what had happened. Then, a few minutes after the elephants finished laughing, Sang Kelembai told them why they were sad, with a very sorrowful voice and tone.

Sang Kelembai :

My child just passed away, oh elephants..

Sang Kelembai :

I am still thinking of my child and I am very sad..

Fat Elephant :

If you don't know how to take care of a child, of course, the child dies.

Thin Elephant :

Next time, don't let your child wander, or they might get bitten by a snake! The three elephants continued to mock, tease, insult, and humiliate Sang Kelembai. After a while, Sang Kelembai, who had been holding back their anger, finally lost patience and became furious at the elephants' rude behavior. Immediately, Sang Kelembai shouted at the elephants.

Sang Kelembai :

It's a good thing I have promised myself not to curse anyone anymore!

Thin Elephant :

If not, what would you curse us into?

Sang Kelembai :

I curse the three of you to turn into stone! Suddenly, the three elephants were struck by Sang Kelembai's curse and turned into stone, even though Sang Kelembai had no intention to do so but was merely answering the Thin Elephant's question. At the same time, the event of the curse was said to have been witnessed by a man who liked to isolate himself in the forest area by the river. Since the area had no name at that time and was newly explored, the man took a lesson from the event to name the place Batu Gajah.

For illustration purposes only

It is said that the cursed stones in the form of three elephants have now shattered due to rapid development starting from the tin mining era in 1870, which led to the straightening of the Kinta River and caused the location of the three elephant-shaped stones near Kampung Pisang to be buried around 1950. The matter of the elephant-shaped stones was recorded in the diary of

the first British Resident in Perak, JWW Birch

.

JWW Birch

was in

Batu Gajah

on April 30, 1875, and described this area as a large village by the Kinta River with a large furnace for smelting tin ore.

JWW Birch

also mentioned the existence of the elephant-shaped stone in his diary. The elephant-shaped stone was called "Toh Gaja" (Tok Gajah), and anyone passing by it had to take a handful of grass or leaves and pat it on the chest of Tok Gajah seven times as a custom to ensure their journey went smoothly without any disturbances.