Balinese Moslems, Hindus live in harmony<\/p>\n
By Putu Wirata<\/p>\n
DENPASAR (JP): When thousands of Balinese took to the streets
\nrecently, demonstrating their anger at a cabinet minister's
\nreligious slur, many people questioned if the predominantly Hindu
\nisland had turned sectarian and would seek independence.<\/p>\n
Hindus constitute over 95 percent of the famed holiday
\nisland's population of 2.8 million people, according to the 1997
\nofficial statistics.<\/p>\n
Minister of Food and Horticulture A.M. Saefuddin, who covets
\nthe next presidency, angered Balinese recently when he openly
\nquestioned if the predominantly Moslem Indonesians would want to
\nsee Megawati Soekarnoputri become their president because \"she is
\na Hindu\".<\/p>\n
However, just like Saefuddin, Megawati is a Moslem. Clarifying
\nhis controversial statement, Saefuddin said he assumed Megawati
\nwas Hindu because she was seen worshiping together with Hindus in
\na Hindu temple.<\/p>\n
Wayan Sudirta, chairman of the Foundation for Indonesian Hindu
\nStudies, soothes worries that Bali is turning sectarian and that
\ndemands for secession are serious.<\/p>\n
\"The harsh response came because they feel that their refined
\nculture has often been abused in the name of development,\" he
\nsays.<\/p>\n
It was the leaders of the Bali provincial chapter of the
\nIndonesian Youth Committee who threatened to proclaim Bali an
\nindependent state. The threat sparked a cloud of controversy
\namong the Balinese.<\/p>\n
Sudirta believes that the strong reaction does not indicate
\nthat the seed of sectarianism is budding among the Balinese.<\/p>\n
\"The target of the Balinese anger is not Islam, but Saefuddin
\nas an individual,\" he says.<\/p>\n
A similar opinion came from Ketut Wiana, an executive of the
\nIndonesian Hindu Council.<\/p>\n
\"Historically, Balinese Hindus have had harmonious relations
\nwith Moslems since the ancient kingdoms,\" he says.<\/p>\n
In modern times, Bali once had a Moslem governor, while a
\nvillage chief in Nusa Dua was a Roman Catholic.<\/p>\n
\"When Saefuddin made the religious slur, we Balinese were
\nfurious because we felt that we were disrespected as part of the
\nnation,\" he argues.<\/p>\n
Islamic hamlets<\/p>\n
Bali has several hamlets that are Moslem enclaves dating back
\nto the ancient kingdoms. These include Kepaon in the regency of
\nBadung, Loloan and Banyubiru in Jembrana, Gelgel in Klungkung,
\nSaren Jawa in Karangasem and Pegayaman in Buleleng.<\/p>\n
They all have tales suggesting that, historically, Bali's
\nrulers have always had good relations with Moslems.<\/p>\n
Anthropologist Jean Couteau says that the rulers of Bali
\nconsidered Moslems an integral part of their territory.<\/p>\n
\"Balinese kings saw them (Moslems) as part of their cosmic
\nkingdoms and treated them like Hindus,\" he says.<\/p>\n
The fact that Balinese Moslems have traditions like slaman
\nofferings, porkless offerings presented in a Hindu temple,
\nsuggests that the Moslems used to be treated as part of the Hindu
\nkingdom's cosmic system, according to Couteau.<\/p>\n
In Pagayaman, Buleleng, there are several thousand Moslems.
\nThey retain Balinese names such as Wayan, Ketut, Made or Nyoman.
\nA local writer, Ketut Syahruwardi Abbas, has on various occasions
\nbeen mistaken for a Hindu.<\/p>\n
Stories relate that Moslems in Pegayaman received their
\nproperty from King Panji Sakti.<\/p>\n
The Moslem hamlet of Banyubiru boasts a strong Balinese
\nculture. Not only do people have Balinese names, but they also
\nmaintain a Hindu temple, Pura Majapahit, where pork is forbidden.<\/p>\n
Pork is widely used in Balinese offerings. Katut Masri, a
\nBanyubiru Moslem, recalls that in the 1960s it was common for
\nMoslems to take part in Hindu rituals in the temple.<\/p>\n
Now, he says, few Moslems do it, but many still believe that
\nthey have some kind of religious relationship with the gods
\nbelieved to exist in the temple.<\/p>\n
\"(Moslem) people will make offerings for Gods in Temple
\nMajapahit when they have their sons circumcised. We do not
\nphysically go there to the temple but pray from home,\" Masri
\nsays.<\/p>\n
Although in mainstream Islam it is considered musrik (taboo)
\nto mix Islamic rituals with those of other beliefs, people here
\ndo not have the courage to end the custom, Masri says.<\/p>\n
\"Once a family tried to quit the practice but it did not work.
\nTheir circumcised son bled, and it wouldn't stop until purified
\nwater from Temple Majapahit was sprinkled on him,\" he added.<\/p>\n
In the isolated Saren Java hamlet, hundreds of Moslem families
\nlive in peace with Hindus.<\/p>\n
\"Our harmonious coexistence is genuine,\" said Ketut Achmad, a
\nMoslem leader in Saren Jawa. \"So close is their relations that
\nMoslems will call their Hindu neighbors 'brother' and Hindus call
\nMoslems adik (little brother or sister).\"<\/p>\n
Wayan Sudirta says that the current tensions between Balinese
\nHindus and Saefuddin should not be given religious connotations.<\/p>\n
\"Mutual respect has overcome shortsightedness and sectarianism
\nin the Balinese society,\" he says.<\/p>\n
When the controversy over the minister's remarks raged,
\nBalinese Moslems also criticized him.<\/p>\n
\"If Indonesia still believes in (the state ideology)
\nPancasila, religion and sex should not be used to block one's
\nright to ascend to the presidency,\" Sudirta notes.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/balinese-moslems-hindus-live-in-harmony-1447893297",
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