Anak Bajang Herds the Wind: A Novel (9780804859493)

A powerful new reimagining of the ancient Ramayana epic!

Long before the age of men, the sage Wisrawa journeys to the kingdom of Alengka to seek the hand of Princess Sukesi for his lovesick son. But when Wisrawa sees the princess, his passion for her overwhelms his wisdom and their forbidden union unleashes a cosmic imbalance that shakes the heavens. Cursed by the gods, exiled from their kingdoms and shadowed by remorse, Wisrawa and Sukesi's tragedy becomes the origin of all human conflict and suffering—the eternal struggle between divine understanding and earthly desires.

At the center of this Javanese version of the tale is Anak Bajang, the misshapen dwarf child, a mysterious, unseen being whose presence restores balance to a world shaken by chaos. Neither god nor hero, Anak Bajang embodies innocence, sincerity and strength—representing those who strive for purity despite their flaws and who, despite futility, continue to seek meaning—by herding the wind.

Drawing on Javanese retellings of the Ramayana, Sindhunata weaves poetry, myth and philosophy into a visionary epic where gods test mortals, beauty turns to ruin, and even demons yearn for grace. A work of spellbinding imagery and spiritual resonance, Anak Bajang Herds the Wind reveals how the winds of passion and remorse drive both gods and humans and how, from their collision, our world is born.


About the Author:
Dr. Gabriel Possenti Sindhunata SJ is a leading Indonesian journalist and novelist as well as a practicing Jesuit priest. His great masterpiece, Anak Bajang Herds the Wind (1983) is a contemporary classic of Indonesian literature̵selling over 70,000 copies and receiving numerous awards and accolades. Sindhunata is also known for his feature articles on social issues and a regular column about soccer published in the Kompas daily newspaper. He is the editor and general manager of Basis, a magazine focusing on cultural and social issues, and has published over a dozen novels, two poetry collections, four philosophy books and a collection of his newspaper columns on soccer.

Translator Joan Suyenaga was born and raised in Honolulu and earned an M.A. in anthropology from the University of Hawaii. She began studying traditional Javanese gamelan music and language in the early 1970s, and has lived and raised a family in Yogyakarta, Central Java, for the past 30 years while working as a freelance writer, translator and editor focusing on Indonesian and Javanese culture.