Dreaming of 'Korah's treasures' in Pulau Nangka

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In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful; blessings and peace be upon Prophet Muhammad s.a.w.
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Reflection
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The Declining Day (Al-'Asr)
1. By the declining day,
2. Lo! Man is in a state of loss,
3. Save those who believe and do good works, and exhort 
one another to truth and exhort one another to endurance.
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IN the 1970s when I was in primary school, I 'fell in love' with Enid Blyton's 'Five on a Treasure Island'. The book is the first of the 'Famous Five' series. The 'five' (four children and a dog) happen upon an old wreck that was raised to the surface by a fierce storm and discover a map that tells the location of gold ingots that disappeared hundreds of years ago.

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However, the map falls into the hands of criminals who also have designs on the lost gold and it then becomes a race between the children and the criminals to find the lost gold. Old wrecks. Mysterious islands, secret tunnels, thrilling escapes and rescues are all part of this outstanding story.

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Then when I was in secondary school, it was 'Treasure Island' by Robert Louis Stevenson that caught my attention along with 'romantic novels' such as 'The Prisoner of Zenda' and 'The Count of Monte Cristo'. Stevenson, a Scottish writer who wrote 'Treasure Island' introduced me to bad characters such as Long John Silver, the one-legged seaman bearing a parrot on his shoulder.

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And recently, 'Pulau Nangka', a little isle off Melaka, has become 'our new treasure island'. This 'Jackfruit Island' has become the venue of a billion-ringgit treasure hunt. An ancient treasure trove holding many chests of gold bars, a throne and royal regalia stashed away by the last Sultan of Melaka, Mahmud Shah who fled Melaka in 1511 (isn't it like the treasure that disappeared hundreds of years ago as in 'Five on a Treasure Island'?) is reportedly buried in a cave.

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Well, what have 'they' (interested parties concerned such as Smart Partnership International (M) Sdn Bhd which was given a four month contract to find treasure on Pulau Nangka), found so far?

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On the last day of their million ringgit contract, they 'unveiled' two yellowish coins with a diametre of six centimetres claimed to have been found in different locations on the island. The first coin with five lines of inscription is believed to be from the Majapahit Kingdom while the second coin with a square hole in the middle has Jawi script around it.

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Both the coins have been submitted to the National Heritage Department for laboratory tests to verify their origins; but Melaka Chief Minister, Idris Haron seemed not pleased with the development, saying: "I am still not fully convinced that the coins came from there (Pulau Nangka) as they could have dropped off. We have to investigate this.”

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Idris’ guess was right; Melaka Museums Corporation (Perzim) general manager, Khamis Abas told him that tests on the coins revealed that they were made of a mixture of bronze and silver. “Speculations that the contractors had struck gold on the island had been laid to rest for good as the coins were actually made of bronze and silver mixture," he said.

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So, there's 'no gold' on Pulau Nangka. But why did the authorities in the first place scream 'gold' on 'Jackfruit Island'. Even the Melaka State Government headed by Idris proudly said his side would apply to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) to recognise Pulau Nangka as a heritage site if the artifacts found were proven to be part of the treasure from the Melaka Sultanate.

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He said Pulau Nangka would become a site for historians and archaeologists to collect information about the Melaka Malay sultanate. Malaysian Institute of Patriotism and Historical Studies chairman, Mohd Jamil Mukmin 'added fuel to the fire'  when he claimed that besides Pulau Nangka; Pulau Besar and St Paul’s Hill in Bandar Hilir were believed to be areas where treasure was kept during the rule of the Melaka Sultanate.

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He said the sultanate was believed to have kept the treasure in the three areas to prevent them from being seized if Melaka fell. However, there was no proof currently showing that there was treasure in Pulau Besar and St Paul’s Hill areas except the findings of porcelain artefacts in the Bandar Hilir area near St Paul’s Hill other than the search for treasure being focused in the three areas.

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As a Melakan I was baffled by the 'enthusiasm' shown by the authorities lately 'to unearth hidden treasures' including in Pulau Nangka. In my opinion, 'somebody' or 'some parties' purposely did this to divert attention from serious matters in the state. Or there may be 'some smart guy working according to his ways' to promote the state including Pulau Nangka for the tourism industry.

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Perhaps this story entitled 'The Farmer, His Sons, and the Field' which I had read during my primary school years could open our eyes to that possibility.

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Once there was a farmer who had four sons. The farmer was a hard-working man, but his sons were very lazy. As the farmer grew old, he realized that he had to teach his sons the value of hard work before he died.

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So, he took all his money and bought some land. The land was covered with weeds and full of stones, but the man knew it would be fertile ground for farming. His sons, however, were angry because they thought the land was worthless. They complained bitterly, but their father promised them that he had a good reason for buying the land.

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Then, when he grew sick and knew he was dying, he summoned his sons and revealed the secret. "Now, before it is too late, I will tell you why I bought that land. I had a dream and in my dream I was told that in that land there is a treasure chest full of gold, but it is buried deep within the ground. Just find the buried treasure, and you will be wealthy for the rest of your lives." With those words, the old man died.

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The sons were eager to uncover the treasure, so they started to dig. They pulled up the weeds and carted away the stones, turning over the soil to look for the treasure. They worked the ground for many days until, at last, they understood their father's words: the treasure was the land itself, made rich by their own hard work. They planted crops and the harvest was plentiful, and so it was every year, just as their father had promised.

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The moral of the story is that hard work pays off, although it is not always in the way that you expect. So to the leaders and 'rakyat' of Melaka; please work very, very hard; do not expect or even dream of becoming rich in finding 'harta Qarun' (Korah's treasures) on Pulau Nangka!