Page 149 - INDONESIA ISLAMIC CULTURE
P. 149

One of the classical     which offered an atmosphere of          the same time it also presents itself as              movement, both inter-ethnic and inter-
          works by Hamzah          compatibility between the trusted and the   a dilemma, in regulating the modern               social strata, against outside pressure.
                         th
          Fansuri, from the 18     experienced, are factors that may have   state. Where does “Malay” end and                    The modern age and contemporary
          century.                 made it possible that this occurred.    “Malaysia” begin? Where are the limits                events are beyond the scope of this
          Source: Indonesia the    Change certainly continued. The         of “symbols” (Sultan and Islam) and                   article. However, if a historical trend
          first fifty years 1945-1995.  national state that was built on the   of “political reality” (federal state and         can be used as a comparison, we can
                                   ruins of the colonial state as well as the   citizenship) to be found? Perhaps                estimate that no matter what internal
                                   preceding, supporting and accompanying   it may be true to say that the 1955                  changes have occurred in the structures
                                                                           elections in Indonesia showed, on the
                                   ideological mayhems that preceded it                                                          within Islamic communities, even up to
                                   did not mean nothing. The shift in the   one hand, the creation of an alliance                the possibility of widening the tradition
                                   political system and the socio-economic   between the traditions of integration               of dialogue supported by a kind of “court
                                   structure not only changed the realities   on the one hand and the tradition of               orthodoxy”, they have increasingly
                                                                           dialogue of the santri  and, on the
                                   the tradition had to face and that acted                                                      become a political reality. However,
                                   as a prism to understand this reality.   other hand, it showed how former                     the re-ideologization of tradition is not
                                   Moreover, Islam as the foundation of    socio-political processes undermined                  just a dream of the past. When the
                                                                           the alliance’s unity. Perhaps, turning
                                   the tradition of integration and that of   traditions into political parties has              penetration of power is too tight and
                                   dialogue has undergone various stages                                                         when the changes in the structure of
                                   in its reform process. They ranged      met a dead end. However, as the                       ideal “satisfied society” are considered
                                                                           experiences of the 1950s and 1960s
                                   from efforts to underline ethics and the   showed, the inherent local nature of               threatening, the essential foundation
                                   shari’ah in behavior to the problem of   the two traditions sometimes reveals                 of the political tradition that initially had
                                   the role of religion in facing the modern                                                     a local character may re-emerge as a
                                   world. Also, Islam has turned into an   itself. So, indeed in political upheavals             national force.
                                                                           it was unclear whether they opted for
                                   ideology that raises the issue of the place   national unity in line with the demands
                                   of Islam in the modern national state.
                                                                           of Islam or for local anxieties that were
                                   At certain moments the two systems of   channeled by traditions. The rigidity
                                   Islamic political traditions that came up   of the tradition of integration in each
                                   in the 17th century and were tested and   locality of the southern Philippines has
                                   adapted in subsequent periods, also     caused the Moro as a whole to survive
                                   emerge to the surface. In Malaysia,     in its wars against the Spaniards for
                                   the tradition of integration is part of   around three hundred years. But local
                                   the fundamental Malay identity of its   obstinacy can apparently also be a
                                   communalistic political system, but at   hindrance for the creation of a unifying



          140  Indonesian Islamic Culture in Historical Perspectives                                                                                                                    Indonesian Islamic Culture in Historical Perspectives  141
   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154