Mount Kawi in Malang Regency, East Java, has long occupied a unique position in the narrative of business history in Indonesia. This area is not merely a tourist destination, but a pilgrimage site for many who believe in the existence of blessings or spiritual guidance for business success. Behind the grandeur of the business empires of national conglomerates lies the journey of several major figures who took a spiritual path in this region.
Historian George Quinn notes in his work that Ong Hok Liong, the founder of the Bentoel cigarette company, was one of the figures who diligently visited Mount Kawi. The most crucial moment in his career occurred around 1954, when he received inspiration through a dream about taro root after making a pilgrimage to the tomb of Eyang Jugo. Based on the caretaker's interpretation, he subsequently changed his company's name to Bentoel—the local term for taro root—which proved to be a turning point of extraordinary success, making him a multi-millionaire businessman during his lifetime.
Not only Ong Hok Liong, but the founder of the Salim Group, Liem Sioe Liong (Sudono Salim), was also recorded as having a similar habit. According to Richard Borsuk and Nancy Chng, the figure behind the Salim Group business empire routinely visited Mount Kawi several times a year. Liem frequently performed rituals at the local temple to seek guidance in making strategic business decisions, including when he decided to partner with Mochtar Riady to expand Bank Central Asia (BCA).
For Liem, guidance from fortune tellers on Mount Kawi and adherence to feng shui principles became important instruments in guiding his corporate moves. Although business rationality is often the primary benchmark in the modern corporate world, this pilgrimage phenomenon shows another side of the historical journey of national industrial pioneers in seeking peace and direction amidst the intense economic competition of their time.
