My research in Jombang was largely taken up with indepth interviews and observation. The data I gathered therefore were mostly qualitative in nature. The data in this thesis mostly derives from interviewing kiai and other NU members. Also I have some notes from field observations of religious rituals of the Tarekat Qadiriyah Wa Naqsyabandiyah affiliated with the Jam‘iyah Ahli Thoriqoh Al-Mu‘tabaroh Indonesia, the Tarekat Qadiriyah Wa Naqsyabandiyah coordinated by the Jam‘iyah Ahli Thoriqoh Al-Mu‘tabaroh An-Nahdliyah and the Penyiar Sholawat Wahidiyah. In addition, I interviewed people who were not kiai but were involved in politics. They were activists in NU Since a variety of formal lines or attitudes related to the political situation were launched by various NU leaders, the different perceptions, attitudes or steps taken by some NU activists came to the surface. Such a phenomenon was of great importance since it helped to illuminate frictions which had arisen among NU members as well as the network among kiai.
In addition to qualitative data, I also collected quantitative data through a questionnaire. The questionnaire was concerned especially with politics, that is the politics of Islam as understood by Muslims, and the politics of the kiai. Questions related to the latter tried to identify the effect of the politics of kiai on Muslims in general in Jombang. In other words, they focused on the relationship between charismatic kiai and Muslims’ general political and social behaviour. As political activities at the village level in Java are evident only during general elections, and the period of my fieldwork did not include such an election, I was not able to collect direct data about these activities during my stay in Jombang. Using the questionnaire, however, I was able to ask people about their voting attitudes and behaviour during the last four general elections (1977, 1982, 1987 and 1992), their perceptions of Islamic politics and the motivation for their political behaviour.
The scope of my research covered a variety of kiai leaders in Jombang. I focused my analysis on kiai leadership in particular in two tarekat movements, that is two Tarekat Qadiriyah Wa Naqsyabandiyah coordinated by the Jam‘iyah Ahli Thoriqoh Al-Mu‘tabaroh Indonesia and the Jam‘iyah Ahli Thoriqoh Al-Mu‘tabaroh An-Nahdliyah. Data from the questionnaire were confined to those Muslim respondents living in three kecamatan, that is Diwek, Peterongan and Ploso, especially those who lived in the towns of these kecamatan. The data I collected from the pesantren and the kiai, however, were not confined to those located and living in these three kecamatan. The data were mainly derived from the Pesantren Tebuireng (Diwek), Pesantren Cukir (Diwek), the Pesantren Darul Ulum (Peterongan), the Pesantren Bahrul Ulum (Jombang district), and the Pesantren Attahdhib (Ngoro). In addition, I interviewed kiai who had no pesantren and were not involved in a tarekat.
The categories of informants from whom I collected the data through in-depth interview are as follows:
Pesantren Kiai:
Kiai As‘ad Umar
Kiai Aziz Masyhuri
Kiai Shohib Bisri
Kiai Faruq
Kiai Hamdan Adlan
Kiai Hasib Wahab
Nyai Musta‘in Romly
Kiai Mahfuz Anwar
Kiai Sulthon
Kiai Mochammad Dawam Anwar
Kiai with no pesantren:
Kiai Abdurrahman
Kiai Ismail
Kiai Mahalli
Tarekat Kiai:
Kiai Makki Ma‘shum
Kiai Abdullah Sajad
Kiai Khoerul Anwar
Kiai Rifai Romly
Kiai Arwani
Kiai Ihsan Mahin
Kiai Arifin Khon
Political Kiai and Politicians:
Kiai Abdurrahman ‘Usman
Hajj Yusuf Hasyim
Muhammad Baidlowi
Hafidh Ma‘shum
Kiai Abdurrahman Wahid
Thoyyib
NU Activists:
Fauziah
Masykuri
Hanafi
Ibu Masrurah
Cak Mat
Ibu Sholihah
Intellectuals:
Sukamto, SH., MA.
Drs. Nachrowi, MA.
Drs. Mahfudh Karim
Adil Amrullah
Dr. Nurkholis Madjid
Ali Yahya, Msc.
Drs. Musin
NU members:
Lurah Ihsan
Mahfudh Effendi
H. Syifa
Ibu Hindun
Abdul Hamid
Kusnan
Muhammadiyah Members:
Shiddiq Abbas
Azhar
Cak Arifin