Talaga Warna

Long long ago there was a kingdom in West Java. The kingdom was ruled by a king. People called their king His Majesty Prabu. Prabu was a kind and wise king. No wonder if that country was prosperous. There's no hunger in this kingdom.

It was a very happy condition. But it was a pity that Prabu and his queen hadn't got any children. It made the royal couple very very sad. Some old men and women who was respected by Prabu suggested the king to adopt a child. But Prabu and the queen didn't agree. "No, thank you. But for us, our own daughter or son is better than adopted children."

The queen was very sad. She often cried. That was why Prabu decided to go. He went to the jungle. There he prayed to God. Everyday he begged for a child. His dream come true. A few months later, the queen got fregnant. All people in the kingdom felt happy. They sent many presents to the palace to express their happiness.

Nine months later a princess was born. People sent their presents again as a gift to a little princess. This baby grew as a beautiful teenager then.

Prabu and Queen loved their daughter so much. They gave what ever she wanted. It made Princess a very spoiled girl. When her wish couldn't be realized, she became very angry. She even said bad things often. A true princess wouldn't do that. Eventhough the princess behaved badly, her parents loved her, so did the people in that kingdom.

Day by day, the princess grew more beautiful. No girls couldn't compare with her. In a few days, Princess would be 17 years old. So, people of that kingdom went to palace. They brought many presents for her. Their presents gift were very beautiful. Prabu collected the presents. There were really many presents. Then Prabu stored them in a building. Some times he could take them to give to his people.

Prabu only took some gold and jewels. Then she brought them to the goldsmith. "Please make a beautiful necklace for my daughter," said Prabu. "My pleasure, Your Majesty," the goldsmith replied. The goldsmith worked with all his heart and his ability. He wanted to create the most beautiful necklace in the world because he loved his princess.

The birthday came. People gathered in the palace field. When Prabu and queen appeared, people welcomed them happily. Prabu and his wife waved to their beloved people. Cheers were louder and louder when the princess appeared with her fabulous pretty face. Everybody admired her beauty.

Prabu got up from his chair. A lady gave him a small and glamourous pillow. A wonderful necklace was on it. Prabu took that necklace. "My beloved daughter, today I give this necklace to you. This necklace is a gift from people in this country. They love you so much. They presented it for you to express their happiness, because you have growing to a woman. Please, wear this necklace," said Prabu.

Princess accepted the necklace. She looked at the necklace in a glance. "I don't want to accepted it! It's ugly!" shouted the princess. Then she threw the necklace. The beautiful necklace was broken. The gold and jewels were spread out on the floor

Everybody couldn't say anything. They never thought that their beloved princess would did that cruel thing. Nobody spoke. In their silence people heard the queen crying. Every woman felt sad and began crying too. Then everybody was crying.

Then there was a miracle. Earth was crying. Suddenly, from the under ground, a spring emerged. It made a pool of water. The palce was getting full. Soon the place became a big lake. The lake sank all of the kingdom.

Nowadays the water on that lake is not as full as before. There is only a small lake now. People called the lake "Talaga Warna". It is mean "Lake of Colour". It's located in Puncak, West Java. On a bright day, the lake is full of colour. So beautiful and amazing. These colors come from shadows of forest, plants, flowers, and sky arround the lake. But some people said that the colours are from the princess's necklace, which spreads at the bottom of the lake.

Terjemahan

Zaman dahulu, ada sebuah kerajaan di Jawa Barat. Negeri itu dipimpin oleh seorang raja. Prabu, begitulah orang memanggilnya. Ia adalah raja yang baik dan bijaksana. Tak heran, kalau negeri itu makmur dan tenteram. Tak ada penduduk yang lapar di negeri itu.

Semua sangat menyenangkan. Sayangnya, Prabu dan istrinya belum memiliki anak. Itu membuat pasangan kerajaan itu sangat sedih. Penasehat Prabu menyarankan, agar mereka mengangkat anak. Namun Prabu dan Ratu tidak setuju. "Buat kami, anak kandung adalah lebih baik dari pada anak angkat," sahut mereka.

Ratu sering murung dan menangis. Prabu pun ikut sedih melihat istrinya.. Lalu Prabu pergi ke hutan untuk bertapa. Di sana sang Prabu terus berdoa, agar dikaruniai anak. Beberapa bulan kemudian, keinginan mereka terkabul. Ratu pun mulai hamil. Seluruh rakyat di kerajaan itu senang sekali. Mereka membanjiri istana dengan hadiah.

Sembilan bulan kemudian, Ratu melahirkan seorang putri. Penduduk negeri pun kembali mengirimi putri kecil itu aneka hadiah. Bayi itu tumbuh menjadi anak yang lucu. Belasan tahun kemudian, ia sudah menjadi remaja yang cantik.

Prabu dan Ratu sangat menyayangi putrinya. Mereka memberi putrinya apa pun yang dia inginkan. Namun itu membuatnya menjadi gadis yang manja. Kalau keinginannya tidak terpenuhi, gadis itu akan marah. Ia bahkan sering berkata kasar. Walaupun begitu, orangtua dan rakyat di kerajaan itu mencintainya.

Hari berlalu, Putri pun tumbuh menjadi gadis tercantik di seluruh negeri. Dalam beberapa hari, Putri akan berusia 17 tahun. Maka para penduduk di negeri itu pergi ke istana. Mereka membawa aneka hadiah yang sangat indah. Prabu mengumpulkan hadiah-hadiah yang sangat banyak itu, lalu menyimpannya dalam ruangan istana. Sewaktu-waktu, ia bisa menggunakannya untuk kepentingan rakyat.

Prabu hanya mengambil sedikit emas dan permata. Ia membawanya ke ahli perhiasan. "Tolong, buatkan kalung yang sangat indah untuk putriku," kata Prabu. "Dengan senang hati, Yang Mulia," sahut ahli perhiasan. Ia lalu bekerja d sebaik mungkin, dengan sepenuh hati. Ia ingin menciptakan kalung yang paling indah di dunia, karena ia sangat menyayangi Putri.

Hari ulang tahun pun tiba. Penduduk negeri berkumpul di alun-alun istana. Ketika Prabu dan Ratu datang, orang menyambutnya dengan gembira. Sambutan hangat makin terdengar, ketika Putri yang cantik jelita muncul di hadapan semua orang. Semua orang mengagumi kecantikannya.

Prabu lalu bangkit dari kursinya. Kalung yang indah sudah dipegangnya. "Putriku tercinta, hari ini aku berikan kalung ini untukmu. Kalung ini pemberian orang-orang dari penjuru negeri. Mereka sangat mencintaimu. Mereka mempersembahkan hadiah ini, karena mereka gembira melihatmu tumbuh jadi dewasa. Pakailah kalung ini, Nak," kata Prabu.

Putri menerima kalung itu. Lalu ia melihat kalung itu sekilas. "Aku tak mau memakainya. Kalung ini jelek!" seru Putri. Kemudian ia melempar kalung itu. Kalung yang indah pun rusak. Emas dan permatanya tersebar di lantai.

Setiap orang yang berada di istana tak dapat berkata apa-apa. Tak seorang pun menyangka, Putri akan berbuat seperti itu. Tak seorang pun bicara. Suasana hening. Tiba-tiba terdengar tangisan Ratu. Tangisannya diikuti oleh semua orang.

Kemudian timbullah kejadian luar biasa, Bumi menangis.Tiba-tiba muncul mata air dari halaman istana. Mula-mula membentuk kolam kecil. Lalu istana mulai banjir. Istana pun dipenuhi air bagai danau. Lalu danau itu makin besar dan menenggelamkan istana.

Sekarang, danau itu disebut Talaga Warna. Danau itu berada di daerah puncak. Di hari yang cerah, kita bisa melihat danau itu penuh warna yang indah dan mengagumkan. Warna itu berasal dari bayangan hutan, tanaman, bunga-bunga, dan langit di sekitar telaga. Namun orang mengatakan, warna-warna itu berasal dari kalung Putri yang tersebar di dasar telaga.

Muhammad Qomarudin

19/XII IPA 2