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to establish the sultanate of Banten. His son then expanded his influence to Jati did not only establish the Sultanate of Cirebon, but he also expanded his
Lampung. However, when they were about to attack Palembang, Banten’s
troops returned. The very young sultan was killed in the battle to extend his
power. While, as narrated in the Hikayat Patani, the case of Patani in the
Malay peninsula shows the important role of the visits of foreign traders.
Patani may also be regarded as the second example of how trade relations
were another pathway in the Islamization process.
Once upon a time, the king of Patani fell ill and could not be cured. The
hope of a cure only came after someone notified the king of a scholar from
Pasai who might be able to treat him. When this scholar was summoned to
the palace, the cleric would treat him only if the king promised to convert
to Islam if he recovered. But when he did recover, the king did not keep his
promise. Then the illness returned and once again the king promised to
convert to Islam and again he did not. This went on three times and only
after the cleric threatened that he would not be willing to treat him anymore,
the king finally told him that he indeed converted to Islam. And, according to
the Hikayat Patani, the experience in other areas was copied and there was
no longer “eating pork and idolatry”, but other things continued as usual. 13
A long standing sultanate is not only keen to expand its power while
spreading Islam. It took Ternate two generations before the kingdom
became Muslim. Because of the influence of travellers from Minangkabau,
the crown-prince of Ternate had become interested in Islam. Developments
took off when his son, who had just ascended the throne, began his
studies in Islam, first in Makassar and then in Giri, in Sunan Giri’s boarding
school. From then on Ternate grew as a Sultanate and apparently through
diplomacy spread Islam to Limbotto and Gorontalo in north Sulawesi. 14
It should be recognized that the relationship between Islam and politics was
very important. The cultural basis for the legitimacy of power as inherited
by Majapahit was kept alive, but the real power was in the hands of Demak.
Therefore, let subsequent studies tell how “eternal” this culturally valid
power basis really was. In the meantime, if we follow the historical stories
closely, as those of Tome’ Pires, other power centers formally based on the
ideological foundation of Islam had been established as well. It turns out that
the spread and development of Islam in Java depended on the relationship
and sometimes on the competition between three social groups: merchants-
rulers-clerics or, when viewed from the perspective of social institutions,
market-palace-mosque/pesantrens. However, the Walisanga council
occupied a special position. Some walis, such as Sunan Kudus, Sunan
Gunung Jati, and even Sunan Giri were clerics-cum-rulers. Sunan Gunung
13. A. Teeuw & David K. Wyatt, Hikayat Patani : The Story of Patani, The Hague: Martinus
Nijhoff, 1970.
14. J. Bastiaans, “Persekutuan Limbotto dan Gorontalo” in Taufik Abdullah (editor), Sejarah
Lokal di Indonesia, Yogyakarta: Gadjah Mada University Press, 1985 (2 reprint), 199-231.
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10 Indonesian Islamic Culture in Historical Perspectives
power and established the Sultanate of Banten. His offspring even crossed
the Sunda Strait into Lampung, to plug in the power. The Walisanga Council
also guarded the diversification of Islamic notions and teachings. It punished
Sheikh Siti Jenar because he was convicted of having spread a message to
the general public he should not have delivered. His teachings appeared to
have caused the mosque to become empty.
Regarding the dynamic relationships between the three social institutions,
i.e. markets, palace and mosques/pesantrens, a sort of historical
comparison can also be made. It appears that there were two traditional
typologies of power. The first may be referred to as the “integrative tradition”.
Most of the sultanates in the archipelago have a tradition of the division of
tasks between the “king” (“sultan”, or ruler), “scholars” (or the keepers of the
faith), and the developers of religious knowledge. This occurred in a context
where the social institutions mutually supported each other. This ideal
situation is usually described as a reflection of the integrative relationship
between scholars and rulers. If the nature of the Islamization of the coastal
cities of Java as reported by Tome’ Pires is used as a comparison, an
“integrative tradition” was present during events and historical trends that
show how “(the followers) of Islam founded the power center” (Islam founded
the state). The case of Pasai shows this very clearly.
The second pattern occurred during events when the “the state Islamized
itself” (or the state converted to Islam). If we follow the Sejarah Melayu, the
King of Malacca was an example of a ruler who chose Islam as his guide.
The Lontara of Makassar also contains the story that the king of Tallo was
finally persuaded to choose Islam as the new religion of the state because
of the political and mercantile situation in his country. In 1605 he officially
converted to Islam and later (1607) managed to persuade the king of Goa to
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join him.
If the first pattern is “integrative”, a situation of the division of labor
between rulers and ulama. The second pattern may be referred to as “the
tradition of dialogue”. This is a tradition where the functions of rulers and
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scholars were not clearly distinguished. There were times when relations
were very intimate, but there were also times when conflicts between them
occurred. This tradition is a socio-political medium that enables scholars to
be part of the ruling elite. Some members of the Walisanga, such as Sunan
Kudus and Sunan Gunung Jati, were not only great scholars, but they were
also the ruler of their respective areas. It is thus not strange that in some
instances in this tradition, conflict and competition came up between the
15. J. Noordyn, Islamisasi Makasar, (terjemahan S. Gunawan), Jakarta: Bhratara, 1972.
16. An explanation of these two traditions see Taufik Abdullah, “Islam and the Formation
of Traditions in Indonesia: A Comparative Perspective”, Itinerario: Special Issue India and
Indonesia: General Perspective, 1, 1989, 17-36.
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