326 Title: Matinya Raden Darmakusuma (Prince Darmakusuma’s death) Genre: Didactic and entertaining literature (oral tale) Language: Indonesian INTRODUCTION Tis anonymous and undated tale forms part of a corpus of stories narrating the conversion eforts and successes of the wali sanga, the nine “saints” to whom tradi- tion attributes the spread of Islam on Java. Te conversion of the Indonesian archi- pelago was a gradual process, and there is little unambiguous evidence of its earliest stages. Te walis are said to have lived in the ffeenth and sixteenth centuries and to have converted local people by way of their special powers, miracle working, and willingness to accommodate local culture. Tis tale was written down by A. M. Noertjahajo, who heard it from elders at the Demak Mosque in the 1970s. Te key to understanding this story lies in realizing that it is in dialogue with the Mahabharata, one of the two great Indian epics that were transmitted to Java and, in their localized forms, had a lasting and profound impact on its literature, performing and plastic arts, language, and social and political ideals. To this day, many of the shadow puppet performances in Java (wayang kulit or wayang purwa) are based on scenes from the Mahabharata, with the Great War (Bratayuda) con- stituting a popular favorite. Readers should pay special attention to the interface between the epic and the conversion tale. Prince Darmakusuma is one of the names by which Yudhishtira, the eldest of the Pandawa brothers in the Mahabharata, is known. In the tale he meets Sunan 56 A Conversion Tale from Java, Indonesia Anonymous Ronit Ricci Hurvitz-Conversion to Islam.indd 326 13/10/20 4:59 PM University of California Press * * * N OT F OR S ALE * * * Review copy only © University of California Press/The Regents of the University of California 2021