Event

Palapa oath

c. 1336 · 14th century · Also known as Sumpah Palapa

The Palapa oath (Sumpah Palapa) is the vow attributed by the Javanese chronicle Pararaton to Gajah Mada, chief minister of Majapahit, on his appointment around 1336. He swore not to taste palapa, understood as a worldly pleasure, until the islands of the archipelago had been brought under Majapahit. It is celebrated in modern Indonesia as a symbol of national unity.

Palapa oath
Image: Gunawan Kartapranata · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

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Majapahit EmpireMilitary

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Palapa oath. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/palapa-oath
MLA
“Palapa oath.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/palapa-oath. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Palapa oath.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/palapa-oath.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Palapa oath’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/palapa-oath (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻