ABSTRACT
In 1284 the last king of the maritime kingdom of Singhasāri on Java captured Bali, but the island regained its independence with the death of the king in 1292 and the subsequent dissolution of the kingdom. Some fifty years later, with the rise of the Majapahit Empire, the eastern Javanese made another attempt to bring Bali into their sphere of influ ence, this time more successfully. Bali, then under the rule of Beda Ulu, fell to Majapahit forces in 1343. Local legend remembers Beda Ulu as a king who used his magical powers to assert his dominance over his awed and frightened subjects. Having the ability to reattach severed limbs, Beda Ulu is reported to have cut off his own head and reattach it whenever his subjects needed reminding of his privileged standing with the gods. Tired of being thus manipulated, the bystanders one day handed Beda Ulu a pig's head rather than his own, which was thrown into a deep river never to be found again. Thus reduced, Beda Ulu could no longer command the same degree of respect and allegiance from his subjects; nor did he impress the Majapahits, which decided forthwith to subjugate the Balinese.
