Table of Contents
Characteristics of the leader, the follower, and their patterns of relationship as portrayed in the preceding chapter are given form by the distinctively creative expressions of Islam initiated by Aa Gym and further institutionalised in the life of Daarut Tauhid. As the adjective ‘creative’ implies, these expressions of Islam contain many things new to, or at least distinguishable from, local commonly-held understandings and practices of Islam. This is not to suggest that the Islam of Daarut Tauhid has been uprooted from the supposedly original Islam. It is rather a creative adaptation to current social demands.
The practice of Islam at Daarut Tauhid involves some novel combinations between Islamic orientations previously conceived of as being in opposition. This chapter will discuss the nature of such combinations with some comparisons to other practices of Islam and religions at large.
While many Muslims tend to practise Islam based on the prevailing natural-supernatural dichotomy,[1] those at Daarut Tauhid see no reason to separate the two. They instead view the two as different sides of the same religious coin and therefore as having to be practised together. Neglecting one of the two is as dangerous as ignoring the other. In other words, there must be a sort of delicate combination of the two. This principle is seen in the following aspects of Daarut Tauhidian Islamic practices.
Features of life commonly viewed as worldly and frequently excluded from recent Islamic attention are paid as much attention by Daarut Tauhid as religious concerns. This orientation is clearly observable in both practical and conceptual levels at the pesantren. I shall portray this by describing first its religious and then its worldly practices and concepts.
As at other Islamic centres, Muslims at Daarut Tauhid are involved in both individual and congregational religious practices. Shalat, in its various forms and at various times, serves as the cardinal pillar for their spiritual activities. They perform the shalat congregationally and, more frequently, individually. It takes place at daytime and, more often, at night. It is generally done at the mosque and only rarely at home. There is almost always at least one person performing shalat at the mosque.
At nights, when surrounding houses are both dark and quiet, the Daarut Tauhid’s mosque still looks alive, as though the santri are taking turns in performing rituals at the mosque. As a matter of fact, there are no strictly scheduled turns: the performance of rituals relies on individual obligation. As part of its training, Daarut Tauhid requires santri to perform optional shalat every night, to record the performance by filling in a form, and then to report it to the supervisor who is none other than the kyai. This is said to be highly effective in internalising an individual sense of discipline.
Besides exercising shalat, they also practise wirid, do’a, and meditative reflection, such as i’tikaf. These are mainly done at night, although are sometimes performed during the day. As noted earlier, a profound significance in drawing followers has been attributed to these particular rituals, without which Daarut Tauhid would be unattractive as a religious routine. Needless to say, Daarut Tauhid also exercises the fulfilment of other pillars of Islam: zakat (alms), shaum (fasting), and hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca), all of which are commonly exercised by other Muslims through other Islamic centres. It is instead important to note that Daarut Tauhidians subscribe, in addition to obligatory rites, to many optional practices such as shalat tahajjud (overnight prayer), shalat taubat (repenting prayer), shaum Senin-Kamis (fasting on Mondays and Thursdays), shadaqoh (charity), and so on.[2]
The use of Islamic symbols also asserts the religious intensity of Muslims at Daarut Tauhid. Needless to say, the kerudung (female head-cover), the very noticeable identity of Muslim women, is commonly worn by Daarut Tauhid’s female followers. Newcomers, who are not yet used to wearing it, usually need only a week or so before they are persuaded of its indispensability to Islam. In regard to the endless conflict between Muslims who view the kerudung as indispensable and those who see it as dispensable, Daarut Tauhid is definitely in the former camp. In practice, however, the decision as to whether or not it should be worn is left to individuals. Aa Gym’s persuasive abilities on this point is best-illustrated by the following example.
At a pengajian occasion I attended, a female follower raised a question with Aa Gym. Claiming that she was a newcomer at Daarut Tauhid pengajian, she frankly confessed to not wearing any kerudung. However, she declared her willingness to wear it in the near future, but could not imagine the responses to her new appearance with kerudung. She thus begged Aa Gym’s advice on the matter. After emphasising that she had every right to wear it or not to wear it, Aa Gym said that covering one’s aurat (parts of the body that have to be covered) is indispensable. He then reminded the audience that, since the time of one’s death is not known, postponing wearing the kerudung is too risky a speculation. “What would happen to you if you plan to wear it next week, for example, and you die this evening? So, you would be better to wear it as soon as possible,” he advised.
Symbolic assertion through clothing also appears among the men of Daarut Tauhid. Although not always, Aa Gym is given to wearing Arabic garments and Pakistani head-coverings. His santri and some of the jemaah also most often wear white clothing and the white rimless Arabic cap that is known as kopeah haji (hajj cap), for it is commonly worn in Indonesia by those who have done pilgrimage to Mecca. When asked about this particular style of clothing, Aa Gym told me that there was, in fact, no rigid obligation here to wear any particular kind of clothing, “that I wear this [Arabic] clothing is simply to follow my mood. That is, I just put on whichever kind of clothing I wish to.” Indeed he often appears in Western-style clothing. So do his santri and jemaah. This is part of Daarut Tauhid’s inclination to abolish the impression that Islamic tradition is incompatible with modernity.
Religious symbols are also obvious in the daily behaviour of men and women at Daarut Tauhid. Islamic phrases for greetings, making promises, complaining, and so forth are commonly applied in daily life. These Islamic, Arabic-sounding phrases, are a prominent part of their ceremonial and daily conversations. Many followers claim that this has a profound impact on the intensity of their religious feeling. An SMA-student follower explained to me his feelings in relation to this.
My Islamic spirituality increases every time I go shopping at Daarut Tauhid’s mini-market. That is intensified by the Islamic atmosphere and phrases used by the shop keepers. When I get inside they approach me by saying Assalamu’alaikum (Peace be upon you). Then I feel at peace. When I approach the cashier to pay, he/she addresses me with great hospitality, wishing me luck by saying Mubarok Mabruk (May God bless you in things new you have). This makes me feel that shopping here, in contrast to other shopping centres, gives me a sort of religious benefit.
In a wider context, the impact of this tradition of expressing Islamic (Arabic) phrases is similarly felt by the followers. It brings to them an atmosphere that is highly religious, as seen from the following claim of a follower.
The phrase Subhanalloh (The Most Holy Allah) and Alhamdulillah (Praise be to Allah), that are most frequently said by people at Daarut Tauhid, makes the atmosphere really Islamic and this effectively intensifies my faith. This is what, in part, drives me to feel like coming back here soon every time I go home. I get religious enjoyment through this sphere of any life.
However, this tendency towards highly religious behaviour is not the whole of life at Daarut Tauhid. One should not be misled into assuming that life there is world-denying. The other part of life at this pesantren is usually viewed as non-religious, and is uncommon in other Islamic centres.
Activities which attract young people are regularly held at Daarut Tauhid. Such activities include sports or games or, under the first-hand leadership of Aa Gym, hiking and camping in mountainous areas. As an ex-Menwa member, Aa Gym is said to like terjun payung (parachute jumping) and climbing the slopes of mountains (Risnawati 1993:13). That is why he often brings his followers along to mountainous areas. These activities serve as an effective means of channelling into recreation the energies of young people and, at the same time, inculcating Islamic values. The latter is done, for example, by means of meditative reflection on the mightiness, brilliance, and glory of Allah in creating the universe. Noticeable here is the delicate combination of efforts to satisfy worldly needs and those of meeting religious requirements.
This is also evident in the attention paid at Daarut Tauhid to economic ventures. The thirteen kinds of entrepreneurial activities run from Daarut Tauhid and their rapid development serve as convincing evidence for the attention paid at the pesantren to economic concerns. Muslims at Daarut Tauhid tend to be involved in both religious concerns and business without being preoccupied by either.
Let me end this section by describing an activity practised at Daarut Tauhid at the time I was there, which illustrates the balance of a worldly and an other-worldly orientation.
The activity is called ‘16 Jam Ibadah Bersama Daarut Tauhid’ (16 Hour Ibadah together at Daarut Tauhid). It started at 6 pm on Saturday evening. The 310 participants gathered at that time in the mosque. They performed shalat Magrib (Magrib prayer) together. After performing prayers they chanted wirid and said do’a together. While waiting for the time of Shalat Isya (Isya prayer), they recited the Qur’an individually. At about 7.30 pm, they performed shalat Isya communally, after which they chanted wirid and said do’a as after performing shalat Maghrib. Then they had dinner together at the mosque with the meal prepared by Daarut Tauhid. Next, after having dinner, they listened to a religious talk delivered by Aa Gym. This ended at 10 pm at which time they went to bed to take a rest, males at a hall and females at the mosque. At 2 am the following morning, the participants came together at the mosque to perform shalat Tahajjud (midnight prayer). Then at 3 am they held a reflection led by Aa Gym. The reflection was focused on introspection, reexamining their very existence on the earth. According to Sodikin, this is done “to remember the essence of life and to make sure that they know the reason and the ultimate aim of their existence in the world as Allah’s creature, which is nothing but only to perform ibadah to Allah.” At 4 am, while waiting for the time of shalat subuh (dawn prayer), the participants recited the Qur’an privately. When the time came, they performed shalat subuh together after which they chanted wirid and said do’a. Afterwards, they took a rest until 6 am, then had a shower and breakfast. At 6.30 am they started rihlah (tour/excursion), walking to a mountainous area. Ending at 10 am, the rihlah was comprised of lintas alam (cross-country), Badar game,[3] consolation games, and other sports. At the rihlah, the participants enjoyed recreational tours, games, and sports which are good for both physical and psychological health and which have an underlying religious orientation. The activities finished at 10 am, completing the 16 hour period.
This example best illustrates the inclination at Daarut Tauhid to reconcile various aspects of life and to see them wholly as the manifestation of ibadah (worship/dedication to God). The sixteen hours of activities, which includes sleeping, eating and resting, is considered to be entirely ibadah, so it is termed ‘16 hours ibadah together at Daarut Tauhid’. According to Sodikin, the committee chairman,
sleeping, eating, games, sports, and all other activities in life are necessary parts of life and are intended as a form of ibadah sincerely dedicated to Allah. However simple our activity, it can be rewarded as a form of ibadah, provided we intend it sincerely as an ibadah.
The ibadah, which is highly valuable to the eyes of Allah, is therefore not just religious ritual but includes these and the other activities of life when sincerely dedicated to Allah.
Given this feature of pesantren life at Daarut Tauhid, Dhofier (1980a:xiii) is right in arguing that
the pesantren life is, of course, very much concerned with life after death but it is also concerned with life in this world. According to Kyai belief, human fate after death is determined by our conduct and weight of our “ ‘amal” (performances of religious rituals and social obligations).
Certainly, this lesson from Daarut Tauhid is another denial against Geertz’s (1960:238) view of Islam in the pesantren, criticised by Dhofier,
as “grave-and-gift” religion (kuburan dan gandjaran), for it is primarily concerned with life after death and with the gaining of blessings from God.
[1] Islam does not hold a monopoly on this religious outlook. Brennan R. Hill (1988:63-4) records, for example, that such a dualistic view is common among such religious groups as the Theravada Buddhists and Catholics of the pre- Vatican II period. He also notices that “it still prevails in the more conservative ranks of the church.”
[2] One is, I think, justified in getting the impression that these practices sound like Aa Gym’s own early religious inclinations, as portrayed in chapter two.
[3] Badar game is a simulation in which the participants pretend to be involved in the Badar battle at which the Prophet Muhammad was involved.