The rise of the sectarian spirit that uses religious and ethnic symbols in political battles has brought the Indonesian nation to a political atmosphere that leads to social segregation. If this continues without control, it will threaten national integrity and the fabric of diversity.
In an atmosphere like this, we should review the practices and political movements of the Ulama and Kiai to instil and teach Islam as a manifestation of the politics of Islam Nusantara. It’s essential because the politics of Islam Nusantara has succeeded in instilling Islamic teachings peacefully, humanely and also succeeded in maintaining and keeping the diversity that exists in the Archipelago to this day.
Islamic Politics in Siyasah Fiqh
To truly understand the political aspect of Islam Nusantara, it’s necessary to look at the construct of fiqh thought in viewing and formulating politics. Fiqh perspective is the most widely used in the political practice of Nusantara Islam and Sufism.
In the view of Islamic jurisprudence, politics is an effort to realize the benefit of both the world and the hereafter, as seen in the thought of Imam al-Bujairimî. He stated that politics is fixing the people’s problems and managing them by governing them because of their obedience to the government.
Meanwhile, according to Imam Ibn ‘Âbidîn, politics is another word for efforts to create the benefit of the ummah by—among other things—guiding them in the direction of a path that saves life in this world and the hereafter (Assiyasatu hiya ‘ibaratun ‘ala stishlahi l-ummati bi irsyadihim ila the -thoriqi l-munjiyyi dun-yan wa ukhro).
This normative-idealistic understanding needs to be practically operational when implemented and applied in real life.; because real life is not as ideal and straightforward as what is in words and formulated in the text. In fact, life is much more complicated and complicated than stated in the text. For example, conflicting interests, ranging from individual claims to groups, economic interests to ideological ones; Conducting contestations and competitions to fight over and defend each other’s interests in the battlefield, which Bourdieau (1986) calls the political realm.
In such conditions, we required creative thinking to differentiate normative-idealistic religious texts into practical-operational and functional ones. In addition, it’s required sophisticated skills so that noble religious visions and missions can win political battles.
In this context, we cant understand religious teachings in black and white, textual, and symbolic ways. In addition to making religion dry and frozen, such an understanding of religion will make Islamic politics easy to beat because it is too ideal and abstract. The community does not feel the benefits.
This awareness has coloured the thoughts of Nusantara scholars since the Wali Songo era till Today; Thus giving birth to attitudes and constructions of political views, which we later know as Islam Nusantara politics.
Islamic Political Genealogy of the Archipelago
The political genealogy of Islam Nusantara is rooted in the Wali Songo political movement, which continues to develop to this day. At least, there are four main phases of the Islam Nusantara political movement.
The first phase is Wali Songo. In this phase, Wali Songo started his political campaign by influencing the Majapahit rulers to accept Islam. This effort was successful, so the Majapahit government formed the Raja Pandita institution managing Islam. Previously, there were Dhamadyaksa Kasogatan institutions for Buddhism and Dharmadysksa Kasaiwan for Hinduism.
Although the Wali Songo succeeded in forming the Demak kingdom, they still use the non-symbolic-formal cultural-political strategy;
We can find this in the model, government format, and technical management, which still uses Javanese customs and traditions (Nusantara), even though Demak is an Islamic kingdom.
Non-symbolic political movements are also depicted in the Demak state law, which uses the book of Salokantara, the text of law by Raden Patah; This is a combination of Islamic Shari’a law with local wisdom sourced from previous law books such as Kalinga Dharmashastra, Utharamanawa, etc., which are not contradictory with Islamic teachings. With a political strategy like this, Islam was successfully accepted by the archipelago people with joy.
The second phase is the era of the Sultanates of the Archipelago and the Hijaz Ulama. During this phase, the politics of Islam Nusantara was able to form several Islamic sultanates that spread throughout the Archipelago, starting from the Raja Ampat Sultanate in Papua, Ternate Tidore at the east end to the Aceh sultanate at the west end. During the colonial era, it managed to defend itself from various pressures so that Islam could survive in the Archipelago, even though it destroyed the country’s structural-format form.
In addition, to giving birth to several Islamic Sultanates, Islamic politics also gave birth to various Islamic thoughts, as reflected in the book Anger-anger Suryo Ngalam which is the constitution of the Islamic Mataram Sultanate Serat Wedhatama by Mangku Ngeoro IV, Serat Hidayat Jati by Ronggowarsito. All of which contain strategies politics to realize the implementation of Islamic teachings in the Archipelago, although with a more spiritual-Sufistic approach. Also Nusantara scholars such as Syech Nawawi al-Bantani, Abdussamad al-Falembangi, Syceh Arsyah al-Banjari, Abdul Rauf Singkel, Katib al-Minangkabowi, and so on whose works are still used as references to this day.
The third phase of the Islam Nusantara political movement is reflected in the involvement of Nusantara clerics and Kiai in the national tendency to form the Unitary Republic of Indonesia based on Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution.
The fourth phase of the Islam Nusantara political movement was manifested in the form of the involvement of Kiai and scholars in defending independence, maintaining the integrity of the Unitary Republic of Indonesia from being undermined by the rebels to the acceptance of Pancasila as the single principle in the nation and state.
Prioritizing Maslahah and Rahmah
From the historical trajectory of the political movements of the Nusantara ulama and Kiai, we can see that several main characteristics can be called Islam Nusantara politics, namely; First, the politics of Islam Nusantara prioritizes benefits rather than legal-formal-symbolic demands. This makes Islam Nusantara’s politics flexible in accepting local elements that do not conflict with Islamic teachings or prevent Muslims from carrying out their Shari’a. This attitude realizes the purpose of implementing Islamic law: to realize the benefit of the ummah (maqasidus syar’i Lil mashatil ummah). It is hard to imagine that Pancasila can be accepted as the basis of the state if most Muslims in this country do not put forward a maslahah political attitude.
Second, it prioritizes a rahmah approach rather than a confrontational-radical attitude that can lead to conflicts that can cause damage (mafsadah). With this approach, the politics of Islam Nusantara can weave differences and diversity to withstand potential disputes that occur in society. Indonesia will become a source of religious conflict if the Muslims of the Archipelago, with a high degree of plurality, do not prioritize Islam Rahmah.
Third, the politics of Islam Nusantara makes texts (Quran and hadith) as a source of inspiration, moral guidance, and references which are then interpreted and derived to be more operational as seen in the thoughts of the scholars of interpretation, tasawuf, fiqh, ushul fiqh, and so on. In short, the politics of Islam Nusantara uses the Quran and hadith as the basis and uses the thoughts of the ulama as practical-operational instructions in practising the Koran and hadith.
This is reflected in the use of the principles of ushul fiqh in formulating views and determining political attitudes, such as the rules of dar’ul mafasid muqaddam ala jalbil mashalih (preventing damage takes precedence over seeking goodness), the application of the concept of istihsan (finding the best way and way), al-‘Adah Muhakkamah (customs can be used as legal support), al-dzarar la yuzalu bil dzarar (we can not remove the danger, in a way that will cause another threat), and so on.
In this way, Islamic teachings contained in sacred texts become easier to apply and continue to be actual throughout the ages because they have relevance to reality without losing the substance contained in them. In the diverse context of Indonesia, it’s in these ways that Islam can become a knitting force for differences and diversity, as has been proven by the ulama and Kiai of the Archipelago, who later became known as the politics of Islam Nusantara.