Emha popularized 'maiyah' spiritual tunes

Emha popularized 'maiyah' spiritual tunes

Yusuf Susilo Hartono, Contributor, Jakarta

Since last July, Emha Ainun Najib, better known as Emha or Cak
Nun, and his Kiai Kanjeng Sepuh group have presented maiyah from
one city to another, in and outside Java, performing door to door
and even in squares, fields, sports halls, cultural centers,
mosques' yards and subdistrict offices.

The term maiyah may not be popular in our community. The term
is defined at PadhangmBulan.com as a cultural activity inspired
by religious teachings. It injects a rich religious substance to
a cultural activity. In this sense, a socio-cultural activity
must always be dedicated to Allah, in keeping with the tenet of
"sabbaha lillahi ma fis samawati wa ma fil ardli (all creatures
in heaven and on earth praise Allah).

Emha and members of his Kiai Kanjeng Sepuh realize those
extolling Allah are not only human beings and genies but also
objects like the saron (one of the traditional gamelan orchestra
instruments), violins, flutes, tambourines and even dragonflies,
grass and dry leaves.

So, Emha and his Kiai Kanjeng Sepuh members, all dressed in
white during the show, will sit in a circle and under the
guidance of Emha himself chant shalawat (a short prayer usually
consisting of verses from the Koran), wirid (passages from the
Koran) and poetry with musical accompaniment provided by gamelan,
violins, keyboards, percussion, guitars and other instruments.

Some of the shalawat are in their standard notation and are
therefore popular with the community, such as Ya Rabbi Shalli, Ya
Imamar Rusli, Nurul Musthafa and Ya Rabbi bil Musthafa. Others
are intentionally composed using the notation of Kanjengan,
Kanjengan of Melayu, Kanjengan of Mandar, Kanjengan of Bugis,
Sundanese Kanjengan, Chinese Kanjengan, Kanjengan of Wonokromo,
Kanjengan of Banyuwangi, Gregorian Kanjengan, Kanjengan of
Magelang, Kanjengan of Jawi, Kanjengan of Sumenep and Kanjengan
of Bu Cammana.

A kanjengan notation is composed by, among others, a member of
the Kiai Kanjeng Sepuh or by Emha himself. The name of a place or
ethnic group added after the word kanjengan in the notation shows
that it is an adaptation of a tune from a particular place or
ethnic group.

Since their performance in the Kenduri Cinta (Ritual Feast of
Love) in the yard of the Ismail Marzuki arts center in Cikini,
Central Jakarta on Nov. 9, Cak Nun and his Kiai Kanjeng Sepuh
community have been chanting only their own shalawat and wirid.
Previously, they also performed a piece popularly known as
shalawat alongside their own.

The maiyah performed by Cak Nun and Kiai Kanjeng Sepuh members
has been put on a record produced by Hadi Sunyoto of HP Record.
Their twenty-fourth recording, consisting of shalawat created by
Cak Nun and his group, has been released to welcome the arrival
of the holy fasting month of Ramadhan.

The album is entitled Bermusik kepada Allah, untuk Indonesia,
Maiyah, tanah air... untuk bangsa yang berkeping-keping (Playing
music for Allah, for Indonesia, Maiyah, the motherland and for
the nation now being torn to pieces).

The word kiai in the group's name usually refers to a
religious figure, while kanjengan is a term used to show respect
to a person. Earlier, the group was popular under the name of
Kiai Kanjeng, but now the word sepuh (old) has been added.

Emha said the word sepuh had been included to show that he
himself was now old enough, and that this word also marked phases
in his life. At first, he concentrated on arts, then on culture
and later on the propagation of Islam or a religious culture.
Today, he said, he had come to the phase of spirituality.

"Therefore Kiai Kanjeng Sepuh cannot be compared with, for
example, pop music groups such as Sheila on 7, Jikustik or Padi,"
said Emha, the husband of actress Novia Kolopaking.

When asked whether he was an arts observer, a cultural
activist or someone propagating the faith of Islam, Emha simply
said with a smile that he no longer needed all those separate
labels.

"It is up to people (to decide) what they want to call me," he
said, adding that at times he could also act as a shaman.

One thing is for sure, at this stage of his life he is trying
to accentuate the spiritual dimension in his creations.

During performances, all members of the Kiai Kanjeng Sepuh
community wear white. Emha said they did so not to show they were
clean but more because they realized they were still dirty and
sinful either to Allah or to others. The white dress, he said,
would motivate them to continue their efforts to purify
themselves.

Therefore, in their maiyah performances, Emha and his Kiai
Kanjeng Sepuh have never failed to touch upon actual issues
facing the country like those to do with power, the economy,
politics, the law, security, people's representatives and the
serious threats faced by the nation internally and externally.