Modernization has permeated nearly all areas of Indonesia, marked by significant changes in various aspects of daily life. Rationalization, growth, and rapid technological adoption illustrate the sweeping modernization occurring across the nation.
Rosenberg, as cited by Aris, notes that modernization manifests in new urban habits and the transformation or disappearance of rural characteristics within a community. In recent decades, rapid civilization advancements have significantly reshaped societal landscapes. Major cities like Jakarta, Surabaya, Bandung, Medan, and Yogyakarta have become hubs of economic growth, education, and diverse modern activities.
The massive urbanization phenomenon has driven population growth in urban areas, making life in these cities increasingly dense and dynamic. High population mobility, busy daily activities, and the constant hustle and bustle define urban life. Urban dwellers face the challenge of keeping pace with the rapid city developments while balancing various life aspects, such as careers, education, social interactions, and personal needs.
The rapid growth of major cities has altered urban life patterns, impacting lifestyles, thinking methods, and socio-cultural dynamics. Amid the urban hustle and the relentless pursuit of achievements, urbanites often grapple with personal challenges to find meaning and balance in life. Work demands, daily routines, and consumerist lifestyles frequently lead to feelings of emptiness, stress, and spiritual crises, affecting mental health and individual well-being.
In such circumstances, there is a growing need to seek life’s meaning and achieve personal balance amidst the urban complexity. Responding to these spiritual crises and the need for life meaning, urban communities increasingly seek spiritual fulfillment. Spirituality is viewed as a path to balance, self-existence, and inner peace amid the often exhausting physical and mental demands of city life.
To meet these spiritual needs, various unique urban spiritual movements and practices have emerged. Urban communities are becoming more open to exploring and propagating spirituality through familiar channels and platforms, such as spiritual communities, public religious studies, and practices like meditation and personal development.
The rise of urban spiritual movements and practices presents an intriguing phenomenon for deeper exploration. On one hand, it reflects urban efforts to fulfill spiritual needs in a modern, often criticized as materialistic and meaningless, life. On the other hand, it signifies new dynamics in spiritual practices adapting to urban life contexts. These urban spiritual movements often adopt contemporary, inclusive, and adaptable approaches to urban lifestyles.
For example, many urban spiritual communities blend traditional elements with modern touches, using social media to promote activities, holding meditation sessions or religious studies in public places like cafés or community centers, and offering self-development programs relevant to urban needs. This trend also shows a preference for accessing spirituality outside mainstream or formal religious institutions, driven by rising individualism and the desire to find spiritual meaning independently.
One notable shift in spiritual practice locations is the move from traditional settings like mosques, sanctuaries, or religious schools to more familiar urban spaces. Urban Sufism, a term introduced by Julia Day Howell, examines the growing interest of the urban middle class in spiritual dimensions. This interest is evidenced by urbanites’ attraction to Sufi studies.
Urban Sufism is seen as a remedy for spiritual dryness in urban life, addressing individual and collective urban issues. Public spaces like cafés, community centers, city parks, and even office spaces are now used for urban Sufism activities, making spiritual practices more accessible to city dwellers and creating a relaxed atmosphere for exploring spirituality.
This trend reflects urbanites’ desire to integrate spirituality into their daily lives without abandoning their urban lifestyle and environment. Hosting Sufi studies in cafés, as mentioned earlier, exemplifies urban spiritual practices worth further examination. These activities bring spirituality closer to everyday urban life, adapting traditional Sufi teachings to a modern, familiar setting.
This phenomenon highlights urban communities’ need to study and deepen spirituality without disrupting their routine and environment. By holding spiritual discussions in cafés, spiritual values can be conveyed and discussed in a more relaxed setting, making them more accessible to busy, dynamic urbanites.
Moreover, the urban interest in Sufism also indicates a tendency to seek spirituality outside mainstream or formal religious institutions. Urbanites seem more inclined to explore spirituality through contemporary approaches relevant to their lives. Sufi studies in cafés, involving classical Sufi texts, represent urbanites’ desire to find spiritual meaning independently and contextually within their modern lives, actively constructing and adapting spiritual meaning.
By bringing classical Sufi teachings into modern settings like cafés, urban communities negotiate and interpret these teachings in the context of their current lives. This process shows the dynamic construction of spiritual meaning, where urbanites strive to integrate spiritual values with their modern realities. This phenomenon demonstrates how spiritual practices transform and adapt to remain relevant and meaningful to urban life.
Mainmain Café
Mainmain Café in central Yogyakarta exemplifies the propagation of Sufi studies. This café serves not only food and beverages but also provides a space for spiritual activities, such as studying Ibn Arabi’s Sufi works.
Mainmain Café’s unique background includes a bookstore and a library with a range of literature from classic to modern texts. The café also hosts religious activities like salawat (praise for the Prophet), creating a harmonious blend of modern café atmosphere with a spiritual setting.
Mainmain Café’s role in disseminating Sufism attracts urbanites in Yogyakarta, offering a haven for those seeking spirituality without leaving their urban lifestyle. This phenomenon is worth further study as a unique urban spiritual construction.
The primary focus of the Sufi studies at Mainmain Café is Ibn Arabi’s works. Ibn Arabi, a 12th-century Sufi master, greatly influenced Islamic mysticism with profound teachings on the unity of existence (wahdat al-wujud), divine reality, and spiritual knowledge (ma’rifah). His works are often seen as controversial yet deeply spiritual.
Studying Ibn Arabi’s works at Mainmain Café reflects urbanites’ efforts to understand and interpret classical Sufi teachings in modern life contexts. This trend indicates a desire to delve deeper into spirituality, negotiating its meaning and relevance to contemporary urban life.
Overall, the phenomenon of spiritual practices in urban settings like Mainmain Café highlights the dynamic and adaptive nature of spirituality, integrating traditional Sufi values with modern urban realities.