The classical Betawi writer Muhammad Bakir bin Syafian Usman Fadli likes to write prose which tells of wayang written in Malay and using Arabic-Jawi characters. All of his works were written on a 32 × 20 cm lined European paper.

One of his works is Hikayat Asal Mulalanya Wayang which was completed on August 6, 1890 in Pecenongan Village. Muhammad Bakir did not complete this manuscript at once. This can be seen in the various dates included in the manuscript. For example, on page 233 there is 17 Hapit (Islamic-Javanese calendar) 1306 Hijriah and 15 July 1889. Another calendar is on page 256. On that page a story occurs on 15 Muharam 1307 Hijriah or on 11 September 1889. In Muhammad Bakir's manuscript, the dates that are usually inserted in the text are the date of the page when it was copied.

The manuscript, which is still stored in the National Library with code ML 241, is also known as Hikayat Wayang Pandu as listed in the Ronkel catalog (1909: 22). This saga was written by Muhammad Bakir based on the story of a dalang (traditional puppeteer) from Kampung Jagal, Pasar Senen.

The Story

The story of the origin of Wayang contains the lineage of Pandu Dewanata, the ancestor of the Pandawa family, who was passed down by the gods from heaven. He had a son named Bermana. Bermana got a son who was named Parikenan. Wanting to create hustle and bustle in the realm of the world, the gods ordered Parikenan to come down to the world to become a king. He was accompanied by the angel Maya Siti as his wife, and Batara Jagat, who was disguised as Lurah Semar.

Semar also created clowns, namely Gerubuk, Anggalia, Gareng, and Cemuris. Parikenan together with Lurah Semar build a country called Mandili Diraja. The Pandu family lineage starts from Parikenan, then Kemunuyusu, Sakutaram, Sakkara, Purasara, and Ganggasuta with the title Begawan Abiyasa.

Ganggasuta has 3 sons, namely Destarata, Pandu Dewanata, and Rama Widura. At the end of the script, it is told that Pandu Dewanata's battle with his enemies. From the war, Pandu got 3 wives, namely Dewi Kunti, Dewi Rukmini, and Dewi Gandawati.

This lineage later will produce descendants of Pandawa and Kurawa. Pandawa is descendant of Pandu Dewanata who is married to Dewi Kunti, while Kurawa is descendant of Destarata who is married to Dewi Gandari.

Pandu brought his three wives home to Astina, accompanied by Abiyasa, Lurah Semar and Gerubuk. On the last page, it is explained: “This saga has another connection to another kerisan, namely Pandu descending on Pandawa Lima on page 281, which means Hikayat Gelaran Pandu Turunan Pandawa contained in the ML 253 manuscript.