Elderly mom finds solace in prayer at Istiqlal mosque

Elderly mom finds solace in prayer at Istiqlal mosque

Tantri Yuliandini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

It was just after the breaking of the fast at Istiqlal Mosque in
Central Jakarta, and most of the congregation was still outside
having their evening meal.

Sutinah, however, remained sitting in the mosque's prayer hall
in her white mukena (Muslim women's prayer dress), mumbling
inaudible words of prayer.

"I'll have something to eat later, after taraweeh," the 60-
year-old mother said during a break in her prayers.

Sunday was her fifth consecutive night at the mosque in the
act of itikaf (seclusion), and Sutinah plans to stay until the
second day of Idul Fitri on Nov. 4 before returning home to
Klaten in Central Java.

Itikaf is the act of staying in a mosque and devoting oneself
wholly to the worship of God. It usually begins on the evening of
the 20th day of the fasting month of Ramadhan from sunset until
the sighting of Idul Fitri moon.

Many people, such as Sutinah, come to the mosque to take a
break from the often-hard realities of their lives and turn to
God.

"I came to Jakarta to visit my children, but they've been
evicted from their homes, so I came here rather than bothering
them with my crying," she said.

Another woman, Warsih, has come from Jembatan Besi in Ancol,
North Jakarta, simply because the atmosphere was more peaceful at
the mosque.

"We come here almost every year, God willing, from the first
day of Ramadhan, and I hope, if my health allows it, until Idul
Fitri," she said as she wrapped a scarf around her head.

Meanwhile, Endah Dwi Kuntari from Pondok Kopi, East Jakarta,
said that her family usually takes time for itikaf on weekends.

"Because all of us work, we can't do the itikaf the whole
month of Ramadhan. But we try to take time on weekends," she
said, explaining that her family usually performed itikaf at
different mosques each week, such as the Al-Azhar Mosque in South
Jakarta and the Bank Indonesia and Sunda Kelapa Mosques in
Central Jakarta.

Endah said that the tradition began with her father. Besides
the spiritual merits, itikaf was also a good way to bring the
whole family together.

Istiqlal Mosque spokesman Dahlan said that each year people
came from places as far away as Lampung, West and Central Java to
do the itikaf at the mosque.

"We don't actually record how many people come for itikaf, but
this year there are at least 500 people," he told The Jakarta
Post, saying that while the majority of people came for the last
10 days, a smaller number of people stayed for the entire length
of Ramadhan.

For those doing the itikaf, Istiqlal Mosque organizes the
reciting of the Holy Koran, religious lectures as well as evening
prayers beginning from midnight until the sahur or pre-dawn meal.

Indeed, the Istiqlal Mosque does not sleep during Ramadhan. In
its prayer hall, people can be seen reciting the Koran, praying
or simply taking a break talking with their relatives and playing
with children.