Susilo prays for a little good luck

Susilo prays for a little good luck

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Religious ceremonies have always been part of state life in
Indonesia, but in Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's administration these
ceremonies are taking a new form and meaning.

Dismayed by a series of mishaps and disasters since he took
office on Oct. 20, Susilo invited about 70 people to a prayer
meant to purge his administration of bad luck.

Led by noted preacher Abdul Rachman al-Habsy, the ceremony at
the presidential compound's Baiturrahman Mosque lasted for about
four hours and included prayers and Koran readings.

This same group of people sometimes holds prayers at Susilo's
private residence in Cikeas, Bogor, West Java. None of Susilo's
five predecessors held such gatherings at the presidential
compound.

"We were only praying for the President's welfare and safety
so he can lead the country for the next five years. Disasters are
always part of our life and we have to look at ourselves to see
what we have done wrong," Al-Habsy said after the ceremony on
Thursday night.

He refused to say the ceremony was meant to cast away bad
luck, but underlined: "In every life, there are events that force
us to return to God and ask for assistance."

He said it was the first time he led such a ceremony for the
President at the palace.

"We were called this afternoon to have the gathering here and
not in Cikeas," the preacher said.

A string of natural disasters and fatal accidents have plagued
country over the past two months, claiming dozens of lives. These
accidents included a fatal crash after officers stopped traffic
on the toll road to allow the President's entourage to pass.

In a recent bus accident in Bantul, Yogyakarta, a legislator
from Susilo's Democratic Party was killed.

In addition to these accidents, one of Susilo's aides told The
Jakarta Post the President had been losing sleep since moving
into Merdeka Palace.

"There are many disturbances that keep the President from
sleeping," the aide said, refusing to explain the exact nature of
these disturbances.

Some of the palace's staff say there are ghosts in the palace,
and only people like founding president Sukarno and former
president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, also an Islamic cleric,
can live with such disturbances.

These kinds of religious ceremonies are not totally alien to
the presidential office.

Former president Soeharto was known for a group of shamans who
looked after his welfare and were said to have visited remote
places to gain spiritual strength.

Similarly, Gus Dur visited many grave sites during his
presidency. Being a cleric himself, he reportedly had many genies
to assist him.

Susilo's predecessor, Megawati Soekarnoputri, once held a
ceremony with nine Hindu leaders to wash the sacred objects
belonging to her family.

"We have to leave everything in God's hands, that is why we
held these prayers," Al-Habsy said.