Who Was Tok Temong in the History of Perak?
Tok Temong was a woman who served as a ruler in the Temong district, located in the state of Perak. Her reign predates the start of Sultan Muzaffar Shah's rule from 1528 to 1549.
On the day of the Sultan of Perak's coronation, Tok Temong presented a 'geliga embun' (dew bezoar), which is still kept today as one of the Perak state regalia known as the Mestika Embun. At the beginning of the story, after Tun Saban, Tok Temong's older brother, left Kampar in Sumatra to return to the Malay Peninsula, he moved to Beredong Budi in Hulu Petani.
He then moved to Belum in Hulu Perak, where he established a village called Relap Reli. Tun Saban became the leader in Belum and subsequently appointed one of his younger sisters, Tun Perabu, as the leader of a place called Temong; from there, his sister Tun Perabu became known by the title Tok Temong.
When Tun Saban arrived in Perak, the state did not yet have a king. Among the residents was a woman named Tok Masuka, who hailed from Daik and raised a Temusai named Nakhoda Kassim. When Tok Masuka passed away, she left a will requesting that her position be replaced by a King descended from Sang Sapurba, ensuring that the royal lineage from Bukit Si Guntang would not be severed in the Malay Peninsula. Consequently, Tun Saban and Nakhoda Kassim set off for Kampar to seek an audience with Sultan Mahmud Shah, requesting that one of his sons be made the Sultan of Perak.
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. Tok Temong attended the coronation ceremony of Sultan Mudzaffar Shah alongside Tun Saban. In return for Tok Temong's gift, the Sultan presented her with an oval 'Puan' (a betel nut container), but Tok Temong returned it. Tok Temong only requested one pledge from the Sultan: that he and his descendants would rule on the right side of the Perak River (upstream), while she and her descendants would rule on the left side of the Perak River (upstream).
Because of this, historical palaces and the tombs of the Sultans of Perak were located on the right side of the Perak River (upstream) until the reign of Sultan Idris Murshidul 'adzam Shah, who was the first to build a palace and tomb on the left side of the Perak River (upstream). Tok Temong surrendered the Hulu Perak territory to the current Perak state government. Tok Temong is also known as Keramat Temong by the local residents.
Tok Temong passed away in Kampung Temong Ulu, Mukim Chegar Galah in the Kuala Kangsar district, located about 11 km north, between Jalan Kota Lama and Kati, near the Iskandar Bridge. Tok Temong's tomb was rebuilt by the Department of Museums in 1979.
