KATA SAMBUTAN REKOMENDASI

Dari : Dr. IBRAHIM JEAN COUTEAU

Beliau seorang muslim orientalis dan penulis Eropa (Prancis) Tentang perkembangan dan pengembangan Islam di Bali yang sekarang bertugas dan berdomisili di Bali

THE SEVEN “ SAINTS “ (WALI) OF BALI

Islam has long mystics tradition harking back to the begining of the Hegira an the early exegesis  of the Holy Book (Al qur’an) and  sayings (Hadits) of the prophet. This tradition is at the core of the central debate of Islam. Should the faithful explore the spirit of the Relevation or should the opt instead for a literal reading of the Sourates. The debate is still going on today. The followers of the literal interpretation insist on adapting the world to their "narrower" reading of the text. In Islamic exegesis, the chasm between these two points of view is respresented by the writings of lbn Arabi on the one hand and lbn taymiya on the other.

Islam is an Arabic word that means "surrender" to God. One of the means used by the moslem mystics to achieve full surrender to God "approach" him through the "intercession" of those closest to him: the “Walis" or auliya in its plural Arabic form. There is no exact translation for the word in English. The word "saint’ is often used. But it implies a worshipping that is alien to the monotheistic spirit of Islam (tauhid).the walis are, stricly speaking, those “who are love by God”. Unlikes the prophets, who transmit a God-inspired message, the “walis” are respected by the devotees on account of the example of good behavior they give. This examples thought to encourage the faithfull “surrender” to God.

Indonesia has a long tradition of wali “cult”, which focuseson the founders of the faith in the Archipelago. The most famous of these “walis“ are the Wali Songo, or the “nine saints" of Java. These were traders-cum spiritual leaders whose teaching and political endeavors ensured the 15th century spreading of Islam beyond the Norrthern coast of Java, where it had ensconced present since the 12th century toward the javanese Hinterland. Java is now 90% moslem. There are disagreements as to the identity of some of saints. Those generally recognized as the  Wali Songo are Maulana Ibrahim, Sunan Ampel, Sunan Giri, Sunan Bonang, Sunan Muria, Sunan Derajat and Sunan Gunung Jati, These saint whose tombs are scattered over the wole island of Java, are reputed to have speread the teaching of Islam in an integrative way, in particular by inseting the Islamic message whit in narratives of Hindu-Javanese origin such as the Ramayana and Mahabarata. There are instead of eradicating the ancient layers of Javanese and integrative.It is this mystic-cum-Javanese tradition that inspires today’s “cult” of the Balinese Wali Pitu who are the object of this book.

Bali has long been subjected to Islamic influences. As it did in Java one thousand years ago, Islam has long been in Bali the religion of coastal traders, mercenaries and other men knowledge such as “doctors“ and horoscope reader. Contrary to a hard-to-die anthropological myth,Bali has never been subjected to Islamic onslaught. The Balinese kingdoms have frequently expanded to moslem East-Java and Lombok, while no moslem Javanese power has ever ivaded Bali. Islam has come to Bali peacefully, usually welcome by Hindu rulers who used its followers for their own economic and political purposes. Until colonization, these moslem Balinese Constituted small communities that lived without any problem what so ever next to their Hindu- Balinese bretherns. Speaking Balinese often marrying Balinese, they have played acruaial role in the 19th century resistance to the Dutch and in the 20th century fight for independence (17/08/1945).

In spite of their being well integrated within Balinese mainsream society, the Moslem Balinese have always remained in narrow relation with the Moslem network of the Archipelago and beyong. The Bugis-Balinese traders of the Negara area on the Western part of  the island used to sail up Singapore and the Sulu island in the Piliphines. South of Singaraja, originally set up in the late 17th century by mercenaries of the local king, has long sent its youth to the pesantren schools of Lombok and Eastern Java          

      

Until recently, however, little was know on the holy men who spread the message of  Islam to Bali and came to be considered as local Balinese “saints or Wali” the original identification of  these saints has been done by a group of young Moslem researchers under the spiritual direction of javanese “Kyai” from Sidoarjo, Surabaya : Kyai Toyib Zaen Arifin a follower of the Qadirya mystic congregtation, they have researched hte insired meditation, they have identified a number of seven Balinese “Wali”. These Wali are Pangeran Mas Sepuh in Seseh (Denpasar), Chabib Umar Bin Yusuf Al maghribi in Bedugul, Chabib Ali Bin Abu Bakar al Hamid in Kusamba Klungkung, Maulana Yusuf Al Baghdi Al Maghribi and Chabib Ali Bin Zaenal Abidin Al Edrus in Bebandem, Karangasem and Syekh Abdul Qodir Muhammad in Temukus ,Buleleng and finaly Chabib AliBafaqih Loloan Negara. These Wali Pitu  (seven Saints) of Bali are thought to be related by descendance to the Wali Songo (Nine Saints) of Java. This book tells the story of these saints “Wali” and explain their relevance to Islamic teaching, may their example be useful to the followers of the faith, who came in ever greater number in pilgrimage to look for their guidance.

Ibrahim Jean Coutean