The Moral of Leaders Based on Texts in Sulalatus Salatin

Abstract

The grandeur of the Malaccan Malay Sultanate was written in Sulalatus Salatin, a name that means the genealogy of the Sultans. This text has been acknowledged as a great work and was made the reference for scholars in various studies on the Malaccan Sultanate. Until this day the text is still being studied since there a great wealth of information that is yet to be explored. The objective of this paper is to identify and elaborate, by using the Takmilah Theory, morals of the leaders of the Malaccan Malay Sultanate written in Sulalatus Salatin. The qualitative method, which is the descriptive analysis method on a text that is based on the Takmilah Theory, will be used in this study. Sulalatus Salatin contains procedures in creating a leader; it is laden with knowledge on leadership and other related knowledge such as on administration. In addition, this text provides guidance by means of messages and also gives examples of specific values owned by a particular group of society. Hence the narrations in Sulalatus Salatin were written in an exquisite and outstanding manner. From the literary standpoint, Sulalatus Salatin was recognized as an encyclopedia of knowledge that documented experiences and aspirations of a nation, which are the Malays. The ambitions of the nation which were upheld were successfully realised by several reigning rulers of the Malaccan Malay Sultanate. The Malaccan Malay Sultanate has become an empire and the prominent centre of Islam for two decades.