Palapa oath


The Palapa oath was an oath taken by Gajah Mada, a 14th-century Prime Minister of the Javanese Majapahit Empire described in the Pararaton. In the oath, Gajah Mada swore that he would not rest as long as he had not succeeded in unifying Nusantara. The oath was taken during his inauguration as Majapahit Amangkubhumi that took place in 1256 Saka or 1258 Saka.

The oath

The main source of the Palapa oath is taken from the middle Javanese manuscript, Pararaton, which states:
Translation:

Interpretation

Petrus Josephus Zoetmulder defines amukti palapa as "enjoying a state where everything can be taken," or simply "enjoying pleasure," while according to Slamet Muljana, it means "enjoying rest."
From this manuscript, historians have learnt several names of places and polities in Nusantara that were not under Majapahit suzerainty and were targeted by Gajah Mada's ambitious expansive campaign.

Places described in Palapa oath

Completion

It is possible that the Sunda kingdom became vassalized by Majapahit after the Bubat tragedy of 1357. It ultimately regained independence at an unknown year. The subjugation of Sunda by Majapahit means that Gajah Mada has finally fulfilled his Palapa oath:
... Tunggalan padompo pasunda. Samangkana sira Gajah Mada mukti palapa, sawelas tahun amangkubhumi.

Legacy

The Palapa oath is used as the name of the Indonesian telecommunication satellite Palapa, a Boeing-made satellite. The program was started in February 1975 and the satellite was launched on 9 July 1976 from Cape Caneveral, United States. The name Palapa was chosen by President Suharto and means 'fruits of labor,' also signifying the Indonesian effort to unify the Indonesian archipelago through telecommunications technology.
A university-wide orientation session for freshman students at Gadjah Mada University was named PPSMB Palapa from its inception in 2012 until its renaming in 2023.