PERIGI HANG TUAH ( HANG TUAH'S WELL )


Near the entrance, a sign board is erected with a short description about the well.This was what it said:

" Hang Tuah himself was said to have dug the well and it has never dried up even in the most severe of droughts.Water from this well is said to be sacred and have healing properties.Locals believed that Hang Tuah's soul, which takes on the apparition of a white crocodile, dwells in this well.The presence of this well gave rise to the notion that Hang Tuah was from Duyong.The locals however dispute the belief and said that Hang Tuah was from Duyong in East Sumatra, where a similiar well also exists.Furthur details and background on Hang Tuah is available at his mausoleum in Tanjung Kling.The site is under care of the Museum Melaka Corporation.The Hang Tuah Well was gazetted as an old monument and historical site under the Antiquities Act no.168/1976 on 29/9/1977.

Lokasi terletak di Kampung Duyong.Perigi ini dikatakan digali sendiri oleh Hang Tuah.Keadaan bentuk, keluasan dan kedalaman perigi ini berubah menjadi besar yang mana dahulu dikatakan kecil sahaja.Ianya tidak pernah kering walaupun di musim kemarau pankang.Airnya yang jernih dianggap suci kerana dapat menyembuhkan sebarang penyakit dan juga untuk kegunaan bayar niat atau sebagainya."

[ I have shortened the Malay description of the well as it is similiar to the one in English ]




Besides the above facts, I also found out that well was 6 feet deep.Washing one's face with the well water can also improve one's complexion.According to an acquaintance, her sister visited this well a few years ago, drank from it and is now a changed person.Before drinking the well water, she used to be gentle and has a quiet nature.Now she is skilled in silat and has a fiery temper.

What struck me as strange about this well was not its story but the water itself.It is so clear that one could see below its surface.To think that ever since the well existed, the water remained clear.( While the  water in the fish pond at my house  would turn a murky brown a few days after the water has been changed. ) Well, I did not see the white crocodile.The only thing I saw inside the well were 4 greyish-coloured fish, swimming just below the surface.This is either the work of one of the locals who thinks that rearing fishes in the well would result in those fishes having magical powers or the well must somehow be connected to an underground stream

If one is observant, one would see that the rocks below the surface of the water is white in colour.Real strange since the rocks ( which makes up the well ) above the surface of the water is covered in moss ( So are the sides of my fish pond below the surface of the water ) and the rocks are dark brownish-greyish in colour.

I took some well water in a mineral water bottle ( just as a momento of my trip to this place. ) and I noticed that the water really is as clear as drinking water.( Should I put my goldfish in and see if it turns into a silat-fighter?...On second thoughts, I think I'll let the water remain in the bottle as it is.)

Not much to see around here unless one wants to wait for the white crocodile to appear.

Rating : Quite interesting, mysterious


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