Schizosinga
By Hassan Hasaa’ree Ali
Translated by Ng Yi-Sheng
Translator’s note:
I’ve known Hassan since 2017, when I began research into Singapore speculative fiction beyond the Anglophone community. He’s part of a wave of millennial, Malay-language authors who are rejuvenating the scene (Farihan Bahron even created his own publishing company, Unggun Creative), often incorporating science fiction and fantasy elements into their explorations of cultural history and Islam.
“Skizo Singa” caught my attention for a few reasons. First, it’s a homage to the classic Malay historical text Sulalatus Salatin (also called Sejarah Melayu or the Malay Annals), using loads of archaic language and royal pronouns that are pretty rare in most contemporary writing. Second, it’s a work of medical humanities: as a professional nurse, Hassan’s using fiction to share knowledge about the symptoms of schizophrenia with readers of the Malay newspaper Berita Minggu. And third: there’s a long tradition of Singaporean writers cutting our great men of history down to size, whether we’re talking about Lee Kuan Yew, Stamford Raffles or Sang Nila Utama (here called Sri Tri Buana). “Skizo Singa” is a classic example of this, but rather than mocking the King, the characters manage his condition with care and indulgence. Anti-monarchism is no excuse to be mean about mental illness!
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Ho Tzu Nyen - Ten Thousand Tigers (2014), Live performance, documentation at The Esplanade Theatre Studio by Ken Cheong. Image courtesy of the artist and Kiang Malingue.
Image description: The image depicts cut-outs of various figures forming a dynamic scene. The cut-outs are attached to thin strings, like puppets. The scene is set in a lush environment with tropical plants. On the right, a tiger, depicted in mid-pounce, has knocked over a table and an intricate mapping instrument. Three darker-skinned individuals in the foreground fall to the ground, flailing their arms and legs. On the left, a lighter-skinned figure wearing a coat and a hat raises his arm in shock; another figure hides behind him. The background is entirely black.
Thus the legendary crown was cast into the sea, and the storm with its mighty waves subsided.
***
Four ships appeared in the waters of Temasek. Upon their arrival at the beach, Sri Tri Buana disembarked from the first, followed by Demang Lebar Daun and the other chiefs from the remaining vessels. His Majesty began to explore the land called Temasek, its beautiful white beaches, its hills and its verdant plains. After wandering far and wide, he rested with his chiefs beneath a sea apple tree, and together they discussed the matter of founding a kingdom.
Having left the shade of the tree, Demang Lebar Daun stood at the river mouth, lost in lengthy contemplation.
“What troubles you?”
The Demang turned his gaze to the voice behind him. “Ah, court astrologer! My mind is running wild with all this talk of politics. If we are to build a kingdom here, whatever will they say in Bintan? And we must consider the regional powers: Ayutthaya to the north and Majapahit to the south. They will have great influence on the security of our state.”
“If this is true, why not share these thoughts with our lord?” the astrologer asked.
Demang Lebar Daun smiled.
“Who am I, a humble servant, to share such words with the King?”
A burst of noise, followed by the cries of men, brought them both back from the mouth of the river to the foot of the sea apple tree. The chiefs were holding torches, and their men bore wooden staves and weapons. Beneath the tree, His Majesty Sri Tri Buana sat trembling, his face pale, sweat dripping down his body and hair.
“Your Majesty!” The astrologer raced to his side.
The King was mute with terror. Only his trembling hand pointed at the bushes at the edge of the plain. The Demang grabbed a torch and a sword and inspected the bushes.
Nothing.
He watched as the astrologer brought water to rinse His Majesty’s face, and as the men bore Sri Tri Buana away to rest.
That night, Demang Lebar Daun and the astrologer visited his place of repose.
“How goes my lord?”
“We are tired still. But thanks to the astrologer’s enchanted water, a sliver of our strength returns.”
The astrologer, having prepared another magical ablution, sat facing Sri Tri Buana.
“Might Your Majesty tell us what he saw?”
The King’s gaze wavered between the two men.
“We saw a beast. Nimble and red was its body, black was its head, and white was its chest. When it saw our people assembled, it leapt up and disappeared. What manner of a beast was this?”
No one answered. The astrologer studied the Demang, who simply nodded as he listened to the King.
All the men were questioned. Had they seen what His Majesty spoke of? None had witnessed the like.
“Have you ever heard of such a thing?” the astrologer asked.
“I checked the bushes. There were no signs of an animal’s passage,” Demang Lebar Daun said. “And you? What knowledge have you?”
“In all my travels, I have neither seen nor heard of a beast such as the one our lord has described. What explanation shall we give?”
The Demang could only shake his head.
“Let us live in hope that today’s matters are soon forgotten.”
***
Ho Tzu Nyen - Utama at the Hunt for the Lion of Singapore (2003), Ink on canvas with acrylic, 29 cm x 49 cm. Image courtesy of the artist and Kiang Malingue.
Image description: The painting depicts two masculine figures against a background of lush, green trees. They both face leftwards. The figure in the back holds up his right arm, pointing towards the distance. The other figure draws a bow, aiming the arrow in the same direction. Thin branches with golden leaves are in the immediate foreground, partly obscuring the two figures.
Thus it is told that Sri Tri Buana ventured into the depths of Temasek on a hunt, accompanied by his chiefs, together with Demang Lebar Daun and the astrologer. His convoy of elephants forded the river, then came to a halt as he cast his gaze wildly from one point to the other.
Demang Lebar Daun faced the King.
“Your Majesty?”
“Look to the river’s edge. The beast we told you of stands on the banks!”
The Demang gazed out at the far side of the river, but there was no trace of the animal with the red body, the black head, and the white chest. He beckoned the astrologer to come forth to examine the scene.
“I fear for our lord's condition,” he said, once they had gained some distance from the royal entourage. “He raves about sights beyond the eyes of men.”
“Could it be that his mind is afflicted?”
The Demang’s face changed as the words left the astrologer's lips.
“Suppose he is of unsound mind. We have untold enemies who would leap at such an opportunity. Bintan would surely seize the upper hand if news of this madness reached their ears.”
“Then what shall we do?”
Demang Lebar Daun looked behind him. The elephant that bore His Majesty Sri Tri Buana approached.
“I have an idea...”
***
“Lord Demang! Demang! Did you see the beast we spoke of?”
Demang Lebar Daun and the astrologer faced Sri Tri Buana.
“May Your Majesty grant us a thousand pardons. The two of us only caught a glimpse of the creature. It fled into the forest on our arrival.”
“And what beast was it?”
“The beast His Majesty saw was a Singa, or lion. Your Majesty’s servant has seen it before, on journeys abroad. It is a glorious and gallant creature,” replied the astrologer. He reached for a stick and drew a picture of an animal with thick fur on its neck and head, a massive body and four paws.
“A lion...” mused Sri Tri Buana.
“Forgive me, my lord. In my opinion, it could well be that the creature you saw was a lion,” Demang Lebar Daun added. “For Your Majesty, it would be the most auspicious of portents.”
His Majesty rejoiced to hear these words. Convinced by the signs of good fortune, he proclaimed, “We shall build a kingdom here, for this is a land of heroic beasts. To all who are here, let it be known that Temasek shall be called Singapore, the Lion City.”
“Long live the King!” cried the Demang, and his voice was echoed by the astrologer, and by all men in attendance.
* * *
“Singapore. I like the sound of it,” Demang Lebar Daun said when he met the astrologer at the mouth of Singapore River.
“You told me to choose a brave animal,” the astrologer said. “A lion came to mind.”
The Demang smiled at these words, but his mind was troubled. What would have happened if the astrologer had chosen another animal?
“His Majesty has despatched Aria Bopala to Bintan to bring news of the kingdom of Singapore. I have sent further heralds to Ayutthaya and Majapahit, bearing tidings and small gifts as a royal courtesy,” he said. "Your duty is to face the Yuan Dynasty in China. Our government must strive to forge good diplomatic relations. This will be vital for Singapore’s reputation and security.”
Receiving his orders, the astrologer prepared to board the boat that would transport him to Singapore harbour, where his ship awaited.
“Do you truly believe this city will prosper?” he asked, as he took his leave.
“Surely it is as His Majesty says,” the Demang answered. “Lions are heroic beasts. We may be small and inconspicuous. Yet we too shall become a heroic city.
Ho Tzu Nyen - Sang Nila Utama (from the Genealogy Series) (2003), Ink on canvas with acrylic, 69 cm x 56 cm. Image courtesy of the artist and Kiang Malingue.
Image description: The painting depicts a young, masculine figure gripping a sword in his right hand. His left hand is clenched into a fist and held by his side. His expression is solemn. Bare-chested, he is wearing a crown-like headwear and a golden necklace. The background is rendered in hazy, broad strokes of gold, orange, and black.
Author’s note:
Research indicates that lions have never lived in Southeast Asia, and that the animal Sri Tri Buana (Sang Nila Utama) saw may have been a tiger. However, tigers are common animals in Southeast Asia. Sang Nila Utama and his men would have been able to identify a tiger if they had seen one.
Schizophrenia is a mental illness in which a patient, if untreated, usually shows disorganised thinking, and may experience delusions or hallucinations.
(First published in Berita Minggu Singapura 5 May 2013, later published in Souvenir dari Angkasa Lepas 2016)
About the Translator
Ng Yi-Sheng is a Singaporean writer of poetry, fiction, non-fiction, theater, and games, with a keen interest in Southeast Asian history and myth. His books include Lion City, last boy (both winners of the Singapore Literature Prize), A Book of Hims, Loud Poems for a Very Obliging Audience, and Black Waters, Pink Sands. Additionally, he served as editor of A Mosque in the Jungle: Classic Ghost Stories by Othman Wok and EXHALE: an Anthology of Queer Singapore Voices, and as translator for Wong Yoon Wah’s The New Village and Homecomings.
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Ho Tzu Nyen
Born in 1976 in Singapore, where he lives and works.
Steeped in numerous Eastern and Western cultural references ranging from art history to theatre and from cinema to music to philosophy, Ho Tzu Nyen’s works blend mythical narratives and historical facts to mobilise different understandings of history, its writing and its transmission. The central theme of his œuvre is a long-term investigation of the plurality of cultural identities in Southeast Asia, a region so multifaceted in terms of its languages, religions, cultures and influences that it is impossible to reduce it to a simple geographical area or some fundamental historical base. This observation as to the history of this region of the world is reflected in his pieces which weave together different regimes of knowledge, narratives and representations. From documentary research to fantasy, his work combines archival images, animation and film in installations that are often immersive and theatrical.
One-person exhibitions of his work have been held at the Hammer Museum (2022), Toyota Municipal Museum of Art (2021), Crow Museum of Asian Arts (2021), Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media [YCAM](2021), Edith-Russ Haus for Media Art (Oldenburg, 2019), Kunstverein in Hamburg (2018), Ming Contemporary Art Museum [McaM] (Shanghai, 2018), Asia Art Archive (2017), Guggenheim Bilbao (2015), Mori Art Museum, (2012), The Substation (Singapore, 2003). He represented the Singapore Pavilion at the 54th Venice Biennale (2011).
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According to his translator Atar Hadari, the late Israeli poet Avraham Chalfi was “a character actor, a clown, a dandy, and a man about town in Tel Aviv.” He was also a poet beloved by the people for his romantic and mystical verses.