Sukardi (46 years), a shop owner in Plered said: “ISLAM stands for (I)-sa, (S)-ubuh, (L)-uhur, (A)-sar, (M)-agrib”; that is, the prescribed daily prayers five times a day for every Muslim who supposes himself to be devout. Isya (‘Isha) is the duty of undertaking night prayer, Subuh (Subh) morning prayer, Luhur (Dhuhr) noon prayer, Asar (‘Asr) afternoon prayer and Magrib (Maghrib) sunset prayer. I asked Sukardi whether he was serious in saying so, and he was not. He urged me not to take his words seriously because what he had just said was only a frivolous tautology (kirata, dikira-[kira] nya-[ta]), which he had heard from his friends. He insisted that what he had said did not have any sort of textual basis: “it is not available in books” (langka ning kitabe).

Sukardi's remark is a manipulation of five Roman letters: ‘I’, ‘S, ‘L’, ‘A’ and ‘M’, forming the word “ISLAM”; each individual letter is said to represent the initial —in local language— the time and the name of the five daily prayers. This would make the five prayers a summation of the meaning of Islam. I realised later that in fact, such a joke is not strange and is already known by local people. Knowing that Islam was born in Arabia they are quite aware that Islam has no relation with the Roman letters. This fabrication is, however, interesting in that it reflects a genuine intelligible folk explanation of the position of the prescribed daily prayers in Islam.

The prescribed daily prayers (salat), which Watt (1979:185) prefers to call “public worship” rather than “prayer” is really the heart of Islamic worship.^[30] Watt's preference to use “public” is understandable given that the Muslims speak of two distinct sets of acts for worship, referred to in English by the word “prayer”. One is the so called du'a (in Cirebon: donga), an expression of thought, hopes or needs directed to God either in Arabic or in any other language, by heart or by tongue. This is usually done when the performer is either sitting, reclining, standing, walking or any other position, and can occur at any time; whereas Salat (in Cirebon: sembayang or solat), consists of various coordinated actions, such as standing, bowing and prostration, accompanied by appropriate exclamations of praise and recitations from the Qur'an, and performed only at the prescribed time. Owing to its important position to the Muslims, I shall focus the discussion concerning the practice of worship (ibadat), mainly on prayer. Other forms of ibadat are discussed in conjunction with this prayer. In addition, without disregarding Watt's suggestion, the use of the word “prayer” to mean salat, is widely used.^[31] For practical reasons, I will use both salat and prayer interchangeably.

Based on people's commitment to the prescribed prayer, there is a wide prevalence in Cirebon to categorise people roughly and yet arbitrarily into wong sembayang (those who observe the prayer) and wong bli sembayang (those who do not observe the prayer). This categorisation has nothing to do with structuring people into particular positions, neither has it any effect on any form of personal rights, although one who observes is considered better from the religious point of view than a non-observer. This categorisation is quite arbitrary in the sense that a non-observer, even without other people's notice, can become observer at will and at any time.  Sooner or later, other people will notice. In the same way, an observer can become a non-observer.

There is no written record about the number of people who move from being non-observers to being observers or vice-versa. However, the tendency of people moving from being non-observers to observers is much greater than the reverse, especially when they find themselves getting older. In addition, most of those who may be considered as non-observers go at least once or twice a year to the ‘Id prayer (sembayang raya), the congregation prayer at the end of Ramadan and the tenth of Dzu'l-Hijjah. This suggests that the categorisation between observer and non-observer can better be regarded as involving a continuous process rather than a discrete dichotomy. Its practical implication is behavioural rather than social in that, it indicates the crucial position of prayer relative to other forms of ibadat in determining one's religiosity. It makes prayer into a kind of public acceptance which is distinct from, for example, alms-giving. This is true because, unlike with other worship activities, people consider prayer as everyone's duty without exception, be that person healthy or sick, rich or poor. This formal acceptance does not necessarily mean actual commitment. Yet, it is quite common, in Cirebon, to hear gossip about someone's commitment to prayer. In contrast, there is no question of whether or not someone has pronounced syahadat, (testimony) although syahadat is the foundation of all other worship activities and the key to being a Muslim. Probably, it is taken for granted that everyone born to a Muslim family is automatically a Muslim. Considering that salat is a matter of public concern, Watt's preference of referring to salat as a “public worship” rather than as “prayer” is actually quite sensible.

The daily life in Cirebon, as in other societies, consists mainly of sleeping, working and leisure. There is, of course, a great diversity between individuals as well as between groups regarding the time and duration of each activity. The normal situation dictates that sleeping is at night, working occurs during day time, and  leisure in between. Some exceptions occur among those who work as village security, fishermen and sometimes among those who are traders.

A snapshot which illustrates a segment of the daily life of the Cirebonese village in the morning, wherein ibadat becomes a part, may be useful. Here, I want to refer to the case of Pak Shofie's and the surrounding households with whom I had become a part:

This is the way they prepare for morning-prayer (sembayang subuh), the earliest daily activity done by Pak Shofie's family and many others. The most important of these activities is making the ceremonial ablution (banyu wulu), which is a prerequisite before offering any prayer. The formal function of ablution is self-purification (nyuceni awak dewek) which is particularly required for everyone who does holy work, such as undertaking the prescribed prayer. As the nature of prayer is to have communion and communication with God, the Holiest and Purest Being, praying requires the performer to be in a state of purity.

Ablution is a kind of ceremonial bathing that involves washing parts of the body generally exposed to dirt, dust or smog. Officially, it consists of the declaration of intention, the washing of face and hands, the wetting of a part of the head and the washing of legs; all are done in successive order. Usually, however, it is performed as follows: (1) utter the Basmalah: “In the name of Allah the Beneficent, the Merciful” (2) wash the hands up to the wrists (3) rinse out the mouth with water three times (4) cleanse the nostrils of the nose by sniffing water into them three times (5) declare an intention that the act is for the purpose of worship and purity (6) wash the whole face three times with both hands from the top of the forehead to the bottom of the chin and from ear to ear (7) wash the right and the left arms up to the far end of the elbow, three times each (8) wipe the whole head or any part of it with a wet hand (9) wipe the inner sides of the ears with the wet forefingers and the outer sides with the wet thumbs (10) wash the two feet, three times each, first the right and then the left, up to the ankles. When all these thing are completed, one is ready to offer prayer unless the purification is nullified by things such as vomiting, falling asleep and natural discharges: urine, stools, gas.

This ablution actually exceeds formal ablution requirements (fardlu). There are only six of these, comprising: intention, washing the face, washing the hands up to the elbows, rubbing the head with a wet hand, washing the feet up to the ankles and keeping these activities in the proper order. The additional practices belong to the sunnah. Pak Shofie teaches his students about ablution through a chant which he claimed as his father's creation. The chant is as follows:

Along with its formal functions, some informants insist on the symbolic meaning of ablution as a sort of self-reminder (ngelingaken), introspection (ngrumangsani) and, at the same time, expression of repentance (tobat), expecting God to nullify any bad effects coming from improper activity by the misuse of those organs. Washing the mouth signifies an expectation for nullifying any disgrace from improper or unlawful saying and eating; washing the face is to nullify improper seeing, facing and directing of any activity; washing the hands is to nullify improper holding and doing; washing the head is to nullify improper thinking; washing the ears is to nullify improper hearing; washing the legs is to nullify improper places that the legs have taken the body. Some other informants emphasise an even wider meaning. Any action involving the ablution of those organs is a symbol of the basic tenet of Islamic ethics. It is not only to nullify what is already done but more importantly, ablution is a refreshing instrument which reminds everyone to be careful in using those organs and thence avoid any probable misuse for having or doing illicit and forbidden actions. Ablution is therefore, interpreted by some as an encompassing framework which, ideally, guides an individual as well as a social activity for the preservation of a safe and peaceful life.

Early in the morning, people's activities throughout the hamlet centre mainly around the wells located outside the house. Since not every household has their own bathroom and source of water supply, the well becomes a place of rendezvous for a number of households. The well is usually owned by one household but it becomes public, used by the others, for bathing and washing either clothes or dishes. Ablution  is taken from the padasan (a jar propped on a pillar, usually stone or brick, at knee height with a small water outlet near the bottom). Upon their return they take with them a bucket or two of water for cooking and other necessities. In the meantime the religious atmosphere accompanying the early morning in a village is approximately as follows:

Some argue that all sounds heard in the morning are an offence to private individuals concern, causing only a nuisance rather than convenience, obstructing the nicest sleeping time. Such an issue, Pak Nasuha (52 years) said, was raised sometimes in the 1960s by PKI (Indonesian Communist Party) members. The argument finally stopped without causing any more problems, after the PKI was banned in 1966. According to Pak Nasuha, the “nuisance”, for those who think so, is now intensified by the wide-spread use of sound systems in many tajug, even the small ones like Pak Shofie's. Some, particularly among the modernists in Kalitengah, besides claiming that it is an innovation (bid'ah), call the contents and usefulness of the sounds into question, asking whether it has any educative value for the people given that the sound is almost totally Arabic and thus, not understandable.  While denouncing this practice they claim that only the adzan is acceptable. Most people however, think about it differently. For example, I asked Bi Rukila (52 years), a woman snack peddler from the neighbouring house to Pak Shofie, if she knows the meaning of the sound coming from the prayer houses and, how she feels about it. Her comment was as follows:

Pak Shofie's prayer house also contributes to the creation of the morning's religious atmosphere. This starts when someone strikes the kentong hanging in the verandah of the tajug adjacent to Pak Shofie's house. It instantly wakes any young boys sleeping in it. There are four or more boys from nearby households who often use the tajug to sleep in. Usually, there are two or three of Pak Shofie's neighbours who come to the tajug quite early and strike the kentong. Then if there is a man among them he turns on the tajug’s sound systems and sounds the adzan. If there are no men present, a woman beats the kentong, and the adzan is not immediately sounded. Pak Shofie's sons will understand the situation and one of them will suspend bathing, take only ablution, and go off to the tajug to sound the adzan. After adzan, the congregation (jama'ah) in the tajug chants puji-pujian in chorus, while more and more people come to join the chorus and the group grows bigger and bigger. Some do pre-morning prayer in the midst of the chorus. The most frequent  chant sounded in this tajug is the “Cry of Adam and Eve for Repentance”. It was said that Adam uttered it soon after being thrown from paradise. According to Pak Shofie, it teaches us to be a kesatriya (an open-minded individual) in that, when something goes wrong, the first thing to do is to reflect and to look for one's own fault rather than blaming others, and then generously confess that it is really one's own fault not the fault of others. The chant is in Arabic and translates as follows:

After doing pre-morning prayer at home, Pak Shofie goes to the tajug; a person of the group, usually the one who sounded the adzan, stands up again to sound the iqamat, a shorter form of adzan, commanding the group into prayer. All people stand, the women loosen the lower part of the mukena, so that it covers all parts of the body; only the face and palms of the hands are visible. Pak Shofie enters, walks across to the 1.5 square metre niche (pengimaman or mihrab), located at the centre of west-wall inside the tajug cube, and stands there facing Mecca.

Just before the morning prayer begins Pak Shofie, who is about to start to lead the prayer, first turns to the group and reminds them to stand properly and form straight lines. They stand behind him, shoulder to shoulder and foot to foot to form straight lines. Usually, there are four to seven lines in the congregation, each line consists of five or six people. Men and women are separated by the line. The front lines consist only of men and boys, behind them are lines consisting only of women and girls.

The prayer starts when Pak Shofie, who leads the prayer (imam), pronounces takbir, saying “Allah the Greatest” (“Allahu Akbar”), with his hands open on each  side of the face and with his palms facing the front, very near, almost or even touching the lobes of the ears. This act is followed by the others. But before the takbir, everyone, including the leader, concentrates his/her mind individually and utters an intention (niat) in Arabic softly in a whispered tone: “I intend to undertake morning prayer two raka'at (unit of prayer) facing the Qiblat (in Mecca) for the sake of Allah alone.” After takbir, the hands are folded, the right palm is put over the left, against the front of the body; this position is kept while standing. A set of opening words (Iftitah) is recited softly which translates:

Following the iftitah, the Imam recites the first Surah of the Holy Qur'an (Fatihah) audibly, while the others listen or follow it by heart. When the Fatihah ends, everyone responds in chorus: “Amen.” After the Fatihah comes recital of a short surah, or few verses of the Qur'an. After that the further practice is as follows: (1) Bowing down from the hips (ruku), with the head and back parallel to the ground; the hands hold the knees and a phrase is softly uttered three times: “Glory to my God the Great”. (2) Straightening up after bowing, returning to the upright position, saying: “Allah hears those who praise Him” followed by “Our God, to thee be the praise.” (3) Sliding to the knees and doing the first prostration with the knees, forehead and nose touch the ground, saying: “Glory to my God, the Highest”, also three times. (4) First sitting on the heels with one foot up and the other flat; the head is raised from the first prostration, the back is erect and the hands rest on the knees, saying: “God, please forgive me and give me thy mercy” (5) Repeating the prostration, again with saying: “Glory to my God, the Highest,” three times and then coming back to a standing position. After that the Fatihah and short verses are again recited. The observances from Fatihah to the second prostration constitutes a unit  (raka'at or raka'at). The morning prayer proceeds in two units concluded by the utterance of reverence (Tahiyat) or witness-bearing (Tasyahud). At the upright position, after straightening up from ruku of the second unit, a qunut is read.^[36] The Tahiyat or Tasyahud consists of two parts; each translates as follows:

It appears that within the tahiyat there is a pronouncement of syahadat (from which the name tasyahud is derived). When it is pronounced, the person praying raises his index finger as if he is pointing to the west, although, according to one informant, it is not pointing to the West but gesturing and affirming the oneness of God as pronounced in the syahadat. At the end of tahiyat everyone turns their faces right and then left, each turn being accompanied by a greeting (salam), saying: “Peace be upon you, so be (upon you) God's grace and His blessing” This greeting marks the completion of the prayer. At this moment young boys and girls instantly stand up and go out of the prayer house, whereas most adults and some youngsters sit there still to attend wiridan or simply, wirid (litany or a set of after-prayer  invocations). Pak Shofie, the Imam, turns around to face the group and starts loading the wirid. Unlike the prayer which is solemn and formal, wirid is more relaxed. Basically wirid is a prayer formulae comprising a set of invocations; its essence is to glorify God (tasbih) 33 times, praise God (tahmid) 33 times and exalt God (takbir) 33 times, concluding with an invocation. Sometimes, tahlil (negation of any deity but Allah) 21, 41 or 100 times is also included before the conclusion. The invocation or du'a (donga) to conclude the wirid is recited by the Imam, begging God for everyone's beneficial and safe life in this world and in the hereafter. Everyone raises up the palms in front of their faces, responding to the leader repeatedly, with “Amen”, in chorus. At the end of the du'a everyone rubs their palms against their faces, then everyone gets up to shake each other's hands; the congregation breaks up at about five o'clock a.m., which indicates that the whole process lasts about a half hour. While shaking hands, a fare-well chant is uttered. The most frequent chant for this occasion is “The Cry of Prophet Ayyub” in local Arabic pronunciation and translates as follows:

Pak Shofie's prayer house is small (4.5×6 square metres) compared with the other 11 prayer houses in the desa, but what usually goes on at other prayer houses follows the same pattern. The same practices are also carried out at other prayer houses in the villages outside the desa, in the desa mosques, around the shrines (kramat), and in pesantren. It is a common pattern followed by traditionalists in Cirebon and elsewhere in Java. This pattern may extend to what happens at other prayer times as well. The difference between this and other prayer times is (as Fiqh  dictates), the number of units (raka'at). The morning prayer, proceeds in two units; noon, afternoon and night prayers respectively, four units and two tahiyat, one tahiyat comes after the first two units and another one after the fourth. Sunset prayer proceeds in three units and two tahiyat. The first tahiyat follows the first two units and the second after the third, the last unit. Another difference is in the recital of Fatihah and other surah of the Qur'an which is audible in the morning, and at the first two units of sunset as well as night prayers, but it is spoken softly at noon and afternoon prayers.

Not all people do their prayer at a prayer house and in congregation (jama'ah). Most of them do it at their homes, individually or in a group with their family members; there are even some who do not do it at all. Whether or not people observe the duty, the religious atmosphere undoubtedly dominates the early morning of village life. This atmosphere is further enriched by religious programmes (public lectures or pengajian) from several radio stations and, more recently, from the regional TV broadcast transmitted from Bandung.

Among Pak Shofie's family only his wife and Yazid, (26 years), his oldest son, a recent graduate of a state university in Solo (Central Java), stay at the tajug to attend the wirid until the end. The others return home earlier, read the Qur'an for a while and do some house work. Yayuk, the older daughter, younger sister of Yazid, works in the kitchen to prepare morning tea or coffee, clean the dishes or do her washing. Her sister, Titiek (8 years), is too young to be able to join in her work. After reciting the Qur'an she goes to her bedroom to listen to the radio. Didin and Fadlan the two sons clean the floor. After having some tea and snacks, they kiss their father's and mother's right hands for permission to go to school for morning class at 7.00 a.m., Imran goes to the market to open Pak Shofie's kiosk, preceding another boy of the neighbouring household who will join him a bit later to work as an assistant in the kiosk.

It is after the break up of the morning prayer that people begin to engage in the daily business. In the village daily routine, the first thing to do is household work, and then they do work for a living. School children go to schools, adults go to the markets, to the offices, to the factories and workshops, to the agricultural lands. Aside from the few who are involved in formal official jobs, working hours are quite flexible. Normally, for most people however, work stretches from sunrise to around 5.00 p.m, with two intervals, one for meal around 9.00–10.00 a.m and for a snack (njabur), usually a big one, and one for prayer, between 12.00 noon and 1.30 p.m.^[37] For those who do not rely on a clock, noon is signified by the sound of bedug, and adzan from the mosques, informing people that the prayer time has come.^[38] Only noon and Thursday afternoon prayer-time is signified by bedug; other times are indicated by the sound of kentong from the mosques as well as from other prayer houses.

Among the prescribed daily prayers held in congregation, sunset prayer attracts the largest numbers. The second largest attendance is at night prayer and then after these comes the morning prayer time. These congregations are not compulsory, although they are recommended. From the break up of night prayer until late, a class for learning to read the Qur'an (ngaji) for boys, girls and children, is held, either at the prayer house or at the teacher's house. At his prayer house Pak Shofie also  teaches some grown up boys to read Kitab, the Safinah and Sulam Taufiq.^[39] Bed-time begins soon after the children have come back from ngaji, but because of the presence of television, bed-time has become more flexible, often it is suspended until eleven or even twelve midnight. The class for learning to read the Qur'an usually ceases during, and for a few days after, the Fasting month.

Formal congregation, which is compulsory for Muslims, is held once a week at noon on Friday in the mosque. It is compulsory only for men; women are allowed to go but are not compelled. This congregation is a substitute for noon prayer but consists only of two units instead of four, and the recitation of the Fatihah and other verses of the Qur'an by the leader (imam) is made out loud. A sermon (khutbah) given by a khatib (who may be the same person as the imam) should precede the prayer, and the congregation should not be less than forty people, including the imam. This is the basic pattern of Friday prayer in Islam. There are some who say that four people is enough to make up a Friday congregation, but this never happens in Cirebon.

In Cirebon, the religious atmosphere in the village is most apparent on Friday. According to local belief, Friday is the master of the days (sayidul ayyam or sayid al-ayyam). It is the most gracious day for religious service. On Thursday, the day before, the time for afternoon prayer is signalled by the bedug, implying that after sunset of that day, it will be Friday. By sunset on Thursday, some people buy flowers to be scattered on their beds and some burn incense (ukup-ukup). The real purpose of burning incense is not known except there are some who say that it is to drive setan away; some others say that they only follow their elders; still other say that it is to signal (tengeran, literally, the sign) that it is Friday. While the burning of incense is mostly done inside the house its fragrance carries some distance.

On Friday some visit their elders' graves to pray for God's mercy and forgiveness on them. After sunset prayers, they read the Holy Qur'an, especially Yasin (QS 36), Waqi'ah (QS 56) and Tabarok (Al-Mulk, QS 67). By reading these Surah they expect God's forgiveness, a safe life and merit in the world and the hereafter. After night (Isya) prayer there are gatherings for a Marhaba chant (poetry reading taken from Barzanji to revere the Prophet Muhammad); some others hold Hadiwan or Manaqib (special invocations by reference to wali).^[40] At the end of either Marhaba or Hadiwan, usually around 10.00 p.m., foods are served and the people eat together.

Every Friday around ten o'clock in the morning the bedug in the mosque is beaten in a way which is different from the ordinary beating at noon. This beating, called penatag (reminder), is aimed to remind people that it is Friday, and that there might be some who need to make necessary arrangements for Friday congregation. Older people are probably those who are mostly concerned as it is they who usually go to the mosque early around 11.00 o'clock a.m. The popular belief prevails that the earlier one goes to Friday congregation the better, and hence more, the reward that can be expected. Metaphorically it is explained that the relative merit of coming to congregation early, coming just on time, or coming late is like getting a cow compared to a chicken, or compared to an egg.

The activity of those who come early centres on uttering invocations, reading the Qur'an, salawat or just sitting calmly. As soon as anyone arrives at the mosque, they do a voluntary two unit prayer individually in reverence of the mosque (tahiyatul masjid). About fifteen minutes before noon, salawat is chanted repeatedly saying: “Oh Allah, assuage our mentor Muhammad and give thy grace to our mentor  Muhammad.”^[41] The chanting is brought to a high pitch when the bedug is beaten signalling the prayer time. The beating of bedug takes two or three minutes ending simultaneously with the termination of the chanting. One who is in charge as muadzin (one who sound the adzan) or bilal, stands up to sound adzan.^[42] After the adzan he urges, in Arabic, those attending the congregation to do a two unit voluntary prayer, the pre-congregational prayer (qabliyah Jum'ah). After having finished doing the prayer, the second muadzin (who may also be the same person as the first) stands up, takes a walking stick or a spear from the pulpit beside the mihrab and, keeping it in his hand, turns around facing the congregation telling them (in Arabic) that within a few seconds the sermon will be spoken. He is the second muadzin, one who sounds the (second) adzan. He urges the audience to follow the sermon solemnly by reciting a Hadith narrated by Bukhari and Muslim which states that speaking or talking while the sermon is spoken is disdain. In the meantime someone sitting among the congregation stands up and walks towards the muadzin, takes the walking stick or spear and goes to the podium. He is the khatib, who is in charge of giving the sermon. When the khotib reaches the podium he does not immediately turn to face the congregation but stand still for few seconds as the muadzin utters a du'a (invocation) for the safety of all Muslims and believers, men and women, alive and dead. Everyone raises their hands, puts the palms of their hands in front of their faces responding “Amen” in chorus repeatedly and rubs their palms against their faces when the du'a is finished. The khatib turns around to stand on the podium, facing the congregation with the greeting: “Peace be upon you, so be the mercy of Allah and His Blessing” (Assalamu'alaikum warahmatullahi wabarokatuh or al-salam ‘alaykum wa rahmah Allah wa barakatuh) then he sits  down on the podium seat. When he is sitting the muadzin sounds the (second) adzan. After sounding the adzan the muadzin sits down and the sermon starts.

A sermon consists of two parts. Each part starts with praising God and praying to God to bless the Prophet Muhammad. In the first part, a Qur'anic passage is recited and explained for the purpose of exhortation and admonition. A call to devotion and piety is the main theme of every sermon, calling upon all Muslims to follow the true path, do good things, and avoid sins. News of the current situation in the Muslim world and its relevance for the local community is also offered. At the end of the first part of the sermon the khatib takes a short rest by sitting on the podium seat, then stands up again to give the second sermon. Although general affairs may be discussed in either one or both parts of most sermons, in several mosques I attended, the khatib used only the first part for such a purpose. At the end of the second part, which is usually entirely in Arabic, the khatib prays for the general welfare of all Muslims. Since mid-1992 many khatib in Cirebon explicitly expressed, in their invocations, the hope for the safety and welfare of the Bosnian people who were in chaos. This substantiates the sense of Muslim brotherhood within the community of believers transcending the geographic, national, ethnic and racial boundaries. Throughout the praying the audience responds repeatedly with “Amen.”

After the sermon is concluded, the iqamat is made and the two units of obligatory prayer are led by the imam. The Fatihah and the Qur'anic passage are, on this occasion, read in an audible voice. All procedures used for this prayer follow the ordinary prayer pattern.

At some desa mosques, including that in Kalitengah, the sermon is delivered in a local language, whereas in the city and some urban areas outside the city of Cirebon, it is mostly given in Bahasa Indonesia. There are some desa mosques where the khutbah is fully spoken in Arabic but preceding the formal khutbah, before  prayer-time comes, the public speech (pengajian) is usually made in the local language by local kyai or ustadz. There are also mosques, including the Great Mosque of Kraton Kesepuhan, the mosque within Pesantren Buntet, Kramat Astana Gunung Jati, Cirebon Girang, Kalijaga and many others, where the sermon is fully spoken in Arabic without any public speech preceding it. These certainly represent the most conservative line. The reasons behind this conservativeness varies from one place to another. Some informants gave one or more of the following reasons: (a) an anxiety to conserve an original or antique form of the prayer began by the early propagators of Islam and thus maintain the solemn nature of the prayer (b) to keep the congregation's activities to a short time so that everyone can get back to work without losing too much time or feeling constrained by attending Friday congregation (c) to enhance the spiritual atmosphere of the Friday congregation (d) to avoid any probable conflict arising from misunderstanding or misuse of the khutbah by certain individuals, who might take advantage of the prayers to enunciate their own views in the guise of religious truth.^[43]