Antaboga (; ; ; ), or colloquially also known as the Javan Dragon Snake deity is a

serpent Serpent or The Serpent may refer to: * Snake, a carnivorous reptile of the suborder Serpentes Mythology and religion * Sea serpent, a monstrous ocean creature * Serpent symbolism, the snake in religious rites and mythological contexts * Serpen ...

deity in Javanism and Sundanism (later also adopted in

Balinese Hinduism Balinese Hinduism (; , ''Hindusmé Bali''), also known in Indonesia as ''Agama Hindu Dharma'', ''Agama Tirtha'', ''Agama Air Suci'' or ''Agama Hindu Bali'', is the form of Hinduism practised by the majority of the population of Bali.McDaniel, J ...

Nomenclature

is a Javanese-origin name, derived or inherited from in

Old Javanese Old Javanese or Kawi is an Austronesian languages, Austronesian language and the oldest attested phase of the Javanese language. It was natively spoken in the central and eastern part of Java Island, what is now Central Java, Special Region o ...

meaning . According to the Balinese literatures, the term might possibly rooted from two

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

words, namely (अनन्त, ) and (भोग, ). In

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

traditions, he is identified with Sheshanaga.

Mythology

At the beginning of time, only Antaboga existed. Antaboga

meditate Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness and detach from reflexive, "discursive thinking", achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state, while not judging the meditat ...

d and created the

world turtle The World Turtle, also called the Cosmic Turtle or the World-Bearing Turtle, is a mytheme of a giant turtle (or tortoise) supporting or containing Religious cosmology, the world. It occurs in Hinduism, Chinese mythology, and the mythologies of th ...

named Bedawang from which all other creations sprang. In Javanese and Balinese mythology, Antaboga has two offsprings, a male named Bambang Naga Tatmala and a female one named Dewi Nagagini. According to Sundanese myth, Antaboga was also responsible for the birth of

Dewi Sri Dewi Sri or Shridevi ( Javanese: ꦢꦺꦮꦶꦱꦿꦶ, Balinese: , Dewi Sri, Sundanese: , Nyai Pohaci Sanghyang Asri) is the Javanese, Sundanese, and Balinese Hindu Goddess of rice and fertility, still widely worshiped on the islands of Ja ...

, the rice goddess of Java and Bali. According to ''

Wawacan Sulanjana Wawacan Sulanjana is a Sundanese manuscript containing Sundanese myths. The title means "The Tale of Sulanjana", derived from the name of the hero Sulanjana as the protector of rice plant against the attack of Sapi Gumarang cow, Kalabuat and Bu ...

'', Dewi Sri emerges from the tears that turned into an egg, shed by Antaboga. These days many of the old myths and legends are celebrated in the

wayang ( , ) is a traditional form of puppet theatre play originating from the Indonesian island of Java. The term refers both to the show as a whole and the puppet in particular. Performances of wayang puppet theatre are accompanied by a ''gamel ...

performance that became a vehicle to combine the syncretic philosophies from outside with those philosophies and ideas already rooted within the local cultures and traditions.

Depictions

In Javanese art, Antaboga is often depicted as a crowned serpent. As a divine serpent symbolism, it is applied into ornaments and decorative carvings. Generally it will appear on gong decorations as a symbol of the Javanese dragon. Artefacts of ancient objects are also generally decorated with Javanese dragon figures, such as

keris The kris or is a Javanese asymmetrical dagger with a distinctive blade-patterning achieved through alternating laminations of iron and nickelous iron (''pamor''). The kris is famous for its distinctive wavy blade, although many have straight ...

, temple doors, stairs railings and other Javanese ornaments. Antaboga is possibly derived from the actual native

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

n dragon snake ('' Xenodermus javanicus''), originally and traditionally venerated in Javanism folk religious belief, widely practiced by the local Javanese since pre-Islamic era (before the Islamization of Demak Kingdom, which later transformed as

Demak Sultanate The Demak Sultanate () was a Javanese Muslim state located on Java's north coast in Indonesia, at the site of the present-day city of Demak. A port fief to the Hindu-Buddhist Majapahit kingdom thought to have been founded in the last quarter o ...

Notes

Javanese mythology Legendary serpents Nāgas World-bearing animals {{Asia-myth-stub