44 Sufi groups combat terrorism in Indonesia
Indonesia is one of the most populous Muslim
countries. It has a population of 250 million people, and Muslims represent
more than 90%. Indian immigrants and the Arab merchants brought Islam to
Indonesia in the first century A.H. (the 7th century). The Arab
merchants were from Hadhrami tribes. The majority of those people were Sufis.
Islam rapidly spread in Indonesia due to the good-behaviors
of the Muslim travelers and merchants. Islam was widely spread by the 13th
century.
Jamiyyah Thariqah Al
Mu'tabarah
Indonesia has a large number of Sufi orders, which emerged
in the country with the advent of Islam. The Nahdlatul Ulama movement, which
considers itself an offshoot of the Ash'ari theological school, was founded by Sheikh
Hashim Ash'ari in 1926.
Jamiyyah Thariqah Al Mu'tabarah was established in
1957 to organize and supervise the activities of the Sufi orders in Indonesia.
Jamiyyah Thariqah Al Mu'tabarah sets conditions for the
recognition of Sufi orders, most notably: "to adhere to one of the four
schools of jurisprudence (Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali), and the Sheikh
should take the order from his predecessor.
Jamiyyah Thariqah Al Mu'tabarah approved more than
44 orders, most of them Sunni, some of them Shiite, such as the Bektashi Order,
a Sufi group that is closer to Shiism. Its teachings were taken from many Sufi orders.
Its name refers to Haji Bektash Veli, who died in 1270.
It is based on the principle of philosophical
mysticism, and the followers of this principle mix their Sufi inclinations with
their intellectual concepts. This order is well-spread in Albania and the
Balkans in general, and their leader lives in Albania's capital, Tirana.
Wahidiyah Order
Although there are 44 Sufi orders in Indonesia, the
most prominent of which is Wahidiyah, an independent Indonesian order, which is
Indonesian to the core as it did not come from abroad or an offshoot of another
Sufi order. Although it was established
33 years ago, many Muslims have become followers.
The order is based on a number of supplications called
the Wahidiyah prayers, written by its founder Haj Abdul Majeed Ma'arouf
(1920-1989). Wahidiyah differs from the other orders as it does not stipulate allegiance,
which is fundamental in other Sufi orders.
Seclusion, or mystical isolation, is not imposed on
the followers. Wahidiyah requires the good-will in the worship of Allah: which
mean ""doing the good for Allah with the help of Allah".
It also requires obedience to the Prophet with the
blessing of the Prophet, and obedience to the Qutb with the blessing of Qutbb, or
pivot: the highest rank in Sufi order).
Qadiriyya Order
Qadiriyya is one of the oldest Sufi orders in
Indonesia. It is attributed to Abdul Qadir al-Jilani (1078-1166). Its followers
are spread throughout the Levant, Iraq, Egypt and East Africa. Its members have
a great influence in the spread of Islam in Africa and Asia.
There are those who have introduced and disseminated
Qadiriyya order in East Asia in general and Indonesia in particular, such as
Sheikh Ismail Dafi in the 6th century A.H. He moved to Aceh in North
Sumatra, Indonesia.
The order has become popular and the most well-known
in Indonesia. One of the most prominent sheikhs is the Indonesian sheikh Hamzah
Fansouri, the first author in Indonesian Sufism.
Tijaniyyah Order
Tijaniyyah is one of the modern Sufi orders in
Indonesia, a Sunni one, attributed to Abu al-Abbas Ahmad ibn Muhammad at-Tijani (1737-1815) and is
spread in North Africa, Egypt, Palestine, the Levant, Sudan, Mauritania,
Senegal, Nigeria and other countries .
Tijaniyyah was known in Indonesia in 1920, and was registered
as a Sufi order in 1931, after several years without official recognition.
Sufism and politics
Sufism is involved in Indonesian political life. The
government pays special attention to Sufi orders, with all respect for the
rights of other faiths and sects such as Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, and
others.
The Indonesian government also receives many Sufi
delegations from other countries, and signs cooperation protocols with numerous
Sufi-related bodies, such as the International Islamic Sufism Academy, with
which it has a protocol of cooperation to disseminate tolerant religious
discourse and to combat the radical discourse adopted by terrorist
organizations.
Moreover, it organizes lectures on the role of Sunni
Sufism attended by many religious, political and military figures in Indonesia.
