Belief Sanctuary Burned Down Due to Heresy Accusations

Followers of the Saung Taraju Jumantara sanctuary in Kampung Babakan Salak, Purwarahayu Village, Taraju District, Tasikmalaya Regency, West Java, became victims of mob violence due to accusations of spreading a heretical sect. A group of people burned the sanctuary, consisting of a bamboo structure or building in the middle of the rice fields owned by the sanctuary’s leader. They also forced the followers to recite the declaration of faith and threatened to kill them.

The sanctuary’s advocate, Andi Ibnu Hadi, said the death threats against the members occurred after the bamboo structure was burned on Wednesday night, 1 April 2026. The incident happened after a group of people, allegedly members of the Islamic Brotherhood Front and the Tasikmalaya Regency Indonesian Ulema Council, visited the location. “The accusations were of defiling religion to spreading a heretical sect,” Andi said when contacted by Tempo on Sunday, 5 April 2026.

According to Andi, the burning of the bamboo structure was the aftermath of a demonstration against the followers of the Saung Taraju Jumantara sanctuary in 2024 in front of the Tasikmalaya Regency Prosecutor’s Office. Another trigger was an argument between the sanctuary’s followers and someone who provoked them on social media. As a result, the sanctuary’s leader and followers received death threats. The sanctuary’s followers were also forced to recite the declaration of faith, a requirement for those intending to embrace Islam.

Andi said Khobir, the sanctuary’s leader, is part of the Wahidiyah congregation that respects local Sundanese cultural wisdom. They practise reverence for nature. The Wahidiyah congregation has faced rejection in several places because it is considered deviant.

A witness to the burning said that four days before the incident, a group of people who were MUI and FPI figures provoked the residents of Kampung Babakan Salak by accusing the Saung Taraju Jumantara sanctuary’s leader of spreading a heretical sect.

Then there was a meeting at the sub-district office. But the sanctuary’s leader did not come. The MUI and FPI figures went to the sanctuary’s leader and did not find him at the bamboo structure. The mob became angry and burned the bamboo structure.

This witness, who requested anonymity for safety reasons, showed a video of the bamboo structure being burned and a video of the sanctuary’s followers being forced to recite the declaration of faith. The bamboo structure was completely destroyed by the fire and cordoned off with yellow police tape. He also sent a statement letter from residents rejecting the sanctuary.

The Saung Taraju Jumantara sanctuary has 30 members. In their practices, they often discuss the importance of respecting Sundanese ancestors who teach compassion and prohibit the exploitation of nature. They believe in the ancient Javanese philosophical teaching of sedulur papat lima pancer. The concept involves controlling anger, lust, and greed, including prohibitions against damaging nature. They follow the Pikukuh Sunda teachings. “Maintaining harmony between humans, God, and nature,” said one of the sanctuary’s followers.

Tasikmalaya Islamic Brotherhood Front Chairman Yanyan Albayani denied that his group provoked the burning of the bamboo structure. According to him, the FPI members’ visit to the sanctuary aimed to calm the uncontrolled anger of the mob. “FPI communicated with authorities so that the mob did not take the law into their own hands,” he said.

According to Yanyan, the mob’s anger arose after the sanctuary’s followers posted sentences insulting Islam on their TikTok account. He accused the sanctuary’s followers of equating the utterance of Allah with a dragon’s head. The General Chairman of the Tasikmalaya MUI Executive Board, Acep Thohir Fuad, and General Secretary Manaf M. Yazid have not responded to Tempo’s confirmation via WhatsApp messages or telephone calls.