How Javanese People Practice Islam?

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Javanese people's practice of Islamic teaching is different from those in the Middle East or Arab lands. The basic principle of Islam is the same, but some practices have merged with the local cultures. Javanese people are more tolerant of practising Islam.
In Java, women are allowed to wear colorful clothing. Most Muslims in Java do not care about the style of the hijab. The women have become more creative in designing their hijab. It is different from Arabic women. They tend to wear the same color of hijab.

How Islam was introduced to Java.

Islam was brought to Java by Persian and Indian traders. Some say that Islam was brought by Arabic traders around 1082.
Before Islam entered Java. Javanese Hinduism, Buddhism, and Javanese belief have become the major religions in Java.

Islam And Java

In Javanese histories and tales, the name Walisongo was known as the Islamic scholar who taught Islam on Java Island. Walisongo means nine Islamic scholars. Walisongo taught Islam with wisdom. They used art performances, traditional ceremonies and songs to teach Javanese people. Their teaching earned a lot of sympathy, so that Islam spread widely on Java Island.
It is this cultural and traditional approach that causes the practice of Islam in Java to be humanistic and tolerant. For example, the Grebeg Maulid event in Yogyakarta, which is still being held today, is an event commemorating the birth of the Prophet Muhammad. In the view of Arab and Middle Eastern Muslims, such an event is an event that is prohibited in their teachings, but not for the Javanese. The scholars in Java put forward a dialogical approach to conveying Islam.
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This is tradition of Grebeg Maulid In Yogyakarta

https://www.goodnewsfromindonesia.id/2017/12/09/7-tradisi-unik-perayaan-maulid-nabi-di-indonesia

Pesantren (Traditional Islamic Boarding School)

Javanese people learn Islam in Pesantren. It is a traditional boarding school that is taught by a respected Islamic scholar. There are thousands of pesantrens in Java. The graduates from pesantrens have a strong influence on Javanese people. In Indonesia, the administrative governance structure is very detailed. It starts from provincial areas, districts, sub-disctricts, and villages. In each village, there should be a leader. In Islamic teaching, every village should have one or two Islamic scholars who teach Islam in the village. Most of the Islamic scholars who teach people in villages are pesantren graduates.

Islamic tradition in Java

The Islamic tradition in Java has merged with the original culture of the Javanese ancestors. Sometimes, I'm confused about whether this is an Islamic tradition or a Javanese tradition.

Javanese people and polygamy.

Polygamy is an Islamic teaching that all people should accept. However, you will find only a few Javanese men practice polygamy. Most of them only have one wife. Javanese people accept the law of polygamy, but some Javanese women prefer to get divorced instead of sharing love with other women in polygamy.

Terrorism and Javanese

Most Javanese people reject the ideology of the hard line of Islam. Scholars in Java reject the theology of Wahhabi. Though, all scholars in Java accept Wahabi as one of the Islamic streams, they reject the teaching of Wahabi in Java.

NU and Muhammadiyah

NU is the biggest Islamic organization in Indonesia. It was established by KH. Hashim As'ari in 1926. The respective Islamic scholar is from Jombang , East Java. NU has its own teaching and practice of Islam in Java and Indonesia. It keeps traditionalism in the practice of Islam.
Muhammdiyah is also the second biggest organization in Indonesia. It was established by KH. Ahmad Dahlan in 1912 in Yogkarta. Muhammadiyah focuses on education and health development. It is one of the richest Islamic organizations in the world.

Muhammadiyah manages 19,951 schools, 13,000 mosques and prayer rooms, 765 sharia people's credit banks, 635 orphanages, 457 hospitals and clinics, 437 baitul malls, 176 universities and 102 Islamic boarding schools. See - https://ibtimes.id/muhammadiyah-organization-islam-terkaya-di-dunia/

The influence of NU and Muhammadiyah is very strong in Java and all the Indonesian islands. The principle of both organizations is moderation. These two organizations also often have different opinions on religious issues, but both are able to resolve them through dialogue.

Santri and Abangan

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Santri

http://ipnubantarbolang.com/kaum-sarungan-atau-celanan-cingkrang/

In Java, there are two classes in Islamic practice. They are a group of Santri and a group of Abangan.
Santri is a group of Javanese Muslims who practice Islam more fully. They avoid tradition that is prohibited by Islamic law. While Abangan is a group of Javanese Muslims who mix old traditions with Islamic teachings, Some Abangan people still drink alcohol at traditional parties and gatherings.
Do the Santri and Abangan groups often have physical conflicts? Conflicts are rare because most scholars teach a dialogue approach to teaching Islam. Some of the Abangan people are also sometimes family members of Santri. Besides that, some Abangan people turn into Santri when they get old. Most people in Java, when they are in their 50s, practice Islam more fully than when they were young.
Javanese culture cannot be separated from the influence of Islam. Both seem to be a feature of the practice of Islam in Javanese society. Thank you for reading this post. This post aims to provide an illustration that Java people in general have tolerance for differences of opinion. In addition, the teaching of Islam and the practice of Islam in Java is unlike radical Islam, which cannot accept differences of opinion.



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3 comments
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java is an entity of culture complete and complex. long before the entry of religion from the outside, I think java already know about the concept of god. so when the teachings of the religion in java, they can be received quickly

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That is true, the religion of Java is kejawen. it is a monotheism but in practice is polytheism

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