Eid and National Unity

Eid always brings us home, not just to our houses, but also to the basic values that are often overlooked in national life. When the takbir echoes and the tradition of mutual forgiveness is revived, Eid al-Fitr is truly reminding us that this nation is not built on uniformity, but on the willingness to live together amidst differences.

In a social atmosphere that is easily tense due to political conflicts, identity sentiments, and inter-group distances, Eid becomes an important moment to reaffirm that national unity is not a finished legacy to be maintained, but an effort that must be continuously built in the context of nationhood and statehood.

In modern life that is all fast-paced, the nation often loses inner space to pause for a moment and reassess the direction of its life. We are busy chasing targets, maintaining positions, and debating many things, but we often forget that the main strength of a country does not lie solely in economic growth, military power, or technological sophistication.

Above all that, a strong nation rests on one more fundamental thing, namely the ability of its citizens to live together, trust each other, and work in one spirit of nationality. It is at that point that Eid finds its deepest relevance.

Theoretically, that meaning can be read through Émile Durkheim’s (1893) idea in his work titled The Division of Labour in Society, that society does not survive merely because of rules, but because of moral solidarity that binds individuals within it.

Eid operates in that realm, and teaches that social life must not be allowed to freeze due to ego, grudges, and accumulating barriers. The tradition of mutual forgiveness is not merely a cultural formality, but an ethical mechanism to restore human relationships.

Amid a society that is easily divided by differences in political choices, social classes, or group identities, Eid al-Fitr reminds us that togetherness must continue to be enlivened, not allowed to weaken by prejudices.

That idea becomes even more important when linked to Benedict Anderson’s (1983) view, which calls the nation an imagined political community.

A nation stands not because all its citizens know each other, but because they believe they are connected in the same fate and ideals.

In the Indonesian context, that trust does not arise by itself. Rather, it must be continuously nurtured through symbols, shared experiences, and binding values.

Eid is one of the cultural spaces that strengthens that bond. When someone returns to their hometown, reconnects family ties, subdues their ego, and reopens the door to forgiveness, that moment is actually taking part in the great work of caring for the nation as a shared home.

Robert D. Putnam (2000) calls elements like trust, social networks, and norms of reciprocity as social capital. A nation with strong social capital will be more capable of managing democracy, strengthening institutions, and carrying out development effectively.

From this perspective, Eid is not merely a spiritual event, but also a moment for strengthening national social capital. The atmosphere that encourages care, empathy, and social closeness is energy that is truly very much needed by Indonesia today, when public space is often filled with suspicion, polarisation, and a tendency to see differences as threats.

Indonesia has a cultural and ideological foundation that makes that meaning even more relevant. Soekarno from the beginning placed gotong royong as the essence of national life.

His idea is not just an old slogan, but a profound political conception, namely that Indonesia can only stand firm if all elements of the nation feel they own this republic.

Gotong royong fundamentally is the willingness to transcend narrow interests for greater goals. In the spirit of Eid, that value is present in a real way. People are encouraged to humble themselves, share sustenance, and mend relationships. All of that is a moral foundation that aligns with the spirit of nationality.

Indonesia’s history shows that the value of unity is not alien in the republic’s journey. Indonesia’s independence was proclaimed in the month of Ramadan, in an inner atmosphere of society that was greatly influenced by values of sacrifice, patience, and surrender to greater ideals.

Leading up to the proclamation, the nation’s founders from nationalist, religious, and youth backgrounds did not highlight their respective differences, but rather converged their historical energies in one goal, for an independent Indonesia. There, it is clear that this republic was born not from uniformity, but from the ability to unite diversity.

The same value is seen in the contributions of figures like KH Abdul Wahid Hasyim who placed the unity of the ummah and national unity as the main prerequisite for independence and national development.

The nation’s founders understood that differences in views are natural, but those differences must not be allowed to turn into divisions that weaken the shared home. In many historical episodes, this nation survived precisely because elites and the people had the ability to restrain sectoral egos for broader national interests.

That historical lesson feels very important for Indonesia today. We live in a society that is far more complex than the early days of the republic. The flow of information moves quickly, social media often amplifies sentiments, and political contests often give birth to psychological divisions that even persist after elections are over.

Differences in choices no longer stop at the realm of ideas, but enter family spaces, friendships, even daily communities. In such a situation, Eid should become a restorative pause, to teach that not everything has to be taken to the point of confrontation. There is room