transnational religion: a case study of the ......dr arskal salim, my associate supervisors at the...

TRANSNATIONAL RELIGION: A CASE STUDY OF THE TURKISH

UNITED ISLAMIC CULTURAL CENTRE OF INDONESIA (UICCI)

A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Firdaus Wajdi

Principal Supervisor:

Professor Dr. Julia Day Howell

Co-Supervisors:

Associate Professor Dr. Mary Hawkins

Dr. Arskal Salim

RELIGION AND SOCIETY RESEARCH CENTRE

SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND PSYCHOLOGY

WESTERN SYDNEY UNIVERSITY

2015

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page ii

Dedication

I dedicate this thesis to:

My mother, Suirat, and my wife, Indah Nuchaidah, two exceptional women

in my life. Also to my son, Kayyis Makarim Wajdi, and my daughter, Afaaf

Mahestri Wajdi, for their patience and understanding.

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page iii

Acknowledgements

A number of people and institutions have supported me while I completed

this thesis. My PhD program was made possible by Australian Leadership

Awards Scholarships (ALAS), formerly managed by the AusAID and now

administered by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT),

Australia, and was supported by the rector of Universitas Negeri Jakarta

(UNJ [State University of Jakarta]), who granted permission for my study

leave. I am grateful to those institutions for their support.

Professor Dr Julia Day Howell, my principal supervisor, has devoted her time

and insight, giving my work both theoretical and methodological guidance. In

addition to being my academic guide, she has encouraged me to actively

participate in a number of academic conferences and summer school through

which I have learned a great deal. Associate Professor Dr Mary Hawkins and

Dr Arskal Salim, my associate supervisors at the Religion and Society

Research Centre (RSRC), University of Western Sydney, have given valuable

feedback on my thesis drafts. Without their continuous support,

encouragement and constructive criticism, I would not have been able to

complete this thesis. I am therefore indebted to them all and I thank them

sincerely.

I am also truly thankful to Terri Drage for her review and comments on my

drafts. I am grateful for her valuable insights and encouragement. Also to Ms

Vanessa Goldie-Scot for her patient assistance with my writing skills and Ms

Elena Knox who carried out the tedious work of proofreading and correcting

the language of this thesis. Scholars and staff of the RSRC and School of

Social Science and Psychology have helped me and made my study easier.

Among them, Professor Dr Adam Possamai (the director of the Centre), and

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page iv

Ms Eva Gracia (Centre Coordinator), Mrs Vicki Fox and Ms Nutan Muckle

have provided both academic and administrative support during my

program. I would also like to thank Dr Steven Drakeley and Dr Jan Ali, and

my colleagues Mas Zen, Mas Muttaqin, Faroque, Mas Godo, Mbak Juni,

Mbak Rully, Mas Arif Budiman, and Ferhat Kopuz Abi for their friendship.

I am indebted to many people in Jakarta, Jogjakarta, Pangkalan Bun, Medan,

Aceh, Istanbul, Kayseri, Frankfurt, Auburn and Meadow Heights, for their

permission and support while I carried out my fieldwork in the Süleymancı

boarding schools, Gülen affiliated institutions, as well as Nurcu’s dershanes.

I owe them much for both their hospitality and their valuable information. I

could not have completed this thesis without their support.

Last, but not least, I offer both my thanks and apologies to those who have

assisted me, but who are too numerous to be listed here.

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page v

Presentations

Parts of an earlier draft of this thesis were presented at:

1. Asian Studies Association of Australia (ASAA) 19th Biennial

Conference, “Knowing Asia: Asian Studies in an Asian Century”, The

University of Western Sydney, 11-13 July 2012.

2. Religion, Nation(alism) and Transnationalism Symposium, The

University of Western Sydney, 9 July 2014.

3. DORISEA - CETREN Summer School 2014, “Cityscapes and New

Religiosities in Asia, The University of Göttingen, 10–17 August 2014.

4. 2014 Society for the Scientific Study of Religion (SSSR) Annual

Meeting, Indianapolis, Indiana, 31 October-2 November 2014.

5. 2014 CILIS Islamic Studies Postgraduate Conference, The University

of Melbourne, 11-12 November 2014.

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page vi

Statement of Authentication

The work presented in this thesis is, to the best of my knowledge and belief,

original except as acknowledged in the text. I hereby declare that I have not

submitted this material, either in full or in part, for a degree at this or any

other institution.

....

Firdaus Wajdi

25 August, 2015

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page vii

Table of Contents

Dedication ..................................................................................................................................... ii

Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................... iii

Presentations ................................................................................................................................ v

Statement of Authentication ..................................................................................................... vi

Table of Contents ....................................................................................................................... vii

List of Figures ............................................................................................................................. xii

Abstract ...................................................................................................................................... xiii

Glossary and Abbreviations ..................................................................................................... xv

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................ 1

1.1 THESIS STATEMENT AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS ............................................... 1

1.1.1 Thesis Statement .................................................................................... 1

1.1.2 Research Questions ................................................................................ 6

1.2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ........................................................................................ 7

1.2.1 Transnationalism and Transnational Religious Movements ................ 7

1.2.1.1 Foci of Transnationalism Studies ..................................................................... 8

1.2.1.2 History and Development of Transnational Religious Movements ............ 9

1.2.2 Opportunity Spaces ............................................................................. 14

1.2.2.1 The Development of Opportunity Spaces Theory ....................................... 15

1.2.2.2 Opportunity Spaces and the Historical Development of Three Turkish

Muslim Social Movements ......................................................................................... 18

1.2.3 Glocalization ........................................................................................ 24

1.3 THE INDONESIAN CONTEXT: RECENT ISLAMIC REVIVAL AND TURKISH

TRANSNATIONAL MOVEMENTS ...................................................................................... 27

1.3.1 Islamic Revivalism in Indonesia .......................................................... 27

1.3.2 Turkish Transnational Islamic Movements in Indonesia ................... 31

1.4 METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................................... 35

1.5 THESIS STRUCTURE ........................................................................................................ 41

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page viii

CHAPTER II: ISLAM IN TURKEY AND THE RISE OF SÜLEYMANCIS ...46

2.1 INTRODUCTION .........................................................................................................46

2.2 ISLAM IN MODERN TURKEY ................................................................................ 48

2.2.1 Islam Distanced from the State (1923–1950) ................................ 49

2.2.2 Integration into the State (1950s) .................................................. 50

2.2.3 Pluralization: 1980s ........................................................................ 51

2.2.4 Turkish Religious Movements of the Latter Twentieth Century ... 52

2.3 THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SÜLEYMANCIS MOVEMENT IN TURKEY AND

ABROAD ..................................................................................................................................... 53

2.3.1 The Süleymancı’s Founding Father ................................................ 53

2.3.2 Developments of Süleymancıs ....................................................... 56

2.3.2.1 Darul Arqam Period 1924–1950: Challenging Beginnings in a

Loose Network .......................................................................................... 56

2.3.2.2 The Medina Period 1950–1959: The Beginning of Public

Süleymancı Schools .................................................................................. 58

2.3.2.3 The Formation of the Süleymancı Organization and Movement

Abroad (1959–2000s) ..............................................................................60

2.4 OVERSEAS BRANCHES OF THE SÜLEYMANCIS: GERMAN AND

AUSTRALIAN EXAMPLES ................................................................................................... 68

2.4.1 The Süleymancı in Germany ............................................................... 68

2.4.2 The Süleymancı in Australia ............................................................... 73

2.5 OPPORTUNITY SPACES FOR THE SÜLEYMANCIS ................................................ 76

2.6 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................... 80

CHAPTER III: INDONESIAN SÜLEYMANCIS (THE UICCI) ......................... 81

3.1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................ 81

3.2 HISTORY OF THE UICCI ................................................................................................ 83

3.3 THE BRANCHES OF UICCI ........................................................................................... 90

3.3.1 The History of the Establishment of the UICCI Branches .................. 90

3.3.1.1 Asrama SMP-Jati Padang, Jakarta ............................................................... 90

3.3.1.2 Asrama Umraniyah-Pejaten, Jakarta .......................................................... 92

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page ix

3.3.1.3 Pondok Pesantren Sulaimaniyah-Rawamangun, Jakarta ........................ 94

3.3.1.4 Asrama Süleyman Halis-Pangkalan Bun, Kalimantan .............................. 97

3.3.1.5 Pondok Pesantren Habibie Centre - Blang Bintang, Aceh ........................ 99

3.3.1.6 Asrama SMP-Aceh (Kota Banda) ............................................................... 101

3.3.1.7 Pondok Pesantren Syarif, Medan ................................................................102

3.3.2 City not Village .................................................................................. 103

3.3.3 The Pattern ........................................................................................ 105

3.4 FREE HIGH QUALITY TURKISH-STYLE ISLAMIC BOARDING SCHOOLS ... 106

3.5 CURRICULUM OF UICCI SCHOOLS .......................................................................... 114

3.6 MANAGEMENT OF THE UICCI .................................................................................. 118

3.6.1 National Branch Management ........................................................... 118

3.6.2 Transnational Management .............................................................. 122

3.7 RESPONSES TO THE UICCI ......................................................................................... 123

3.7.1 Response of the Government ............................................................ 123

3.7.2 Response of the Community ..............................................................127

3.8 THE UICCI AND ‘OPPORTUNITY SPACES’ IN INDONESIA ............................... 129

3.8.1 Private Islamic Education as an ‘Opportunity Space’ ....................... 129

3.8.2 Other Facilitating Factors ................................................................. 130

3.8.2.1 The Indonesian Government, Democracy ................................................. 130

3.8.2.2 Economic Neoliberalization ........................................................................ 131

3.9 GLOCALIZATION: ADOPTION OF THE TERM ‘PONDOK PESANTREN’ ....... 131

3.10 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................ 133

CHAPTER IV: THE QUR’AN MEMORIZATION AND THE QURBAN

DISTRIBUTION: SULEYMANCI HIZMET IN INDONESIA .......................... 139

4.1 INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................................. 139

4.2 UICCI AND ITS HIZMET IN INDONESIA ................................................................. 140

4.3 HIZMET OF THE QUR’AN ............................................................................................ 141

4.3.1 The Growing Popularity of Qur’an Recitation in Indonesia .............. 141

4.3.2 Süleymanıs View of Qur’an Hizmet .................................................. 145

4.3.3 The Ottoman Method of Teaching and Memorizing the Qur’an...... 149

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page x

4.3.4 A Personal Experience of a Tahfidz of the Qur’an ........................... 154

4.4 The Hizmet of the Qurban ............................................................................................... 156

4.4.1 The Süleymancıs’ View of the Qurban .............................................. 156

4.4.2 Eid al-Adha Festival at the UICCI Boarding School ........................ 159

4.4.3 Transnational Donors in the Sacrifice Festival ................................ 163

4.4.4 Ritual and Social Functions of the Hizmet of the Qurban ............... 167

4.5 THE HIZMET MOVEMENT AND THE SÜLEYMANCI TYPOLOGY .................. 170

4.6 CONCLUSION .................................................................................................................. 172

CHAPTER V: NETWORKS, CIRCULATION AND FINANCE OF THE

INDONESIAN SÜLEYMANCIS (UICCI) ................................................................. 175

5.1 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 175

5.2 ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE AND NETWORKS ................................................ 176

5.2.1 The UICCI in the Global Süleymancı Bureaucratic Structure .......... 176

5.2.2 The Four Pillars of Süleymancı Organizational Life ........................ 178

5.3 CIRCULATION OF THE SÜLEYMANCI PERSONNEL .......................................... 181

5.3.1 Transfers for Hizmet ........................................................................................ 183

5.3.2 Movements for Education .............................................................................. 186

5.4 FINANCING THE UICCI ................................................................................................ 195

5.4.1 Transnational Fundraising ................................................................ 195

5.4.2 Local Fundraising ............................................................................. 199

5.4.3 Commission for Finance and Fundraising ....................................... 202

5.5 CONCLUSION.................................................................................................................. 204

CHAPTER VI: SUFI ELEMENTS OF SÜLEYMANCI PRACTICE ............... 205

6.1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................ 205

6.2 INDONESIAN SUFISM AND THE INFLUENCE OF OVERSEAS SUFIS .......... 208

6.2.1 The History of Indonesian Sufism ................................................... 208

6.2.2 Sufism, Islamization and Islamic Revival in Indonesia ................... 209

6.2.3 Pre-Modern Sufi Networks and Turkish Influence ........................... 211

6.3 TURKISH SUFISM AND THE SÜLEYMANCIS ........................................................ 212

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page xi

6.4 SUFI ELEMENTS IN THE THREE TURKISH MUSLIM MOVEMENTS ........... 213

6.4.1 Sufism in the Gülen Movement ......................................................... 213

6.4.2 Sufism in the Nurcu Movement ........................................................ 216

6.4.3 Sufism in the Süleymancı Movement ................................................217

6.5 THE SOURCES OF THE SÜLEYMANCIS’ CONCEPTION OF SUFISM ............. 218

6.6 THE SUFI SPIRITUAL HIERARCHY AND BROTHERLY SOLIDARITY IN

THE SÜLEYMANCI MOVEMENT ..................................................................................... 219

6.6.1 Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan as Mursyid Kamil ................................... 219

6.7 SUFI RITUALS OF THE SÜLEYMANCIS .................................................................. 222

6.7.1 Rabita: The Guru–Student Connection ............................................ 222

6.7.2 Khatim: Group Remembrance Ritual ............................................... 225

6.8 IDENTITY ......................................................................................................................... 225

6.9 CONCLUSION: THE SÜLEYMANCIS AS A SUFI-ORIENTED PIETY

MOVEMENT .......................................................................................................................... 226

CHAPTER VII: CONCLUSION .................................................................................... 228

7.1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................. 228

7.2 THE SÜLEYMANCIS AS A TRANSNATIONAL RELIGIOUS REVIVAL

ORGANIZATION IN INDONESIA .................................................................................... 229

7.3 THE SÜLEYMANCI MOVEMENT AND ‘OPPORTUNITY SPACES’ IN

INDONESIA ............................................................................................................................ 232

7.3.1 The Indonesian Government and Democracy .................................. 234

7.3.2 Economic Neoliberalization .............................................................. 234

7.4 ADAPTATION OF THE SÜLEYMANCI MOVEMENT IN THE INDONESIAN

CONTEXT ................................................................................................................................ 235

7.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE RESEARCH ......................................................................... 237

7.6 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE WORK ........................................................ 237

REFERENCES .................................................................................................................... 239

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page xii

List of Figures

Figure 1: Syeikh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan .............................................................................. 55

Figure 2: A mosque within Frankfrut branch of the Süleymancıs .......................................... 73

Figure 3: Australian Süleymancıs’ main branch ....................................................................... 75

Figure 4: Minister of Social Affairs during the PP Sulaimaniyah grand opening ceremony ........89

Figure 5: Official of the Ministry of Religious Affairs during the grand opening of

the PP Sulaimaniyah, Jakarta ...................................................................................... 89

Figure 6: Asrama SMP-Jati Padang, Jakarta ........................................................................... 92

Figure 7: Asrama Umraniyah-Pejaten, Jakarta ....................................................................... 94

Figure 8: Pondok Pesantren Sulaimaniyah-Rawamangun, Jakarta ...................................... 96

Figure 9: Asrama Süleyman Halis-Pangkalan Bun, Kalimantan ........................................... 98

Figure 10: Pondok Pesantren Habibie Centre-Blang Bintang, Aceh .................................... 100

Figure 11: Asrama SMP-Aceh ................................................................................................... 101

Figure 12: Pondok Pesantren Syarif, Medan .......................................................................... 103

Figure 13: Front face of PP Sulaimaniyah building, Rawamangun, Jakarta ........................ 112

Figure 14: Reception point at PP Sulaimaniyah, Rawamangun, Jakarta ............................. 113

Figure 15: Dining room at PP Sulaimaniyah, Rawamangun, Jakarta ................................... 113

Figure 16: Study at PP Sulaimaniyah, Rawamangun, Jakarta ............................................... 114

Figure 17: Learning environment at UICCI Islamic boarding school, Rawamangun, Jakarta ...... 115

Figure 18: Management of UICCI Rawamangun, Jakarta, 2012. ......................................... 119

Figure 19: The UICCI staff with the Minister of Religious Affairs during his visit to

UICCI Rawamangun ................................................................................................... 127

Figure 20: Indonesian tahfidz students, among others, at the Eyyup Kuran Kursu, Turkey. ....... 156

Figure 21: Qurban distribution at PP Sulaimaniyah Rawamangun, Jakarta ....................... 162

Figure 22: Qurban distribution at Istiqlal mosque, Jakarta .................................................. 163

Figure 23: A typology of Islamic social movements by Hakan Yavuz (2007) ....................... 171

Figure 24: Indonesian students in one of Süleymancı Kur’an Kursu, Turkey ......................194

Figure 25: Indonesian students visiting graveyard of Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan at Kabri Şerif 194

Figure 26: Altun Silsile .............................................................................................................. 221

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page xiii

Abstract

Globalization and the communications revolution have allowed vastly

increased flows of ideas and people across the Islamic world, generating new

social forms. As is well known, these include transnational social movements

and organizations originating in the Middle East and now stretching across

the globe, as far as East and Southeast Asia. Indonesia, as the country with

the largest Muslim majority, has attracted Islamic activists from other parts

of the world. What is little known is that some of the most active

transnational Islamic movements in Indonesia in recent years originate from

Turkey. Unlike Islamic revival movements of Arab and Persian origins, which

since the 1970s have been predominantly fundamentalist, the new-comer

Turkish-origin movements take a different approach to Islamic revival. They

are more ‘moderate’ than many of the movements from the Middle East and

are proving to be easily accepted in Southeast Asia, not only by Muslim

communities there but by the governments of the region.

This thesis introduces one of the lesser known of the major Turkish

transnational piety renewal movements that have recently reached

Indonesia: the Süleymancıs. This case study of the Süleymancıs in Indonesia,

founded there in the form of an organization called the United Islamic

Cultural Centre of Indonesia (UICCI), provides an example of how a Turkish

Muslim transnational organization comes to project itself into a new cultural

environment (a non-Turkish diaspora context) and adapts to that new

context. The thesis is based on ethnographic research conducted in Indonesia

over twelve months in 2012 and 2013 and on additional interviews conducted

and observations made in Turkey over three weeks in 2013.

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page xiv

The study undertakes the following tasks: (1) construction of a theoretical

framework to study this movement from the perspective of the social

sciences; (2) review, as background for the Indonesian case study, of the

history of the Süleymancı movement in Turkey and its initial transformation

into a transnational organization extending into Europe and other Turkish

diaspora regions; (3) documentation of the arrival of the Süleymancıs in

Indonesia and their progress over ten years since their establishment; (4)

exposition of the way in which the Süleymancıs promote Islamic piety in

Indonesia through study and memorization of the Qur’an and the practice of

qurban (religiously prescribed sacrifice of farm animals for food

distribution); (5) identification of Sufi elements within Süleymancı Islamic

practice; and (6) examination of the Süleymancı movement as an alternative

provider of free boarding school-based religious education.

Building on the work of Hakan Yavuz and others who have shown how the

Süleymancı movement developed initially in Turkey by taking advantage of

‘opportunity spaces’ emerging in the 1950s within the secularist Kemalist

state, this thesis shows how the movement spread outside Turkey and

beyond regions with Turkish diaspora communities to Muslim majority

Indonesia. In so doing it demonstrates the utility of the concept of

‘opportunity spaces’ for analysing the viability of a transnational Islamic

movement in new cultural and social environments. Futher, it shows how the

Süleymancıs entered Indonesia’s already crowded Islamic revival market via

a particular type of ‘opportunity space’, offering low cost, modern, high

quality religious education, and adapted that product to the local cultural

environment of Indonesian Islam by modestly re-badging their dormitory-

based education in local cultural terms, as ‘pesantren’.

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page xv

Glossary and Abbreviations

Abi: an abbreviation of ‘ağabey’, which means ‘big brother’. In Turkish

culture, the word is used in the family as well as between friends and the

usage shows the respect appropriate to the big brother of the family.

Al-Qur’an: Muslim Holy book.

Atun Silsile: means the Golden Chain refers to a genealogy of spiritual

masters that goes back to the Prophet Muhammad.

Çamii: a great mosque.

Çemaat (A. Jama’at): is informal community of devotees, a type of social

group that evolved in Turkey after the formation of the Republic.

Dakwah (A. ad-Da’wah): Islamic predication or propagation.

DDII: Dewan Dakwah Islamiyah Indonesia (Indonesian Council for Islamic

Predication). An Islamic missionary organization founded in 1967 by M.

Natsir, a former leader of Masyumi.

Dershane: comes from two Turkish words, ders which means study and

hane which literally means room. A dershane is a house of flat which serves

as private dormitory-like residency for student members of the Nurchu.

Dersiam: a lecturer in theology.

DİB: Diyanet İşleri Başkanlığı (Directorate of Religious Affairs).

Dzikir (A. al-Dhikr): Remembrance of God, liturgies.

Hadith (A. al-Hadith): the Saying of the Prophet Muhammad.

Halaqah: literally means ‘circle’, or more specifically refers to a small

religious gathering in which a teacher sits surrounded by five to ten students,

known mostly among the Tarbiyah movement.

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page xvi

Hizmet: is an Arabic word which found its root in Arabic (khidmah) is also

known as [religious] service or altruism activities, to serve the community. It

is a terms to refer to that the religion is encourage the practice of service

(khidmah). Later, the word sometimes is used to refer to the Turkish

organization who run the hizmet activities such as the Gülen affiliated

organization. Although it is not exclusive, but the use of the terms is quite

dominantly dominated by or to refer to the Gülen inspired organizations.

Hoca: teacher, equivalent to the word ‘ustadz’.

HÜRSAAD: Hür Sanayici ve İşadamları Derneği (Free Industrialists and

Businessmen Foundation).

Ikhwan: is derived from Arabic, meaning ‘brother’, but it is then also used

conversationally to mean ‘helper’. In the Süleymancıs’ role structure, ikhwan

is one of four poles. It is mostly understood as graduates of the Süleymancıs

who do not devote their time to teaching the students, but who instead help

the hizmet from other means such as financial matters.

ISHAD: İş Hayatı Dayanışma Derneği (The Association for Solidarity in

Business Life)

Işık evleri: literally means as houses of light—that is student residences for

the Fethullan Gülen affiliated organizations.

Juz: literally meaning ‘part’ is one of thirty parts of equal length into which

the Quran is sometimes divided.

Khatim: is systematic group dzikir among the Nakşibendi Sufi school which

contains of recitation of wirid, ayat, and shalawat. In the Süleymancıs this

wirid is performed in a group, three times in a week. Nonmembers of the

tariat can join the khatim.

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page xvii

Kuran kursu: a Qur’an seminary to study the Qur’an and to undertake

other Islamic studies within the Islamic boarding school system among the

Süleymancı movement.

Madrasa (A. madrasah, T. Medrese): is the Arabic word for any type of

educational institution. The word is variously transliterated madrasah,

madarasaa, medresa, madrassa, madraza, medrese, etc.

MORA: Ministry of Religious Affairs, known in Indonesia as Kementerian

Agama Republik Indonesia.

Muhammadiyah: A modernist group association in Indonesia, founded in

1912.

Mursyid kamil: is perfect Sufi master, a true ulama of the highest level. For

the Süleymancıs, syeikh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan is the 33th mursyid kamil

in the Altun Silsile.

Nakşibendi: also written Naqshibandi, an-Naqshbandiyyah, Nakşibendi, or

Naksibendi, is a major Sunni spiritual order of Sufism. It traces its spiritual

lineage to the Islamic prophet Muhammad, through Abu Bakr, the first

Caliph and Prophet Muhammad's companion.

NU: Nahdlatul Ulama or Renaissance of Islamic Scholars. A mass

organization associated to traditionalist group founded in 1926.

PASIAD: Pasifik Ülkeleri Sosyal Ve Iktısadı Dayanısma Derneği

(Association of Pacific Countries in Economic and Social Solidarity).

Pesantren: Islamic boarding school.

Rabıtha: literally means a connection (between a Sufi master with his

students). It is also is a Sufi pledge (sign of loyalty and obedience) of a person

who want to admit or became a member of Sufi schools (tariqat). The

practical application of this application within the Süleymancıs is given the

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page xviii

dzikir to connect a student to the Sufi master, Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan

himself. In the other Sufi tradition, as in more popular Indonesian Sufi

tradition, this terms is well known as Baiat (Ar. al-Bay’ah).

Risale-i Nur Külliyatı or Risale-i Nur is a collection of Islamic exegesis

(tafsir) on the Qur'an written by Bediuzzaman Said Nursi between the 1910s

and 1950s in Turkey. It is the magnum opus of Bediüzzaman and it is still

very popular among (Turkish) Muslims.

Süleymancı Yurtları: Süleymancı residence or dormitory.

Tahfidz: Qur’an memorization.

Tarbiyah (A. al-Tarbiyyah): Education or training model of Jemaah

Tarbiyah in disseminating its ideas.

Tarbiyah movement: The Tarbiyah movement was launched in 1979 at the

Masjid Salam (Salam Mosque) of Institute Teknologi Bandung (ITB

[Bandung Technology Institute]) by Imaduddin Abdurrahim, a lecturer at the

university.

Tariqah (A. al-Tariqah): Path, Sufi order.

Tasawwuf (A. al-Tasawwuf): Islamic mysticism.

The axial age is thought to have occurred between 800 and 200 BC, during

a period of intellectual development in human history.

UICCI United Islamic Cultural Centre of Indonesia (Yayasan Pusat

Persatuan Kebudayaan Islam Indonesia)

VIKZ Verband der Islamischen Kulturzentren (Association of Islamic

Cultural Centres) is Süleymancı German based organization which

established since the 1970s and has its its headquarters in Cologne.

PhD Thesis |University of Western Sydney | Firdaus Wajdi | Page 1

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION

1.1 THESIS STATEMENT AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1.1.1 Thesis Statement

Indonesia is a Muslim majority country saturated with Islamic movements.

With a population of over 250 million, approximately 80 per cent of whom

are Muslim, Indonesia represents a huge market for promoters of Islamic

piety, not only from within the region, but from across the globe. Indonesia

has long experienced Islamic influences originating from overseas,

particularly from Saudi Arabia, where each year millions of Indonesian

Muslims go to make the required religious pilgrimage to Mecca. In addition,

Muslims from Southeast Asia have, for centuries, travelled to the holy land,

and to Al Azar University in Egypt, for religious studies.

However, religious influences from the Middle East have also reached

Indonesia in other ways. From the mid-nineteenth century, the scriptualist

and Salafist, as well as the Wahabi movements, have come into the country,

and since the early twentieth century, Islamic reform movements from the

Middle East and South Asia—for example, from Haramayn (the two holy

cities of Islam, Mecca and Medina) and India—have extended their influence

into Southeast Asia through publications and Sufi movements (Azra, 2004,

pp. 6-7; Laffan, 2011, pp. 24, 233). These reformists include Islamic

modernists that inspired the formation of Indonesian second larget Muslim

organization: the Muhammadiyah movement. That movement, in turn,

prompted the formation of the traditionalist counter-movement, Nahdlatul

Ulama (NU).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mecca

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medina

PhD Thesis | Western Sydney University | Firdaus Wajdi | Page 2

The Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood was an important source of inspiration

for the Tarbiyah movement that developed in the mid-1980s on Indonesian

campuses, through small study groups called halaqah. Halaqah literally

means ‘circle’, or more specifically refers to a small religious gathering in

which a teacher sits surrounded by five to ten students. The Tarbiyah

movement was launched in 1979 at the Masjid Salam (Salam Mosque) of

Institute Teknologi Bandung (ITB [Bandung Technology Institute]) by

Imaduddin Abdurrahim, a lecturer at the university. It is said that

Abdurahhim was influenced by the ideals of the Muslim Brotherhood while

he was studying in the United States. The Tarbiyah movement was thus

heavily influenced by Egyptian ideals of reformism (Bryner, 2013, pp. 101-

102; Machmudi, 2008, pp. 133-135).

In turn, the Tarbiyah movement provided an important source of ideological

inspiration for Jaringan Sekolah Islam Terpadu (JIT [The Integrative Islamic

Schools Network]). Beginning in the mid-1990s, the first integrated Islamic

schools were established by activists linked to the Tarbiyah movement in

several different cities. According to Bryner (2013, p. Abstract), “the

promotes a transnational Islam, inspired by the Egyptian Muslim

Brotherhood and linked to the Indonesian Islamic political party”, Partai

Keadilan (PK [Justice Party]), which later became Partai Keadilan Sejahtera

(PKS [Justice and Prosperous Party]). After the fall, in 1998, of Suharto’s

New Order government, which had tried to suppress rival Islamic activism,

the PKS became the most successful of the numerous established Islamic

parties.

Islamic educational institutions have also been key sites for the projection of

Middle Eastern influences into Indonesia. Indonesian students have received

scholarships to study in Egypt (at Al Azhar University) and Saudi Arabia (at


Ummul Qura University), and Middle Eastern influences can be found in the

Indonesian education sector. One such example is Lembaga Ilmu

Pengetahuan Indonesian Arab (LIPIA [Institute of Islamic Knowledge of

Indonesia and Arabia]). Established in Jakarta in 1980, and affiliated with

the Imam Muhammad bin Saud Islamic University, this institution connects

young Indonesian Muslims with Arab networks of Islamic knowledge in the

form of educational institutions and key religious figures.

While global linkages between the Arab Middle East and Indonesia are well

documented (see, for example, Bryner (2013); Hasan (2009); Machmudi

(2008); Mandaville (2009a, 2009b); and Zulkifli (2013)), relatively little

academic attention has been given to the Turkish-based movements

established in Indonesia since the late 1990s. There are at least three Turkish

movements now active in the field of Islamic education in Indonesia: the

Fethullah Gülen movement; the Süleymancı movement; and the Nurcu

movement.

The Fethullah Gülen movement, established two organizations to support its

activities: the Pasifik Ülkeleri Sosyal Ve Iktısadı Dayanısma Derneği

(PASIAD [Association of Pacific Countries in Economic and Social

Solidarity]) and Yayasan Yenbu Indonesia (The Indonesian Yenbu

Foundation). The Gülen movement in Indonesia offers primary, secondary

and tertiary levels of education. The Sekolah Pribadi offers primary school

education; Kharisma Bangsa offers high school-level education; and an NGO-

like institution, the Fethullah Gülen Chair, works in cooperation with

Universitas Islam Negeri (UIN) Jakarta (The State Islamic University of

Jakarta) to provide some academic programs. The Süleymancı movement is

represented in Indonesia by a foundation called the United Islamic Cultural

Centre of Indonesia (UICCI), founded in 2005. The UICCI focuses on Islamic


education and memorization of the Qur’an for primary and high school

students. The Nurcu movement, established in 2007, disseminates the ideas

of Bediüzzaman Said Nursî, the most prominent Turkish Muslim scholar of

modern Turkey. In Indonesia, the activities and programs of the Nurcu are

coordinated under the Yayasan Nur Semesta (Nur Semesta Foundation).

Although these Turkish organizations were only established in Indonesia in

the late 1990s and early 2000s, they developed rapidly, establishing

networks and branches throughout Indonesia. Having different

characteristics from the previously mentioned scriptualist, Salafist and

Islamist transnational movements and newly salient groups such as the Front

Pembela Islam (FPI), the Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI), the Laskar Jihad

(LJ) and the Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) (commonly identified as ‘fundamentalist’

and sometimes as ‘militant’), the newly arrived Turkish movements exhibit a

more peaceful and accomodating approach to Islamic renewal and life in

multi-religion societies. Their focus is on hizmet (altruistic service) to the

Muslim community through providing general Islamic education. The

Turkish organizations have attracted the attention and approval of growing

numbers of Indonesians towards the Turkish-based transnational

movements.

This thesis focuses on the Süleymancıs, little known as a transnational

movement and previously unstudied in Indonesia. The establishment of the

Süleymancı’s United Islamic Cultural Centre of Indonesia (UICCI) in Jakarta

in 2005 signalled a widening of Turkish Muslim outreach to the most

populous Muslim majority country in Asia (and indeed the world), Indonesia.

It is distinctive among the Turkish transnational organizations in that it still

maintains links with the Nakşibendi Sufi order in its homeland. This

newcomer, with its distinct way of offering hizmet (services) and unique


cultural atmosphere adds a new colouration to the wide spectrum of

Indonesian Islam.

While focusing on the Indonesian chapter of the Süleymancıs, the UICCI, this

thesis seeks to understand that organization as part of a transnational

movement. Religious communities are among the oldest transnational

actors. They began centuries ago, with the proselytizing of universal or

‘world’ religions, even before the formation of nation states. However,

scholarly studies of transnational religious movements only became

significant in the 1990s, when a considerable number of academic studies

began to focus on religious groups as key participants in transnationalism

(Hopkins, Kong, & Olson, 2013, p. 23; Rudolph, 1997, p. 1). Nowadays, many

religious organizations are transnational. They are particularly evident in

diasporic communities that have resulted from globalization, the collapse of

empires, and major wars. Moreover, the improvement in communications

which accompanies and facilitates globalization increases the ability of

religious organizations to find new audiences, both at home and abroad.

Transnational Religious Movements (TRMs) are able to coordinate and

integrate outposts across the world as never before and they are therefore

likely to continue to develop and to play a significant role in global society

(Vertovec, 2000, 2009).

This ethnographic study of the Turkish Süleymancı movement in Indonesia

seeks to contribute to the growing understanding of religious movements

projected through transnational organizations underpinned by electronic

communications and other modern means of communication and travel. It

also aims to understand the UICCI as a new development in global Islamic

movements in the Indonesian context. Utilizing the framework of

transnationalism, it will also draw on further concepts to explain the UICCI’s


development and adaptation, including the theory of ‘opportunity spaces’

developed by Hakan Yavuz (2003, 2004b), and that of ‘glocalization’,

introduced by Roland Robertson and others (Giulianotti & Robertson, 2006,

2007; Robertson, 1995; Roudometof, 2003). The goals of this case study are

thus to document the development of the UICCI in Indonesia and extend

knowledge of Turkish transnational Islamic organizations by recognizing the

UICCI in Indonesia as a distinctive element in the expanding array of

transnational religious movements, and to contribute to a more

comprehensive picture of transnational organizations in late modernity.

Following are the research questions that will be addressed in this thesis.

This chapter is then divided into four sections. The first discusses the

theoretical framework and provides a review of the literature on three key

theoretical themes: transnational theory, opportunity space theory, and

glocalization theory. The second section provides a review of the literature on

two key analytical themes: Islamic revivalism in Indonesia, and Turkish

transnational Islamic movements in Indonesia. The third section presents a

discussion of the research methodology. The chapter concludes with an

overview of subsequent thesis chapters.

1.1.2 Research Questions

In a structured way, this study will address the following research questions:

1. What is the nature of the UICCI Transnational Movement?

2. What are the opportunity spaces used by the UICCI in Indonesia?

How has the UICCI utilized those opportunity spaces?

3. How has the UICCI adapted within those opportunity spaces? Does

this reflect any tension between the global movement’s characteristics


(shaped initially by the culture of the Süleymancı’s place of origin in

Turkey) and the local, Indonesian, culture?

1.2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

1.2.1 Transnationalism and Transnational Religious Movements

An important development in the study of religion in society is the

recognition that many religious movements are transnational, and

transnational in a new way. This section presents a brief discussion of

scholarly definitions of the term ‘transnationalism’ and examines

transnationalism in relation to religious movements, with particular

emphasis on Muslim transnational organizations. It then reviews the

literature on two other theoretical approaches: opportunity space theory and

glocalization theory.

Transnationalism has a broad meaning, refering to multiple ties and

interactions that link people and institutions across the borders of nation

states (Jackson, Crang, & Dwyer, 2004). Among its many definitions,

transnationalism can be said to refer to “communities of outlook that include

persons and organizations that share common world views, purposes,

interests, and practices which they communicate and act across national

borders and jurisdictions” (Juergensmeyer, 2005, p. 193). In addition to the

above, Portes argues that “the concept of transnationalism provides new

perspectives on contemporary migratory movements and offers hypotheses

about the patterns of settlement and adaptation of immigrants in the new

land” (Portes, 2001, p. 182).


1.2.1.1 Foci of Transnationalism Studies

The study of transnationalism has attracted scholars from a wide range of

disciplines, including sociology, anthropology, geography, political science,

law, economics and history, as well as in interdisciplinary fields such as

international relations, development studies, business studies, ethnic and

racial studies, gender studies, religious studies, media and cultural studies.

Moreover, studies concerned with transnationalism have been increasing in

number. Gustavo Cano (2005), who examined publications using the

keywords ‘transnational’ or ‘transnationalism’ in the Social Science Abstracts

Database, found an increasing usage of those terms between 1982 and 2003

(Cano, 2005; Vertovec, 2009, p. 1; 2010, p. 4).

Because transnationalism is such a vast field of study, it is useful to identify

clusters of studies that focus on its different themes. In the table below,

Vertovec (2009) classified the themes of transnationalism using four major

headings and their sub-topics.

NEW APPROACHES TO MIGRATION

ECONOMICS POLITICS SOCIETY AND

CULTURE

Comparative Diasporas Global Economic Networks Global Political Networks Social Forms and

Institutions

Transversal Migration Transnational Corporations

[TNCs]

City, Regional, National and Supra-National

Policies

Cultural Reproduction and Consumption

Refugees and Asylum Seekers

Transnational Household Strategies

Gender, Communities and Power

Transnational Religious

Communities

Table 1: Themes of Transnationalism Source: (Vertovec, 1999, pp. 457-459)

Vertovec’s schema of transnationalism features transnational religious

communities as one example. He could also have included transnational

religious networks and organizations stretching across communities and

regions.


A review of studies of transnational religious communities, with a particular

focus on transnational Muslim communities, was conducted by Kegley and

Blanton (2011). It shows the recent rapid development of transnational

religious movements. These movements can be defined as “a set of beliefs,

practices, and ideas administered politically by religious organizations to

promote the worship of their conception of a transcendent deity and its

principles for conduct” (Kegley & Blanton, 2011, p. 168). Transnational

religious movements attract billions of adherents; more than 6.8 billion

people are affiliated within them at some level (Kegley & Blanton, 2011, pp.

168-170). Not only have TRMs attracted individuals and groups, but they

have also established relationships with civil authorities, indicating broader

social and political significance.

1.2.1.2 History and Development of Transnational Religious

Movements

Religion has played a significant role throughout history. Indeed, cultures

and people have been transformed by religion. According to Carlton H.

Tucker, “from the Palaeolithic to the Neolithic age, and from the Axial age to

the New age, religion has been a key dimension of human societies” (Tucker,

1994, p. 449).

In relation to transnational religious movements, the first significant focus

on global religion was stimulated by Karl Jaspers’ work on the ‘Axial age’

(1948, 1953). The axial age is thought to have occurred between 800 and 200

BC, during a period of intellectual development in human history (Jaspers,

1948, p. 430). Regions comprising of large multi-ethnic empires, whose

peoples traded with other communities, saw the development of ‘universalist

religions’ or ‘world religions’ which addressed questions of humanity and


contained sophisticated theologies (Bellah, 1964; Gerth & Mills, 1991).

Hinduism in India (South Asia), Confucianism and Buddhism in China (East

Asia), and the Judeo-Christian-Islamic tradition in the Mediterranean (West

Eurasia) have all contributed significantly to the history of human beings,

from the axial age to the present day (Jaspers, 1948, p. 431). Notably, Bellah

(1964) presents the schematic stages of religious evolution from ‘primitive

religion’ to ‘modern religion’.

Certain religions deal only with the concerns of particular family and tribal

communities. Bellah (1964) refers to these religions as ‘primitive religions’.

They are ‘not for export’ and so have remained largely confined to one small

geographic area. Others, which Max Weber called ‘universalistic religions’

and comparative religion text books commonly call ‘world religions’ (Gerth &

Mills, 1991, p. 267), have spread from their communities of origin to many

other parts of the world, introducing new practices, values, and worldviews

(Tucker, 1994, p. 459).

Transnational religious activities therefore have a long history, going back

well before the formation of nation states, which date only from the late

eighteenth century (Duara, 2005, p. 1341; Hawkins, 2006, p. 83). It is now

common for scholars and other commentators to refer to pre-modern, pre-

nation state, supra-local religions as ‘transnational’. Thus Rudolph (1997, p.

1) observes:

“Religious communities are among the oldest of the transnationals: Sufi

orders, Catholic missionaries, and Buddhist monks carried words and praxis

across vast spaces before those places became nation-states. Such religious

travellers were versions of civil society playing their roles across the

borders”.


There are at least three reasons, aside from their universalistic framing, why

world religions continue to be so active across community and national

boundaries. First, they have a tendency toward missionary expansion and

intensive penetration of social life. Second, world religions always contain

some competitive impulse. Thus, according to Juergensmeyer (2003, pp. 7-

8), “they are ‘religions of expansion’ despite their geographical and cultural

roots being in one locality”. In addition, all world religions have traditions of

pilgrimage to the sites of their historical origins or to places associated with

figures and events of significance to believers, such as Shalosh Regalim for

Jews and Hajj for Muslims (Kitiarsa, 2010).

The second major impetus to the study of transnational religion was post-

World War II migration to North America and Western Europe. This was

seen as a phenomenon of transnationalism (Roudometof, 2005, p. 115).

Indeed, migration in the post-war era has been a major subject of

transnationalism studies in general. However, transnationalism is not limited

to the movements of immigrants. It is a broad category that refers to a wide

range of practices relating to the activities of migrants, their interactions with

other people, and organizations linking their host lands and homelands

(Portes, Escobar, & Radford, 2007; Vertovec, 2009, p. 13).

Although immigrants and refugees from predominantly Muslim countries

have been migrating to and settling in Europe in substantial numbers since

the end of World War II, their religious affiliations were not noted by

scholars prior to the mid-1980s (Tiesler, 2009, p. 419). In the early post-

World War II days, immigrants were seen in terms of their economic

function (for example, as guest workers), their legal status (for example, as

refugees) and above all, their ethnic-national category (as Turks, Pakistanis,

Bangladeshi, Afghans and so on). One reason for this is that they did not


display many public signs of religiousness (Kettani, 1996, p. 14f). Another

reason is that the public and those academics in post-war and post-colonial

Europe who discussed the topic of immigrants did not see themselves as

scholars of religious studies (Nielsen, 1992).

This situation changed significantly after the mid-1980s when religious

activities became more obvious among the diaspora communities. In

addition, at that time scholars began to introduce new academic topics, such

as ‘the new Islamic presence in Europe’, ‘Muslims in Europe’, and ‘Islam in

the West’, which appeared more frequently and so became recognized

(Tiesler, 2009, p. 430). Immigrants’ religious affiliations came to be seen as a

significant feature of their social adapatation.

The third advance in the study of transnationalism was in the 1990s, when

the technical facilitators of globalization, such as electronic communication

technology and rapid transportation, enabled diasporic communities to be

more intensely involved with their countries of origin, and to develop ever

more effective transnational networks supporting their religious groups

(Brettell & Hollifield, 2000; Vertovec, 2009). This development helps to

explain the contrast scholars have observed between older and younger or

more recent immigrants.

Studies of older generations of immigrants in western countries showed that

they quickly and successfully became integrated into their host communities.

According to Safran (2009, pp. 75–76), they merged in such a way that they

became part of the new society and did not overly concern themselves with

their place of origin. However, there have been significant changes in recent

decades, particularly in terms of connectedness to the homeland and

involvement in its local issues, including religious activities. Nowadays,


recent immigrants tend to remain connected to their former homeland and

even play a significant role in developments there.

The most obvious reasons for this continuing connectedness are the

development of cheap and rapid means of transport, worldwide

communications, and global media coverage in real time. These

developments have enabled people to be both more connected and more

mobile and, at the same time, encourage emigration for many purposes,

including the pursuit of a better life (Ben-Rafael, 2009, p. 644). Also, an

increasing number of second generation immigrants receive a better

education than their parents and go on to join the middle classes in their new

societies (Tiesler, 2009, pp. 418, 430), thus creating new opportunities for

themelves, including participation in the affairs of their ancestral homelands.

Second generation immigrants can now contribute to developments in their

ancestral homelands in many ways, not only through intellectual

contributions, but also by making financial and personal contributions to the

many religious movements. These factors have contributed to the substantial

development of transnational religious movements and the significant social

role which they continue to play.

In summary, studies show that religious movements have long been

transnational. Now, in the modern era of globalization, with sophisticated

communications, transport and bureaucratic structures, religions are

manifesting this feature in new ways.


1.2.2 Opportunity Spaces

As discussed above, one of the primary aims of this study is to understand

how, after establishing itself in Turkey, the Süleymancı movement was able

to develop overseas branches such as the UICCI, and thus establish itself as a

transnational religious movement. To achieve this, the study will employ the

new ‘opportunity space’ theory devised by Hakan Yavuz (2003, 2004b). By

‘opportunity space’ Yavuz means “a forum of social interaction that creates

new possibilities for augmenting networks of shared meaning and

associational life” (Yavuz, 2003, p. 24). Opportunity spaces, as he

understands them, can take many forms, including civic and political forums,

electronic and print media, cyberspace, cultural foundations, a private

education system, and the economic market.

Yavuz first developed the ‘opportunity space’ approach while researching

transnational Muslim movements in his home country, Turkey. He used the

term to describe situations seized upon by political actors and leaders to

expand their influence or organizations, initially domestically, but then,

sometimes, internationally. After documenting the rise and development of

Muslim social movements in Turkey in the post-World War II period, he

developed the theory to understand how those movements found other

forums of interaction in order to establish their own space, separate and free

from the interference of government. According to Yavuz, “the new

opportunity spaces transformed religiously shaped stocks of knowledge into

a project and shared rules of cooperation and competition which then in

these public spaces, identities and lifestyles are performed, contested, and

implemented” (2003, p. 24).


The ‘opportunity spaces’ theory allows us to understand the characteristics of

Muslim movements through published works such as those by (Wiktorowicz,

2004; Yavuz, 1998, 2003, 2004b). ‘Opportunity space’ theory also has been

adopted by higher degree research students such as Sehriban Sahin (2001),

Emrullah Uslu (2009), Neslihan Kevser Cevik (2010), Igor Volzhanin (2011),

and Omer Tekdemir (2013).

1.2.2.1 The Development of Opportunity Spaces Theory

In developing opportunity spaces theory, Yavuz built on the political science

literature on ‘opportunity structures’. Opportunity structures, as studied by

McAdam, McCarthy and Zald (1996, pp. 23-40) and Tarrow (1996, p. 61),

allow and assist new social forces to shape public presences and sometimes

to ascend to power. In a nation-state system, the state is the ultimate holder

of legitimate force, used according to the laws it establishes and affecting

most areas of social life. However, there are times when the state’s control

weakens, making it vulnerable to hostile collective action. The social

locations in which such vulnerability becomes evident, opening up

opportunities for challengers seeking social expression without or against the

political establishment, have been analysed as ‘opportunity structures’.

In her understanding of political ‘opportunity structures’, Tarrow has in

mind “consistent—but not necessarily formal, permanent, or national—

signals to social or political actors which either encourage or discourage them

to use their internal resources to form social movements” (Tarrow, 1996, p.

54). She asserts that “the concept of political opportunity not only put

emphasis on formal structures such as state institutions but also informal

ones such as conflict and alliance structures which provide resources and


oppose constraints external to the group” (Tarrow, 1996, p. 54). However,

often a government or the state is so strongly entrenched, and works so

effectively to control every arena of political contestation, that it does not

provide opportunities for potentially challenging movements to grow. Yavuz

(2003) analyses early Kemalist Turkey from this perspective. Kemalist

Turkey vigorously restricted independent Islamic expression, ethnic groups,

and other challengers. In his work on Turkey, Yavuz builds on the notion of

‘opportunity structures’ to form the idea of ‘opportunity spaces’, that is,

social spaces within a highly regulated political environment, or newly

opening up, which allow previously suppressed actors and movements arenas

for public action.

Yavuz defines ‘new opportunity spaces’ as “social sites and vehicles for

activism and the dissemination of meaning, identity, and cultural codes”

(2003; 2004b, p. 272). Those ‘spaces’ are sites of social interaction that allow

new possibilities for forming networks around shared meanings and

enriching associational life. Such arenas can emerge among the array of

political institutions, through electronic media communications (including

those in cyberspace), and in the market. Yavuz argues that in Turkey, as

elsewhere, economic growth starting in the 1980s fuelled by an export-driven

market has led to the proliferation of opportunity spaces. These include

“market-oriented vehicles for the dissemination of meaning, like magazines,

newspapers, television channels and the internet, and private education

systems” (Yavuz, 2004b, p. 272).

Following on from this, Yavuz (2003) argues that such new ‘opportunity

spaces’ are crucial factors that have enabled social movements, including

Islamic movements in Turkey, to grow in the twentieth century. During the

Kemalist era, the Turkish government closed down many religious


institutions and limited religious expression in order to prevent rival bases of

social power from operating freely. According to Yavuz, it was not until 1950,

under Prime Minister Adnan Menderes, that ‘opportunity spaces’ were

created for the resurgence of independent promoters of Islamic piety. He

argues that “this new political opening has facilitated the dissemination of

the message of raising religious consciousness” (Yavuz, 2003, p. 33).

Subsequently, several Islamic figures, and the movements developing around

them, established what Yavuz (2004b, p. 270) calls “private vehicles”—

private sector institutions with public voices—as alternative means to

promote Islamic rededication. These ‘private vehicles’ included newspapers,

television broadcasting, magazines, financial institutions, and private

educational facilities. Many of those forums have been wholly initiated, and

supported, by Muslim groups and Islamic movement members working in

such a way that the state is unable to control them completely. They achieved

this by packaging their activities in ways that were as normal as possible to

avoid suspicion. In a sense, the emerging Islamic movements were distancing

themselves from the state, which did not support them, even as it opened up

alternative ‘spaces’ for their activism (Yavuz, 2003).

Moreover, as Yavuz shows, those ‘opportunity spaces’ were utilized by

emerging Islamic social movements to shape “new lifestyles and identities”

(Yavuz, 2003, p. 24). Through interactions in the new social spaces, new

kinds of Muslim actors (intellectuals, businessmen, scholars and artists)

emerged, contributing to the movement’s activism and becoming core

participants in the formation and growth of independent Islamic movements.

Members and helpers of the various new movements found new

opportunities to express their religiosity through the religious projects of the

movements.


These new non-state Islamic initiatives and the interaction patterns they

generated are instances of what Yavuz calls ‘opportunity spaces’. They are, in

effect, new sites of Islamically-coloured sociability. Yavuz argues that ‘new

opportunity spaces’ were sites for expressing privately shaped Islamic

identities, commitments, and lifestyles, which the government had excised

from the public sphere when it limited freedom of expression for Muslims in

early Kemalist Turkey. For the first time in decades the new, mid-twentieth

century Turkish ‘opportunity spaces’ allowed a younger generation of Muslim

activists to express themselves publicly and show their commitment to the

development of independent movements, as well as to adopt the religious

lifestyles distinctive of their circles.

1.2.2.2 Opportunity Spaces and the Historical Development of Three

Turkish Muslim Social Movements

To exemplify the concept of ‘opportunity spaces’ and provide background for

understanding the Turkish movements that established themselves in

Indonesia, this section will review the historical formation of the three

principal indigenous revivalist movements in Turkey: the Nurcu, the

Fethullah Gülen, and the Süleymancı movements.

The first revivalist movement, variously called the Nurcu, Nurculuk, Jamaat-

un Nur, or thullab an-Nur, was named after the charismatic Turkish ulama,

Bediüzzaman Said Nursî (1877–1960). For this thesis, the movement will be

referred to as Nurcu. The movement relied predominantly on Nursî’s

writings, particularly his magnum opus, Risale-i Nur Külliyatı, which

became the basis of this faith movement (Yavuz, 2003, p. 151). Over the


years, Nurcu has evolved into the most powerful and influential Islamic

movement in Turkey (Şahin, 2011, p. 226; Yavuz, 2003, p. 151).

Yavuz identified three major Nurcu splinter groups: the Fethullah Gülen

affiliated movements, the Yeni Asyacì, and the Yeni Nesilciler, as well as

dozens of other small groups (Yavuz, 2003, p. 170).

Said Nursî’s Risale-i Nur Külliyatı has been crucial to the Nurcu movement.

Its popularity demonstrated the transition in Turkey from “an oral culture to

a print culture” (Yavuz & Esposito, 2003, p. 13). The popularity of gatherings

for the study of the Risale-i Nur Külliyatı has enabled the creation of ‘new

mechanisms of sociability’ (Yavuz & Esposito, 2003, p. 13), which might also

be called ‘new opportunity spaces’, among the followers of Said Nursî. In

addition, public consciousness has been raised and intellectual exchange

among Turkish Muslims increased through these gatherings.

The second major twentieth century Turkish revivalist movement is the

Gülen movement, well known as the hizmet movement. It is also referred to

as ‘Gülen affiliated organizations’, pointing to those institutions that were

inspired by Fethullah Gülen, “the most influential charismatic religious

leader in contemporary Turkey” (Barton, 2014, p. 292). This is the most

successful of the Nurcu splinter movements and, therefore, the most

powerful religious movement in Turkey.

At present, the Gülen hizmet movement is the most influential Turkish

movement globally. Although the Gülen movement was inspired by, and can

be considered part of, the Nurcu movement, the Gülen movement shows

some distinct characteristics. As the name indicates, the founder of the

movement was Hocaefendi Fethullah Gülen (b. 1938). The movement started


as one among a number of Said Nursî-inspired groups, but expanded the

mission of Nursî. While Nursî focused on personal transformation, Fethullah

Gülen focused on both personal and social transformation. While Nurcu used

dershane as a place to study the ideas of Said Nursî, the Gülen movement

established ışık evleri (houses of light—that is, student residences). Later it

began offering general curriculum (secular) education, loosely underpinned

by Islamic values (Yavuz & Esposito, 2003, pp. 19, 32-43). Greg Barton

concludes that “Gülen took the ideas and outlook of Nursî and shaped them

to the challenges of late-twentieth-century Turkey” (Barton, 2014, p. 290).

Fethullah Gülen also enourages Muslims to apply the principle of teaching by

example (temsil) instead of words (teblig) (Barton, 2006, p. 155). This is one

of the reasons for the success of Hocaefendi Fethullah Gülen’s movement.

Since the time of Ataturk, in 1924, Turkey has been substantially secularized.

Successive Turkish governments strictly prohibited the teaching of religious

subjects in schools. In line with this prohibition, Gülen stressed the role of

education for the cultivation of the self rather than of a narrowly religious

faith. Hence, Islamic subjects might not be found in the Gülen schools.

However, the essence of Islamic teachings can be identified in Gülen’s

teachings on Islamic morality and discipline of the self. Gülen did not see

Islam as purely orthodox teachings of certain religious beliefs; rather he saw

Islam as a source of morality and identity. Accordingly, as long as Muslims

practise Islamic morality, they are practising Islam. Notably, Gülen argues

that there is “no identity without morality and no morality without Islam”

(Yavuz, 2003, p. 192).

Gülen education became popular, in part by providing numerous

scholarships and creating networks of dormitories all across Turkey. With

good management and the support of Turkish businessmen who had gone to


Gülen schools and remained committed to the movement, these schools

became known for high quality education. The movement subsequently

added college and university level education (Ebaugh, 2010).

The Gülen movement also extended its outreach through the media, using

several types of media to disseminate the thought of its foundational figure,

Fethullah Gülen, and to expand its influence. It established its own media

programs, a radio station, and an online newspaper. These means of

communication have facilitated the expansion of the movement throughout

Anatolia, especially in the 1980s and 1990s (Yavuz, 2003, pp. 189-190).

Finally, many Gülen adherents are involved in business activities. In fact,

according to Ebaugh (2010), Gülen inspired projects rely for their success on

the numerous local circles of businessmen, professionals and workers in

Turkish cities, towns and rural areas. The local circles model arose within the

cemaat, a type of social group that evolved in Turkey after the formation of

the Republic, the outlawing of Sufi orders, and the abolition of madrasas

(Ebaugh, 2010, p. 47). Gülen adherents collected Islamic charity funds and

used them for their projects. They have also established many business

organizations, such as İş Hayatı Dayanışma Derneği (ISHAD [The

Association for Solidarity in Business Life]) and Hür Sanayici ve İşadamları

Derneği (HÜRSAAD [Free Industrialists and Businessmen Foundation]),

which give significant support to business and other activities run by the

Gülen followers (Yavuz, 2003).

Reflecting on the range of the Gülen movement’s activities and their

importance in the spread of the movement, Yavuz (2003) identified

education, the media and the market as the primary opportunity spaces for

the Gülen movement.


The third major Turkish revivalist movement of the twentieth century is the

Süleymancı movement, named after its founding figure, Süleyman Hilmi

Tunahan (1888–1959). As already mentioned, the Nurcu and Gülen

movements both drew their inspiration from the charismatic figure of Said

Nursî. Whilst Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan and Bediüzzaman Said Nursî both

lived in the same time period, they each had distinct characteristics, which

are reflected in the respective movements. Notably, the Nurcu and Gülen

movements do not wish to be labelled Sufi, whereas Sheikh Süleyman is a

known Sufi Sheikh of the Nakşibendi order, and his followers preserve Sufi

practices within the movement. Moreover, the Nurcu and Gülen movements

have extended their roles into secular spheres, whereas the Süleymancı

movement focuses solely on religious education and Muslims.

The Süleymancı movement started from an informal community whose

members studied religion under their Sufi master, Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan,

whose great intention was to preserve religion in modern Turkey. This group

later established the Kuran kursu, a place to study the Qur’an and undertake

other Islamic studies within the Islamic boarding school system. By focusing

mainly on the establishment of such Qur’an seminaries, the Süleymancı

movement has now become the most successful dormitory providing

movement in Turkey.

Reviewing the growth of the Süleymancı movement in Turkey, Yavuz (2003)

concentrated on their use of ‘political’ and ‘economic’ opportunity spaces

which shaped the evolution of the movement. In terms of political

opportunity spaces, the Süleymancıs applied a policy of engagement with the

Turkish Government, particularly after 1949 in the era of the multi-party

system. In this period, the Turkish government began to accommodate


claims to religious identity and allowed the establishment of Qur’an

seminaries. This policy enabled the Süleymancıs to engage with the

government by educating preachers to work for the Directorate of Religious

Affairs (Diyanet İşleri Başkanlığı (DİB)). Consequently, Süleymancı

preachers began to dominate this office in Turkey (Yavuz, 2003).

However, the situation later shifted. Following the military coup of 1971,

secularist policies were re-established in Turkey and the Süleymancıs lost

their close connection with the government, which also forced them to turn

over some of their buildings to it. From then on, according to Yavuz, the

Süleymancıs focused more on economic opportunity spaces, through gaining

financial support from Turkish workers from whom they collected religious

charity funds. This economic ‘opportunity space’ later helped to manage

expenses and meet other needs, including the establishment of boarding

houses and the provision of scholarships for university students (Yavuz,

2003, pp. 146–147).

Since the implementation of the New Directorate of Religious Affairs Law

(1965) and the military coup of 1971 in Turkey, the Süleymancıs have looked

abroad for their economic ‘opportunity spaces’. They built a distinctive

Turkish Islamic community among Turkish workers in Germany, a secular

country with a significant Turkish migrant worker population. The

Süleymancıs have run the German wing of their organization under the name

Verband der Islamischen Kulturzentren (VIKZ [Association of Islamic

Cultural Centres]) since the 1970s. This organization has its headquarters in

Cologne (Thielmann, 2008). Süleymancı devotees have established Islamic

centres to provide Islamic education to Turkish workers. The Süleymancı

imams also play significant roles in Muslim society generally in Germany.

Notably, the Süleymancıs have distinguished themselves by earning a


reputation for running dormitories that are cleaner and more highly

disciplined than those of the state, and equipped with up to date technology

to meet the needs of the university students (Kamp, 2008; Yavuz, 2003, pp.

146–147).

In economically developed Germany, the Süleymancıs made productive use

of economic ‘opportunity spaces’ among the Turkish workers, who were

relatively free from the influences of the Turkish government and could

provide religious charity funds to support the movement and its activities.

Benefiting from this, the Süleymancıs were able to pursue their aim of

protecting the new (second) generation against leftist-atheism and radical

political Islam. The transnational movement also provided opportunities for

expansion. Since the beginning of the 2000s, Süleymancıs have run the most

successful dormitory networks in Turkey and have built the second largest

mosque network in Germany.

1.2.3 Glocalization

Many studies on religion draw attention to the significant increase in

transnational religious movements in the last century (Brettell & Hollifield,

2000; Vertovec, 2009). A number of scholars, notably Eliezer Ben-Rafael

(2009), Peter G. Mandaville (2009a) and Hakan Yavuz (2003), argue that

this increase is due to the ability of the leaders of such movements both to

search out and utilize opportunities in other parts of the world and to adapt

to the new host countries, and so develop and expand their influence by

establishing transnational branches or centres. This ability to adapt, linking

local cultures with globally diffused understandings, has been characterized

by Roland Robertson (1995) and Victor Roudometof (2003, 2005) as

‘glocalization’. In other words, at the same time as we are seeing a shift to


global forms of religion, new processes of local adaptation are taking place

(Vertovec, 2009, p. 149).

The concept of ‘glocalization’ will be employed here to help in understanding

the development of transnational religious movements in general, and the

Süleymancı movement in particular. While the idea of ‘opportunity spaces’

helps us understand the social conditions that have enabled religious

movements to extend into new places (including transnationally and even

overseas), ‘glocalization’ directs attention to the processes through which

foreign movements gain acceptance among local people in a new land.

The term ‘glocalization’ has its roots in the Japanese term ‘dochakuka’

(Giulianotti & Robertson, 2006). It first appeared in the late 1980s and

originally referred to the adaptation of new farming techniques in different

parts of the world. It was popularized and developed by Roland Robertson,

according to whom glocalization points to ways local cultures may critically

adapt to, or resist, global phenomena. In addition, glocalization “reveals the

way in which the very creation of localities is a standard component of

globalization” (Giulianotti & Robertson, 2006, p. 172; 2007, p. 134). The

term was later used to refer to globally dispersed social and cultural change

(Sharma, 2008).

Notably, Giulianotti and Robertson (2007) developed a four-part typology of

glocalization strategies that relate particularly to migration and popular

culture.

(1) Relativization: here, social actors seek to preserve their prior cultural

institutions, practices and meanings within a new environment, thereby

reflecting a commitment to differentiation from the host culture. (2)

Accommodation: here, social actors absorb pragmatically the practices,


institutions and meanings associated with other societies, in order to

maintain key elements of the prior local culture. (3) Hybridization: here,

social actors synthesize local and other cultural phenomena to produce

distinctive, hybrid cultural practices, institutions and meanings. (4)

Transformation: here, social actors come to favour the practices, institutions

or meanings associated with other cultures. (Giulianotti & Robertson, 2007,

pp. 134-135)

The term ‘glocalization’ is problematic since it may conflate global and local

issues. Nevertheless, Sharma contends that it is able to capture the “essence

of the emerging worldwide phenomenon where globalization and localization

are simultaneously transforming the development landscape” (Sharma,

2008, p. 1).

The concept of glocalization can be used to understand the adaptation of

transnational religious movements, including Muslim transnational

movements. Mandaville (2009a) argues that transnational Islam is inevitably

altered through its encounter with local cultural sensibilities and pre-existing

religious conceptions and practices. Therefore, one can observe something

much more akin to the ‘glocalization’ of Islam, with complex interplay

between transnational organizations and influences and the societies and

settings into which they enter (Mandaville, 2009a, pp. 14-15).

In my account of the Süleymancıs in Indonesia, I will show that the concept

of glocalization can be used to understand the establishment of a global

standard, and the subsequent interaction between it and a local context, in

Indonesia, through an examination of the UICCI. The Indonesian cultural

and social context is different in many respects from that in the Süleymancıs’

country of origin, Turkey, and indeed from those in other places where

Süleymancıs have established their branches. Süleymancıs in Indonesia have


shown an ability to adapt in order to be more welcome. While the contexts of

local Indonesian cultures and the nation’s social and political structures

require some adaptations by the new global Turkish organizations, changes

are also stimulated in Islamic culture there, locally, by other transnational

Islamic revival movements. The following section will discuss transnational

religious movements and Islamic revival in the Indonesian context, focusing

specifically on the Süleymancı movement.

1.3 THE INDONESIAN CONTEXT: RECENT ISLAMIC REVIVAL AND

TURKISH TRANSNATIONAL MOVEMENTS

1.3.1 Islamic Revivalism in Indonesia

Islamic revival is a term used to describe collective responses to a perceived

decline in Islamic civilization which actors hope to reverse by correcting what

they judge to be errors in prevalent Islamic understandings and practices.

Jan Ali (2012, p. 30) proposes as a definition of Islamic revivalism:

“a process of purifying Islam from accretions and promoting its activism

in a pristine form both in the public and private affairs of Muslim

individuals in the pre-modern past and since the nineteenth century,

when Western domination has provoked a variety of modernist and

Salafist reform movements”.

In the pre-modern period, Islamic revivalism was implemented and endorsed

by various figures and authorities, including the Almoravid and Almohad

dynasties in the Maghreb and Spain (1042–1269), the Indian Nakşibendi

revivalist Ahmad Sirhindi (~1564–1624), the nineteenth-century Indian Ahl-i

Hadith movement, and preachers Ibn Taymiyyah (1263–1328), Shah

Waliullah (1702–1762), and Muhammad ibn Abd-al-Wahhab (d. 1792) (Ali,

2012).


The goal of Islamic revivalists in any era is personal and social change. Ali

(2012, p. 51) distinguishes spiritually oriented revivalists, who seek indirect

transformation of society. These revivalists emphasize self-reformation,

arguing that societal change depends on individual change. They take a

bottom-up approach to changing society (Ali, 2012, p. 51). Many Sufi

movements in Indonesia have exemplified this approach (Howell, 2001).

Conversely, politically oriented revivalists take a top-down approach, at least

in part, seeking change by gaining state power to implement Islamic law. In

the past, and in some movements like Hizbut Tahrir and Islamic State today,

politically oriented Islamic revivalists aim at placing the ummah under a

‘pious caliph’ in order to restore justice, equality and humility, and promote

public and private piety (Ali, 2012, p. 51)—although those ideals may not be

achieved in practice. More commonly today, politically oriented Muslim

revivalists form social movements and political parties aimed at gaining

control of the state’s legislative powers. Such state-capture revivalists

(including those wishing to replace a nation state with a caliphate) are

referred to here as ‘Islamist’.

From the 1970s onward, a new wave of Islamic revivalism swept the Muslim

world (Bustamam-Ahmad, 2015; Hafez, 1997; Hefner & Horvatich, 1997;

Howell, 2001, 2008; Liddle, 1996; Mahmood, 2005, p. 3), with Indonesia

witnessing an increase in Islamic religiosity at the grassroots level and the

rise of a number of Islamic groups promoting Islamic revivalism (Bustamam-

Ahmad, 2015; Nash, 1983).

The early 1970s were years of disappointment for Indonesia’s politically

involved Islamic organizations. Indonesia’s Islamic parties and organizations

had played a significant role in supporting the rise of Suharto by helping


crush the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) after the purported leftist coup

attempt of 1965. Islamic political parties therefore expected a new level of

support from the Suharto regime, but this was not forthcoming. Instead,

General Suharto, as head of the New Order government in the 1970s, sought

to restrain them from becoming serious rivals to his power (Barton, 2010, p.

142). Masyumi was banned in 1960 and in 1973 the four surviving Islamic

parties were amalgamated into one, the Partai Persatuan Pembangunan (PPP

[United Development Party]), whose name contained no reference to Islam

(Hafez, 1997, p. 309). Muslim associations were forced to recognize the

secular state ideology, the Pancasila (The Five Principles), as the sole basis of

their organizations, and were required to renounce any intent to work

towards the establishment of an Islamic state (Bryner, 2013; Hefner, 1991,

pp. 208-209).

After the Islamic organizations’ failure in the political arena, Islamic

revivalists focused on education and propagation activities. Some ex-

Masyumi leaders, such as Mohammad Natsir, had established Dewan Da’wah

Islamiyah Indonesia (DDII [Board of Islamic Da’wah of Indonesia]) in 1967.

From the 1970s, the DDII played an important role in transmitting revivalist

ideas from Saudi Arabia and Egypt to Indonesia. This was done partly by

sending Indonesian students to receive Islamic education in Saudi Arabia,

through the Rabithah ‘Alam Islami which was funded by the Saudis. The

DDII also established the Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Islam dan Arab (LIPIA

[Institution of Islamic and Arabic Sciences]) in 1980, and has been active in

translating and publishing the works of prominent Islamic revivalists, such

as Hasan Al-Banna, Abul A’la Al Maududi and Sayyid Quthb (Rahmat, 2008,

pp. 91-92). In Iran the propagation of Shia revivalism was sponsored through

the works of Ali Syariati.


In the 1980s the Suharto regime relaxed some restrictions on Islamic

expression such as wearing the hijab, and allowed more Islamic elements to

be integrated into the national school curriculum (Schwarz, 1994, p. 175). At

the same time, Islamic revivalism through personal networks and grassroots

movements became more common. During the 1980s, Indonesia’s university

campuses became sites of Islamic revival—starting at the Salman Mosque of

Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB [Bandung Institute of Technology]), with

other universities across the country later following suit.

Majelis taklim and other informal study circles that grew in popularity from

the 1980s were strongly influenced by the ideas of foreign Islamic revivalists

from various backgrounds, but especially those of Egyptian Hasan al-Bana

(d. 1949) and the Ikhwan al-Muslimin (Muslim Brotherhood) which he

founded. Other influential figures were Pakistani Abul A’la Al Maududi (d.

1979) of the Jama’at-i Islami, and Iranian Shi’as Ali Shari’ati and Murtada

Mutahhari (Zulkifli, 2013, pp. 37-38). In addition, the LIPIA played a

significant role in spreading Saudi Wahabism (Rahmat, 2008, p. 68). Thus

Islamic revivalism swept across Indonesia in the 1980s.

Via the Tarbiyah movement, the ideas of the Ikhwanul Muslimin (Muslim

Brotherhood) later influenced the formation of Partai Keadilan (PK [Justice

Party]), which was formed in the period of democratic liberalization

following the fall of Suharto in 1998. The Justice Party (PK) made a strong

showing in the first elections of the new Reformasi period but was

reconstituted as the Prosperous Justice Party in 2002 after failing in the 1999

election to meet the two per cent electoral threshold which was required to

contest the 2004 election. Machmudi (2008) argues that the PKS is a kind of

latter-day Masyumi (the Islamic party of the early Republican period, banned


by Sukarno in 1960), insofar as it promotes Sharia (strict adherence to

Islamic law) in Indonesia through the political system.

The influence of Shi’a Islam also grew in Indonesia in the later Suharto

period and in the Reformasi period that followed the fall of his New Order in

1998. Following the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran in 1979

interaction between its government and Indonesian Shi’a ulama has

intensified, and in the 1980s and 1990s publications by leading Iranian

thinkers like Ali Syariati and Murtadha Muthathhari were enthusiastically

discussed at some of Indonesia’s leading Islamic tertiary institutions. A

number of Indonesian students (most notably Jallaluddin Rachmat, now a

member of the Indonesian parliament) even went to Qum to pursue higher

education and spread Shi’a ideas in Indonesia on their return. Shi’ism

became a kind of new, interesting brand of Islam, attracting a number of

students and other intellectuals who not only studied it but also converted

(Zulkifli, 2013, pp. 27-38). This current of Islamic revivalism has since

continued in a modest way, but is mainly confined to Muslim urban elites.

1.3.2 Turkish Transnational Islamic Movements in Indonesia

While foreign Islamic revival influences in the 1970s and 1980s came almost

entirely from Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Iran, in the 1990s a new kind of

proselytizer, from Turkey, joined in promoting piety revival in Indonesia,

coming mainly as private citizens without government backing. This Turkish

wave of Islamic revival in Indonesia was propelled by three major

movements: the Fethullah Gülen, the Nurcu, and the Süleymancıs. In

contrast to earlier currents of foreign-sourced Islamic revivalism in

Indonesia, which commonly had political agendas and promoted scriptualist

Islam (that is, narrow Islamic legalism, hostile to Islam’s Sufi heritage), the


Turkish organizations mainly focused on what they called hizmet, religiously

inspired service to the Islamic community. This hizmet was commonly in the

form of education but in some cases also included health and other social and

religious services. The Turkish piety movements that came to Indonesia were

also sympathic to Sufi teachings and practices and some even promoted

them.

The first of the Turkish movements to arrive in Indonesia was the Gülen

movement, which began its outreach there in 1993, through the channels of

business and education. Through PASIAD (Pasifik Ülkeleri Sosyal Ve Iktısadı

Dayanısma Derneği) the Gülen Turks and their Indonesian supporters

connected Indonesian and Turkish businessmen, for their mutual benefit. In

addition to the above, PASIAD also played a role in education sector by

establishing hizmet schools. Bussiness people who benefit from PASIAD also

gave the schools their assistance (Barton, 2006, p. 157). In the field of

education they established schools, first Pribadi School in Depok and, later,

Kharisma Bangsa School in Pondok Cabe. Later, Gülen-affiliated groups also

formed links with Islamic tertiary institutes and universities for collaboration

in a variety of activities. For example, they established the Fethullah Gülen

Chair in cooperation with the Jakarta State Islamic University (UIN Jakarta)

and through that association worked to promote interfaith dialogue and

sponsor cultural events. The Gülen movement actively disseminated the

ideology of Fethullah Gülen through the production and publication of his

translated books and magazines. They also formed dershanes, a kind of

religious study circle common in Turkey.

In 2007 the second group, the Nurcu, originating from the Kayseri branch of

the transnational Nurcu movement in Turkey, sent to Indonesia a volunteer

(T. waqf) who established a Nurcu dershane and devoted his time and


energy to it. As their activities expanded, the Nurcu promoters pulled their

activities together under the umbrella of a formally constituted foundation,

the Yayasan Nur Semesta (Foundation of the Light of the Universe). The

Nurcu now have four dershanes in Indonesia (three in Jakarta and one in

Makassar). As is true of other Nurcu movements elsewhere, the focus of the

movement in Indonesia is on disseminating the thoughts of Bediüzzaman

Said Nursî (1877–1960), a famous Turkish Sufi—and particularly on the ideas

set out in his magnum opus, Risale-i Nur Külliyatı—through dershanes and

book translation. The dershanes function as places of study and interaction

for the tullab an nur (students of the Risale-i Nur).

The third group, the Süleymancıs, are followers of Sülyeman Hilmi Tunahan,

the thirty-third Sufi master in a chain of initiation reaching back to the

Prophet. The Süleymancı established the United Islamic Cultural Centre of

Indonesia (UICCI) in 2005 in Jakarta. Its main focus is to provide students,

who live in its boarding schools, with Qur’an studies. The Süleymancıs are

also well known for teaching the Ottoman method of Qur’an memorization

which has attracted wide support, both from the local Muslims and from the

Indonesian government (the Ministry of Religious Affairs and the Ministry of

Social Affairs). Since the Süleymancıs started their hizmet (service) in

Indonesia in 2005, they have established 18 branches across Indonesia.

There are several reasons why the Turkish Islamic movements have become

popular in Indonesia and will contribute to the vibrancy of Islam in

Indonesia. As suggested by Barton “The hizmet and NU share a similar

traditional Sunni approach, strongly imbued with a Sufi sensibility, whereas

Muhammadiyah is inspired by Islamic modernism. The hizmet [movements],

seen from an Indonesian perspective, combine the modern organizational

competency of Muhammadiyah and the spirituality of the NU” (Barton,


2014). These principal characteristics are likely to prove attractive to many

Indonesian Muslims as well as to be judged acceptable by the government of

Indonesia.

More specifically, the Gülen, that is, hizmet-type, organizations offer an

inclusive and pluralist Islam which is compatible with the NU approach.

They also offer modern, high quality Islamic school facilities that are

attractive to the Indonesian Muslim middle class societies. In addition, the

Nurchu have been circulating among Indonesian Muslims Nursi’s magnum

opus, the Risale-i Nur Külliyatı, which is proving inspirational to many

Indonesian students and academics. The Nurchu also play a significant role

in disseminating Nursi’s ideas by publishing his numerous translated works.

Lastly, the Süleymancıs offers free, high quality Islamic boarding at their

schools; they have a warm social atmosphere supported by bonds of Sufi

attachment between students and teachers and among students, and they

teach a new promising tahfidz method of Qur’an memorization.

Given the fact that all the Turkish organizations offer an enriched, modern

Islamic education, with a Turkish colouration, they continue to attract

Indonesians. Along with that popular demand among prospective students,

sympathy from their fellow Indonesian Muslims (including from the

followers of the two major Indonesian Islamic organization), and

government support, they are thus likely to continue to be welcome in

Indonesia.


1.4 METHODOLOGY

My research on the Süleymancı movement in Indonesia is designed as an

ethnographic case study. This approach is justified by the research aim,

which is to study this contemporary social phenomenon in a real-life context.

Typically, a case study entails the detailed and intensive analysis of a single

case. The UICCI, its organization, and its activities across several regional

branches in Indonesia, constitute the ‘case’ under investigation. In the

classical anthropological tradition, the ethnographic case study method was

developed for the study of a single, localized tribal group or peasant

community. As explained by Bryman (Bryman, 2008, pp. 52-53), the case

study research method has been extended from studying single communities,

including smaller social units, such as a family, a person, or single event, to

studying larger social units, such as schools and other organizations. Here,

this method is extended to include organizations that span several regions

and which form a part of larger, transnational organizations. Stake (1995, p.

xi) argues that the study of the particularity and complexity of a single case

helps us to understand its activity within a particular set of circumstances.

When the choice of a case, as an example of a wider phenomenon, is clearly

set out, the case findings can be generalized—with appropriate modifications

according to context—to apply to similar phenomena. Moreover, the case

study research method can be used to study a phenomenon and its context in

order to provide evidence from a specific situation (Yin, 2002, pp. 13-14).

The ethnographic case study method is particularly useful for the study of

transnational religious movements. It helps to capture the local specificity of

the movement in a particular place. It also helps us to understand how local

forms fit into, and are shaped by, the larger global organization. Framing

transnational religious organizations as part of the wider revival movement,


moreover, calls needed attention to the broader Islamic revival context as it

unfolds in Indonesia and elsewhere.

It is evident, therefore, that the ethnographic case study method is a

particularly helpful method for furthering an understanding of

transnationalism. It provides sufficiently detailed information about the

temporal and regional adaptations of a movement, together with interviews

and document analysis on the local histories of the movement. This enables

an investigation into the utility of particular theories of social movement

change, such as the ‘opportunity space’ theory introduced by Hakan Yavuz

(2003) and the ‘glocalization’ theory developed by Giulianotti and Robertson

(2006). Both of these theories are examined in this thesis. Moreover, the

ethnographic case study method is relevant to the research aims of this

thesis, which are to strengthen previous understandings of social change

brought about through religious movements, particularly transnational ones,

and to modify or extend the theoretical frameworks employed.

Two methods of data collection were used in this research: ethnographic (participant

observation) data collection, and in-depth interviews. First, ethnographic1 data

1 The terms ‘ethnography’ and ‘participant observation’, in reference to a

research method, are very difficult to distinguish from each other. Both draw

attention to the fact that the participant observer/ethnographer engages with a

particular group for a significantly long period of time, observing group members’

behaviour, listening to what is said and asking questions. In this study, the

researcher will use the term ‘ethnography’ for two reasons: First, choosing the

ethnographic term can avoid the implication that ‘participant observation’ involves

just observation, though in practice participant observers do more than simply

observe. Second, ‘ethnography’ covers the participant observation method as well as

the notion of ethnography as a written style of research, and so is suitable to this

study.


collection was undertaken in eight Süleymancı UICCI centres in Indonesia

during the twelve month period of 2012 to 2013. Ethnographic data included

the social setting and the day-to-day behaviour of the Süleymancıs. This

provided a detailed picture of the activities of the movement in Indonesia.

Moreover, with ‘opportunity space’ theory and the notion of ‘glocalization’ in

mind, the ethnographic data collection method was directed towards

understanding how the Süleymancıs utilized opportunities in Indonesia and

adapted to local constraints.

Second, in-depth interviews were conducted. High-ranking Süleymancı

management executives and teachers from eight UICCI branches across

Indonesia were interviewed. This revealed how the Süleymancı movement

was first established in Indonesia, and the key factors that helped it develop

in the country. To protect the identities of the individuals who participated in

the research, their real names have not been used.

In terms of sampling for these interviews, this research combined the

purposive sampling method and the snowballing method. The purposive

method was used to ensure that targeted categories of interviewees were

captured. Targeted interviewees included branch directors, teachers at

boarding schools, university-level students in the UICCI education system,

members of the local community around UICCI centres, and relevant

In this regard, ethnography is defined as “a research method in which the

researcher: (1) is emerged in a social setting for an extended period of time; (2)

makes regular observations of the behaviour of members of that setting; (3) listens

to and engages in conversations; (4) interviews informants on issues that are not

directly amenable to observation or that the ethnographer is unclear about; (5)

collects documents about the groups; (6) develops an understanding of the culture

of the group and people’s behaviour within the content of that culture; (7) and

writes up the detailed account of that setting” (Bryman, 2008, pp. 402–403).


academic figures in Indonesia who had observed the unfolding of the

Süleymancı movement there in recent years.

In 2012, when this research was designed, there were only eight UICCI

branches in Indonesia: Pondok Pesantren Sulaimaniyah (Jakarta), Pondok

Pesantren Habibi Centre (Aceh), Asrama Umraniyah (Jakarta), Ponpes Putri

Badiah Sultan (Jakarta), Asrama SMA Aceh (Aceh), Asrama SMP Süleyman

Halis (Pangkalan Bun), Asrama SMP (Pasar Minggu), and Asrama

Mahasiswa Camlica (Yogyakarta). Since that time, the UICCI has successfully

established another ten branches across Indonesia. However, owing to

constraints of time and resources, this research has been limited to the eight

initial UICCI branches, as of 2012. It is argued that a study of these eight

UICCI branches is adequate for indicative research into Indonesian

Süleymancıs.

In this research, the detailed ethnographic study of Süleymancı UICCI

branches in Indonesia was complemented with a micro-ethnographic2 study

of Süleymancı branches in other parts of the world. This included the study

of two Turkish branches in Istanbul (Yavuz Selim and Zeytinburnu), one in

Frankfurt (Verband der Islamischen Kulturzentren e.V. Islam Kültür

Merkezleri Birliği, Frankfurt Şubesi), and one in Melbourne (Meadow

Heights). This approach proved particularly important, and indeed crucial,

for understanding how the Süleymancıs have adapted in different countries.

2 The term ‘micro-ethnography’ was developed by Wolcott (1990). It means a

mini version of ethnography that aims not to study whole aspects of a subject of

research but instead focuses on particular issues within the selected institution or

community. Therefore, micro-ethnography will only require a relatively short period

of time; a couple of weeks to a few months are suggested as sufficient amounts of

time to spend within the organization (Bryman, 2008, p. 403).


Turkey was chosen because it is the home of the Süleymancı movement.

Germany is home to the oldest and largest late twentieth-century Turkish

diaspora community. Australia is home to a smaller, and different, diaspora

community within a multi-ethnic and multi-religious settler society. Both the

German and Australian Süleymancı movements played significant roles in

the establishment of the Indonesian Süleymancıs. Finally, Indonesia is home

to a Muslim majority population with a limited Turkish diaspora community.

In combination, these micro-ethnographic case studies provide an important

understanding of the ways in which host communities help shape the

structure and activities of the Süleymancı movement. They also stimulate

insight into the tensions that may develop between a global movement and

local adaptive processes. In addition, the interviews that were conducted at

the UICCA branch in Melbourne (Australia) have provided understandings of

the historical relationship between the Süleymancı outreach to Australia and

to Indonesia.

Between December 2011 and February 2012, prior to the fieldwork, I made

an informal visit to the UICCI branch in Rawamangun (Jakarta) and the

UICCI branch in Jogjakarta. At the UICCI Rawamangun branch in Jakarta, I

introduced myself and initiated preliminary talks with participants. These

talks helped identify ‘key informants’ (Bryman, 2004) from among

instructors and students across all eight of the UICCI branches in Indonesia.

The key informants were: Abi Zoltan (Head of UICCI), Abi Emre (Head of

UICCI Rawamangun), Abi Aydin (UICCI teacher), and Ibnu Rusyd (UICCI

student).


First, interviews with senior UICCI officials yielded preliminary insider

information on the history of the Süleymancı movement in Turkey to

supplement accounts in secondary sources. The interviews also revealed what

senior Süleymancı leaders in Turkey originally thought about the

establishment of branches in Indonesia. In addition, the interviews provided

important information concerning how Süleymancı branches adapted to

Indonesian conditions, as well as the factors that assisted in their

development and what made it difficult. This was important, given that

Indonesia is a Muslim majority country, and many organizations were

already active in the field of piety revitalization. Second, interviews with

UICCI abi3 (teachers) revealed information regarding the changes or

modifications they needed to make in terms of organizational structure and

presentation in order to be accepted by the wider community in Indonesia. In

this, the abi were a valuable source of information because they had studied

in Indonesian Süleymancı centres as well as in higher or tertiary-level

Turkish schools. Third, interviews with IUCCI students provided useful

information pertaining to their study experience, social backgrounds, and

reasons for choosing to study at the UICCI boarding schools. Fourth,

interviews with Indonesian academics produced information about the

Turkish diaspora in Indonesia. Professor Komaruddin Hidayat and Professor

Amin Abdullah were both selected for interviews owing to their detailed

background understanding of Turkish culture in Indonesia.

3 ‘Abi’ is an abbreviation of ‘ağabey’, which means ‘big brother’. In Turkish

culture, the word is used in the family as well as between friends and the usage

shows the respect appropriate to the big brother of the family. In Turkish

organizations such as the Süleymancıs, the term is also used for the teachers who

are ‘big brother’ of the students.


Finally, it is appropriate say something about the factors that may have

affected the objectivity of this thesis. I am an Indonesian Muslim. I was

educated in the pesantren system. I attended Darul Arqam Muhammadiyah

Boarding School, La Tansa Boarding School, and Darus Sunnah higher

boarding school. At tertiary level, I studied at the State Islamic University of

Syarif Hidayatullah in Jakarta. During my research I gained valuable

experience in conducting impartial academic interviews. I do not belong to

the UICCI community or to any branch of the Süleymancı movement. I

therefore believe I have been able to maintain researcher objectivity.

1.5 THESIS STRUCTURE

This thesis investigates religious transnational movements through a case

study of a regional brancy of the Süleymancı movement, specifically the

UICCI, in Indonesia. The research uses ‘opportunity space’ theory as the

primary framework for understanding how and why Süleymancı

organizations operate in Indonesia. In addition, transnational theory and

glocalization theory will be employed as analytical tools. To give an overview

of the thesis, a discussion of each of the chapters follows.

Chapter I, Introduction, has provided a discussion of the thesis statement,

research questions, theoretical framework, and methodology. As mentioned,

the primary aim of this thesis is to understand the Süleymancı UICCI as a

new development in global Islamic movements in the Indonesian context

through the lens of ‘transnational’ theory and ‘opportunity spaces’ theory.

This chapter has provided a detailed discussion of these two theories, and

also an explanation of ‘glocalization’. This last concept helps us to understand


how the Süleymancıs have adapted to local Islamic cultures, making the

movement more acceptable in the Indonesian context.

Chapter II, Islam in Turkey and the Rise of the Süleymancıs, explores how

the Süleymancı movement emerged and expanded in its place of origin and

later became a transnational organization. This trajectory is analysed

through the lens of ‘opportunity space’ theory, which provides an

understanding of how and when the Süleymancı movement became a major

actor in the public sphere in Turkey. The chapter then describes how the

Süleymancı movement became transnational, extending outwards to reach

people from the wider Turkish Muslim diaspora, and how the Süleymancı

movement continues to be shaped and transformed.

Chapter III, Indonesian Süleymancıs: The UICCI, explores the arrival of the

Süleymancı movement in Indonesia. It addresses how this specifically

Turkish Islamic movement was able to successfully establish several

branches in Indonesia, a nation that is home to a Muslim majority

population but which has only a very small Turkish diaspora community. The

chapter argues that the Süleymancı movement in Indonesia was able to

develop for two reasons. First, it was able to find and effectively exploit ‘new

opportunity spaces’ in the form of a distinctive type of private Islamic

boarding school. Second, it was able to find ways to work with the Indonesian

government in order to be accepted both by the government and by

Indonesian Muslims. This chapter demonstrates that ‘opportunity space’

theory can be effectively used to examine transnational Muslim movements

beyond Turkey and the Turkish diaspora communities in Europe.


Chapter IV, The Qur’an and the Qurban: Two Main Hizmet of the

Süleymancıs in Indonesia, explores the two main hizmet of the Süleymancı

movement. These are its Qur’an teaching and memorization program, and its

qurban distribution program. These two hizmet programs have enabled the

movement to attract Indonesian Muslims and gain support from the

Indonesian government. Notably, the UICCI has been successful, to a certain

extent, because of the support it received from the Directorate of Diniyyah

Education and Pesantren in theMinistry of Religious Affairs. First, this

chapter addresses the question of how the UICCI pesantren placed itself

within the wider context of Islamic education institutions in Indonesia. An

important aspect of this contextualization was the transformation from

‘asrama’ (I. dormitory) to ‘pesantren’ (I. Islamic boarding school). In

Indonesia, the pesantren are dedicated to helping Muslims memorize the

Qur’an and do other classical Islamic studies. Qur’an recitation is an

important, and now very popular, way of cultivating piety. Thus, by

positioning itself as Pesantren Tahfidz, the UICCI was able to ‘glocalize’

‘opportunity spaces’ to gain support from the Indonesian government.

Second, this chapter addresses the question of how the UICCI distinguished

itself from other pesantren. In Indonesia, the UICCI focussed on the tahfidz

(memorization) program, which has become increasingly popular among

Indonesian Muslims in the last twenty years, and introduces their own quick

learning method.

Chapter V, Networks, Circulation and Finance of the Indonesian Süleymancıs

(the UICCI), analyses the Süleymancı financial system in the Indonesian

organization, addressing the question of how the UICCI was able to provide

free ‘luxurious’ dormitory accommodation and conduct its various activities.

The chapter argues that the UICCI has successfully identified and taken

advantage of a particular market niche for Islamic education in Indonesia.


Specifically, its primary focus was the low and lower middle social classes of

Indonesian Muslims eager to study Islam. The chapter notes, however, that

to provide free education to Muslims from these social classes, the

Süleymancıs rely heavily on donations of money and service from overseas.

Further, even though the UICCI provides free Islamic education, there is an

expectation that Indonesians who become abis assist in the future

development of the UICCI in particular and of the Süleymancı movement in

general.

Chapter VI, Sufi Elements of the Süleymancıs, explores how the Süleymancı

movement was able to effectively optimize and strengthen the function of its

Islamic education institutions through Sufi teachings and rituals. Sufi

teachings and rituals promote religious piety and, as mentioned, Indonesia

represents a large market for promoters of Islamic piety. This chapter shows

that the Süleymancı movement met the sizeable demand for piety in

Indonesia by promoting a transnational Sufi brotherhood, which provided

forms of Islamic ritual and moral habitualization loosely familiar to

Indonesians, especially those from traditionalist Islamic backgrounds. UICCI

members do not claim affiliation with any particular Sufi order. Nevertheless,

UICCI members and Süleymancıs are considered ‘Sufi’ for the purposes of

this thesis, first, because they are followers of the Sufi master Süleyman

Hilmi Tunahan, and second, because they practise tasawwuf (Sufism as

presented in classical Islamic studies). Sufi rituals linkingstudents with the

master, together with the cultivation of a Sufi identity, have fostered spiritual

bonds that built social cohesion amongst Süleymancıs (as in other Sufi

orders). This has aided the development of the Süleymancıs in Indonesia.


Chapter VII, Conclusion, summarizes the thesis findings and underlines the

significance of using ‘opportunity space’ theory to analyse transnational

movements in different places, such as Turkey and Indonesia. Importantly,

‘opportunity space’ theory is useful in explaining how a Turkish movement

was able to establish branches in Indonesia. Moreover, it reveals how, in only

ten years, these branches were able to progress to the point of playing a

significant role in the contestation of Indonesian Islam. These findings help

Indonesian Muslims to understand the increasing diversity of transnational

movements operating in their country.


CHAPTER II: ISLAM IN TURKEY AND THE RISE OF SÜLEYMANCIS

2.1 INTRODUCTION

A new wave of Islamic revival has swept across the Muslim world since the

1970s. Two countries are well known to have played significant roles in this

revival: Saudi Arabia and Iran—the first supporting the Salafi movement

among Sunnis, the latter supporting Shi’a universalism. Accounts of this

global revival, however, fail to capture the influence of Turkish Islamic

movements; if mentioned at all it is only in connection with the Gülen

movement and it is most unlikely to be noted in a Western context. One

reason for this could be that Turkish Islamic outreach began later than that

of the other two countries. With its rapid increase overseas however, Turkish

influence in global Islamic revival is now starting to attract attention. This

chapter contributes to the documentation of Turkish overseas revival

initiatives, introducing the Süleymancı movement and its role in promoting

Islamic revivalism throughout the Muslim world.

The chapter begins by exploring Turkish Islam and surveying the social

history of Islam in ‘modern’ post-Ottoman Turkey. It then shows how that

context shaped the rise of the Süleymancı movement. It will explain how the

Süleymancıs struggled with the secularist regime introduced by Mustafa

Kemal Atatürk in 1924, and the institutional changes the movement

underwent as Kemalist policies and influences changed over the twentieth

century. The chapter shows how the Süleymancı movement was initially

established as an effort to preserve Islam in Ataturk’s secularist Turkey. It

began as local cemaat (informal community of devotees) because all


opportunities for independent religious formal organizations were legally

closed, and then at mid-century developed formal organization, expanded

and subsequently generated a transnational movement. Over the course of

the twentieth century, the Süleymancıs changed from an essentially local

Islamic purification movement (for returning the purity of the faith) into a

transnational movement focusing on proselytizing by teaching a special

technique for Qur’an memorization in residential schools.

In its early years the Kemalist government disbanded or took over the

running of many existing religious institutions, displacing clerics from

positions of influence to secure the new republic. However, following the

democratic reform of the 1950s, religious groups, including the Süleymancıs,

were able to operate more publicly by utilizing what Yavuz (2003) has called

new ‘opportunity spaces’. The Süleymancıs took advantage of such spaces by

making the private informal education of the Kuran kursu more formally

structured and more publicly available. Eventually that formal organizational

framework was able to support the extension of Süleymancı teaching

overseas and the transformation of a national movement into a transnational

one. That transnational expansion was initially stimulated by recognition of a

need for Turkish Islamic education among the Turkish diaspora communities

in Germany, the Netherlands and elsewhere in Europe, and then, later, as far

away as Australia, where a significant Turkish-background migrant

community resides. As this chapter will illustrate, the Turkish diaspora has

provided a stimulus for the development of Turkish Islamic revival

movements in Turkey and for their development as transnational

organizations (Yavuz, 2009, p. 52). A case study of the Süleymancı

movement in Germany and Australia will be presented, as representative of

this global development.


This chapter demonstrates that both internal and external factors have

stimulated the successful transformation of the Süleymancıs into a

transnational formal organization. It is possible to identify particular

religious values articulated in the spiritual leader’s message that have

encouraged Süleymancıs to carry their religious services across national

borders. But factors external to the group also need to be taken into account

to explain its institutional transformation and the spread of the movement to

Turks overseas, and then to non-Turks in places as far from Turkey as

Indonesia.

2.2 ISLAM IN MODERN TURKEY

Islam has a long history in Turkey, as it was a major force for centuries in the

last Sultanate of Islam, the Ottoman Empire. The empire lasted from 1299 to

1922—a long period in which Islam had a dominant role in forming Turkish

identity. The Sultanate fell in 1923, when the Sultanate was overthrown by

Republican forces led by Kemal Atatürk, who established a secularist state.

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, known as the founding father of modern Turkey, saw

the decline of the Ottoman Empire as a sign of the old order’s inability to deal

with the Europe-dominated world. He concluded that Turkey needed to be

radically modernized, adopting a political system of separation of religion

and the state, similar to that of western countries. After the introduction of

Kemal’s secularism, religious expression was severely limited, in accordance

with the government’s laws. The banning of non-government religious

education, and not allowing head-scarves to be worn in the public arena are

just two examples of this limitation. These prohibitions affected Muslims in

general, who had a centuries-old tradition of practising Islam as part of their


identity. Islam then had to be adjustedto the constraints of the new era

(Cetin, 2010, pp. 54-55).

According to Hakan Yavuz (2004a), Islam in modern Turkey has gone

through three different phases and has responded differently to each of these.

The dynamics of the relationship between Islam and the state have created

the current colouration of Islam in Turkey and have shaped the Islamic

identity of Muslims in the country. This will be seen in the light of the history

of modern Turkish Islamic movements.

2.2.1 Islam Distanced from the State (1923–1950)

The first phase of Islamic change in modern Turkey lasted from 1923 to 1950.

It was a difficult time for Islamic expression. Secularism and ideas of nation

building were introduced by Kemal’s government, removing Islam from the

Turkish constitution. Religious activities were banned in number of ways,

including closing the madrasa (private Islamic religious schools) and the

banning of religious attire. Also the Turkish language was modernized, with

Latin script replacing the Arabic, loosening the association of Turkish

identity with Islam (Ebaugh, 2010, pp. 14-17).

However, Islam had long been a part of Turkish life and identity, playing a

major role in individual, family and societal life. In the 1920s it was still seen

as important by many Muslims, particularly the ulama (clerics). Inevitably,

resistance movements emerged, which aimed to restore freedom of religious

expression and preserve Islam in the country, as many religious leaders saw

Kemal’s secularism as unfair and excessively limiting.


It can be argued that among the most active of the movements to challenge

the domination of the state was the Sufi Nakşibendi brotherhood (Silverstein,

2011; Yavuz, 2003). The Nakşibendi opposed the ‘homogenization’ of Islam

inherent in Kemalism, which had been achieved by the government’s co-

optation of certain religious teachers and the supression of others. This

reaction made Islamic activists some of the principal enemies of the

Kemalists and, therefore, the targets of the ‘exclusionary policies’ of the

Kemalist government. The army continued to be suspicious of Islam and put

pressure on Muslim activists. Many Muslims therefore eventually distanced

themselves from the state and continued their ‘rebellion’, although mostly in

peaceful ways and outside the public sphere (Cetin, 2010; Yavuz, 2004a).

2.2.2 Integration into the State (1950s)

This tension in Turkey between Islam and the state began to lessen after

1950, largely due to the advent of a multi-party political system and the

opening up of more democratic politics in Turkey, initiated by the leadership

of Prime Minister Adnan Menderes. Islam, as a political rallying point,

regained popularity (Cetin, 2010, p. 58). This improvement in opportunities

for political expression was welcomed by Islamic activists, as they were now

allowed legally to express their religious values and goals in the public

sphere. Muslims who had distanced themselves from the state now began to

show more interest in engaging with civil society, as can be seen from some

Islamic movements’ support of, and even involvement in, some of the

established political parties, particularly those parties which promised

Muslim activists more opportunities for public religious expression (Ebaugh,

2010, pp. 17-20; Yavuz, 2004a, p. 224).


Muslim activists were again able to call for support for Muslim values and

institutions, including independent Islamic schools, which many considered

a basic requirement for preserving the religion. Thus the opening up of

Turkish politics created a ‘political opportunity’ for the development of

Islamic movements and institutions in modern Turkey.

2.2.3 Pluralization: 1980s

In the last part of the twentieth century political change in Turkey was

marked by the liberalization of economic policy, as well as by further political

liberalization initiated by Prime Minister Turgut Özal in the 1980s (Ebaugh,

2010, pp. 18-20). This liberalization created a link between the social sphere

and the market, creating a new bourgeoisie who benefitted economically

from the radical reform. This newly expanded social class was able to

contribute to the proliferation of independent mass media, such as TV, radio,

and newspaper outlets (Yavuz, 2004b).

Significantly, increasing numbers of the new bourgeoisie joined movements

aiming to restore the prominence of Islam in political and social life. Some

contributed through founding and supporting educational institutions that

fostered the development of Islamic values (for example, doing social service

through religious institutions (hizmet)), or establishing media outlets

(newspaper, television and radio), banks, hospitals and travel agencies. As

Islamic movements began to spread to the Turkish diaspora communities,

this development took place not only in Turkey but also overseas, especially

in countries with large Turkish communities, such as Germany. This stage

has been noted as the point in Islam’s social transformation in Turkey when

the expression of Islam pluralized into many forms and began to be

organized transnationally.


2.2.4 Turkish Religious Movements of the Latter Twentieth Century

As has been described earlier, Turkish Muslims active in religious

institutions had a difficult relationship with the state after Kemalist

secularism was introduced in the 1920s, and distanced themselves from the

government due to their feeling of alienation. However, when a more open

atmosphere spread, as democracy strengthened in the 1950s, Islamic

activists were once more willing to take part in the public life of the state.

The political and economic liberalization in the post-1950 period encouraged

Turkish Muslims, including the religious conservatives, to accommodate to

the ‘secular order’ and accept the democratic system a basic premise (Cetin,

2010). Turkish expression of Islam has therefore been mostly tolerant,

moderate, and accepting of democracy (Niyazi, 2002).

Finally, some scholars (for example, Niyazi, (2002)) have argued that

economic liberalization under Prime Minister Turgut Özal’s leadership (1983

to 1989) accelerated the migration of Turks to other countries, which in turn

stimulated the transformation of Turkish Islamic movements into

transnational organizations. Linking into and serving the Turkish diaspora

communities in numerous countries, transnational Turkish Islamic

movements now increasingly sent their members abroad to introduce their

particular forms of Islamic piety. This is evidenced by the activities of the

Sufi-inspired Gülen and Süleymancı movements (described in Chapter I)

after the 1980s (Niyazi, 2002). The following section provides evidence of

this development, through the story of the Süleymancıs’ transformation into

a public educational movement in Turkey and then into a transnational

movement.


2.3 THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SÜLEYMANCIS MOVEMENT IN

TURKEY AND ABROAD

This section of the chapter will describe the origins and development of the

Süleymancı movement and analyse it as an example of the dynamics of Islam

in modern Turkey, prior to its extension abroad.

2.3.1 The Süleymancı’s Founding Father

As indicated by their name, the history of the Süleymancıs (A.

Süleymaniyyah; follower of Süleyman) began with their founder, Syeikh

Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan. He was born in 1888, in Silistre, on the border

with Bulgaria, and by virtue of a noble genealogy, from both his parents, that

led back to the Prophet, he enjoyed the titles, ‘Seyyid’ and ‘Sharif’. He was

also said to have had a connection with the conqueror of Constantinople,

Fatih Sultan Mehmet.4

Süleyman started his educational journey in Satırlı madrasa, where his

father was a teacher. Later, he was sent to Istanbul to pursue higher religious

studies and there he finished religious degrees specializing in hadith and

tafsir (the prophetic tradition and Qur’anic exegesis) as well as a secular

degree in law. Even though with his law degree he could have been a judge,

he preferred to have a career as a dersiam (lecturer in theology), which he

pursued from 1920 to 1921. From 1922 to 1923 he taught Turkish and Arabic

language in madrasa. Then, on 3 March 1924, the Turkish government

issued the policy of ‘education unity’, which merged all types of education

4 This biographical story was told during the the haul (commemoration of

the death of the Syeikh) event, which took place on 15 September 2012 in Pondok

Pesantren Tahfidz Suleymaniyah, Rawamangun, Jakarta.


into the state education system, and then abolished the independent Islamic

schools. In that situation, Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan, who had been teaching

in madrasa, decided to become a preacher in mosques such as Sultan Ahmet

camii (mosque), Süleymaniye camii, Yeni camii, Şehzadebaşι camii,

Kasimpasha camii and Camii Kebir.

When the madrasa that had existed for centuries were totally closed by the

government, along with other independent religious organizations, like the

tekke (centres of Sufi orders), Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan decided to continue

his religious teachings (dakwah/hizmet) in another way. He said, as quoted

by his Jakarta students,

When the sons of Islam like broken pieces of wood adrift towards hell, then if

we can save only a single piece, that alone will still be very beneficial. 5

So, it is clear that from the very beginning the Süleymancıs’ idea was to revive

the Sunnah (religion) which they considered was being forceably neglected

by Muslims in Turkey and that the Süleymancıs wanted to bring back to

Turkish Muslims’ lives what was missing.

5 Interview with Abi Zeki and Abi Aydin, UICCI Jakarta, 2012.


Figure 1: Syeikh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan


2.3.2 Developments of Süleymancıs

There is not much information about the early form of the Süleymancı

movement in Turkey. Because it was dangerous to record information about

Islamic movements in that difficult political situation, information and

stories were passed on in narrative form from Süleyman’s early students to

later ones. The author had the good fortune to visit Istanbul to meet an abi

elder who understands the history of the movement. He is Abi Zaitin Burnu,

who teaches History of the Süleymancıs in one of the Süleymancı schools in

Turkey and works for the Ottoman archive. According to his narrative, the

development of the Süleymancıs started (and this is reflected also by the

story told by Süleymancı teachers in Jakarta) with the idea of preserving the

Islamic religion, which seemed to be fading in Turkey. According to Abi

Zaitin Burnu, the development of the Süleymancıs can be divided into three

phases: The Darul Arqam period (1924–1950), The Medina Period (1950–

1959), and The Formation of the Süleymancı Organization and Movement

Abroad (1959–2000).

2.3.2.1 Darul Arqam Period 1924–1950: Challenging Beginnings in a

Loose Network

Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan’s proseltyzing (dakwah) began in 1924, when the

early Kemalists implemented their secularist policy limiting religious

expression. So the early years of the Syeikh’s dakwah were difficult, as such

activities were treated as ‘forbidden’ (T. yasak) and could be severely

punished. At this time however, according to Abi Zaitin Burn, the Syeikh

demonstated his courage in reviving Islam in Turkey.6 Due to the security

issue, Süleyman performed ‘hidden’ or ‘silent’ dakwah, teaching religion to

6 Interview with Abi Zaitin Burnu, Istanbul, 27 April 2013.


Muslims by just going from one house to another. It is said that in the

beginning he taught just one student, and that this student later brought two

other students, and then the pattern continued until the students grew into a

community (jamaah).

The name of this first period of Süleymancı development, the Darul Arqam

Period (Darul Arqam Misale), derives from the words ‘darul’ meaning ‘house’

and ‘Arqam’, the name of one of the Companions of the Prophet Muhammad.

In his own time (as emulated later by Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan), the Prophet

started his dakwah ‘silently’, by gathering interested people in a private

home—Arqam’s house.

‘Hidden dakwah’ was performed until 1950, when the Turkish political

system introducted a multi-party system and became more democratic. This

then allowed Islam to be expressed and promoted in public spaces, ending

the thirteen year period of the Süleymancı’s Darul Arqam misalı. The

Süleymancıs point out that thirteen years was the same length of time that

the Prophet had to perform his ‘silent’ teachings.

Thus, during the silent dakwah period, the Süleymancıs were only an

informally linked community (jamaah) of followers, with a spiritual leader (a

charismatic Sufi master of deep knowledge, a prestigious spiritual genealogy,

and a position as ulama) but with no solid, that is, formally organizational

structure. The early form of the Süleymancı movement was a cemaat, that is,

a loose network of people focusing on their leader, Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan.

At that time they had no school, as dakwah (proselytising; teaching) was


carried out from one house to another, or even, sometimes, in public spaces

such as train carriages or taxis, where meetings would not arouse suspicion.7

2.3.2.2 The Medina Period 1950–1959: The Beginning of Public

Süleymancı Schools

The second period of the Süleymancıs’ development, from 1950 to 1959, was

called the Medina period, and ended with Süleyman’s death in 1959. The

period began when politics in Turkey was democratized, allowing more

Islamic expression in public spaces and therefore enabling the Syeikh to

legally open religious schools, which were called ‘Kuran kursu’ (Qur’anic

course). This second period of the movement was obviously better in many

ways. The Süleymancıs liken it to the Medina period in early Islam, when the

Prophet left behind the hard times of his life in Mecca and was welcomed in

Medina, where he could carry out his dakwah freely and gain more followers,

who submitted themselves to God through Islam.8

The Kuran kursu, were boarding schools. The motivation to establish them

was initially religious duty. In Turkey, among the Süleymancıs, there is an

understanding that where a boarding school is founded, everything in that

community will improve. Abi Erdem said:

If your eyes are open, you can see that. For example, there was nothing in the

beginning but a village [here]. But when a boarding school was established …

a minimarket and plantation [started up], and the community could even

manage to export their products.9



9 Interview with Abi Erdem, Jakarta, 2 December 2012.


So, from the 1950s, the Syeikh encouraged his students and followers to build

boarding schools for studying Islam and especially the Qur’an. Since the

beginning, the schools have been established separately for boys and girls.

According to Abi Erdem, the Syeikh was equally concerned to help both male

and female followers to learn about their religion. In fact, according to Abi

Bayram, the number of boarding schools for females exceeds that of the male

Kuran kursu.10

Establishing boarding schools became the impetus to formalize the social

structure of the worshipping community, the cemaat. The senior students of

the Syeikh became the managers (idareji) of the rapidly proliferating

boarding houses for scripture students. They needed some kind of

administration and linkage with Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan and the

movement. Abi Zaitin Burnu said,

So, it was his students [who became the idarejis]. Just like here, each

boarding school has its own idareji (head of the boarding school) who came

from our own students. [In terms of organization] in Istanbul boarding

schools were divided into two parts, Asia and Europe. Each part has its own

head. Within European Istanbul, the responsibility was also divided

according to province or district. For example, if there are eight boarding

schools in an area, one of the eight will be the head among them. This

system, known as imarat, was part of the Süleymancıs organization since the

Medina (post-1950) period.11

As shown, the democratic 1950s provided opportunities for public religious

expression, including the establishment of independent schools for religious

studies. There were also greater opportunities for non-elite Muslims to make

money and join the new bourgeoisie. They, in turn, could support the

10 Interview with Abi Bayram, Jakarta, 27 December 2012.



development of religious activities. Indeed many of the newly rich Muslims

who became Süleymancı participants (ikhwan) then used their funds to

support the development of Süleymancı boarding schools.

2.3.2.3 The Formation of the Süleymancı Organization and

Movement Abroad (1959–2000s)

Syeikh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan passed away in 1959, leaving behind a solid

jamaah and many new schools. At the time he passed away, there were

fourteen Kuran kursu schools in Turkey. The directorship of the Süleymancı

schools was then taken over by Süleyman’s son-in-law, Kemal Kacar, as

Syeikh Tunahan had no sons. Kemal Kacar became the abimist (the highest

of the senior brothers) of the Süleymancıs until his death in 2000. The

leadership then was taken over by the Syeikh’s grandson, Arif Ahmet

Denisolgun, the current abimist.12

During the period that Kemal Kacar was abimist (1954–2000), the

Süleymancıs established their first overseas branch, in Germany, and

followed that with other centres there and in the other European countries.

In addition, during the leadership of Arif Ahmet Denizolgun the Süleymancıs

grew substantially. More than 6,000 branches were established in Turkey

and overseas, making the Süleymancı movement the second biggest Islamic

movement in its home country, Turkey, and among the most significant of

the Turkish transnational movements. It now operates in 130 countries on

five continents.13

12 Presentation and explanation during the haul (commemoration of the

death of the Syeikh) program at UICCI Rawamangun, on 15 September 2012, and

interview with Abi Emre, Jakarta, 26 September 2012.

13 Interview with Abi Faruk and Abi Adem, 11 October 2012.


The development of the Süleymancıs after the death of the Syeikh, under the

two abimists, can be described in relation to two dimensions: internal and

external development. ‘Internal’ refers to their development in the home

country, Turkey, while ‘external’ refers to their development overseas as

transnational movement.

Internal Development: Establishment and Diversification of the Hizmet

Program

In the Süleymancı movements, boarding schools are at the heart of all

activities. In the boarding facilities, students not only learn Qur’an recitation

and Islamic studies, but also put into practice Islamic teachings, making

them part of their daily activities. After passing certain exams, the pupils may

themselves later become teachers and managers of a centre. Thus the

dormitory system has been essential for the expansion of the movement.

The boarding school buildings vary according to their particular purposes

and the levels of education offered in them. Male and female boarders are

always housed and taught in separate schools. The Süleymancıs now offer

four levels of schooling: ibtidai (beginner), ihzari (intermediate), tekamul

alti (pre-advanced), and tekamul (advanced). The aim of tekamul, the

highest level of schooling, is to prepare abis (teachers). In addition, there are

special purpose boarding schools for the preparation of huffaadz (people

who have memorized the whole Qur’an) at the highest level of Qur’an study.

All of the boarding schools are coordinated by the Süleymancı headquarters

at Umraniyye, in Turkey.14

14 Interview with Abi Aydin, Jakarta, 26 September 2012.


The Süleymancıs also began to build hospitals to offer another kind of

community service (hizmet) and to benefit their students all over Turkey. The

hospitals, however, were established as profit-making institutions. The

income generated could then be used to support other religious service

activities. The hospitals are open to all Süleymancı students, but their

services are free for the highest level (tekamul) students. The hospitals also

provide job opportunities for the Süleymancıs, as the employees at the

hospital are mostly graduates of the Süleymancıs’ Kuran kursu. The hospitals

are equipped with modern and cutting-edge health technology and are

pointed to proundly by the Süleymancıs.15

In another business sector, the Süleymancıs established a travel agency

(Hizmet Tourism) in 1997 to accommodate the public as well as their own

personnel and supporters, who travel exstensively. For the Süleymancıs,

traveling and moving from one country to another is a regular activity,

necessary to manage their transnational organization. The business also

caters to Muslims from other countries traveling for religious purposes. As

Abi Adem said, some Muslims who make the pilgrimage to Mecca outside

hajj time for umroh, also want to visit Turkey, as it has numerous historical

sites significant to Muslims. Having had experience of the business and

foreshadowing its extension to Indonesia, Abi Adem said:

This Hizmet Tourism is to accommodate the hajj and umroh for us within

our organization. God willing, we can also arrange such a business in

Indonesia, as Indonesian Muslims sometimes call us for an Istanbul trip. So,

we are in the process of networking with Indonesian Süleymancıs on this.

This travel [business] also acts as way of networking, with Turkish

15 Interview with Abi Bayram, Jakarta 25 December 2012, and Sohbet at

Umraniyye, Istanbul, 22 April 2013.


cooperation, and the overall profit will help to pay the boarding expenses [of

students].16

So, after the death of the Syeikh, Süleymancı service institutions, starting

with schools, proliferated rapidly and also diversified. The boarding schools

have always been the main hizmet of the Süleymancıs, and distinguish the

movement from other Muslim revival movements in Turkey. However, as the

number of branches of the Süleymancıs, both in Turkey and abroad,

increased, requiring more funding, the Süleymancıs began to seek ways of

supplementing the funds they had available from donations.17 They have

looked to offer a wider range of services with religious values by establishing

profitable businesses in health care and travel.

Transnational Projects

In 1959, the Süleymancı movement first established branches outside

Turkey. For the Süleymancıs this was a point of transition from a national to

a transnational movement. According to Abi Zaitin Burnu, the first outreach

of the Süleymancıs abroad was to Germany, where there was a large Turkish

migrant community. Then followed outreach to Turkish migrant

communities in Holand and other European countries.18 This was followed,

in the 1970s, by their expansion to the Balkan countries and, at about the

same time, to the USA and Australia, where there were also Turkish

migrants. Later in the 1990s Süleymancıs began a new kind of outreach: not

16 Interview with Abi Adem, Umraniyye, 22 April 2013.

17 Interview with Abi Erdem, Jakarta, 2 December 2012 and additional group

interview with Abi Adem and some Indonesian students at Yavuz Salim Kuran

Kursu, Istanbul, 2013.

18 Interview with Abi Adem and interview with Abi Emre, Jakarta, 26

September 2012.


to Turks living outside Turkey but to Muslims of any ethnic or national

background in foreign countries. Thus they started establishing schools in

substantially Muslim areas of the former Soviet Union countries (Russia and

Kazakhstan) and then in Africa and Asia after the turn of the century.19 The

Süleymancıs trace this impetus to carry their religious service abroad to their

Syeikh, who early on predicted that the jamaah he formed would become an

international movement. Tunahan is said to have been aware of this

possibility when he predicted: “You will be flown to other countries to give

lectures”.20

On 4 February 2012, Mustafa Yosun, one of the disciples of Sheikh Süleyman

Hilmi Tunahan and also a respected elder among Süleymancıs, explained

how the Süleymancıs now understand their Syeikh’s vision of expansion to

other countries. He began by describing the location of the graves the

Prophet’s Companions:

When the Prophet Muhammad delivered his last sermon, known as the

farewell sermon (khutbah al-wada), there were about 124,000 of his

Companions. However, only about 10,000 of their graves can be found in the

Al-Baqi graveyard complex in Medina. This gives rise to the obvious question

as to where the remaining Companions were buried. According to Yossun,

some of them were found in Istanbul and Anatolia in Turkey, as well as in

Egypt and Turkmenistan. This is further proof that they had emigrated to

many places or countries to teach the religion of Allah and were buried in

foreign lands. Furthering this tradition to spread Islam across the world, the

Süleymancıs have brought the teachings to 130 different countries across the

globe.21


20 The haul (commemoration of the death of the Syeikh), 15 September 2012.

21 Mustafa Yosun, Jakarta, 4 February 2012.


So the Süleymancıs understand the spread of their movement, not just within

Turkey but abroad, as being based on both the Qur’an and the Sunnah

(example and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad). Thus, one of the teachers

interviewed for this thesis, Abi Emre, told the author that everything that

exists in the dormitories of UICCI is based on the Sunnah (traditions) of the

Prophet Muhammad. All of the activities, the environment, the lessons, the

atmosphere, and everything provided are as described in the hadiths

(traditions) of the Prophet.22

As can be seen from the above, the Süleymancıs believe that the life story of

the Prophet Muhammad and his Companions inspired Sheikh Süleyman

Hilmi Tunahan to call upon his students to take the teachings of the

Süleymancıs to the whole world. Yosun re-emphasized that

Tunahan has carved the morals of the Prophet Muhammad PBUH in our

souls. Thus, what we have received from him, we try to teach to the public.

Because of what he taught us we set out from Turkey to teach Islam in other

countries, with the same hope he had.23

The strong religious values held by the Süleymancıs give them the energy

required to commit to their roles in various parts of the world. First, they

understand that the Prophet Muhammad faced many challenges when he

spread the religion of Islam, so when they face challenges similar to those

faced by their master, the Süleymancıs can take comfort in their hizmet

(altruism activities). They, like their teacher, do not always find the struggle

on behalf of their religious order easy. However, the awareness of jihad (in

the broad sense of the struggle to behave righteously) motivates the

22 Interview with Abi Emre, Jakarta, 10 October 2012.



Süleymancıs to perform their role in teaching Islam wherever they go. The

principal goal of broadening the role of jihad is clearly stated by Mustafa

Yosun:

Allah Almighty sent us this Qur’an that we hold, not only to read it, but also

to understand it properly, to revive its values, and practice them in our daily

lives. Thus, the sole hope of the foundation (UICCI) is to teach the Qur’an all

over the world. My dear fellow brothers, just as the Companions of the

Prophet once travelled across countries to teach Islam, so we too need to

travel from Turkey to Indonesia. In the 130 countries, in which we are

established, our sole goal is to teach the religion of Allah (insya Allah); we

have no other purpose. 24

So, for the Süleymancıs, going overseas to perform dakwah is a jihad, and a

part of the Islamic teaching they believe needs to be done. If one dies during

the hizmet, then he dies as syahid (a martyr).25

While religious motivation has clearly been important in driving the overseas

expansion, so also have social factors. These include recognition of the

market for religious services in non-Muslim majority countries where

Turkish migrant workers have established substantial communities. Also the

Turkish Islamic revival movements, that had moved into the public sphere

since the 1970s and had grown rapidly in their home country, including the

Süleymancıs and the Fethullah Gülen and the Nurcu movements, were in a

position, with newly developed management and business structures, to

extend themselves overseas.


25 Interview with Abi Emre, Jakarta, 26 September 2012.


Thus the pull of need for religious instruction in Muslim communities abroad

and the ensuing outreach response by the movements reinforced pressures

within them to formalize their organizational structures. The Süleymancıs

have gone the farthest in developing hierarchical bureaucratic structures to

coordinate their domestic and international activities.

Here, one could argue that the Süleymancıs, when they became

transnational, extended their original aim (which was to preserve the Islamic

religion in Turkey in the face of what they saw as the threat of secularism), to

global Islamic revivalism and purification of the religion according to the

Sunni Islam school of law.

In sum, by the 1970s, the Süleymancı movement had changed from a small,

mostly face-to-face jamaah into a formally constituted bureaucratic

organization. This stage in the life cycle of a social movement, defined by

Blumer as ‘formalization’ (Blumer, 1951, p. 150), is characterized by multiple

levels of organizational management and formally defined offices and areas

of authority. This stage was achieved by the Süleymancı movement after the

death of its founder, under the direction of abimist Kemal Kacar. The

movement is presently under the direction of abimist Arif Denizolgun. Both

leaders have promoted awareness that a coordinated strategy is necessary

across all of the Süleymancıs’ branches. Therefore, as is discussed, in further

detail, in Chapters III and V, the Süleymancıs’ transnational management

works through five bolge (regions) across the globe, and stratified levels of

management within those regions. The Süleymancıs also select abis for

management positions according to their skills and abilities to assume the

responsibility of running the schools and businesses.


2.4 OVERSEAS BRANCHES OF THE SÜLEYMANCIS: GERMAN AND

AUSTRALIAN EXAMPLES

After successfully developing their Qur’an education institutions in Turkey,

the Süleymancıs then developed their hizmet outside of Turkey. The

following section gives examples of Süleymancı branches in two countries

with significant Turkish migrant communities. The need for religious

education and leadership in these communities represents an ‘opportunity

space’ for the organization (Yavuz, 2003). This section examines how the

Süleymancıs have moved into that social space in Germany and Australia,

and supplements previous accounts with interview material compiled by the

author.

2.4.1 The Süleymancı in Germany

The Süleymancıs chose Germany as a suitable country in which to expand,

largely because it is home to the world largest overseas Turkish diaspora

community. The beginning of organized labour migration from Turkey to

Germany was in October 1961, when Turkey and Germany signed a bilateral

agreement for the recruitment of Turkish workers to Germany. Before 1961,

participation of Turkish workers in post-war labour migration to Western

Europe had not—at least officially—taken place (Küçükcan, 2004, p. 246). A

Central Recruitment Office was established in Istanbul in that year, and by

the year’s end, 7,000 Turkish workers were living in Germany. In 1962 the

first Turkish social and political organization in Germany, the Union of

Turkish Workers, was established in the Cologne Region, evidencing the

large scale labour migration from Turkey to Western Europe that had already

taken place.


The presence of Turks in Europe is neither a new nor exclusively modern

phenomenon. Turkish people had come to Europe as early as the thirteenth

century. For example, the arrival of the Anatolian Turks in the Balkans dates

back to the 1260s (Küçükcan, 2004, p. 245). Now, as Küçükcan (2004, p.

244) observed, “the foreign workers, migrant workers or guest workers of the

1950s and 1960s had become permanent or at least quasi-permanent settlers

in the 1980s”. Many of these migrants are now citizens of their host

countries. In fact, their descendants, the second and third generations, have

blended with the larger society and added colour as well as contributing to

the multicultural community in Europe (Küçükcan, 2004, p. 244). Germany

has been the main destination of Turkish migrants and currently has a

Turkish-origin population of almost 2.5 million (Ersanilli & Saharso, 2011, p.

915).

Many Turkish people, even though they live overseas, want their own

children to preserve and be proud of their Turkish culture and identity—

including being fluent in the Turkish language. According to (Ersanilli &

Saharso, 2011, p. 924), this attachment to Turkish culture seems to originate

from the strong national self-awareness and pride of the Turks. That

includes, for most, attachment to Islam. In fact, even after having lived in

Germany for some time, and having children, most continue with the same

lifestyle they had in Turkey. This means that, with the arrival of the second

generation, the Turks feel a need for religious education for their children.

Hence, there is a need for educators who are available to do hizmet (religious

service) for this next generation of Muslims.

It is characteristic of the Turkish that they place special emphasis on

education, because education is seen as the key to transmitting traditional

values to the younger generation and to generating a sense of belonging to


the ideals of the Turkish community (Küçükcan, 2004, p. 252). Therefore,

the establishment of mosques has always been a priority for the Turks, as

they are considered traditional centres of Islamic learning, religious

socialization and education, which contribute to the construction of Turkish

Islamic identity. A number of different activities which are held in mosques

are designed to reawaken Islamic identity among Turks, and pass the

traditional values on to the younger generation (Küçükcan, 2004, p. 254).

This desire for traditional Islamic education afforded opportunities for the

hizmet movements, including the Süleymancıs (who are known for their

Qur’anic teaching), to establish themselves as providers of religious

education. Thus in 1961 the Süleymancıs started sending their abis to

Germany. Currently, there are approximately 300 Süleymancı boarding

schools in Germany, with their headquarters located in Cologne and

branches spread out around the big cities.26

In mid-November 2014, I attended a summer school at the University of

Göttingen, after which I was able to visit one of the German Süleymancıs’

boarding schools in Frankfurt, the second largest city in Germany. I went

along with an older abi, who is also the director of the boarding school, and a

young abi, who is primarily responsible for teaching. It took us about fifteen

minutes to get from the central train station of Frankfurt to the dormitory of

the Süleymancıs.

The young abi showed me around the boarding school and explained many

things relating to Süleymancıs’ dormitories in Germany, pointing out that the

one in Frankfurt is not the largest. However, I found the one I visited was

26 Interview with Abi Halil, Frankfrut, 17 August 2014.


quite substantial, taking up two floors of a building. The ground floor was

used as a mosque and the second floor as offices and study rooms. Most, if

not all, the students were second or third generation citizens of Germany,

with Turkish ancestry. Most of the abis were from Turkey, with some young

ones who were born in Germany but of a Turkish family. Once they had

completed the highest level of Süleymancı education in Turkey they returned

to Germany as abi. My interview sessions with the young abi confirmed that

there are about 300 Süleymancı boarding schools in Germany. The

movement has been able to found such a large number of schools because it

was the first place of outreach beyond Turkey, and the Turkish diaspora

community there was large.

Despite the obvious need, it is not always easy to perform hizmet in

Germany, because the government policies are not particularly favourable for

the Süleymancı movement. For example, from the information I was given by

the abi, the rules regarding students living and staying overnight in the

boarding schools are restrictive, and the Süleymancı students must finish

their studies at the schools in the afternoon. This is very different from the

concept of the Süleymancıs’ schools in Turkey, where all the students live in

the boarding schools in order to receive education 24 hours a day.

My observations confirmed that most of the students’ parents had had

previous connections with the Süleymancı movement. Indeed, this was the

case with the young abi, my resource person, whose parents had been

involved, to some degree, with this organization and had then sent their son

to the same boarding schools.

Nevertheless, the Suelymancis in Germany are able to run their private

boarding schools, teaching Turkish culture and Islamic studies. In Germany,


the Süleymancıs claim that their schools work hand in hand with the German

government, supporting a policy of integrating Turkish Muslims into German

society. They claim that they meet the needs of Turkish Muslims in Germany

for religious activities by providing imams and religious teachers. They say

that Turkish Muslims therefore need not feel alienated from their adopted

country, since their needs are being met by the Süleymancıs, who always

encourage an excellent attitude to living in German society. It could be

argued that by building the boarding schools in Germany the Süleymancıs

have, in fact, helped Turkish immigrants integrate there, as they use these

educational institutions not only to teach the religion of Islam and Turkish

culture, but also to help the students accept Germany as the country where

they were born and live and work. This is evidence of what (Ersanilli &

Saharso, 2011, p. 907) have argued: that an inclusive government policy has a

positive impact on immigrants’ settlement country identification.

While the Süleymancıs are free to operate their schools in Germany, they

receive practically nothing in the way of support from the state (Germany),

other than the permit to run their schools. For this reason they rely heavily

on the Turkish diaspora community in Germany, or on their ‘brothers’ in

Turkey, for funds. Nonetheles, they have been able to build up their network

of schools over the years through good management and by offering high

quality education.


Figure 2: A mosque within Frankfrut branch of the Süleymancıs

2.4.2 The Süleymancı in Australia

Following a similar pattern to the one they used in Germany, the

Süleymancıs have spread their network as far afield as Australia. They began

their hizmet there in 1971, in Melbourne, Victoria. Once again, they were able

to meet the demand for religious education among Turks abroad—in this case

Turks who had immigrated to Australia or who were born in Australia but

had Turkish ancestors.

Evidence of Turks moving to Australia from the island of Cyprus for work is

noted in the 1940s; then during the Cyprus conflict, between 1963 and 1974,

a number of Turks were forced to migrate to Australia (Yağmur & van de

Vijver, 2012, p. 1115). Further, large numbers migrated to Australia after a

bilateral agreement was signed between Turkey and Australia in 1967.


According to the 2006 census, between 150,000 and 200,000 Turkish

citizens were in Australia at that time, and between 40,000 and 60,000

Turkish Cypriots (Yağmur & van de Vijver, 2012, p. 1115). The largest number

of Turks in Australia is in Melbourne, Sydney and Wollongong. Australia’s

migrant Turkish population, of approximately 90,000, is among the four

largest, along with those of Germany (2.5 million), The Netherlands

(400,000), and France (390,000) (Yağmur & van de Vijver, 2012, p. 1115).

When the Süleymancıs began to offer their hizmet in the form of Qur’anic

education in Australia in 1971, it seemed obvious to begin in Melbourne,

since that city was where the largest concentrations of Turkish immigrants

were to be found. The Süleymancıs then set up another branch in Auburn,

NSW, where Turkish Muslims had established the Gallipoli Mosque, one of

the largest mosques in the Sydney region.

I had the opportunity to visit the headquarters of the Australian Süleymancıs

in Melbourne and speak with young abi there about the location of their

boarding schools. So far they have established schools in only in two states,

Victoria and New South Wales. In Victoria they have two boarding schools

for male students and one for female students, and in New South Wales they

have just one new school for male students, located in Auburn, NSW.

The Süleymancı schools in Australia provide boarding facilities for their

students so they can sleep and eat there as well as study and receive Islamic

teaching just as other Süleymancı students do in Turkey. During my visit to

the Süleymancı boarding school, Meadow Heights, I was able to witness

firsthand what I had read on their website.


As in Germany, the Süleymancıs in Australia primarily offered their hizmet to

Turkish communities. When I visited the Australian Süleymancıs’

headquarters at Meadow Heights boarding school in Melbourne, I could see

that all the abis and students were Turkish or had a Turkish background.

Although the abi who accompanied me was born in Australia, he also had a

Turkish background and began his service as a teacher in the school after

completing the tekamul level in Turkey.

The above outline shows how the Süleymancıs initially aimed to expand their

service beyond Turkey only to Muslim diaspora communities, responding to

the significant demand from Turkish families living overseas for religious

education. Although the Süleymancıs have become a transnational

organization, their Turkish headquarters still coordinates and directs hizmet

institutions globally.

Figure 3: Australian Süleymancıs’ main branch


2.5 OPPORTUNITY SPACES FOR THE SÜLEYMANCIS

It can be seen from the above description that the Süleymancı movement

originating in Turkey has grown and changed from merely a local and

informal movement into a transnational organization with a bureaucratic

structure. It expanded across Turkey, building schools, hospitals, and travel

businesses. From the 1960s, it started to spread overseas. The opportunity

spaces theory can be used as an analytical tool to help account for these

developments.

Hakan Yavuz (2003) analysed the growth of the Süleymancı movement in

Turkey, trying to determine what prompted them to change the ways they

sought to reach the Muslim population in Turkey with their concepts and

teachings of Islamic piety. Looking at the history of the organization, he

concluded that they ‘found’ different kinds of social spaces in different

periods that afforded them opportunities for their outreach. The first such

‘opportunity space’, made use of in the early Kemalist period (1924–1949)

was in the private sphere—the leader’s (Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan’s) own

home (Yavuz, 2013). The Sheikh converted his house so that it could be used

as a place of study for a limited number of students. As a Nakşibendi Sufi

master (known to be the thirty-third is an unbroken line of spiritual

authorization going back to Ebu Bekiri Siddik, RA, Tunahan inspired a

strong, intimate spiritual connection between himself and his devoted

students, undergirded by the Sufi pledge (rabitha) of loyalty and obedience.

Those links connected the early religious community around him and

enabled it to survive in the private sphere of Turkish society when strict

secularization was imposed by the Kemalist government.


During that early Kemalist era, there were no public arenas that the

Süleymancıs could use to promote Islamic piety; all such ‘opportunity spaces’

(in Yavuz’s (2003) terminology) were closed to independent Muslim leaders

and groups. The new government of modern Turkey applied preventive

methods to avoid any authority which rivalled the state from securing

political power or influence, limiting public religious expression and

activities. This government’s policy resulted in nascent religious movements

‘distancing’ themselves from the government and confining themselves to the

private sphere.

That situation changed after 1949, when PM Adnan Menderes (in power

from 1950 to 1961) started a program of modest democratic reforms,

establishing a multi-party system. In this period the Turkish government

became more accommodating to Muslim organizations and movements.

Thus from 1949, the Süleymancıs were able to open Qur’an study seminaries

(Kuran kursu) to the public.27 In Yavuz’s (2003, 2004b) terms, the

Süleymancıs thus entered a newly emergent public ‘educational opportunity

space’. They did so with their Kuran kursu which trained young Turkish

people to be preachers.

Under the new government regulations, graduates of the Süleymancı Kuran

kursu even became eligible to work in the Directorate of Religious Affairs

(Diyanet İşleri Başkanlığı (DİB)), and many did so. Thus, in this period of

more open democratic politics (from 1950), the Süleymancıs also benefitted

27 Despite this, with changes of government in Turkey, including the military

coups which seized power, from time to time, in later decades the government re-

imposed restrictions on the operation of the Süleymancı schools. For example,

Syeikh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan was jailed three times as a result of becoming a

threat to the government because of his dakwah activities.


from access to another kind of opportunity space, what Yavuz (2003, 2004b)

called a ‘political opportunity space’.

Those former Süleymancı students who took up positions in the the

Department of Religious Affairs, and were appointed as imam in

government-approved mosques, often continued to be closely connected with

the movement. So through the government appointments of Süleymancı

graduates, the Süleymancıs gained platforms for propagating their values,

and the movement began to benefit from access to what Yavuz (2003, 2004b)

saw as a newly available political opportunity space. The Süleymancı

movement had gained a public voice (or voices) that could have political

impact.

The above situation changed again, however, when in 1965 the Directorate of

Religious Affairs enacted a new policy that allowed only graduates of the

government’s own institutions for training religious personnel, the Imam

Hatip schools, to become employees of the DİB. Thus the political

opportunity space that had opened up earlier was closed. Süleymancı

graduates could no longer get the positions that had given them influence in

the Directorate of Religious Affairs and in the country’s state-authorized

mosques.

After the coup in 1971 the military government took over the Süleymancı’s

boarding schools, excluding them from their premises (Yavuz, 2003). With

this move not only was the Süleymancıs’ political influence in and through

the DİB limited, but their ability to offer their service (hizmet) in the field of

education was once again (although not permanently) restricted. The public

education opportunity space available to them shrank.


This takeover of the Süleymancı schools was a severe limitation, but it

prompted them to look for new fields of service. It was after that government

usurpation that the Süleymancıs began to reach out to the German Turkish

diaspora community, which they understood to be suffering a severe shortage

of Islamic religious guidance. As Yavuz observed:

In the 1970s, they started to organize among the Turkish workers in Europe,

whose religious affairs were ignored totally by the DİB (Yavuz, 2003, pp.

146–147).

Thus the Süleymancıs saw the German Turkish diaspora as a new education

opportunity space. Later, the financial resources that Turkish immigrants in

Europe had built up would become an important source of funding for the

Süleymancı movement in other countries.

In this chapter it has also been noted that the Süleymancıs established in

Turkey a number of businesses, such as hospitals and a travel business,

which make profits as well as providing valued services (hizmet) to the

Muslim community. In Yavuz’s (2003) terminology, these businesses take

advantage of an economic opportunity space (the growing liberalised

economy of post-1949 Turkey) in addition to the education and political

opportunity spaces which they utilized. In the following chapters it will be

shown that in Indonesia, so far, the Süleymancıs have only operated in the

education sphere, making use of the Islamic education opportunity space

opened up by the democratization of the Reform era and the Islamic revival.


2.6 CONCLUSION

This chapter has traced the history of the Süleymancıs in Turkey and their

spread overseas. It has shown that the Süleymancıs have utilized the new

opportunity spaces which opened up in Turkey to develop from a small local

community (T. cemaat) with a calling to preserve the Islamic religion in

modern Turkey, into a bureaucratically organized, transnational Islamic

revivalism movement. This transformation was inspired by the religious

vision of the movement’s founder and realized through the organizational

innovation of his disciples. The Süleymancıs have been able to make use of a

market opportunity among Turkish Muslims in Turkey and in the Turkish

diaspora communities in other countries. Yavuz’s (2003, 2004b) notion of

‘opportunity spaces’ thus helps us understand when and why the

Süleymancıs became major actors in the public sphere in Turkey and how the

movement became global.


CHAPTER III: INDONESIAN SÜLEYMANCIS (THE UICCI)

3.1 INTRODUCTION

In the previous chapter, I described the historical background of the rise of

the Süleymancıs in Turkey and analysed why and how the jamaah

transformed first into a formal organization operating only in Turkey and

then into a transnational movement. I provided two micro case studies of

Süleymancı branches in Turkish diaspora regions, in Germany and

Australia—that is, in two of the four main Turkish diaspora countries. This

chapter describes the establishment of the Süleymancıs in Indonesia, a

country which is not a Turkish diaspora region, but which has a majority

Muslim population. Unlike other countries where there are significant

numbers of Turkish immigrants who become the first members of the

transnational Süleymancı movement, Indonesia can provide a distinct case

study that will reveal how the Süleymancıs operate overseas in a non-Turkish

social context. Moreover, the Indonesian branch of the Süleymancı

movement is important because of its rapid development, which justified

Indonesia’s becoming the headquarters for the Süleymancıs’ Asia Pacific

bolge (administrative region), in 2012.

Indonesia is a predominantly Muslim country that has experienced an

Islamic revival since the 1970s. This can be seen partly from its growing

number of Islamic educational institutions. This trend shows no sign of

stopping, and Muslim organizations have moved into many other sectors of

Muslim life in Indonesia, including Islamic finance, fashion, the media, and

tourism. Thus Süleymancıs have moved into a society that not only has a


large Muslim population, but is keen on programs and products that are

meant to improve piety. The Süleymancıs have been able to establish

themselves in this market by setting up boarding schools and constituting a

national branch, called the United Cultural Centre of Indonesia (UICCI). The

Süleymancıs formally established the UICCI in 2005. As the country has no

significant population of Turkish descent, the UICCI has had to find other

sources of help to grow and develop. This chapter shows how the

Süleymancıs have utilized support from people of non-Turkish background to

build their branches in Indonesia.

In addition to describing the founding and subsequent history of the

Süleymancı outreach organization in Indonesia, this chapter will analyse the

process through which the organization was established, using Hakun

Yavuz’s notion of opportunity spaces and extending that concept beyond

Turkey and expatriate Turkish communities. This will help in understanding

the Süleymancıs’ growth and change overseas.

Since its establishment in Indonesia, the Süleymancı movement, through the

UICCI, has been successful in setting up seventeen branches, all located in

major cities. These locations were not chosen randomly. This chapter shows

that the Süleymancıs use certain criteria for deciding where to establish their

Indonesian boarding schools. Three patterns are involved, of which one

reveals the dominant role of the Turkish headquarters, while the other two

concern local Muslims. The first is exemplified in the branches initiated and

supported by the global Süleymancı movement. The second is evident in the

branches that involve initiatives from local Indonesian Muslims, with some

additional support from overseas donors. The third model is the branches

that are the result of transfer of a facility from a local Indonesian

organization to the UICCI. The latter two models suggest that the UICCI has


successfully found new opportunity spaces amongst local people outside the

national capital.

In this chapter, as well as analysing the Süleymancıs’ extension into

Indonesia from the perspective of opportunity spaces theory, I will show how

they have been able to utilize local potential to establish new branches and

develop existing ones. Strategies included their recognition of similarities

between their education system and the traditional Indonesian boarding

school system, and their willingness to identify their schools with similar

Indonesian ones, even adopting Indonesian terminology. Thus they have

been open to ‘glocalization’. In addition, the Süleymancıs have made efforts

to gain the support of the Indonesian government. In terms of organizational

management, the Indonesian Süleymancıs have shown an ability to maintain

global guidance from their Turkish headquarters, while at the same time

adjusting to the local cultural and social environment. Together, these factors

have contributed to the rapid growth of the Indonesian Süleymancı

movement, which in turn has allowed it to be chosen to serve as the

headquarters of the Süleymancı Asia Pacific region.

3.2 HISTORY OF THE UICCI

The UICCI was founded with help from the German and Australian branches

of the Süleymancıs. As shown in Chapter II, the Australian branch was

founded in Melbourne in 1979, under the name ‘United Islamic Cultural

Centre of Australia (UICCA)’, by Muslim Turkish immigrants who had come

to Australia in the 1960s and 1970s. The Australian Süleymancı branch

served as the centre for the Asia Pacific region (bolge) for years, before

regional headquarters were moved to Jakarta, and the Australian branch


played a crucial role in establishing many branches across Asia and the

Pacific, not just in Indonesia, but in Singapore, the Philippines, Japan,

Bangladesh, Malaysia, Brunei, and South Korea.

The history of the Indonesian Süleymancıs dates back to 2004, when a young

Süleymancı member from Turkey, who had served in Africa, touched down in

Jakarta. He is Abi Zoltan, the abi now running the UICCI. He arrived in

Jakarta with limited knowledge of the Indonesian language, and no

companions or relatives, but with a spirit of hizmet for serving the

community in the way of Süleymancıs. With struggle and hard work, Abi

Zoltan successfully established the first branch in Pejaten, South Jakarta.

Later, in 2007, a group of Turkish abis came to Indonesia to join in the

development of Süleymancı education there. They eventually took

Süleymancı education to all three major islands: Java, Kalimantan and

Sumatra.28

In the deed of foundation, registered at the Ministry of Law and Human

Rights, Republic of Indonesia, the Indonesian Süleymancıs use the name

‘United Islamic Cultural Centre of Indonesia (UICCI)’. The deed was drawn

up and signed as ‘Yayasan Pusat Persatuan Kebudayaan Islam Indonesia’, on

24 March 2005, at the request of a Süleymancı from Germany, Mr Nuri

Kahriman.29 Australian Süleymancıs were mentioned in the deed, namely:

Mr Tahir Yanuz (as supervisor), and Mr Seyit Ali Ayranci (as member of the

advisory board). Both Mr Tahir Yanuz and Mr Seyit Ali Ayranci are from the

28 Interview with Abi Erdem, Jakarta, 29 November 2012.

29 Akta Pendirian Yayasan Pusat Persatuan Kebudayaan Islam Indonesian,

No C-1830.HT.01.02.TH 2005, p. 3.


Melbourne branch of the Australian Süleymancıs.30 So, the roles of both the

German and Australian Süleymancıs were central in establishing the

Indonesian Süleymancıs. Not only did they act as initiators for the

formalization of the organization and establish permission for its foundation,

but later they also gave advice and supervised the development of the

Sülyemancı branch in Indonesia.31

The Süleymancıs evidently also understood how to seek support from local

sympathizers to secure the registration of the foundation and then expand

the movement, as can be seen from the Indonesian figures32 who were

invited to serve as core members of the foundation and who were listed as

such on the deed of registration of the UICCI. Evidence of the idea to include

both Turkish and Indonesian Muslim ‘volunteers’ in establishing the

foundation can also be found in the history of the UICCI as described on its

website.33 The of the first core structure34 of the UICCI foundation and office

holders, as noted from the deed were: founders35 (Seyit Ali Ayranci, an


No C-1830.HT.01.02.TH 2005.


No C-1830.HT.01.02.TH 2005, p. 37.

32 Interview with Abi Ibrahim, Jakarta, 23 October 2012.

33 “Yayasan Pusat Budaya Islam Indonesia ini dibentuk oleh beberapa orang

Turki dan Indonesia secara sukarela pada tahun 2005.” Quoted from

http://uicci.org/id/menu-tentang-kami, accessed on 13 February 2014.

34 As required by the law reflected in the Akta, the structure of the

foundation is Pembina, Pengurus, and Pengawas. Akta Pendirian Yayasan Pusat

Persatuan Kebudayaan Islam Indonesian, No C-1830.HT.01.02.TH 2005, p. 5.


No C-1830.HT.01.02.TH 2005, p. 6–7, 30-31.


Australian of Turkish background) and Tina Supartinah Sugiro, an

Indonesian resident in Jakarta); Management36 Head, Zoltan (Turkish);

Secretary, Sugiyanto (Indonesian); Treasurer, Saim Filiz (a Turkish

Australian from Melbourne); and Supervisors,37 Sugiro (an Indonesian) and

Tahir Yanuz (another Turkish Australian).

The Süleymancıs had a formula for naming their overseas branches. They

always used ‘United Islamic Culture Centre of [country]’, as in: United

Islamic Cultural Centre of Indonesia (UICCI); United Islamic Cultural Centre

of Australia (UICCA); United Islamic Cultural Centre of the Philippines

(UNICEP); and United Islamic Cultural Centre of Bangladesh (UICCB). This

formula has been used almost all over the world, following the Turkish name,

İslam Kültür Merkezleri Birliği, literally means, Union of Islamic Cultural

Centres.38

According to the deed of the Indonesian branch, the UICCI foundation works

in the areas of social, humanitarian, and religious matters and conducts

business activities to establish boarding schools for children in need, give

service in religious matters, and provide scholarships for students at home

and abroad.39 As noted by its leader, the movement’s aim was to foster a


No C-1830.HT.01.02.TH 2005, p. 11.


No C-1830.HT.01.02.TH 2005, p. 17.

38 Interview with Abi Bayram, Jakarta, December 2012.


No C-1830.HT.01.02.TH 2005.


noble character in a new generation, inspired by the messenger of Allah, the

Prophet Muhammad PBUH.40

In Turkey the Süleymancıs use the name ‘Kuran kursu’ to designate their

schools, while in Australia they use the word ‘dormitory’, and in Indonesia,

they have come to use the word ‘pesantren’.41 Thus, in addition to including

the names of Indonesian sympathizers in their deed of foundation, the

Süleymancıs in Indonesia have also given their schools the same name as the

local traditionalist Islamic education institutions, pesantren. This shows that

they have been aware of the local social environment and have been willing to

adapt or adopt local terms that are suitable to the movement’s activities. This

represents an instance of what has been called ‘glocalization’ in a

transnational movement.

In Turkey, their country of origin, the Süleymancıs are known as providers of

Kuran kursu (boarding school Islamic education), or more specifically,

‘Süleymancı Yurtları’ (Süleymancı residence or dormitory).42 This latter

name has been translated into Indonesian as ‘Asrama Sulaimaniyah’

(Süleymancı dormitory) and has been used since the establishment of UICCI

in Indonesia in 2005. According to Abi Bayram, when the Süleymancı

Yurtları are referred to as ‘asrama’ in Turkey, the Turkish initially think that

the Süleymancıs provide boarding with an Islamic education, including the

Qur’an memorizing program (tahfidz) (one of the flagships of the Islamic

movement).43 However, in the Indonesian context, the term ‘asrama’ is

40 Interview with Abi Zoltan, Jakarta, 4 February 2012.

41 Interview with Abi Aydin, Jakarta, 3 October 2012.

42 Interview with Abi Adem and Abi Ilhami, Istanbul, 22 April 2013.



understood simply to mean residential accommodation for students of any

sort.

Indonesia, as a Muslim majority country, has a long history of Islamic

education. In terms of traditional Islamic education within a boarding school

system, ‘pesantren’ is the term with which Indonesians are familiar. So,

when the UICCI introduced the term ‘asrama’, claiming to provide Islamic

education, this did not meet with much success. Indonesian Muslims regard

‘asrama’ as merely referring to a boarding home or shelter, without the

provision of a religious education and the opportunity to practise Islam on a

daily basis as the term ‘pesantren’ suggests. This became an issue for the

enrolment of prospective students to UICCI boarding schools. Taking this

into account, the management of UICCI eventually changed the name

‘asrama’ to ‘pesantren’. In fact, the Süleymancıs went even further to

distinguish their specialist pesantren type by adding ‘tahfidz’, the Qur’an

memorization, to the name, thus showing that, as in Turkey, Qur’an

memorization is the flagship program of the residential schools. The name

Pondok Pesantren Tahfidz Rawamangun (Rawamangun [district] Qur’an

Study Boarding School) is an obvious example of this strategy.

One could wonder why the Süleymancıs agreed to change a globally

established name. In fact, they have always made great efforts to respect local

terms and blend in locally. When they left Turkey to go to a country with an

almost insignificant Turkish population, the Süleymancıs had to ‘sell’

themselves to local people. It would seem logical that they would decide to

use the term ‘pesantren’ for their boarding school system in Indonesia; the

UICCI is evidently willing to ‘glocalize’ in some respects within the local

community, and this decision has worked well for it in Indonesia. Since

2009, the UICCI has been successful in gaining support from the Ministry of


Religious Affairs and through this association has been able to establish

branches in major cities of Indonesia. The following section explains how the

transnational organization considers where to open up new branches.

Figure 4: Minister of Social Affairs during the PP Sulaimaniyah grand opening ceremony

Figure 5: Official of the Ministry of Religious Affairs during the grand opening of the PP Sulaimaniyah, Jakarta


3.3 THE BRANCHES OF UICCI

3.3.1 The History of the Establishment of the UICCI Branches

3.3.1.1 Asrama SMP-Jati Padang, Jakarta

One Monday morning, I revisited the first established boarding school of the

Süleymancıs, a junior high school located at Jl. Damarsari No.21 RT 05/RW

07, Jati Padang, Pasar Minggu, Jakarta Selatan Indonesia, 12540. There I

met the director, Abi Erdem, a young abi in his twenties, who was among the

first students of the Indonesian Süleymancıs.

When I asked about the history of the boarding school, he explained how

Turkish abis first came to Indonesia for hizmet. He began by telling me about

Abi Zoltan, the first Turkish Abi to come to Indonesia. Previously Abi Zoltan

had carried out hizmet with the Süleymancıs in South Africa, before taking

up residence in an area of South Jakarta. He was the first person to introduce

his idea about the Süleymancıs’ hizmet (giving service to the Islamic

community), establishing a school that would later be known as the Junior

High Boarding School of the Indonesian Süleymancıs. Enrolments began in

March 2005.

In his search for potential students, Abi Zoltan went to educational

institutions where he could share his idea of a Süleymancı boarding school

and invite junior high school students to enroll with him. Eventually, he met

H. Alwi, the head of Junior High School 107, South Jakarta, who later

became a keen supporter of the Süleymancıs’ hizmet and an ikhwan

(brotherhood member) supporting the enrolment of students. By targeting

junior high school students, Abi Zoltan was duplicating his own experience,


since he had been a state school junior high student when he decided to

attend the Süleymancıs’ boarding school back in his country of origin,

Turkey. Moreover, students targeted at this young age, Abi Zoltan reflected,

are more likely to adapt easily to the unique Süleymancı education system.

The Süleymancı junior high boarding schools also meet the needs of some

Indonesian parents who cannot afford the cost of ordinary boarding schools

that charge for accommodation and food, in addition to the tuition fee. Some

parents feel unable to teach religious values adequately, and so want to send

their children to Islamic boarding schools. The fact that the Süleymancı

schools do not charge fees is an added bonus. Abi Zoltan’s initiative in

establishing the Süleymancı boarding system in Indonesia was fully

supported by the Turkish Süleymancıs who have provided funding and some

other help. H. Alwi was the first Indonesian ikhwan (sympathizer) to offer

help in terms of student enrolment. As Abi Erdem explained, the first

enrolments of students took place gradually. The first group consisted of only

about ten students, with that number doubling in the second term, and by

the third term there were over thirty students. At this stage, all funding and

support, and also teaching staff, came via the Turkish headquarters of the

Süleymancıs.

During my previous visit I was given a tour of the junior high boarding

school. The building consists of a medium sized house on two levels. On the

first level, I saw an office for the abis, a kitchen, bedrooms, and a large living

room that was used as a prayer room. On the second level there were study

rooms. This layout is standard for Süleymancı boarding schools, although the

one I saw is the oldest one.

The Indonesian junior high school has produced a number of graduates, like

Abi Erdem, who then continued their education at a higher level in Turkey.


They have become the first abis from Indonesia, playing their role in

performing hizmet under the Süleymancıs. Some abi graduates from the

boarding system carried out hizmet in countries other than Indonesia, such

as Abi Bukhari, who became a teacher in the South Korean Süleymancı.

Figure 6: Asrama SMP-Jati Padang, Jakarta

3.3.1.2 Asrama Umraniyah-Pejaten, Jakarta

Asrama Umraniyah-Pejaten, was established in 2005, at its initial location

next to Sekolah Menengah Kejuruan/SMK (Vocational High School) SMK 8

Jakarta. Abi Bayram was the only teacher, with just ten students, most, if not

all of who were students of SMK 8. The instigation of Asrama Umraniyah-

Pejaten, began with Asrama SMP in Jatipadang, South Jakarta, as the

Süleymancıs wanted to extend their service to providing Islamic education

for senior high school students. Demand for such schooling continued to

grow and in 2007, Asrama Umraniyah-Pejaten moved to a two-story house in

Pejaten. The address is Jl. Pekayon 1 No: 16B Rt.001/Rw.03 Ragunan Pasar

Minggu, Jakarta Selaten 12550 DKI Jakarta. The dormitory is designed to


accommodate 120 students, of which currently half are senior high school

students while the rest are university students.

The establishment of Asrama Umraniyah-Pejaten was initiated by a Turkish

abi who wanted to extend the Süleymancıs’ educational service to

accommodate Asrama SMP and at the same time prepare the next level of

boarding schools. Students who graduate from Asrama SMP can continue

their Islamic studies in Asrama Umraniyah-Pejaten. This kind of continuity

is important to maintain the brotherhood of the Süleymancıs, as the

members expect to keep the connection between them once it has been

established. The first connection is between a teacher and students, but it is

expected that later, once the students have graduated, they will continue to

carry out religious service (hizmet) under the name of the Süleymancıs.

At present Asrama Umraniyah-Pejaten caters for 114 students, 46 of whom

study at Senior High School (Sekolah Menengah Atas/SMA) while the rest

are university students. Asrama Umraniyah-Pejaten aims to expand further

and provide additional services to more students. Although, as the early

teachers (abis) testify, it was initially difficult to recruit students—due to the

fact that Indonesians viewed the transnational organization with

skepticism—it is now safe to claim that Asrama Umraniyah-Pejaten has

found its own market for the religious service it offers by targeting mostly

senior high school and university students. In addition, the abis in Asrama

Umraniyah-Pejaten are extending their services to the surrounding

community. This has contributed significantly to making Asrama

Umraniyah-Pejaten more widely known, and it is now well established. Abi

Bayram, the initial leader, is leaving for Surabaya to set up a new branch of

the Süleymancıs there, having handed over the leadership of Asrama

Umraniyah-Pejaten to Indonesian abis.


Figure 7: Asrama Umraniyah-Pejaten, Jakarta

3.3.1.3 Pondok Pesantren Sulaimaniyah-Rawamangun, Jakarta

Pondok Pesantren Tahfidz Sulaimaniyah was established in 2010 in

Rawamangun, East Jakarta. The pesantren focuses on university-level students

of the UICCI and students of the special Qur’an memorization program. The

aim of this pesantren tahfidz is to provide Qur’anic education to a generation of

students who will be Muslim intellectuals and at the same time have noble

characters. The pesantren is located at Jl. Cipinang Baru Raya No. 25 Cipinang,

Jakarta Timur 13240. The boarding school is housed on four levels of a modern

building that previously served as an office for an oil company. The UICCI

established the centre there in 2009, renting the building from its owner of

Yemeni-Arab background, who offers a special rate as the building is being used

to provide Islamic education. The establishment of the PP Tahfidz Sulaimaniyah

was entirely the initiative of the Turkish abis and the ongoing costs are borne by

the global Süleymancı movement.


The building has a modern look, which could belie the fact that it is actually

an Islamic boarding school. On my first visit, it was quite challenging to ask

local people about the place. One question which helped was, ‘Do you know

the Turkish Islamic boarding school?’ as these schools are identified as

Turkish-origin educational institutions. The first level has mainly offices and

a reception area for visitors. There are guest rooms and cayhane (tea-room)

to welcome guests close to the Süleymancıs. The prayer room, library,

classrooms and the teachers’ bedrooms can be found on the second floor,

while on the third there are the students’ bedrooms and laundry facilities.

Additional bedchambers and a kitchen, as well as a dining room, are located

on the top floor. These facilities cater for around 200 students and 15

teachers.

In addition to santri (full time students of religious subjects) and santri

tahfidz (students of the Qur’an memorization program), the Rawamangun

branch of Süleymancıs focuses on university students who study general

subjects at public universities but then stay in this Islamic boarding school to

gain religious knowledge. The branch is close to two state universities, the

State University of Jakarta [Universitas Negeri Jakarta (UNJ)] and the

University of Indonesia [Universitas Indonesia (UI)], Salemba Campus. The

proximity of these tertiary educational institutions with huge numbers of

Muslim students is seen as an opportunity for development by the

Indonesian Süleymancıs and it is for this reason that a special boarding

section is dedicated to target these students. Also, Süleymancıs are extending

services to older people in the surrounding area who want to gain Islamic

knowledge, including reading and studying the Qur’an.


Being located in an easily accessible area, equipped with above average

facilities, run with a good educational program and management, and with a

strong focus on carefully targeting students—have made the Rawamangun

branch of Süleymancıs successful. It is now the headquarters of the

Indonesian Süleymancıs and a dynamic part of the transnational

organization. Its students come not only from Indonesia, but also from

overseas, for example, from Malaysia and the Philippines. Many important

overseas guests, including sympathizers (ikhwan) who give charity donations

to the global office of the Süleymancıs, have also visited the branch. In 2012,

the Rawamangun branch held a grand opening ceremony declaring itself the

headquarters of the Asia Pacific region of the Süleymancıs’ transnational

movement. Overall, the Rawamangun branch is an outstanding exemplar of

rich opportunities skillfully cultivated and strong support supplied by the

global organization.

Figure 8: Pondok Pesantren Sulaimaniyah-Rawamangun, Jakarta


3.3.1.4 Asrama Süleyman Halis-Pangkalan Bun, Kalimantan

The Pangkalan Bun Süleymancı boarding school for junior high students was

established in 2010. It is located in Jl. Pra Kusumayudha Gang Mawar 2 RT.

18 No. 81 Kelurahan Mendawai, Pangkalan Bun, Kalimantan Tengah, close to

other junior high schools in the area. Compared to these, the Süleymancıs’

school building is relatively small, accommodating just two teachers and

twentyfive students, most of whom are local, but are sent by their parents to

live in the dormitory in order to attend the religious classes. The two

teachers, however, come from the island of Java: Abi Ihsan from West Java

and Abi Fadhil from Jakarta. Both graduated from the Süleymancı education

system and then carried out service (hizmet) in Kalimantan.

When I visited the Pangkalan Bun boarding school during my ethnographic

data collection, I found it was a converted house in the residential district of

Pangkalan Bun. The house consists of two levels, with rooms allocated for

specific purposes. On the first level are a reception area and an office, a

computer room, a prayer room, the teachers’ bedrooms, classrooms, a dining

room and shower facilities. The students’ bedrooms are located on the second

floor. Although the boarding facilities are less luxurious than in other

Süleymancı boarding schools, they are still considered good by the standards

of average people in the area. Moreover, not only the accommodation, but

also the food and education are free of charge, so, overall, the Süleymancıs’

boarding school is still attractive.

The incentive for establishing this student dormitory came from Pak

Hamdani, a member of the House Representatives for the Kalimantan area,

who happened to know Abi Zoltan, the country director of the Indonesian

Süleymancıs. Pak Hamdani was inspired by the religious service activities of


the Süleymancıs and decided to sponsor a boarding school in his home city in

Kalimantan. He offered to rent a house, and he pays the rent annually

himself, leaving the Süleymancıs to manage the venture and provide the

human resources necessary.

It is worth noting again that the establishment of the Süleymancıs in

Indonesia was primarily initiated by the Turkish abis themselves. The fact

that the Pangkalan Bun boarding school was initiated by a local Indonesian

Muslim who welcomed the Süleymancıs shows that they have successfully

promoted their movement so that the local people believe in it. The

organization has used local contributions to move into ‘education

opportunity spaces’ in other islands of Indonesia. This example of

Indonesian Muslims’ faith in the Süleymancıs demonstrates the movement’s

‘transnational’ appeal beyond the Turkish diaspora and suggests that their

growth can be sustained in Indonesia.

Figure 9: Asrama Süleyman Halis-Pangkalan Bun, Kalimantan


3.3.1.5 Pondok Pesantren Habibie Centre - Blang Bintang, Aceh

Pondok Pesantren Habibie Centre-Blang Bintang, Aceh was established in

2010. It is located in Jalan Blang Bintang Lama Km. 11,5 Desa Seupeu,

Kemukiman Bueng Cala, Kecamatan Kuta Baro, Kabupaten Aceh Besar,

Provinsi Aceh. It provides religious education for junior high school students

and Qur’an memorization students generally. There are currently 20 junior

high school students and 48 tahfidz students, with 6 abis.44 Recently the

Pondok Pesantren Habibie Centre has focused more on the special Qur’an

memorization program than on Islamic learning for school students.

The establishment of PTS in Aceh was achieved as a result of cooperation

between the UICCI and the Habibie Centre.45 Following the tsunami disaster

in Aceh in 2004, the Habibie Centre built several rumah singgah (shelters)

for the children of tsunami victims. However, after several years, some of the

children left the shelters to continue their lives elsewhere, leaving some

shelters empty or with very few occupants. This presented the Süleymancıs

44 Five of the abis are Indonesian graduates who finished their higher degree

(tekamul) and then returned to Indonesia serving as teachers (hoca) and managers

(idareji) of the boarding schools. One abi is Turkish background. He is assigned to

be the director of the Aceh branch of the Indonesian Süleymancıs. The appointment

of the Turkish abi(s) is still necessary in some branches of the Süleymancıs as they

are seen to have more experiences and access to the wider global Turkish networks.

However, it can be seen that some Indonesian abis are getting more appreciation to

get positions as managers of the branch.

45 The Habibie Center is an independent, non-govermental and non-profit

organization which was established on November 10, 1998 by Prof. Dr. Ing. B.J.

Habibie, former president of the Republic of Indonesia. The Habibie Center seeks to

promote modernization and democratization in Indonesia, which is based on

morality and cultural integrity and religious values.

http://habibiecenter.or.id/detilurl/en/160//Background, accessed 18 August 2015.


with an opportunity for growth in Sumatra, so a cooperative venture between

the Indonesian Süleymancıs and the Habibie Centre was established, and the

Süleymancıs were able to run a boarding school using a building owned by

the Habibie Centre.

During my visit to Aceh, I was able to observe the former shelter house now

used by the Süleymancıs. It is located on 800 square metres of land in a quiet

area of Blang Bintang. Like other Süleymancı boarding schools, it has an

office and a reception room, classrooms, bedrooms (for both students and

teachers) and a dining room. A few renovations were undertaken in order to

meet the common standard of the Süleymancıs’ dormitories.

Since its establishment, this Süleymancı school has been looking after the

former occupants of the Habibie Centre shelters and accepting new

enrolments of boarding school students. With the additional program of

tahfidz, the boarding school has been attracting even more students. This

venture by the Süleymancıs in Blang Bintang exemplifies the utilization of a

new kind of locally-sourced charity, in the form of cooperation with local

organizations.

Figure 10: Pondok Pesantren Habibie Centre-Blang Bintang, Aceh


3.3.1.6 Asrama SMP-Aceh (Kota Banda)

Asrama SMP-Aceh, is located at Jl. Taman Makam Pahlawan No. 62 Peuniti

Kecamatan Baiturrahman Kota Banda, Aceh. (It is sometimes also called

Asrama UICCI Peuniti.) The asrama is in the central area of Aceh city,

surrounded with a number of junior high schools, so it is logical that it

should provide for students at this level. Currently, it accommodates 40

students who attend these shcools. In the morning they go to general

schooling and in the afternoon they do Islamic and Qur’anic studies.

The asrama was established as an initiative of the Turkish abis of the

Süleymancıs to extend their hizmet in Aceh, a province in Indonesia known

as the ‘verandah of Mecca’ (I. Serambi Mekah), denoting the affinity of the

Acehnese people with Islam. In the past, Aceh was home to Islamic kingdoms

such as Samudera Pasai, and Islam has been an important part of Acehnese

history. However, although there has been contact between the Acehnese and

Turks in the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries (Göksoy, 2011, p. 65), there

is no evidence that the Süleymancıs’ coming to Aceh is a case of so called

‘reverse transnationalism’.

Figure 11: Asrama SMP-Aceh


3.3.1.7 Pondok Pesantren Syarif, Medan

Pondok Pesantren Syarif is located in Jl. Klambir V No. 45 Kel. Tanjung

Gusta Kec. Helvetia Medan. It was established in 2013 and focuses on the

Qur’anic memorization program. The students at Pesantren Syarif were

selected in cooperation with the Ministry of Religious Affairs and since the

beginning the selection process focused on preparing students for

memorizing the Qur’an.

The Pondok Pesantren Syarif was established through the generosity of Pak

Zul, a sympathizer of the Süleymancıs in Medan—a successful property

businessman, who is willing to spend some of his wealth on religious

undertakings. In a discussion in his house, the sympathizer told me that he

feels he needs to prepare for his future in the hereafter, so he donated one of

the buildings he had initially prepared to sell to the public. But finally he

donated it to the UICCI and covered the cost of the renovations necessary to

fulfil the plan of establishing Pondok Pesantren Syarif. Pak Zul explained to

me that he entrust the Sulyemancis as he has witnessed their passion and

hard work in dakwah. Pak Zul then told me the story on how the Süleymancı

abis were very dedicated to find a proper building for the first student

dormitory of the Süleymancıs in Medan.


Figure 12: Pondok Pesantren Syarif, Medan

3.3.2 City not Village

The UICCI established its first branch in the capital city of Indonesia,

Jakarta, in 2005. It is noteworthy that all the UICCI branches to date are

located in cities. This policy contrasts with Indonesia’s pesantren, which

have mostly been built in small villages, far from a busy city. The indigenous

pesantren management have always considered that this keeps the students

away from the distractions of a big city, such as (these days) shopping malls,

cinemas, and the like.

On one occasion, Abi Kemal signaled that it is better to build boarding

schools in big cities as in urban areas there is easier access to basic needs as

well as communications, which are crucial to their development. This makes

sense, especially when considering that the UICCI is part of a transnational

(indeed, global) organization which requires intensive communication with

other regional and local branches as well as with higher level branches within

the organization.46 Moreover, as suggested by Abi Bayram, this same pattern

is seen in Turkey.

46 Interview with Abi Kemal, Medan, 12 June 2013.


When expanding overseas, the development of the Süleymancı branches

follows the same pattern as the one in Turkey. We begin in a central urban

area and then move out to suburban and remote areas. In Indonesia, the

development of the Süleymancı branches started in the capital, Jakarta and

was followed by Bandung, Kalimantan, Semarang, and Jogjakarta. In Medan

we have just rented the building, however, this is not ideal and we hope there

will be someone who will give us the land, as we would rather build a

dormitory than rent one as renting is expensive.47

Abi Zeki48 agreed that the Süleymancıs prefer to build their branches in the

city because of better access. As a part of a transnational organization, the

branches need to ensure that they have good access to communications, since

the members are very active in sharing strategies and discussing issues

across branches. They also visit each other for various reasons, such as

educational examinations. Access to other resources, such as to

governmental offices, is also critical, as is being easily accessible to the

interested public.

The UICCI make sure all their criteria are met before establishing a new

branch and after all their research and analysis is completed, permission

from the abimist is still required. On some occasions, people who contribute

significantly to the development of a new branch will meet the abimist

himself, in Turkey.49 All this effort is directed towards fulfilling the UICCI’s

goal of building branches all over Indonesia.50 To achieve this, the UICCI

understands that it will have to make use of local charity. Their proposed


48 Interview with Abi Zeki, Jakarta, 24 September 2012.

49 Interview with Abi Zeki, Jakarta, 24 December 2012; Interview with Abi

Bayram, Jakarta, 26 April 2013.



development is impossible without local community support. This is what is

happening in Turkey and it is what is planned in Indonesia. Abi Kadir was

quoted by Abi Zeki to this effect:

Abi Kadir told many stories about the boarding schools. He showed also the

development of schools in Turkey. According to him, the development of

boarding schools is not possible without the support of the community.

Because it is the same also in Indonesia. We may not develop without the

support of local communities. Therefore, there should be efforts to

encourage the local people to help, as already implemented in Puncak, in

Tahfid Dormitory, and also the dormitory in Medan, who received help.51

The following analyzes the way Süleymancıs go about building their branches

in Indonesia.

3.3.3 The Pattern

The Süleymancıs provide Islamic education through a boarding school

system. Their boarding schools are seen to be of high quality, and even

luxurious by the standards of the general Indonesian population. They use a

large building or a huge house equipped with modern appliances and even

sometimes a swimming pool for the residents. Free, good quality food is

served three times a day. All this has led to the general impression among

Muslims in Indonesia that the Süleymancıs are wealthy. They provide

scholarships to schools with excellent boarding facilities and a renowned

curriculum. One might therefore assume that the organization is totally

supported by rich Turkish people who can afford to provide such luxuries.

In fact this is only partly true, although the earliest few boarding schools in

Indonesia were initiated and fully funded by Turkish Muslims. However, as

51 Interview with Abi Zeki, Jakarta, 21 May 2013.


the movement has grown, the UICCI has increasingly benefited from local

support and as a result the development of its branches no longer relies

solely on the Turks. Some of the branches have been successfully built

following the initiative of local Indonesian Muslims. This part of the chapter

explores whether there is any pattern to be seen in the formation of the

Indonesian local branches.

After doing my ethnographic research from 2012 to 2013, on three islands in

Indonesia and involving nine branches of the UICCI, I concluded that there

are three patterns for the establishment of UICCI branches within Indonesia.

The first sees branches initiated and supported by the global Süleymancı

movement. This is how UICCI Rawamangun, UICCI SMP, UICCI SMA,

UICCI Putri, and UICCI Aceh Pusat were formed. The second pattern

involves initiatives from local Indonesian Muslims, with some additional

support from overseas donors. Examples of this phenomenon are UICCI

Pangkalan Bun and UICCI Medan. The last pattern is the transfer of a facility

from a local Indonesian organization to the UICCI, as exemplified by UICCI

Aceh Besar.

3.4 FREE HIGH QUALITY TURKISH-STYLE ISLAMIC BOARDING

SCHOOLS

The Süleymancıs’ boarding schools have been characterized as modern and

of a high standard. In addition, the boarding schools are provided for

Muslims free of charge. This is due to the Süleymancıs’ ability to fundraise

for their hizmet programs through their committed members. In Indonesia,

the Süleymancı boarding schools are called pondok pesantren, following the

popular name of the Islamic boarding schools in the country. The high


standard of the curriculum and the highly qualified teachers in the

Süleymancıs’ pondok pesantren refute the negative image of Islamic schools

in Indonesia as being ‘second class schools’ and ‘dumping grounds’ for

children who do not go to general ‘academic’ schools (Parker, 2008, p. 2).

Indonesian Muslims have been given a different class of Islamic boarding

school.

Islamic institutions have been part of the Indonesian education system for

generations, traditionally established by charismatic ulama. In the early

stages, religion (Islam) was the only subject offered. Later, when modernity

began to influence all aspects of human life, Islamic schools started to

include secular knowledge in the curriculum, so that young Muslims could

learn not only how to read the Qur’an and speak Arabic, but also learn

English and other subjects, such as the natural sciences. This modernizing

trend led to the formation of a new type of graded pondok pesantren with

some general curriculum studies added to the traditional curriculum. There

are nonetheless still some pesantren run entirely according to the old system.

These are known as pondok pesantren salafi. ‘Salafi’, here, literally means

‘old system’ or ‘traditional’.

Islamic education in Indonesia was influenced from overseas by countries

such as Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Iran. While these countries have

representatives in Indonesia in the form of Islamic education institutions,

and have been familiar to Indonesian society for a long time, the influence of

the Turkish organization is not widely known, primarily because it is so

recent. This following section of the chapter presents the newly introduced

Turkish Islamic education system in the context of the highly contested

Islamic education market in Indonesia.


Islamic boarding schools date back to the eighth century. They have

increased in number, and have been transformed into the modern Islamic

boarding school. In recent times, the demand for an Islamic education has

been growing. For parents who do not like to send their children to boarding

schools, but rather prefer the full day integrated Islamic schools, there are

private schools which provide facilities to enhance the quality of the

educational experience. In addition, there are numbers of Qur’anic institutes

which also provide services and education in memorizing the Qur’an. This

high demand for Islamic education can be seen as evidence of Islamic revival

in Indonesia.

The development of the modern Islamic education does not stop at simply

adding secular subjects to the curriculum or adopting a modern graded

learning system. More importantly, in terms of management of the schools,

clear goals are set—in particular, to demonstrate that the Islamic education

system is not out of date and can meet the demands of modern life. Although

it strives to meet the demands of modern Muslim families, the

Islamiceducation system is falling short. It is clear that there are two main

problems. On one hand, while modern format Islamic education enables

young Muslims to compete with others in the globalized world, it is extremely

expensive, which means that only rich families can afford it. On the other

hand, there are still schools run in the traditional old style Islamic boarding

schools, offering only Islamic request no fees at allbut do are appreciated for

offering a thorough moral education through their intimate teacher-student

relations within their residential system.

The Süleymancıs pride themselves on providing an alternative that combines

some of the best features of existing forms of Islamic education: modern

facilities and general curriculum studies plus the moral education of


residential pesantren life, all without daunting fee. It has been said by a

follower of Syeikh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan, that the spiritual leader himself

was the initiator of the dormitory education system. Tunahan converted his

house as a shelter for people who were studying the Qur’an and pursuing

further Islamic knowledge under his supervision. The dormitory, with its

teaching and learning programs, was considered a safe haven, away from the

difficult situation in Turkey during the introduction of secularism by the

Kemalist government. The dormitory system also allowed ongoing

interaction between teacher and students, and the students were able to put

their knowledge into practice; it would become one of Süleyman’s

educational philosophies, that knowledge should not merely be acquired, but

also practised.

As the Süleymancıs developed in Turkey, they were able to build luxurious

dormitories for religious students. The dormitory provided first rate facilities,

not only for study but also for general living. On one occasion, during my

fieldtrip to Istanbul, I managed to visit a dormitory spanning four levels, and

catering for 250 students. The facilities included study rooms, a library, and

bedrooms, and their food was supplied. All the students needed to focus on

were their studies. This modern type of dormitory system first spread from

Turkey to Germany and is now expanding across the globe, beginning in

Indonesia in 2005. Even though Indonesia is a developing country, where

traditional religious education institutions provide only moderate living

conditions, the Süleymancıs have continued to build relatively luxurious

boarding schools. When I asked one of the abis about this, he replied: “We

want to make the religious students proud of being religious students”.

As observed, Indonesian Muslims represent a large market for Islamic

education of all sorts. In fact, the market is already crowded with the


numerous products and providers, old and new. These include traditional

pesantren, modern pesantren, special tahfidz institutes, and full day Islamic

schools, as well as some Islamic education institutions that are affiliated with

overseas organizations, such as LIPIA (Saudi Arabia), Alumi of Al Azhar

(Egypt), Muthahhari schools (Iran), and Fethullah Gülen affiliated schools

(Turkey).

It is important for newcomers to carefullly position themselves to compete in

such a saturated market. The Süleymancıs’ have been able to move into a

market niche constituted by middle- to lower-middle-class Muslim families

in search of quality general education for their children combined with

classical Islamic studies at an affordable price. The Süleymancıs’ mission

(hizmet) to offer its high quality and institutionally modern Islamic

education system free of charge, regardless of the prospective student’s

background. And the Süleymancıs make a point of offering high standard

facilities, not only as supports for learning but to make their students proud

of their Islamic education from the Süleymancıs, make them strong

competitors in that market niche. Moreover, the opportunities they offer for

their students to travel overseas are attractive to many. Their unique way of

operating distinguishes them from the other existing Islamic education

providers in Indonesia. Their formula seems to have worked well,

considering the number of branches and dormitories established in

Indonesia over the past nine years and the rapidly growing number of

students attending their institutions.

In relation to the Süleymancıs’s ability to provide such high quality facilites

for their students, the question presents itself: What strategies are used to to

raise the funds and cover costs?


A crucial source of funding for the Süleymancı schools is religious gifts

(charity). So, rather than relying on the commercial market, which is

basically buying and selling, the Süleymancıs use what Setia (2011) calls the

‘gift mechanism’.52 From a religious perspective, if one offers a gift, barakah

(blessing) can be expected to follow. There is a belief that this blessing will

help the students in religious studies to achieve their goals. As for the donors,

this gives them not only the opportunity to do charitable work, but also the

expectation of the reward in the hereafter. So, the advantages of this

alternative finance system to participants are clear. The gift mechanism

allows for the transfer of benefits, although not necessarily in material form.

In addition, the organisation which provides free Islamic education will

benefit from their students, despite the lack of tuition fees. Because the

students have benefitted from the donations of others, they often feel

inspired to ‘donate’ themselves, by offering religious service (hizmet) within

the transnational movement. Although hizmet is not compulsory after

graduation from the Süleymancı schools, almost all graduates choose to

undertake it, some opting for faraway locations, in order to ensure maximum

benefit to the movement from this opportunity.

The Süleymancıs are thus organized in such a way that after becoming a

student one can later become a teacher. Graduates may also to contribute to

the development of the institution by becoming sympathizers (ikhwan),

which, for many, involves supporting the financial aspects of the movement.

52 According to (Setia, 2011, p. 67) the Islamic Gift Economy (al-Iqtiṣād al-

Infāqī) can be envisioned as an integrative economic system based on the operative

principles of cooperation (taʿāwun), mutual consent (ʿan tarāḍin/murāḍātin) and

partnership (mushāraka), and these are in turn founded on the principal ethics of

raḥma (mercy), shukr (gratitude), karam/iḥsān (generosity), tawāzun/ʿiffa

(moderation), khilāfa (trusteeship) and amāna (trustworthiness/responsibility).


All these contributions assist the development of the UICCI in particular and

the Süleymancıs in general. The result has been that the UICCI has been able

to establish a number of high quality Turkish dormitories in Indonesia.

Figure 13: Front face of PP Sulaimaniyah building, Rawamangun, Jakarta


Figure 14: Reception point at PP Sulaimaniyah, Rawamangun, Jakarta

Figure 15: Dining room at PP Sulaimaniyah, Rawamangun, Jakarta


Figure 16: Study at PP Sulaimaniyah, Rawamangun, Jakarta

3.5 CURRICULUM OF UICCI SCHOOLS

This section will explain the curriculum of the UICCI, covering objectives,

content, and learning experiences within the UICCI Islamic education

system. The objective of the UICCI is to shape a religiously knowledgeable

and devoted next generation of Muslims. The students are expected to gain

both general studies and religious knowledge. The general studies subjects

are taught outside the Süleymancı schools in the public school system run by

the government or in Islamic schools that offer general curriculum studies.

Therefore, the Süleymancı students may go to government schools from

junior high to university level during the day time. Or thay may attend the

program of religious schools such as Madrasah Tsanawiyyah (MTs) or

Madrasah Aliyyah (MA). While some students do go to MTs, other UICCI

students attend general high schools (Sekolah Menengah Atas [Senior High


School]) or vocational schools (Sekolah Menengah Kejuruan). This policy is

also adopted at the university level. The UICCI does not limit admission to

university students doing religious studies courses, and some UICCI students

are in university faculties such as economics or health. To ensure the high

achievement of its students in their general education, the UICCI also

provides support and assistance—for example, in the form of an enrichment

program in general sciences, which is delivered by young teachers of the

UICCI.

Figure 17: Learning environment at UICCI Islamic boarding school, Rawamangun, Jakarta

Additionally, the UICCI aims to shape a generation devoted to God, and with

a high level of understanding of religious knowledge. Focusing on and

stressing Islamic education is actually one of the hallmarks of the Süleymancı

movement, in comparison with the other Turkish movements in Indonesia.

The charismatic leader of the Süleymancıs, Syeikh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan,

was known as an ulama who devoted himself to preserving religious

education during the period of Kemalist secularism. This aim, to ensure that

the younger Muslim generation has a proper religious education, is preserved


in the objectives of the Süleymancı education system and implemented

through its boarding schools. The boarding school system is seen as being

able not only to imbue the students with religious knowledge but also to

encourage them to implement and practise their religious values as an

essential part of their characters.

In terms of content of the curriculum, as previously mentioned, the general

curriculum is provided by the general education system, run by the

government of Indonesia or by modern Islamic schools. The UICCI only

provides assistance in general studies subjects in the the form of enrichment

programs. However, the religious education curriculum is fully provided by

the UICCI, following the Süleymancıs’ established system of Islamic

education.

The religious curriculum of the Süleymancıs is divided into four different

programs, according to the level of education. Each level normally takes one

academic year to complete. The first level is called ibtidai (beginner level),

where the students mainly study the grammar of Qur’an recitation (Tajwid)

and basic Islamic ritual (Fiqh). In the second level, called ihzari, the students

begin to study the exegesis of the Qur’an, Islamic law and Islamic mysticism

(tasawwuf). In addition, in this level the students also learn the basics of

both the Arabic and Turkish languages. Tahta tekamul (or tekamul alti) is

the third level, which literally means ‘before the completed level’. In this level

the students undertake advanced Qur’anic studies, and learn about Islamic

jurisprudence and Islamic law, and Arabic literature as well as Turkish

language. The final level, tekamul, is where the students deepen their

understanding of the Qur’an and hadith, as well as focusing on Islamic

mysticism. It should be mentioned here that the Indonesian Süleymancıs

(UICCI) provide only the first and second of these educational levels, while


the two more advanced levels (tahta tekamul/tekamul alti and tekamul) are

taught in Turkey. The UICCI regularly sends its students to the Süleymancı

boarding schools in Turkey to complete their degrees.

The final key component of the UICCI curriculum is the learning experience

of the students. The most important feature of this for the UICCI students is

living and studying at the dormitory in Indonesia, and then completing their

studies in the advanced level dormitory in Turkey. Candidates for places at

UICCI have to meet entry requirements and pass an interview in order to be

selected as students before they can live and study in the dormitories. The

selection criteria are strict and challenging, as more and more candidates are

applying for places.

The dormitory is not only the main classroom for the students, it is a place

where students experience in person and practise what they have learned

from their Islamic education. For example, learning rituals, such as praying,

fasting, and preaching (dakwah), is organized by the teachers so as to make

it part of the daily routine activities. The application of the tasawwuf ritual of

rabita also has been routinized within the dormitory lifestyle.

In Turkey, the UICCI students have the opportunity to advance their Turkish

language skills, as well as deepen their experience and understanding of

Turkish Islamic culture, steeped in the inheritance of the Ottoman Empire.

All educational instruction in the Süleymancı Turkish dormitories is given in

the Turkish language. The dormitory in Turkey is also a place where the

Indonesian students of UICCI get to know other Süleymancı students from

other countries. In Turkey, the students also have the chance to visit places

important to the Süleymancıs, such as their headquarters in Umraniyye, and


the grave of Syiekh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan, in Karacaahmet Cemetery (T.

Karacaahmet Mezarlığı), located in Üsküdar, in the Asian side of Istanbul.

3.6 MANAGEMENT OF THE UICCI

3.6.1 National Branch Management

After an explication of the general structure of the foundation, the following

section describes the organizational structure of its Indonesian branches.

This section shows that a single type or style of organization is used for all of

the more than 6,000 branches of the Süleymancıs, worldwide. The example

of the Rawamangun UICCI branch is used here to illustrate that point. That

branch is chosen because it is the headquarters of the Indonesian

Süleymancıs. It provides the most levels and types of education among those

that the Süleymancıs offer, catering for students ranging from full-time

school students up to university students. It also has some special programs,

such as Qur’anic memorization. Moreover, as the headquarters of the

Indonesian UICCI, the Rawamangun branch also has the widest range of

tasks of all the Indonesian branches, and so requires a complex and well

managed structure.


Figure 18: Management of UICCI Rawamangun, Jakarta, 2012.

The above diagram shows the 2012 structure of the Rawamangun branch. It

can be seen that its senior officer is the general director (genel sorumlu), who

is responsible for all matters within the branch. He is also the main contact

person for other branches in the region (bolge) and across Indonesia.

Working under him there is an assistant to director (yardimci), who usually

takes care of internal matters within the Indonesian branches. He manages

all aspects of boarding school life, from education activities to the cleanliness

of the branch. Below him are divisions responsible for particular issues, such

as data processing (bilgi işlem), accounting (muhasebe), full time (religious)

student coordinator (daimi talebe sorumlusu), elemtary student coordinator

(sibyan hizmeti), school age student coordinator (okul talebesi sorumlusi),

and external relation services (diş hizmetler).

The student coordinator (daimi talebe sorumlusu) has three subdivisions

with specific responsibilities that mainly related to student teaching and

learning management: [general] group student coordinator (ders gurubu

General Director

Selman Cakir H.

Data processing

Lokman H.

Accountant

Abdul Aziz H.

Full time (religious) student coordinator

Ferhat Bas H.

[General] Group student coordinator

Ferah H.

Hafdz student group coordinator

Harun H.

Instructor of Hafdz student group

Abdul Aziz H.

Elemtary student coordinator

Seyfettin H.

School age student coordinator

Halis H.

external relation services

Seyfettin H.

Assistant to Director

Mevlana H.


sorumlusu), hafdz [memorizing of the Qur’an] student group coordinator

(talebe hafizlik gurubu sorumlusu), and instructor of hafdz group students

(hoca efendi hafizlik gurubu sorumlusu).

This structure is more or less the same from one centre to another,

depending on how established a centre is and how many functions it needs to

carry out. Smaller centres have a simpler structure, due to the smaller

number of abis and the fewer managerial responsibilities of the centre.

All the branches of the foundation, from the regional branches to those at the

lowest local level, are coordinated by the Turkish abimist (top

brother/manager). This management hierarchy is uniform across the world.

As Abi Ihsan observed,

UICCI is very neat in its management. This goes down from the leadership of

the Turkish abimist to the lowest level of boarding. This arrangement has

become a system that is shared by all followers of the Süleymanicıs

anywhere. This arrangement can be seen in terms of the internal function or

in the dorm, setting up the system and details of their daily curriculum.53

To ensure that the standard management structure is followed by all the

branches and their members, the Süleymancıs’ central branch has provided a

guide book for hizmet, called Personel Eğitımi (Staff Training).54 The 74 page

A–Z hizmet guide book is given to new abi, showing how to perform hizmet

in the Süleymancıs’ way. With these guidelines, all branches of Süleymancıs

are expected to be run in the same manner. There may be some minor

53 Interview with Abi Ihsan, Pangkalan Bun, 26 May 2013.

54 Published by Rehberlik Komisyonu, Istanbul, 2009.


adjustments, based on the policy of the local branch director, but most

management practices are similar.55

Toplante (meeting) is a critical routine activity in the management process of

the Süleymancıs. From the lowest level, which is the local branch, up to

highest level in Turkey, all have such structured meetings. The meeting

schedule is as follows. There are weekly meetings, which take place within

the individual boarding schools across the country. Then there is a monthly

meeting in each branch that reports to a national secretary. For example, in

Indonesia the reports from all Indonesian branches go to Abi Bayram, as the

secretary of the Indonesian Süleymancıs. He then passes the reports on to

the director of the Indonesian Süleymancıs, Abi Seyfettin. Also, there are

quarterly meetings where the heads of all Indonesian branches get together.

There, each branch head can report about the present activities of his branch.

Problems are discussed, along with ways to solve them, and requests are

made to higher levels. Further, there is an annual meeting of all branch

heads, which usually take place when new abis return from Turkey after

completing their highest degree in the Süleymancıs’ education system and

are ready to start their hizmet journey. During the annual meeting, a seminar

with a Turkish presenter takes place. The presenter may be a direct student

of Syeikh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan himself. This is to add the ‘maknawiyat’

and charge up the Indonesian abis with the spirit to carry out hizmet. In this

annual meeting, the ta’yin56 or service assignment for the organization

managers take place.57


56 ‘Ta’yin’ is a Turkish word whose root can be found in Arabic—Old Turkish

borrowed many words from Arabic—and which means a job division. For the

Süleymancıs it means the assignment of hizmet (service).



The abis who are performing hizmet receive ‘remuneration’ that is called

hadiah (a gift). It is not a salary, but can be used as a contribution to meet

one’s expenses. The remuneration varies from one abi to another, depending

on the level of responsibility in the structure of the hizmet. The remuneration

is considered normal or average, that is to say, not very big but enough to

adequately support the expenses of an average person with an average

lifestyle.58

3.6.2 Transnational Management

The UICCI is part of the global Süleymancı movement, and this can be seen

in its standardized management structure. In addition to the local level, I

would like also to indicate the transnational aspect of the management of the

Indonesian Süleymancıs, which can be seen in many areas, including in

education and financial supervision. In terms of education, the Indonesian

Süleymancıs offer only the lower levels of religious education: ibtidai (basic),

and ihzari (intermediate). After completion of these two stages, the

Indonesian Süleymancıs will arrange scholarships for successful students to

continue their study in Turkey, where all levels of education are provided. To

arrange the UICCI cooperates with the Asia Pacific Office in Istanbul, Turkey.

On the other hand, the Indonesian centres also manage the special

memorizing program for abis from all over the Asia Pacific. The young abis,

having graduated from Turkey, are provided with a special memorization

program to prepare them for hizmet. On one occasion, I observed some non-

Indonesian students at the UICCI Rawamangun Centre and asked Abi Aydin

58 Interview with Abi Faruk, Jakarta, 2 December 2012.


who are were. He said that they were abis from the Malaysian UICCI, who

were pursuing the tahfidz program in the Indonesian UICCI. They had just

finished their tekamul level in Turkey and were completing the memorization

of the Qur’an as part of their preparation for becoming hoca or abis in

Malaysia. As well as these Malaysian hocas, Süleymancıs from other places

overseas, such as the Philippines, are resident at Rawamangun UICCI.

In fact, this overseas involvement is not limited only to study. It also involves

learning about the management. For example, a group of hoca from Malaysia

who manage the ma’had tahfidz in Malaysia did a comparative study of the

managerial issues of the Rawamangun UICCI.59 Also, ikhwan come to

contribute to the UICCI of Rawamangun or of Indonesia in general.

Dynamics of this kind are also managed by the Indonesian Süleymancıs as

part of their transnational management strategies.60

3.7 RESPONSES TO THE UICCI

3.7.1 Response of the Government

In the early period after the Süleymancıs became established in Indonesia,

the UICCI foundation formed links with the Ministry of Social Affairs. This

liaison was appropriate, because the main program of the UICCI involves

giving ‘social’ aid to those who need accommodation and shelter. In addition

to that, pupils are given scholarships to study Islamic religion in their

boarding schools system. These services fitted in well with the task of the

59 Interview with Abi Aydin, Jakarta, 24 September 2012.

60 Abi Kebir of Melbourne admits that he travels to Indonesia every year in

order to give a contribution to the Indonesian Süleymancıs.


Ministry, which warmly welcomed the Süleymancıs’ initiative and allowed

them to establish dormitories. It also gave them official bureaucratic support.

For the Ministry of Social Affairs, the Süleymancıs represent another aid

organization that will help with its (the ministry’s) work of giving social

support to children in Indonesia. The minister himself was willing to accept

an invitation to attend Süleymancıs events, showing that the government,

through the Ministry of Social Affairs, is supportive of the Süleymancı

movement in Indonesia.

The Indonesian Süleymancıs continued to operate in that way until 2009,

when they got to know the personnel of the Ministry of Religious Affairs

(MORA [Kementrian Agama Republik Indonesia]). It has been noted that the

first contact was made with the Ministry, in 2009, by the head of the

Indonesian Süleymancıs, Abi Zoltan, himself. Later, Abi Emre reinforced the

movement’s cooperation with the Ministry using his warm personality and

his Indonesian language skills, as well as his persona of the honest ustadz

coming from Turkey. This worked well. Ministry officials also appreciated the

spirit of hizmet the Turkish abis brought to Indonesia—it created a hugely

favourable impression for them to see that someone from so far away wanted

to contribute to the development of Islamic education in Indonesia. They

were also impressed by the flagship program of the Süleymancıs, is the

Qur’an memorization program, using the Ottoman Turkish method.

Eventually, after discussions between the Indonesian Süleymancıs and the

Ministry of Religious Affairs, the Ministry agreed to recognize and support

the hizmet activities of the Süleymancıs in Indonesia. However, to fit into the

Ministry’s framework, and thus allow the Ministry to draw up a

Memorandum of Understanding and financially support the hizmet of the

Süleymancıs, the UICCI was encouraged to start referring to its boarding


schools as ‘pesantren’ rather than as asrama (dormatories). They could then

be dealt with under the appropriate section in the Ministry of the Religious

affairs, namely, the Directorat of Early Religious Schooling and Pesantren

(Direktorat Pendidikan Diniyyah dan Pondok Pesantren). Since then, the

Süleymancıs’ boarding schools in most parts of Indonesia have been working

towards their conversion to the designation pesantren. Pondok Pesantren

Tahfidz Sulaimaniyah, in Rawamangun, has been established as their

headquarters, as described previously.

The grand opening of the Pesantren Tahfidz Sulaimaniyah, Rawamangun

was attended by the elite of the Ministry of Religious Affairs. During that

ceremony, the UICCI and the Ministry exchanged a Memorandum of

Understanding establishing the formal cooperation of the Indonesian

Süleymancıs with the Indonesian government’s most relevant body with

regards to Islamic education in general, and, especially, the Islamic boarding

schools (pesantren). On another occasion, the minister himself,

Suryadharma Ali, made a visit to the Pondok Pesantren Tahfidz

Sulaimaniyah. He mentioned that this was the first official visit to be made to

a Turkish organization in Indonesia. Although invitations had come from

other Turkish organizations too, the first visit he made was to the Indonesian

Pondok Pesantren of the Sulaimaniyah. The Minister is well known to

support overseas institutions in becoming established in Indonesia and

contributing to the country through providing education. According to him,

religious education has to be developed in a proper manner and it needs to be

supported by suitable facilities. Therefore, he welcomes overseas donations

towards furthering religious education in Indonesia (Kemenag, 2010).

In summary, the reception of the Süleymancıs by the Indonesian

government has been warm and welcoming. The Süleymancıs have


responded by following government advice to rebadge their Kuran kursu as

something more in keeping with the Indonesian context (pesantren), and

emphasize its distinction as a pesantren tahfidz as well as its other hizmet.

This shows how a transnational movement has come to understandhe local

context and then has ‘glocalized’ to suit it. This glocalization does not

necessarily erase all characteristics of the transnational movement, but

allows it to fit into its new context in order to make it more acceptable to the

local agents—for the Süleymancıs, this means especially the Ministry of

Religious Affairs.

It can be argued that there were significant differences, in terms of the

democratic government situation, during the early establishment periods of

the Süleymancıs in Turkey and in Indonesia. In Turkey, as has been

mentioned, Syeikh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan struggled to face challenges

arising from the consequences of the introduction of secularism. This made

the early development of the Süleymancıs in their country of origin

proceeded slowly. On the other hand, in the Indonesian context, democratic

government has given the Süleymancıs a good political environment for

growth since their arrival in Indonesia. Not only did the Indonesian

government not limit the activities of the Süleymancıs, but it in fact

supported the development of the newly established Turkish transnational

movement, giving a significant boost to the Süleymancıs’ development in

Indonesia.


Figure 19: The UICCI staff with the Minister of Religious Affairs during his visit to UICCI Rawamangun

3.7.2 Response of the Community

During the period of my observation and data collection, I also made myself

available to visit local communities surrounding the Süleymancı centres. I

wanted to know what their responses were to schools in their neighbourhood

known as ‘Turkish dormitories’ (asrama Turki). During my second visit to

UICCI Yogyakarta, after my observation of and interviews with the abis at the

boarding schools, I visited Ketua Rukun Tetangga (RT [the head of the

neighbourhood]) where the Süleymancıs’ boarding school is located. I was

told to meet Pak Surahmat. So one day I visited his house. In my first few

minutes there, I introduced the purpose of my visit. He replied that he was

actually not very well and had delegated the tasks related to the

neighbourhood to Pak Sunarto. Even so, he agreed to answer a few questions

about the UICCI and the neighbourhood. I asked quite straightforward

questions regarding his opinion of the Süleymancıs in terms of their activities

and their connection to the surrounding neighbourhood. I was quite

surprised when he replied that he viewed the Süleymancıs as being quite

exclusive and that they did not mingle with other ordinary people outside the

dormitory. This had made the neighbouring people feel hesitant and uneasy,


and they tended not to visit the Süleymancıs’ dormitory. The same tone was

also heard from Pak Sunarto, who took over the duties of Pak Surahmat.

Although he mentioned it quite gently, Pak Sunarto described a similar

situation, saying that the students and teachers of the Süleymancıs’ school

did not mingle with the people of the surrounding area. So they did not know

precisely what was taking place or what was studied by the Süleymancıs in

the dormitory. They did not know each other, although they lived in the same

area.

This situation has not escaped the awareness or understanding of the

Süleymancı abis. From my observation, I can say that it is because of the

limited number of teachers (abis) serving in the Süleymancı dormitories that

they are unable to maintain communication with the surounding

communities. They tend to focus more on the big issues, such as their

commitments to the government or to the businessmen who would like to

support the hizmet of the Süleymancıs. However, because they understand

the situation, the Süleymancıs have responded by organising events and

programs to which they can invite their neighbours to the boarding schools.

The locals can then enjoy the events and get to know about the Süleymancıs’

activities, including the educational programs that they offer to their

students.


3.8 THE UICCI AND ‘OPPORTUNITY SPACES’ IN INDONESIA

3.8.1 Private Islamic Education as an ‘Opportunity Space’

In Indonesia, the success of the Süleymancı movement can be attributed to

its practical and effective use of what Yavuz (2003) has called ‘opportunity

spaces’. Unlike in Turkey, where, in Yavuz’s analysis, from the 1950s the

Süleymancıs, utilized the newly opened non-government Islamic education

opportunity space, as well as the political opportunity space (by supporting

Islamic parties) and an economic opportunity space (Islamic business), in

Indonesia, so far, they have used only the education opportunity space.

Taking advantage of that ‘opportunity space’, they set up their boarding

schools, placing particular emphasis on Qur’an memorization, a highly

popular form of piety intensification in Indonesia. While private Islamic

education was already offered by many providers in Indonesia, the

Süleymancı movement was able to compete with them by promoting the

quality of their program and facilities, the special Turkish speed method of

Qur’an memorization, and then scholarships. The Süleymancı movement

offered a distinctive Ottoman Turkish method, which, it claims, yields much

faster results than other methods. Its unique method for memorizing the

Qur’an, its study system, and its institutional setting have met the

educational needs and piety aspirations of a significant number of young

Indonesian Muslims.

The financial support provided by the Süleymancıs in the form of

scholarships has made their religious education particularly attractive to

young Indonesian Muslims whose families would otherwise not have been

able to afford to pay for well-supervised and high quality dormitory

education and facilities.


The Süleymancı movement also made themselves attractive through their

charitable services such as qurban, or the ritual distribution of meat to the

Muslim community. Charity to fellow Muslims has been a particularly

important feature of Süleymancı activities. Further, the Süleymancı

movement has produced a number of graduates in Indonesia who have gone

on to become teachers (abi) in UICCI dormitory schools. As role models, abi

have played an important part in attracting other young Indonesian Muslims

to the schools. They are seen as exemplars of what the Süleymancı

educational system can produce.

3.8.2 Other Facilitating Factors

3.8.2.1 The Indonesian Government, Democracy

With the decline of the New Order, and the beginning of the Reform era, a

number of democratic changes opened up new possibilities for religious

groups in Indonesia. Many social movements, such as transnational Islamic

movements, took advantage of the loosening of restrictions on Islamic

organizations, including political parties. Moreover, the government of

Indonesia not only permitted the Islamic religious groups to operate with

more freedom, but also gave them support. For example, the Süleymancı

movement benefitted from gaining official government recognition as a

legitimate provider of Islamic education and from the support of the Ministry

of Social Affairs. The Süleymancı organization made use of the ministerial

logo and photograph to demonstrate its association with the Ministry of

Social Affairs, and as a promotional tool to emphasize its ability to run the

dormitories.


3.8.2.2 Economic Neoliberalization

In the 1990s, Indonesia witnessed the freeing up of its economic market. The

move towards a free-market economy made possible the creation of a

number of private television stations, such as RCTI, TPI and Indosiar, in

addition to the state owned television channel, TVRI. The liberalization of the

market also facilitated the rise of a new middle class, many of whom became

supporters of, and assisted in the development of, the Süleymancı movement

in Indonesia. For example, Abi Kalimantan became a supporter, and not only

sponsored the Kalimantan dormitory, but also helped the movement gain

wider access to the business community. This enabled the movement to

influence the wider middle class, which, in turn, greatly assisted the

Süleymancıs’ development in Indonesia.

3.9 GLOCALIZATION: ADOPTION OF THE TERM ‘PONDOK

PESANTREN’

An additional, and telling, reason for the Süleymancıs’ success in Indonesia is

their ability to adopt changes that accommodate the local values. One of the

key features of the Indonesian Süleymancıs’ management is networking with

local figures on many different occasions and at many levels. The

Süleymancıs are confident in their self designation as providers of Islamic

education, or pesantren, and they therefore maintain networks with the

pesantren across Indonesia, especially in Java where the majority of these

schools are located. For this particular task, Abi Kadir is well know, as he has

the necessary depth of Islamic knowledge and speaks Indonesian very well.

One thing that needs to be underlined here is that the Süleymancıs were able

to understand their situation in the context of Indonesian Islam and

therefore managed to adopt the term ‘pesantren’ instead of ‘youth’,


‘boarding’, or ‘centre’. This move has proved successful in gaining the

attention of the Indonesian community and, more importantly, the support

of the Indonesian government.

As noted by Abi Feza,61 in the beginning it was quite hard to get the

Indonesian parents to have faith in the new organization. Many of them were

doubtful about the identity of the Turkish organization. Of course, this was

partly because it was new and there was no record of its achievements to

confirm its validity. But it was also due to the use of the term ‘asrama’, which

was not so popular in the Indonesian context in relation to Islamic education

institutions. The term understood by most of Indonesian society, in

connection with Islamic educational boarding institutions, is ‘pesantren’.

This term has a long history in Indonesia, designating what is claimed as one

of the original and oldest types of Islamic education in the Archipelago. The

term equates to terms with similar meaning in other Muslim countries, such

as ‘mederse’ or ‘madrasah’. So, when the Rawamangun branch announced

the use of the term ‘pesantren’, and later, along with some of the other

branches, even used the term ‘pondok pesantren tahfidz’, the community

had no further reason to doubt it. From number of parents who subsequently

placed their children in the Süleymancıs’ boarding program, it can be seen

that they feel it is equal to the ‘pesantren’ Islamic education institutions.

The use of the term ‘pesantren’ not only reaped benefit from the community,

but also from the government—in this case, from the Ministry of Religious

Affairs. The staff of the Ministry of Religious Affairs confirmed that their

support for the Süleymancıs was able to proceed due to the willingness of the

Süleymancıs to cooperate with the Ministry in relation to the use of certain

61 Interview with Abi Feza, Jakarta, 30 December 2012.


terms, in particular, ‘pesantren’, which conformed to the terminology of the

relevant division within the Ministry of Religious Affairs. The support

allocated by the Ministry of Religious Affairs has helped the Süleymancıs to

become more confident and gain wider publicity in their recruitment process.

This firm relationship in Indonesia between the Süleymancıs (UICCI) and the

Ministry of Religious Affairs has even been formalized in the Memorandum

of Understanding mentioned earlier (see Section 3.7.1).

3.10 CONCLUSION

The history of establishment of the UICCI in Indonesia reveals the significant

role played by the Süleymancıs of Australia and Germany. Their role is

recorded in the establishment deed of the UICCI foundation. The role of the

global Süleymancı movement, also, was crucial, not only in the establishment

of the UICCI but also in running its branches. As a part of the transnational

movement, the UICCI and also the national Süleymancı management system

in Indonesia depend heavily on the support of the transnational organization.

Emphasizing the importance of the global Süleymancı organization, however,

is not to say that local initiatives and adaptations are not important. As can

be seen from the histories of different UICCI branches across Indonesia, local

sympathizers (ikhwan) have played significant roles in the establishment of

UICCI schools. This is especially noticeable in the case of the Pangkalan Bun,

Aceh Blang Bintang, and Medan schools. These branches were made possible

by the generosity of local sympathizers of the Süleymancıs. The UICCI

Pangkalan Bun was established with the assistance of Abi Kalimantan, who

has rented a house for the UICCI students. In Blang Bintang, Aceh, the

Habibie Foundation has agreed to allow the UICCI to occupy the former


rumah singgah (shelter for tsunami victims) to be used as Pesantren UICCI,

while in Medan, a businessman who was inspired by the UICCI dakwah

donated a home/office building (I. rumah toko [ruko]) and a mosque for

conversion to a UICCI pesantren complex.

The story of the UICCI also shows the organization’s skilful use of what Yavuz

(2003) called the opportunity spaces for publicly offered Islamic education.

This kind of opportunity space has grown in Indonesia in part as a result of

the Islamic revival there, with significant numbers of Indonesian Muslims

keen to deepen their own religious knowledge or ensure that their children

acquire Islamic knowledge so as to lead pious lives. The Indonesian

government has shaped that education space by allowing and supporting the

expansion of private Islamic education facilities. The Süleymancıs received a

warm welcome and assistance when they first established their branch in

Indonesia, particularly, in the form of assistance and support from the

Ministry of Social Affairs and the Ministry of Religious Affairs to carry out

their programs of hizmet in Indonesia.

Starting with only one centre in 2005, set up in the already overcrowded

Indonesian market for Islamic education, the Turkish Süleymancı

organization has since been able to establish seventeen branches across the

major islands of Indonesia.

The Indonesian Süleymancıs have a plan to have one boarding school in each

province.62 They also expect to establish not only Islamic educational

institutions, but also other charitable institutions, such as hospitals. Abi Feza

asserted:

62 Interview with Abi Ihsan, Pangkalan Bun, 25 Mei 2013.


We have so many things, [we can offer] not only hospitals, we also have

schools. So, we expect there will be professionals graduating from our

centres. My personal view is that students at our school will graduate and get

jobs. Among them, there will be some successful people who will become

directors, managers, heads of school, or even a minister of state. God knows,

or even a president. So, they are the people who will contribute to the

Süleymancıs school [movement].63

The following table shows the size and growth in numbers of Süleymancı

students in Indonesia by year from 2010 to 2016.

Number of Students of the UICCI

No Batch/Year Male Students Female Students Total

1 2010 27 - 27

2 2011 19 39 58

3 2012 35 84 119

4 2013 282 21 303

5 2014 263 62 325

6 2015 348 116 464

7 2016 263 62 325

Total 1621

Table 2: Number of Students of the UICCI. Source, data from UICCI Rawamangun



To be sure, UICCI does not command a large segment of the Indonesian

Islamic education market. However, there has been a significant increase in

applications made over the last three years, as evident in the table below.

Number of Student Applicants of the UICCI

Year 2014 2015 2016

Phase Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 1 Phase 2

Female 320 120 480 170 650 300

Male 670 490 790 530 900 680

Total 990 610 1270 700 1550 980

Table 3: Number of Student Applicants of the UICCI. Source, data from UICCI

Rawamangun

As can be seen from the above table, the demand for a place in one of the

UICCI schools, with their dormitory facilities, is high, attesting to their

growing popularity. However, there remains limited availability of places in

the UICCI boarding schools. To meet growing demand, and make their form

of Islamic education more widely available across Indonesia, the UICCI, over

the years since 2005, has been steadily building new dormitories, as can be

seen from the tables below.


DEMOGRAPHY OF THE UICCI

Male students

No

Boarding School Name Year

Level/Type

of Education

Number of Students

Number of Indonesian Abi

Number of Turkish Abi/Abla

1 Jakarta - Umraniyah 2005 Senior High School 16 3 4

2 Jogjakarta - Camlica 2007 University Student 42 5 1

3 Süleymaniye (Centre) 2008 Tahfidz and

University Student

97 10 6

4 Aceh Merkez 2010 Junior High School 48 4 2

5 Aceh Habibi-Center 2010 Tahfidz 63 6 2

6 Surabaya Sulaimaniyah 2013 Tahfidz 65 7 4

7 Puncak Sulaimaniyah Baiturrahman

2013 Tahfidz 96 10 2

8 Klaten Sulaimaniyah al-Hidayah

2013 Tahfidz 34 4 0

9 Medan - Syarief 2013 Tahfidz 92 6 2

10 Bandung - Sulaimaniyah 2013 University Student 44 4 1

11 Aceh-Darussalam Sulaimaniyah

2013 University Student 35 4 0

12 Temanggung Sulaimaniyah

2014 Tahfidz 70 6 2

13 Palembang - Sulaimaniyah

2015 Tahfidz 45 4 1

14 Lumajang Sulaimaniyah 2015 Tahfidz 70 4 1


15 Sumenep Sulaimaniyah 2015 Tahfidz 80 4 1

16 Banjarmasin 2016 Tahfidz 50 3 1

17 Lombok 2016 Tahfidz 36 2 1

18 Bintaro 2016 Tahfidz 80 2 1

Total (Male) 1063 88 32

Female students

19 Jakarta - Walide Sultan 2010 Tahfidz 94 11 6

20

Jakarta Timur 2010 Tahfidz 50 3 1

21 Sukabumi - Nur Ali Sulaimaniyah

2013 Tahfidz 42 3 1

22 Medan Putri 2013 Tahfidz 56 3 1

23 Pasuruan 2016 Tahfidz 86 5 3

Total (Female) 328 25 12

Grand Total 1391

Starting with only one boarding school (I. asrama) in 2005, the Indonesian

Süleymancı have been making steady progress in establishing new boarding

schools across the country, which allows more Indonesian students to

participate in Süleymancı education.


CHAPTER IV: THE QUR’AN MEMORIZATION AND THE QURBAN DISTRIBUTION: SULEYMANCI HIZMET IN INDONESIA

Our hizmet (service) [to the community] is [teaching]

the Qur’an and [distributing] the qurban.

—Abi Zeki, 3 October 2012

4.1 INTRODUCTION

This chapter describes the two forms of services (hizmet) which the

Süleymancıs provide, and which particularly feature in promoting their work

to the wider society in Indonesia: teaching Qur’anic memorization and

distributing qurban. The chapter demonstrates that for the delivery of each

of these services the Süleymancıs have a developed a distinctive approach,

distributing the qurban (meat from the Eid al-Adha [I. Idul Adha] festival)

in their own unique way and teaching the Qur’an using the Turkish Ottoman

system of Qur’anic memorization and recital, which they claim is an

especially quick method. I argue that these services help the Süleymancıs slot

into Indonesia’s expanding Islamic ‘education opportunity space’. The

services meet needs recognized by many Indonesian Muslims, and even

though there are competitors offering these services, the Süleymancıs have

been able to offer them in distinctive, attractive ways. The UICCI provides

the services free of charge and at a high standard. Importantly, the

Süleymancıs’ free services have appealed to lower middle class Muslims. The


Indonesian government supports the Süleymancıs’ service programs and this

in turn contributes to the expansion of the movement in Indonesia.

4.2 UICCI AND ITS HIZMET IN INDONESIA

In Turkey and in Indonesia (where they operate under the name of the

UICCI), the Süleymancı movement has always focused its on serving the

public through direct social services. From my observation, the Süleymancıs

do not participate in any political activities in Indonesia, either formal party-

political or informal. Thus they are ‘society-centric’ in the sense that they

avoid the politics of the state and seek to help Muslim society by direct

service to Muslims. Money from donors has enabled the Süleymancıs to

establish private religious schools and to help Muslims with their obligations

at the time of the Eid al-Adha (festival of sacrifice).

As explained in the previous chapter, the UICCI started its service with one

centre providing boarding facilities for junior high school students, in

Pangkalan Jati, South Jakarta, in 2005. The centre still serves not only as

housing for its students, but also as a modern and proper place for religious

educational activities. The residents of the centre are students who spend the

morning receiving formal education from the state-registered schools nearby,

which is followed by non-formal Islamic education within the centre in the

afternoon. The religious teaching can be considered as supplementary to the

pupils’ formal secular academic studies, however the boarding system makes

it possible to bring them up in a religious atmosphere for most of the day.

The UICCI attaches great importance to the pupils’ formal general education,


as can be seen from its enrichment program64 and the review assistance it

provides for school subjects to ensure the success of its students in school.

From my observations the parents are generally delighted with the progress

of their children.

This chapter focuses on how these two hizmet programs, have the UICCI’s

most important programs (as they are in Turkey) and have played a

significant role in the establishment and growth of this transnational

movement in Indonesia.

4.3 HIZMET OF THE QUR’AN

4.3.1 The Growing Popularity of Qur’an Recitation in Indonesia

Reciting the Quran has been popular since Islam first came to Indonesia and

continues to be popular in this, the most populous Muslim majority country

in the world. Previous studies on the recitation of the Qur’an in Indonesia

have shown how the popularity of Qur’an recitation, including, ideally,

memorizing the whole Qur’an, developed as part of Indonesian Muslims’

expressions of piety. However, the existing literature on Indonesian Islam,

while identifying the popularity of new Egyptian approaches (Gade 2004)

has not documented the recent contribution of Turkish memorization and

recitation techniques. In this section I describe the role of the Turkish

Süleymancı movement in promoting in Indonesia what it considers to be a

uniquely rapid and effective approach to Qur’an recitation learning, an

approach which has proven highly popular.

64 The enrichment program is an after-hours program where students have

access to the guidance and advice of abis regarding their school subjects and

assignments.


According to Gade, Qur’an recitation has been popular since the earliest

times of Indonesian Islam. Gade suggested from her reading of old sources

that the Qur'an was recited publicly in Islamic rituals such as those held

during the observance of Ramadan and at funerary rites (Gade, 1999, pp. 95-

96). Rasmussen also added that since the coming of Islam to Indonesia,

Muslims in the archipelago not only have learned to recite the Qur’an, but

also to sing other religious musical genres with distinctive melodies and

rhythms in Arabic (Rasmussen, 2001, p. 32). Thus it can fairly be claimed

that the recited Qur’an has been part of Islamic rituals in Indonesia since the

early years of the faith there.

The recitation of the Qur’an was crucial to the preservation of the revelation

in the early years of the Muslim community and has remained central to its

transmission throughout the history of Islam. Thus for all Muslims it is an

important expression of Muslim piety. Since the time of the Prophet

Muhammad, the Prophet himself has been considered the most expert reciter

of the Qur’an. (Gade, 1999, p. 70). And as the Prophet has always been the

paragon of piety, the more capable a Muslim is of reciting the Qur’an from

memory, the more he or she is regarded as a pious Muslim.

Qur’an recitation from memory plays a part in a number of Islamic rituals,

most importantly, in the obligatory five daily prayers, which include short

passages from the Qur’an. Also, dhikr litanies (discretionary recitations

commonly added to the obligatory daily prayers and used at funerals by

traditionalist Muslims) are composed of short phrases from the Qur’an.

Those devotions are associated with the Sufi tradition. The dhikr litanies are

also used as meditative practices by the Sufi orders, whose initiates aspire to

mystical awareness of God’s presence. Since Sufis are known to have played

an important role in spreading Islam in Indonesia, it is clear that Qur’an


recitation has long been part of Islamic practice in Indonesia (Johns 1996,

16– 17; Gade 1999, p. 79 and p. 96).

Qur'an recitation, performed in several slightly different ways, is becoming

ever more popular in Indonesia. The generally used recitation form is

called qira’ah or tilawah, while a variation for showing the art of reciting

the Qur’an with special rhythm is called seni baca al-Qur'an. Reciting the

Qur’an with some study or learning goal in mind is simply called pengajian

(Gade, 1999, p. 70). There is as well an additional term, musabaqah

tilawatil Qur’an, which literally means Qur’an recitation for competition.

The variety of the names for different styles and occasions of performance

is an indication of the current popularity of Qur’an recitation among

Indonesian Muslims today.

The long history of Islam in Indonesia, alongside the sheer number of its

adherents, has provided the basis for the development of an Indonesian

tradition of excellence in Qur’an recitation, supported by highly effective

educational methods and materials. According to Gade, Indonesian

Muslims are also known for their internationally recognized excellence in

terms of both technical art and skill to recite Qur’an as well as their

pedagogical systems (Gade, 1999, p. 70).

The popularity of Qur’an recitation has created demand education in

reciting the Qur’an, now met by a wide variety of types of institutions,

using both in formal or informal methods. These institutions include not

only the pondok pesantren, the traditional Islamic boarding schools but

also newer institutions like the taman pendidikan Al-Qur’an (after-school

Al-Qur’an recitation classes for children), majlis taklim, informally

organised (usually) women’s Islamic study groups; PTIQ and IIQ,


institutes/colleges for Qur’anic studies; and the tahfidz (Qur’an

memorizer) institutes (Rasmussen, 2010, pp. 81-86). The mode of

dissemination of techniques for study of the Qur’an has also expanded to

include cassette tapes and electronic media broadcasting (Gade, 1999, p.

102)

The popularity of the recited Qur’an in Indonesia is well evidenced by the

festivalization of the Qur’an. Qur’an recitation competitions are now

organized at every level government, from the local level to the national

and even the international level. Regional Qur’an recitation competitions

are normally held once a year and are supported by the governments of the

areas concerned through the relevant departments. At thethe national level

it is the Ministry of Religion and Ministry of Education and Culture that

contribute their support (Rasmussen, 2010, p. 125).

The national level competition of the recited Qur’an follows lower-level

competitions, finally bringing the winners from the provinces all across

Indonesia together to determine the national winner. It is an occasion to

demonstrate the finest skill in the nation and to determine who will

represent Indonesia at an international event. Indonesians Muslim have

gained international recognition as excellent reciters in the international

competitions (Gade, 2010, p. 331; Rasmussen, 2010, p. 76).

In 2003, the Republic of Indonesia won the right to hold an international

competition of the Qur’an recitation which was held in the biggest mosque

in Indonesia, the Istiqlal Mosque. The international event has now become

a long established tradition, begun at least by the 1960s (Rasmussen, 2010,

pp. 155-157).


It has been argued that considering the recent popularity of Qur’an recitation

in Indonesia, it can be considered an important manifestion of Islamic

revival in the country and point to comparable developments in other parts

of the Muslim world. A number of those studies examine what the Qur’an

recitation movement, in Indonesia and elsewhere, is contributing to Islamic

education; others explore how festifalization has helped to build that trend

(Esack, 1997; Gade, 2010; Qutb, 1990). However, the studies have neglected

the fact that transnational organizations play an important role in building

the growing trend. This part of the thesis will provide one example of how a

contemporary transnational Muslim movement plays a significant role on

enriching the Qur’an recitation movement in Indonesia by bringing a Turkish

style of Qur’an education and Qur’an memorization used by the Süleymancıs

to the country.

4.3.2 Süleymanıs View of Qur’an Hizmet

The Qur’an is the foundational source of guidance and aspiration for

Muslims around the world (Saeed, 2005, p. 1). Along with the prophetic

tradition (hadith), the Qur’an has always been the principal source of, and

authority on, Islamic belief and understanding. The memorization and study

of the Qur’an date from the earliest days of Islamization and crucial forms of

piety today. This is true in Indonesia, as in all other parts of the Islamic

world. The study of the Qur’an in Southeast Asia may be said to have begun a

millennium ago, with the formation of the first communities of Muslim

merchants at trading points in the island archipelago (Saeed, 2005, p. xv).

Moreover, the study of the Qur’an, at least in terms of its recitation, has been

understood as a primary mode of Islamic piety since the coming of Islam

(Gade, 2004, p. 25).


Indonesian Muslims are known worldwide for the depth of their piety, in

general, and for heightened skill in reading the Qur’an, in particular. In

Indonesia in the mid-1990s, Qur’anic memorization became an extremely

popular exercise in improving one’s piety. Programs of Islamic revitalization

focused intensively on the recited Qur’an, emphasizing the perfecting of

various modes of reading. The large numbers of Indonesian Muslims who

have enrolled in programs or joined study groups to memorize the whole

Qur’an and improve their recitation show Muslims in Indonesia greatly value

opportunities for improvement of personal piety in this mode (Gade, 2004,

pp. 1-5).

As the country with the largest Muslim population in the world, Indonesia is

also home to the largest number of students memorizing the Muslim holy

book, the Qur’an. The number of Indonesian Muslims who devote their time

to memorizing the Qur’an exceeds the number of similar students in Saudi

Arabia—the place where Islam began and where the Qur’an was revealed

(Republika, 2010). This suggests that Indonesia, with its large and keen

Muslim population, represents a huge market for the teaching of Qur’an

memorization.

Due to an earlier, intensive connection between the Indonesian students and

Al-Azhar University in Egypt, Islamic studies in Indonesia, including the

study of the Qur’an, have long been inspired by the Egyptian model, which

includes the Egyptian recitation styles and approaches to exegetical study.

Many Muslims in Indonesia follow this Egyptian model for Qur’an recitation

(Gade, 2004, p. 25), and Qur’anic studies, especially in the higher-level

education system (university/college) run, for example, by the Perguruan

Tinggi Ilmu Al-Qur’an (PTIQ [College of Sciences of the Qur’an]) and Institut

Ilmu Al-Qur’an (IIQ [Institute of Qur’an Sciences]) also use the Al Azhar


University model (Gade, 2004, pp. 32-33). The Süleymancıs, as providers of

Qur’anic education, are clearly offering a service that, in general terms, is

much appreciated in Indonesia. However, they do need to justify offering an

alternative, Turkish, approach to these studies.

The Süleymancıs most revered spiritual leader, Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan

(1888–1959), is believed to have had specific kinds of karamah (spiritual

abilities gifted by God), the chief of which was his ability to understand the

Qur’an on a higher level and impart that to others. In this sense, Tunahan is

often compared by Süleymancıs with the Prophet Muhammad who, as the

last Prophet and Messenger, was chosen to receive the greatest miracle, the

Qur’an, outlining the right way of life for Muslims. Syeikh Tuhanan is thus

seen by his followers as wali and ulama (successor to the Prophet).65

The students of Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan understand that to find a true

ulama of the highest level (mursyid kamil), one should not be attracted by

karamah that is demonstrated merely in the physical realm, such as flying

like a bird or walking on water—those are physical abilities that rightly

belong to the animals, such as birds or fish. On the contrary, one needs to pay

attention to non-physical karamah, like the ability and courage to teach the

Qur’an, the holy guidance provided to Muslims.66

Süleymancı’s consider their founder to be a great scholar in modern Turkey.

They compared him with the great Bediüzzaman Said Nursî, the author of the

extraordinary work, Risale-i Nur. However, they note that Syeikh Tunahan

was not so active as Said Nursi in producing written works to be passed on to


66 Interview with Abi Aydin and Abi Zeki, Jakarta, 10 October 2012.


future generations. The reason for this, his followers explain, is that he

believed that the work of religious scholars of the past is like a priceless

treasure which is buried in the ground: madrasas were closed and Turks

were deprived of religious knowledge, so such works could not be read. What

was needed most, he said, was to develop ‘living works’ in the form of

students.67 According to Syeikh Tunahan, literary works concerning the

understanding of Islam had already been given to Muslims by great scholars

of earlier eras, and in his day, in the early years of modern Turkey, the most

pressing need was to personally teach religious knowledge to the younger

Muslim generation, so they could better understand Islam. They were the

‘living books’ who would be able to pass the knowledge on to future

generations. For this reason, he focused on teaching the students instead of

shutting himself away, writing for posterity.

This then explains why Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan did not have much

published work and preferred to focus on teaching. However, it does not

mean that he did not write any academic works at all. At least three of his

writings can still be read: Kur’ân Harf ve Harekeleri, Risâle-i Kibrît-i Ahmer

ve Risâle-i İksîr-i Ulûm ve Ma’rifet, and Mektuplar ve Bazı Mesâil-i

Mühimme. The first work related to reading the Qur’an. Kur’ân Harf ve

Harekeleri (Al-Qur’an, Letters and the Harakat) was printed during his

67 Excerpts of Tunahan’s answers, in Turkish, are given below:

“Selefin mum ışında yazdığı paha biçilmez hazine misali eserlerin toprağa

gömülerek çürüdüğünü, bakkallara satıldığını, çöplüklere atıldığını ve bir kısmının

da kütüphane raflarında tozlanmış ve çürümeye terk edilmiş olduğunu gördüm.

Medreseleri kapanmış, yazısı değiştirilmiş, din ilimleri yok olmaya yüz tutmuş olan

bir zamanda kitap yazmaktansa yazılan ilmî eserleri anlayarak anlatacak ve ilmi

satırdan sadra indirip yaşatacak talebe, yani canlı kitap yetiştirmeyi daha lüzumlu

buldum” (quoted from ("http://www.tunahan.org/eserleri-i6.html," 2013).


lifetime as a guide for teaching the Qur’an. These have helped millions of

people to read and understandthe holy book.68

Syeikh Tunahan’s efforts to teach and help students memorize the Qur’an

were then institutionalized in Turkey in the form of Kuran kursu (Qur’anic

schools similar to Islamic boarding schools in Indonesia). Tunahan initially

introduced the dormitory system by converting his home into a free

dormitory, and he encouraged his disciples to do the same when they became

adults. In Turkey, the Süleymancıs established thousands of Kuran kursu

(residential schools for the study of the Qur’an). The Kuran kursu are still

very popular among the Süleymancıs in Turkey large numbers of such

educational institutions have been estgablished across the country.

4.3.3 The Ottoman Method of Teaching and Memorizing the Qur’an

There is not much information that can be gathered from the abis in relation

to the history of the Turkish Ottoman Qur’an memorization system.

However, this does not mean that no-one understands its history. In fact,

teaching (and learning) the Qur’an using the Ottoman system might be so

embedded in their lives that Turkish Muslims do not perceive it as a separate

cultural system. Abi Zeki illustrates this by giving an example of one village

in Turkey, where all of the villagers memorize the Qur’an using the Ottoman

system.69

The Turkish Ottoman method differs in many ways from that generally used

by Indonesian Muslims when memorizing the Qur’an. The most distinctive

feature of the Ottoman method is that the students are asked to memorize

68 See http://www.tunahan.org/eserleri-i6.html, accessed 6 October 2013.

69 Interview with Abi Zeki, Medan, 17 October 2013.


the Qur’an one page per section, starting from section one, and then continue

to memorize a second page of every section, and so on. In contrast, the

Indonesian Muslims mostly memorize the Qur’an section by section, starting

from the first page of the first section, and then continuing until the last page

of the last section.

To use the Ottoman memorization method, the students also use the

Ottoman mushaf (copy of the manuscript) of the Qur’an that is specially

designed for the learner. The Ottoman mushaf used by the students of UICCI

is divided into 30 sections (juz/adjaz) consisting of twenty pages per section

(except juz no. 30, that has more pages due to additional basmalah that

come with shorter verses). Each page has fifteen lines. This layout is

specifically designed to help the student read or memorize the Qur’an.

Because it is so ‘user-friendly’, the Ottoman mushaf is imported from Turkey

directly for use by students in the UICCI dormitories.

The process of studying the Qur’an in the UICCI can itself be divided into

three stages. The first phase is preparation. Students are introduced to the

letters of the Qur’an to ensure they can pronounce them correctly according

to the Ottoman system. In addition to learning how to read, they are also

taught the importance of studying the Qur’an on a daily basis, several times a

day. The UICCI dormitories are designed to provide a suitable environment

for this. To achieve mastery, students are expected to meet the minimum

standard, which is to be able to finish reading a page in one minute. This is

the preparatory phase.70 During my visit to Pondok Pesantren Tahfidz

Sulaimaniyah, Rawamangun, in 2012, there were fifty eight students at this

initial stage. They then had to sit a test to assess whether they had reached

the required standard of entry. The unsuccessful candidates have to go back



to the preparation class, while the successful students are allowed to start the

memorization program.71

The second stage of the Ottoman system involves memorizing the Qur’an

with assistance of an abi. This is an intensive program where the students’

entire focus is on this special program and they normally do not attend other

classes. Unlike the methods used in the ordinary religious boarding schools

in Indonesia, which encourage students to memorize the Qur’an sequentially,

starting from the first chapter (Surat Al-Fatiha) and proceeding to the last

one (Surat Al-Nas), the Ottoman system requires the students to begin by

memorizing the last page of each section (juz). This means the students start

memorizing page 20 of section 1, followed by memorizing page 20 of section

2, then of section 3, and so on. When all of these have been memorized the

student has successfully mastered ‘one round’ out of the 20 rounds of the

Ottoman mushaf. The next step is memorizing page 19 of each of section,

followed by page 18 of each section, and continuing until all 20 pages of all

30 divisions of the Qur’an are memorized.

In terms of how many pages need to be memorized at a time, there is no

strict regulation. However, Abi Zeki followed the advice of Syeikh Süleyman

Hilmi Tunahan in memorizing (the Qur’an) five verses at a time. This, the

Syeikh suggested, will help in remembering the recitation as a whole.

Therefore, when a student has memorized one page, for example, and moves

to the second page of the division (juz), then he or she should recall the first

page as well as the second.72

71 Interview with Abi Zeki and Abi Aydin, Jakarta, 17 October 2012

72 Interview with Abi Zeki, Jakarta, 10 March 2013.


It also needs to be noted that when students come to memorize the

eighteenth round, which means there are only two rounds left, a test is given

by an abi that will determine whether they can continue to memorize the last

two rounds. If successful, the final stage of memorizing the whole Qur’an can

be continued, with the aim of achieving the status of a tahfidz. This is a vital

stage of the program, as a tahfidz of the Qur’an has great responsibility,

including that of maintaining his memorized recitation of the Qur’an.73

After the memorizing process is completed, the third stage is recognition of

this achievement, a graduation ceremony. The new tahfidz processes,

attended by the abimist, who then makes the award. The ceremony shows

the respect that the charismatic leader of the Süleymancıs holds for the

Qur’an and the people who memorize it. In addition, the new tahfidz also

receives a certificate from the Directorate of Religious Affairs of the Turkish

Government.74 This completes the whole memorizing program of the Qur’an

using the Turkish Ottoman system in the Süleymancı centres. After this, if

students want to study more, they can learn the advanced level of reading the

Qur’an, the qiraat sab’ah (seven styles of reading the Qur’an) or qiraat

asyrah (ten styles of reading the Qur’an).75

Given the very positive reception of its Qur’an memorization teaching, the

UICCI has formed a special institute to deliver the instruction to young

Indonesian Muslim students and a new format instruction program:

Lembaga Tahfidz Sulaimaniyah or LETS [Institute for Qur’an Memorizing of

73 Interview with Abi Zeki, 17 October 2012.

74 Interview with Abi Zeki, Jakarta, 10 October 2012.



Sulaimaniyah]) and the Koran-ı Kerim Ziyafeti.76 The Koran-ı Kerim

Ziyafeti is a special Qur’an recitation program, still in the planning stage,

Koran-ı Kerim Ziyafeti or, for short, Koran Ziyafeti, is a festival of the

Qur’an. This is an event where the leading Qur’an reciters of the tekamul

level of the Kuran kursu will make a tour from one Kuran kursu to another,

bringing people together in the Süleymancı branches. The technique requires

four or five leading reciters to come before those in attendance and read the

Qur’an with good intonation, which will attract people’s attention. These

events will help the UICCI come closer to the communities in Indonesia and

gain greater acceptance.

Featuring in its name the word ‘tahfidz’, the Pondok Pesantren Tahfidz

Sulaimaniyah can be seen as strategically moving into the Indonesian

‘opportunity space’ provided by the expanding religious education and piety

improvement sector. These are, as Yavuz explains, “social sites and vehicles

for activism and the dissemination of meaning, identity, and cultural codes”

(Yavuz, 2003, p. ix). The tahfidz program, with its Ottoman system, has also

enabled the UICCI to assert its identity as a transnational Muslim social

movement that is different from the Salafist Arab and Egyptian movements.

76 Koran-ı Kerim Ziyafeti or, in short, Koran Ziyafeti, is a festival of the

Qur’an. This is an event where the leading Qur’an reciters of the tekamul level of the

Kuran kursu will make a tour from one Kuran kursu to another, bringing people

together in the Süleymancı branches. The technique requires four or five leading

reciters to come before those in attendance and read the Qur’an with good

intonation, which will attract people’s attention. These events will help the UICCI

come closer to the communities in Indonesia and gain greater acceptance.


4.3.4 A Personal Experience of a Tahfidz of the Qur’an

The Turkish Ottoman system of memorizing the Qur’an has proved helpful to

many Indonesian students, enabling them to memorize the entire Qur’an in a

relatively short time. The normal time required on the Indonesian program is

about three years. However, with this Turkish system, students can expect to

complete the memorization in just one year. One Indonesian student, Abi

Zeki, successfully memorized the Qur’an in just 73 days, demonstrating the

effectiveness of the method. His success has made Indonesian students

popular among the higher-level Süleymancı students boarding in Turkey.

Abi Zeki said that he was given the ‘opportunity’ to enter the intensive

program (of Qur’an memorization) after completing the religious studies

program at the highest level (tekamul) in Turkey, in 2010. After showing

great interest in memorizing the Qur’an, Abi Zeki was allowed to continue his

education in a special program for Qur’anic recitation, in the dormitory of

Eyüp Sultan. This dormitory is in an historic but long neglected building that

used to house a madrasa from the Ottoman era. It has been recently restored

at the initiative of the local citizens. Each of the individuals who contributed

to the cost and work of the renovation had their names displayed beside the

door of one of the dormitory rooms. The Süleymancıs use this hostel

specifically for their Qur’an memorization program, to honour the history

and the efforts of the citizens who re-built it.

In his early days of memorizing the Qur’an, before starting the intensive

program, Abi Zeki was asked by an abi, ‘How many pages could you

memorize in a day?’ Abi Zeki replied that he was a devout student, and when

asked, ‘Can you memorize ten pages a day?’ he replied that he could do that

because of his obedience. Finally, the abi told him he would be asked to


memorize eight pages of the Qur’an a day. So, as ells it, Abi Zeki twith full

obedience to the advice of his teachers, the benefit of the great Ottoman

system, and a longing to memorize the holy book, he began a program of

recitation of the Qur’an in the dormitory of Eyüp Sultan. He was entirely

focused on this program. As he explained ‘The first step is obedience (ita’at)

and the second is how to manage the process of memorization and then test

the memory’. Abi Zeki said that he would not sleep until he had memorized

eight pages, and thereafter he always persisted in repeating what he had

learnt. Thus he would recite the newly learned passages three times a day.

He repeated it first to God, at the Duha prayer. He would do eight rakaat and

at each recite one page he had memorized silently in his heart. He did this

every day at around 7.30am. He claims that during his intensive program he

never missed that Duha recitation practice, except for the one or two times

when he was on kitchen hand duty.77

The second recitation of a newly learned passage he made to Syeikh

Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan. He did that by closing his eyes and imagining

himself reciting the newly memorized part in front of the Syeikh. Abi Zeki

said this worked because while he was doing it, if some lines were not quite

right, he could feel that in his heart and check the manuscripts.

The third and final recitation he made before the abi who was his tutor in the

memorization program. Having completed the whole memorization program

with distinction, Abi Zeki, has now become a teacher himself and mentors in

the program.78




Currently, Abi Zeki is serving as one of the hocas who are directly responsible

for the Qur’anic memorization program at Pondok Pesantren Tahfidz Syarif-

Medan, a UICCI branch. His success in completing the recitation of Al-

Qur’an in less than three months has made Abi Zeki an icon. He is repeatedly

profiled in the UICCI internal magazine, and through him many Muslims in

Indonesia have been inspired to join the program. With modern dormitories,

qualified teachers and practitioners, and the benefit of the Ottoman Turkish

system of memorization, as well as opportunities for scholarships in Turkey

for the tekamul level of study, the UICCI Qur’an memorization program is

now seen by many in Indonesia as a new ideal.

Figure 20: Indonesian tahfidz students, among others, at the Eyyup Kuran Kursu, Turkey.

4.4 The Hizmet of the Qurban

4.4.1 The Süleymancıs’ View of the Qurban

Unlike the majority of Muslims in Indonesia, who follow the Syafi’i School of

Law and see sacrificial deeds (qurban) as exemplary but not required

(sunnah muakadah) for each individual Muslim (sunnah ‘ain), the

Süleymancıs, the majority of whom are affiliated with the Hanafi School of


Law, consider ritual sacrifice at Eid al-Adha to be compulsory (wajib) for

everyone. That is, every Muslim must provide animals for sacrifice at this

feast. However, it should be noted here that ‘compulsory’ (wajib) is not the

same as ‘obligatory’ (fard). The latter type of decree allows no excuse for

failure to carry out this form of worship, whereas the former recognizes

possible exemptions.

The Hanafi followers refer to the strong provenance of the hadith (prophetic

tradition) that places much emphasis on the necessity of sacrifice. Thus, the

Prophet Muhammad, as narrated by Abu Haurairah, said, “Whoever has

means to do so, but does not perform qurban, let him not approach my

mosque” (reported by Ahmad and Ibn Majah). The above hadith is seen as

evidence of a very firm command about the sacrifice of livestock animals

(qurban) at the festival of Eid al-Adha. Therefore, for Muslims who follow

Hanafi law the order is not meant as a recommendation, in this view, but

rather as a commandment for every Muslim.

In addition to the above hadith of the Prophet PBUH, the discourse of Sheikh

Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan concerning the supreme importance of the qurban

has given further weight to the Süleymancıs’ view that the Eid al Adha

sacrifice is fard (mandatory). Syeikh Tuhanan taught that the reason for the

qurban is found in the story of Abraham, who was prepared to sacrifice his

only son, Ishmael, as an act of obedience to Allah—a command he had

received in a ‘true dream’ (understood to be a sign from God). Among the

Süleymancıs there is a belief that Sheikh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan thought it

compulsory for every Muslim to ‘sacrifice’ family members, just as the

Prophet Abraham was prepared to do. However, Allah has allowed Muslims


to replace the sacrifice of a family member with that of a halal (religiously

acceptable) domestic animal.79

Because sacrificial devotions are seen as obligatory, Turkish Muslims

regularly raise enormous funds for the festival of sacrifice. When a particular

local branch has a large supply of domestic animals, then those chosen for

sacrifice are distributed to other regions that are considered more in need.

This means that for the Süleymancıs the Eid al-Adha celebration is even

busier than the Eid al-Fitr festival at the end of Ramadan, which is the

largest Muslim festival for most other Muslims.

According to Abi Selman, sacrificing domestic animals and sharing the meat

can ward off bad luck. This is another reason why many people are eager to

perform qurban, not only for personal protection, but also to help ensure

successful business enterprises.80 In addition, for the Süleymancıs, qurban is

a way of spreading barakah (blessing) to others.81 The following conversation

took place between the author and one of the abis:

Fellow brother, [traveling] to Jakarta, Jayapura, Timika. For what [reason do

you think we are traveling there]? For sacrificing the qurban. Qurban [is]

not only [about the] meat, but it has [also] the spiritual aspect, spiritual

barakah (blessing), spiritual du’a (prayer), azam du’a (the big prayer). There

is [justification] in the Qur’an [for this]. [So, this is] not [about] meat. If you

go to a butcher, [giving away the livestock animal, then] it’s [only] a sadakah

(charity). [But, here], the qurban is barakah (blessing). [See the] Amazon

trees [they] produce [so] much oxygen every second and it blows all over the

world. [Just] like that, we sacrifice [the livestock] in Timika, Jayapura. Not

79 Interview with Abi Aydin, 25 October 2012.

80 Interview with Abi Emre, Jakarta, 26 October 2012.

81 Interview with Abi Altan and Abi Emre, 26 October 2012.


only [for] Timika, [but also for] the Papua region. [So] the qurban is so

important…[The benefits] are for [well-being in] this world and hereafter.82

4.4.2 Eid al-Adha Festival at the UICCI Boarding School

Understanding how significant the celebration of the festival of sacrifice (Eid

al-Adha) is to Süleymancıs, the author made adequate preparation to

observe and participate in the Süleymancıs’ management of Eid al-Adha in

Indonesia. Pondok Pesantren Sulaimaniyah-Rawamangun was chosen as the

place of observation, due to its being the headquarters of the UICCI in

Indonesia, and thus the place where all main activities are concentrated.

The main celebration of Eid al-Adha in Indonesia was centered at the

Pondok Pesantren Sulaimaniyah, using modern facilities and fully qualified

staff and involving many members of the community. This attention to detail

is necessary to maintain the trust of the donors, most of whom live in other

countries and receive written accounts of how the events are organized. By

maintaining this trust, the UICCI expects to receive similar funding in the

following years.

The qurban celebration is open to anyone who wants to watch. However, the

distribution of sacrificial animals is predetermined to avoid large crowds

demanding food. In addition, there is an attempt to target specific audiences,

with the UICCI purposely choosing who is to receive qurban.83 The UICCI

selects those agencies or individuals who will contribute to their work by

introducing it to people in the wider society and thereby attract students’

further support for the organisation’s development.84

82 Interview with Abi Altan, 23 October 2012.

83 Interview with Abi Said, Jakarta, 17 October 2012.



For approximately one week before the celebration of Eid al-Adha, I

routinely visited Pondok Pesantren Sulaimaniyah in Rawamangun, East

Jakarta, to find out what kind of preparations were taking place for the

festival and the distribution of the livestock animals. On the day of

celebration, 26 October 2012, I arrived at Pondok Pesantren Sulaimaniyah-

Rawamangun at around 4:20 in the morning. I found some students still

awake making final preparations. Some students were in charge of security,

others were responsible for sacrificial animal distribution, and yet more were

preparing for the slaughter of the animals. I met Abi Zeki, as well as other

abis, who immediately invited me to join the morning zikir held in mescit.85

The zikir was recited in Arabic and led by Abi Seyfettin, the director of the

Indonesian UICCI. It finished at around 5:06am, immediately before the

preparation for morning prayer. After that, students were told to have

breakfast and they rushed to where the Eid al-Adha prayers were held.

Interestingly, the students and abis did not all perform the Eid al-Adha

prayers in the same place, together. Instead, the manager allowed the

students and abis to choose where they recited their prayers. Some

performed them in the mosque near the dormitory, others on the empty

street near the Rawamangun bus stop. I did not see any abis from Turkey

join in the prayers in the mosque or the street. Abi Nacib el-Hadri of Morocco

told me that the abis from Turkey follow the Hanafi school, and performed

their own prayers, which they see as compulsory, on their own. They could

85 This is a Turkish term that refers to a place of prayer (equating to

‘musholla’ in the Indonesian context) that is a smaller place for performing the five

daily prayers. For a masjid (a mosque), which is generally a bigger place for praying,

that meets the standard required to run a weekly Friday congregation, Turkish has a

special name, cami [A: Jami’].


not join the crowds in the mosque or on the street, because unlike them, the

Indonesian Muslims see the prayers as simply recommended (sunnah

muakadah).

Immediately after finishing the Eid al-Adha prayer, both the students and

the abis prepared to carry out the slaughter of the sacrificial animals. This

event took place in the courtyard of the boarding school, where the UICCI

later distributed the meat directly to local people and indirectly to other

recipients with the help of mosque officials and school principals.

People from different walks of life participated in the slaughtering: a lecturer

and some students from the Institute of Agriculture of Bogor (IPB), whose

role was to ensure the cows were healthy; the military, and municipal police,

who were in charge of security and order; the professional slaughterers from

Slaughterhouse Zul-Pulogadung; cameramen and video shooters from the

Pasar Rumput market, who recorded the event; and students and abis of the

UICCI, who helped to cut the meat into small pieces and distribute it. There

were a number of witnesses as well, ranging from local people to overseas

visitors. I was able to speak with the guests from abroad and also accompany

Abi Emre, director UICCI Rawamangun, when he was interviewed by JakTV

about the qurban ceremony. The impression I received was that the UICCI

carried out the qurban ceremony in a professional and well-organized

manner.86

86 Personal observation, UICCI Rawamangun, 26 October 2012.


Figure 21: Qurban distribution at PP Sulaimaniyah Rawamangun, Jakarta

The final part of the celebration of Eid al-Adha is the reporting of the

activities. Every year, an abi is appointed to be chairman of the celebrations

committee of the qurban. In 2012, Abi Said was the head of this committee.

The chairman and the entire team work together to conduct the sacrificial

activities. After all the events are completed, the committee writes a report,

in Turkish, not in Indonesian, because the statements of all the details of the

sacrifice will be sent to the central office of the Süleymancıs in Turkey.


Figure 22: Qurban distribution at Istiqlal mosque, Jakarta

4.4.3 Transnational Donors in the Sacrifice Festival

Süleymancıs prepare for the important celebration of the Eid al-Adha festival

of sacrifice at the UICCI over a long period of time, beginning with

fundraising to buy the animals. In the Süleymancı movement, finding qurban

donors is done in two ways: ‘waiting’ and ‘approaching’. The first strategy is

waiting to receive funds for qurban from the Asia Pacific bolge office located

in Istanbul, Turkey. The office arranges the fundraising and is responsible for

funding qurban ceremonies in the Asia Pacific countries, including

Indonesia. The office receives funds mostly from Turkish people who donate

money through the Süleymancıs, although these donations do not necessarily

all come from Turkey itself, as the office also receives funds from expatriate

Turks. All funds are first delivered to the main centre of the Asia Pacific

countries, Indonesia, and then transferred to other countries in the region

which need the money.87

87 Interview with Abi Ahmad, Istanbul, 22 April 2013.


In addition to the Asia Pacific office, there are sometimes also delegations of

Süleymancıs or their sympathizers who come from developed countries, and

would like to give donations. When I was in Jakarta in 2012, I observed that

there were qurban donations from Germany, Japan, and Australia. Some

Germans with a Turkish background gave funds directly to the Indonesian

UICCI for qurban animals. Abi Mursit, from Japan, also came to Indonesia to

distribute the qurban. He stayed there for five days and witnessed the

qurban in Papua-Irian Jaya.88 In addition, guests from Australia with

Turkish backgrounds handed over funds for the qurban. The Australian

brothers stayed in Jakarta for four days for this 2012 qurban festival as they

wanted to be part of it. One of them visits Indonesia at least four times a year

for many reasons, but mainly to bring financial contributions to the UICCI.

The following is part of a conversation held with Abi Qamar of the UICCA:

Abi Qamar: “…of course the qurban we bring here, we do not do in Australia.

We go to Indonesia, and then we go to Africa and then places all around the

world.”

Author: “So you might travel to other countries as well?”

Abi Qamar: “Yes, insya Allah. But if I can, I will keep coming here

(Indonesia) buddy...”89

It is evident that making overseas donations to the qurban festival gives

Australian Muslims a chance to contribute to a ceremony that at home is

much simplified and muted.

The second, more pro-active way to obtain the funding necessary for the

qurban festival is ‘approaching’ people. Several abis, from both Turkey and

88 Interview with Abi Faruk, Jakarta, 25 October 2012.

89 Interview with Abi Qamar, Jakarta, 26 October 2012.


Indonesia, visit donors in developed countries, for example in Europe, where

they persuade Muslims to bring the qurban funds to Indonesia. When I was

there in 2012, about ten abis of the UICCI were sent to Germany and the

Netherlands to meet Muslims with Turkish backgrounds. Normally, the

meetings also involve a religious sermon to call Muslims to charity in the

religious way. An abi from Indonesia was asked to accept this responsibility

so the expatriate Turks could see young abis from a developing country, like

Indonesia performing service (hizmet) and touch their hearts. The abis could

then take the qurban funds back to Indonesia, where it is understood there is

more need.90 To carry out this task, the abis cooperate with the local

European or other relatively wealthy branches of the Süleymancıs, who are

asked to help with accommodation and local transport, as well as provide

contacts with donors.

Both of these methods have proven successful in raising funds

transnationally for the qurban. In 2012, as in other years, the UICCI received

donations from international sympathizers whose countries of origin could

be seen from the banners showing the names of donors placed in Pondok

Pesantren Sulaimaniyah at the Eid al-Adha celebrations at the time of

slaughter.91 In 2012, the UICCI received funds to buy and distribute 70 cows

and 2,800 goats92 (a very significant amount for an organization in

90 Interview with Abi Zeki, 24 September 2012.

91 Personal observation, UICCI Rawamangun, 26 October 2012.

92 The qurban in 2012 was 2,800 goats and 150 cows. This number shows a

decrease from the last year’s, possibly because the majority of donations come from

expatriate Turks in Europe, where there were economic crises. Also, the area of

distribution has been extended, as the qurban is distributed to other parts of the

world where the Süleymancıs have opened up new branches, such as Bangladesh

(interview with Abi Aydin, 17 October 2012).


Indonesia). They spread the qurban donations all across Indonesia, from

Aceh to Papua (Abi Emre, in an interview with JakTV, 26 October 2012).93

To manage the sacrificed animals, the UICCI ordered them from several

locations in Indonesia and worked with other branches spread all over the

country to carry out the distribution. In addition, the UICCI also entrusted

some sacrificial animals to be distributed by partner agencies, including the

great mosque and other Islamic boarding schools, in order to spread qurban

charity widely across the region, as well as strengthen cooperation and

mutual understanding between the UICCI and those agencies. During the

author’s observation, at least 40 sacrificial cows were given to the board of

Istiqlal Mosque (the largest mosque in Southeast Asia) located in central

Jakarta. This is a place where many Muslims wish to receive meat from

sacrificed animals. When I was observing the Eid al-Adha in 2012, the

Süleymancıs gave live cattle to Istiqlal Mosque for the festival sacrifice and

subsequent meat distribution. The handover of the animals was made

directly by the director of the Southeast Asian UICCI, Abi Zoltan, to the

imam of Istiqlal Mosque, Professor Dr KH Ali Mustafa Yaqub, MA. The

UICCI also worked with Nurul Iman Islamic Boarding School, Parung Bogor,

to distribute sacrificial animals around Bogor and Banten. The Nurul Iman

school is one of the largest boarding schools in West Java and has about

93 During the interview, Abi Emre said that the distribution of qurban is not

carried out only by the UICCI. UICCI also cooperates with other schools in the

distribution. Also, Abi Emre mentioned that the donations for the qurban generally

came from Turkish Muslims, including some from expatriate Turks in Australia,

Japan, and European countries like Germany (interview by Abi Emre with JakTV,

26 October 2012).


25,000 students. It has a famous founder, Habib Saggaf bin Mahdi bin Syekh

Abubakar bin Salim.94

This cooperation is beneficial for the UICCI as it introduces the foundation

into the wider community. Istiqlal Mosque is the largest mosque in Southeast

Asia, where media coverage of the Eid al-Adha, including the qurban

submitted by the UICCI is centered. In this way, the UICCI has ensured that

their donation attracts publicity. In addition to being broadcast in the media,

the event is also witnessed live by the general public, who come to the

mosque to see the sacrificial animals and receive a portion of the meat. With

this, a positive impression of the donors (the Süleymancıs) is spread in the

Indonesian Muslim community. Also, it is hoped that some of the very large

number of students who attend Pondok Pesantren Nurul Iman, Parung,

especially the ones with high academic skills, will be sent to the UICCI

boarding schools in Indonesia and then continue their studies in Turkey.

This means that the UICCI will take in good students who will later

contribute to the organization’s development.

4.4.4 Ritual and Social Functions of the Hizmet of the Qurban

It is evident that while the Eid al-Adha sacrifice is, in the first instance, an

Islamic religious ritual authoriszed by the Hanafi School of Law, and so it has

an important spiritual meaning. But it also has significant social functions. It

is seen as a way of spreading barakah (blessing) and of avoiding disaster.

However, there are also sociological aspects to it, in that it introduces the

UICCI’s activities to the public, which in turn supports the development of

94 Personal observation, Nurul Iman Islamic Boarding School Bogor, 23

October 2012.


the organization. The statement given by Abi Ibrahim demonstrates that this

social significance is of concern to the Süleymancıs:

In fact, our target is to establish UICCI boarding across Indonesia. This has

started in the Papua region. Abi Mursit has spread the qurban in Papua in

order to introduce UICCI to the community.95

Abi Feza also mentioned that the distribution of qurban helps to open up

opportunities to give presentations to schools about the UICCI, which may

encourage students to enrol for UICCI boarding. He says that “it was

sometimes difficult to even arrange the time [for a presentation]. [However,

when we give the sacrificed animal meat], the response is different. It was

quick and easy for them to give time for the abi to explain what the UICCI

does”.96

Because of the social benefit the distribution of qurban brings to the

organization, the UICCI carefully selects both the recipients and the partners

who help distribute it. The recipients include people who will benefit the

UICCI, while the partners are those who contribute to its publicity and

networking. Pondok Pesantren Nurul Iman was chosen not only because it is

a major educational institution in the Bogor and Banten area, but also

because it has a significant number of potential students for the UICCI, who

might continue their studies in Sulaimaniyah both in Indonesia and in

Turkey.97 The choice of the Masjid Istiqlal is not coincidental either. As the

biggest mosque in Southeast Asia, it is a centre for sacrificial festivals that are

95 Interview with Abi Ibrahim, Jakarta, 23 October 2012.


97 Participant observation and interview with Abi Kadir and Abi Bari, 22

October 2012.


telecast by news media throughout the archipelago. Media attention, of

course, benefits the UICCI.

A similar pattern is discernible in the selection of recipients of the sacrificed

meat. Abi Zeki mentioned that the focus of sacrificial distribution is selected

schools that have been contacted previously. The selection is based on

criteria set up by the UICCI. The following account by Abi Said gives some

clues as to how this selection is made.

For the most part we do not accept a proposal [for meat distribution] from

foundations nor mosques, except when we already know the officials. When

a request comes from a pondok pesantren then we will first identify how

many students they have and if there could be a possibility we could work

together in the future, that is, would they send some of their selected

students to the UICCI. If so, then we will consider [accepting the proposal].98

Abi Zeki added,

…and about the qurban, we also distribute to the other provinces so we can

introduce them to the UICCI centres. This paves the way for when we want

to build a branch there because they already know us. A further goal is to

introduce the UICCI while doing syiar too.99

Abi Aydin also added that,

The qurban is washilah (mediation) for us to be known by the wider

community. Our boarding will face trouble (in terms of development) if we

only advertise in traditional ways with brochures etc. Through the qurban,

there is a give and take [process] which affords our pesantren the same

degree of publicity. By telling them about our unique program every year we

could take in new students. If for example, one pesantren sends a student,

then insya Allah, every year we will send the qurban. [So,] Alhamdulillah


99 Interview with Abi Zeki, 10 September 2012.


(all thanks are due purely to God), introducing the qurban gives many

benefits; we receive students and local publicity.100

So, the social and organizational benefits that accrue to the UICCI from the

qurban can be summarized as follows: informing the wider community of the

existence of the UICCI through presentations and media releases and

networking with prospective institutions to attract a flow of students to the

UICCI.

4.5 THE HIZMET MOVEMENT AND THE SÜLEYMANCI TYPOLOGY

As the above discussion shows, the UICCI has skilfully managed to promote

its own conceptions and practices of Islamic piety by utilizing the expanding

Islamic ‘education opportunity space’. Skillful use of that ‘space’ has, allowed

the development of this transnational organization, and helped secure its

position amidst many competing Islamic piety movements and Islamic

education providers. This can be seen from the rapid growth of the UICCI

centres. From only one boarding school in South Jakarta in 2005, with about

25 pupils, it now has more than 12 Islamic educational institutions, with over

500 students in 12 dormitories scattered over the islands of Sumatra, Java

and Borneo.

The unique use of opportunity spaces by the UICCI places this transnational

movement in a distinct position within the typology of Islamic organizations,

in relation to both the society and the government in Indonesia. This

typology will help us to understand the nature and characteristics of the

Islamic social movement. In order to assist in the mapping of Muslim

organizations in Indonesia, a typology of Islamic social movements



developed by Hakan Yavuz (2003) will be used. While Yavuz’ study focused

on the Muslim movements in ‘modern Turkey’ and needs some modification

when applied to the context of Islam in Indonesia, it is still a useful

framework.101

Figure 23: A typology of Islamic social movements by Hakan Yavuz (2007)

101 As also stated by Husnul Amin in ‘Making Sense of Islamic Social

Movements: A Critical Review of Major Theoretical Approaches’, when analysing

the same phenomenon in Pakistan, “[t]he typology is an ideal type that highlights

the main features of Muslim movements’ strategy of change and facilitates

understanding of these movements within their prevalent diversity. However, in

practice, interactions among them are multifarious” (Amin).


Both in Turkey and in Indonesia, the Süleymancı movement has always

focused all of its activities outwards, to the public (‘society-centric’). It has

encouraged donors to develop (private) religious educational institutions that

are independent from the government. Moreover it has invited students from

all over the world, regardless of differences in race, to study at these schools.

Its goal is to educate the students in a strong Islamic atmosphere; to produce

a faithful and pious generation. In addition, the institute is non-political,

non-partisan, and peaceful.

Taking the above characteristics into account, it can be said that the UICCI is

an example of Yavuz’s ‘societal’ type of Islamic social movement. It is

‘society-centric associational identity-oriented from below’, in the typology of

Islamic social movements introduced by Yavuz (2003, 2004b). This means

that the UICCI is a movement that increases people’s involvement with

Islam, and through its organization seeks to improve their lives by enriching

their individual daily activities. This is achieved through private education

which focuses on Islamic knowledge and ethics.

4.6 CONCLUSION

This chapter has shown how the Süleymancıs have identified and explained

to their students, sympathists and the public the two principle forms of

service (hizmet) they are endeavouring to offer Muslims in Indonesia and

elsewhere: Qur’an studies (especially memorization) and moral formation;

and provision of qurban meat to the public at the Eid al-Adha festival).

The description of Süleymancı education hizmet in Indonesia in this chapter

illustrates how the Süleymancıs have been able to utilize the new host

country’s expanding Islamic education ‘opportunity space’ to promote their


particular forms of Islamic piety even in a religious market already saturated

with Islamic organizations and revival movements. While the chapter has

shown that the Süleymancıs have promoted the special advantages of their

Turkish Qur’anic education program, they have also taken pains to

‘Indonesianized’ the UICCI, principally by adapting its boarding schools to

the Indonesian pesantren model.

The UICCI has been contributing to high quality Islamic education in

Indonesia since 2005, primarily through its unique Islamic dormitory

(boarding) schools. Activities undertaken by the UICCI have one main goal:

to bring up a younger generation of Muslims who are honest and noble, and

have a love of their homeland. In its later development, the UICCI is also

playing a role in more specific field: offering a unique method for

memorization of the Qur’an, in special Islamic boarding schools which

emphasize this tahfidz program. It is widely acknowledged that teaching the

Qur’an using this Turkish Ottoman model enables students to learn how to

read it properly and quickly, and fully memorize it usually within a year. This

special program has attracted many Indonesian Muslims, as well as the

attention of the Indonesian government, especially the Ministry of Religious

Affairs.

In addition to the above achievements, the UICCI has consistently played a

role in qurban distribution. The distribution throughout Indonesia of

sacrificial animals, made possible by global Süleymancı members and

sympathizers and supported particularly by transnational donors from

Turkey to Australia, brings the UICCI much positive publicity.

This annual qurban has become a mediation tool for the UICCI to reach the

wider Indonesian community, in order to gain community awareness of the


UICCI’s existence and operations in the country, and to entrench itself

among Indonesian citizens. It is a form of ‘integration’ in a host country

where the UICCI and the ‘locals’ can work together to achieve their goal of

educating the younger generation in the right way.


CHAPTER V: NETWORKS, CIRCULATION AND FINANCE OF THE INDONESIAN SÜLEYMANCIS (UICCI)

5.1 INTRODUCTION

The UICCI has established a number of non-fee-paying Islamic boarding

schools throughout Indonesia, the maintenance of which requires significant

funding. This chapter will explore further how the UICCI, as part of the

global Süleymancı movment, makes use of transnational Süleymancı

networks connecting its many branches to fundraise for its projects in

Indonesia, thus supplementing limited local funding. As suggested in

previous chapters, the main supporters of the Süleymancıs’ hizmet, globally,

are the Turkish Muslims living in Turkey and in Turkish diaspora

communities. Turkish communities now living in Germany and Australia are

especially active contributors to the financial support of the movement’s

activities in Indonesia. However, it is hard to find Turkish donors who live in

Indonesia, given that there is no significant Turkish community there and it

is unlikely that Indonesia will ever be a major destination for Turkish

migration. For this reason, Turkish supporters of the Süleymancıs in other

parts of the world remain the main providers of funds for the Süleymancıs’

development in Indonesia.

Through an analysis of the Süleymancıs’ global financing of their boarding

schools, this chapter will reveal more about this particular transnational

dimension of the movement, overlapping and connected with its formal


bureaucratic structure. Also, the UICCI boarding schools will be seen not

only as providers of an excellent religious education in Indonesia, but also as

playing an integrating role in the global Süleymancı movement. This analysis

of the financing of the Indonesian Süleymancı branches will fill out the

picture of how the Süleymancıs are able to provide free luxurious Islamic

boarding schools in Indonesia, which helps them to compete with other

boarding schools for students and social standing.

5.2 ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE AND NETWORKS

5.2.1 The UICCI in the Global Süleymancı Bureaucratic Structure

The UICCI branches in Indonesia are connected to each other through a

bureaucratic hierarchy, the apex of which is the national office in Jakarta.

The UICCI itself is a national branch within the Asia Pacific region of the

global Süleymancı organization. The headquarters of the Süleymancı

movement in Turkey manages five regions (bolge), including the Asia Pacific

bolge into which thirteen countries, including Indonesia, are grouped. The

Indonesian Süleymancıs have established seventeen branches so far, and the

number is growing. A director who is responsible for the dormitory programs

manages each branch.

The Süleymancı functions as a ‘top-down hierarchy’ (Spickard, 2004, p. 49),

with directives sent from the headquarters in Istanbul down to the bolge

across the globe, and from there to the smallest organizational units, the local

branches. This kind of structure ensures that Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan’s

original inspiration is preserved across the global movement. Wherever one

visits Süleymancı boarding schools, the organization structure and


atmosphere will be the same. This facilitates the uniform management of

some 6,000 Süleymancı education centres in more than 130 countries.

However, according to Abi Ihsan of Pangakalan Bun,102 the organizational

structure is not set in stone; when ideas for improvement are proposed by the

lower levels of the organization they are carefully considered, because it is

believed all levels may contribute to the movement’s development. However,

these proposals coming from lower levels tend to deal only with minor issues,

such as standard operational procedures for cleanliness. When it comes to

fundamental issues, such as those related to finance, the management is

strictly top-down, and with a structured system that, by its hierarchical

nature, minimizes the possibility of a breach of boundaries of authority.

Everything must be adhered to at the appropriate level. Thus Abi Bayram

affirmed:

Yes, that is indeed how the organization is run. We must follow the rules

from the top. For example, here we have Abi Seyfettin, Director of the

Indonesian Süleymancıs, and Abi Zoltan, Director of the Asia Pacific

Süleymancıs. So, for example, if I should talk to Abi Seyfettin but I talk to

Abi Zoltan instead, that is not allowed. I have to talk to Abi Seyfettin, first

and then he will pass on the information to Abi Zoltan.103 This is also the

evidence for permission. With this hierarchical management, it is clear who

can grant permission in which level.104

Moreover, the higher echelons of UICCI management are still dominated by

Turkish abis, while at the local branch level, it is primarily Indonesian abis

who have become the managers. During my observation of and interaction

with the Süleymancıs in Indonesia, three UICCI boarding schools were under

102 Interview with Abi Ihsan, Pangkalan Bun, Mei 2013.




the Indonesian abis’ management: UICCI Pejaten, UICCI Pangkalan Bun,

and UICCI Bandung. This situation reflects the Süleymancıs’ idea that

wherever they establish a branch, the boarding should belong to the locals.

The transfer of authority to manage a centre, from a Turkish abi to an

Indonesian one, acknowledges the already demonstrated capabilities of

Indonesian abis and the open attitude of the Turkish abis. By handing over

the managerial roles, the Turkish abis become free to play other roles, while

the Indonesian abis can make major contributions in the boarding school

management. This also allows for some local ways of doing things to become

part of the originally Turkish organization.

As a transnational organization, the Süleymancıs believe strongly in the

power of duplication. They contend that when a system has been shown to

work successfully, there is no point in ‘re-inventing the wheel’. This is how

they justify using the same system of both teaching and management in all

branches, worldwide. Thus Abi Mukhtar referred to the example of the

treasurer, whose role is defined according to a system imposed from the

headquarters in Turkey, observing: “We adopted the entire system from the

centre [headquarters].”105 This is true not only in the financial field but in all

areas of Süleymancı organization, so as to ensure the same high standard is

maintained everywhere.

5.2.2 The Four Pillars of Süleymancı Organizational Life

The Süleymancı identity has been formulated by the organization around the

notion that there are four ‘pillars’ essential to Süleymancı life, and this

105 Interview with Abi Mukhtar, Jakarta, 21 December 2012.


principle is taught in their schools. The first pillar is their focus on Syeikh

Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan himself, as the spiritual leader who set out the

Süleymancı path. His authority comes from his acknowlegded role as a Sufi

syeikh (mursyid kamil) of the Nakşibendi Sufi order. The Süleymancıs still

pledge themselves to him as their spiritual leader and guide. The common

acceptance of him as Syeikh acts as the uniting force for all Süleymancıs.

The second pillar comprises the teachers, collectively, all of whom were

previously Süleymancı students. They are known as hoca or abi. ‘Hoca’ is a

Turkish word for teacher, while ‘abi’ means elder brother. Sometimes, the

teachers prefer to be called abi, as the word implies a closeness to the

students which is seen as promoting better teacher–student interaction. In

fact, the role of abis is central to the Süleymancıs, as they act as educators

and also guardians for the students studying away from home at the boarding

schools. They are also responsible for passing on knowledge and moral

values.

The third pillar is the telebe, the Süleymancı students. Syeikh Süleyman

Hilmi Tunahan, the charismatic founder of the Süleymancıs, spoke of the

students as being basically like his books: they were the ones who would

carry his ideas, and approach people, spreading Islamic values and teaching

them about Islam.

The fourth and final pillar of the Süleymancıs is the ikhwan, or sympathizers,

with their dakwah (religious outreach). These Süleymancı supporters might

be alumni who work outside the education system but still remain part of the

movement, or they might be newcomers inspired by the Süleymancı dakwah.

They provide assistance in various ways, including fundraising, housing for


dormitories, and further extending the Süleymancı networks. The ikhwan, in

fact, are the main source of finance for the Süleymancı movement.

It should be noted here that the Süleymancıs in all these roles (that is, all the

‘pillars’) work to carry out hizmet (service). As a religiously based

organization focused on religious service (hizmet), the Süleymancıs perceive

employment as not solely a business. Although their organization has been

established as a global movement and well-appointed boarding schools, the

Süleymancıs see their work as religious service for religious purposes. As Abi

Feza explained to the author:

We want to cite first the statement of our sheikh, the Ustazimiz… We are

servants of five masters (pegawai dalam lima hal): God; the Prophet

[Muhammad]; the Qur’an; Islam; and the job of spreading the ‘faiz nur’ (the

light [of God] that goes into our hearts).

In this reflection, Abi Feza represents Süleymancı office holders and teachers

literally as ‘civil servants’ (pegawai) in five ‘matters’ or ‘senses’ (dalam lima

hal). While the literal meaning of ‘hal’ is ‘matters’, casting Süleymancı staff as

‘civil servants’ evokes in a contemporary mode a classic Sufi image of

devotees being servants of God (as in the name ‘Abdullah’). And in classic

Sufi practice one serves one’s master (sheikh) just as one serves God. So here,

that service is extended to the organization as a whole. So the overriding

purpose of the work of the organization is not just ordinary employment but

working to please God.106

With this understanding, Abi Kadir observed, hizmet, though sometimes

challenging and hard to do, can be positively enjoyed, as it is carried out with

religious spirit. In addition, the members of the Süleymancı organization are



discouraged from dwelling on possible promotion or thinking overly much

about their salary. During my period of observation, I could see that some of

the abis at UICCI who have a Sufi background do not even want to be

promoted, as this would involve greater organizational responsibility and

thus would limit their ability to teach the students as they would wish.

Teaching the students provides the happiness and satisfaction of carrying out

hizmet.107 The appointment system is based on mutual trust and appropriate

qualifications. One is not expected to aspire to a career, but when a position

is offered it should be accepted. There is a strong expectation in this regard,

and when a managerial task is offered, the person chosen can be confident

that there will be help and support to accomplish the task.108

5.3 CIRCULATION OF THE SÜLEYMANCI PERSONNEL

The circulation of the Süleymancıs throughout the organization, especially at

the level of teachers and managers, is quite frequent, and geographically

extensive. I realized this during my data collection period. Many times, when

I asked about the director of a local UICCI branch or a national director of

the UICCI, the answer came that the abi was currently overseas in Europe,

107 The professional profile of Abi Kadir is impressive, as it is he who had the

initiative to bring the Qur’an memorization program to Indonesia. He himself is a

tahfidz and also master of a number of different ways of reading the Qur’an (qiraat).

He is well known for his knowledge of religion and is close to the pesantren

community. He was once assigned a position as branch director. However, teaching

the students is his passion, and if possible, he said, he would like just to take a

teaching position. So, we can see that the Süleymancıs do not chase higher positions.

All positions are seen as being of equal worth in carrying out hizmet.



Malaysia, Singapore, and so on. This intensive mobility was recognized by

one of the senior students in the PP Tahfidz Sulaimaniyah, Fatin, who said:

The abis who teach at the centres often change because they are asked to

move. For example, there used to be an abi who taught Turkish in PP

Tahfidz Sulaimaniyah, but he was moved to UICCI in Aceh. When new young

abis come from Turkey, they will almost certainly be moved on as well.109

It is similar at the managerial level. Fatin said that when Abi Zoltan was

appointed Director of the Asia Pacific region, Abi Seyfettin was chosen as his

replacement as Director of the Indonesian Süleymancı boarding schools

(UICCI). Abi Seyfettin previously served the Süleymancı in South Africa.110

When examined in more detail, the pattern of circulation among the

Süleymancıs can be seen as due to hizmet assignment and education. This

circulation to different branches also results from supervisory action to make

sure that Süleymancı branches all over the world are run in an appropriate

and uniform manner, according to the hizmet guidelines.

The bellow table gives information on the role of the Süleymancı in the Asia

Pacific region.

Süleymancıs in the Asia Pacific Region

No Country Date of First Establishment

Number of Boarding Schools

Number of Students

1. Australia 1990 7 81

2. Indonesia 2005 23 1391

3. Singapore 2005 1 10

4. Japan 2006 3 0

5. Bangladesh 2007 1 49

109 Interview with Fatin, Jakarta, 5 September 2012.

110 Interview with Fatin, Jakarta, 5 September 2012.


6. Malaysia 2008 6 264

7. South Korea 2009 3 0

8. The Philippines 2011 3 71

9. Brunei 2014 1 0

10. Thailand 2014 1 0

5.3.1 Transfers for Hizmet

The most common pattern, as well as the primary reason, for mobility among

the Süleymancıs, is to allow them to carry out religious service (hizmet) in a

number of places. As explained above, the movement’s members understand

that their supreme spiritual leader gave specific instructions not to wait for

people to come to them, but the Süleymancıs should take the initiative to

reach out to others. They also understand that the Companions of the

Prophet Muhammad long ago encouraged Muslims to carry out religious

service and spread the good news of Islam in many places. The Süleymancıs

have understood this to mean that hizmet should be taken to different parts

of the world.

The alumni of tekamul level (the most advanced, taught only in Turkey) are

usually given the task of taking the hizmet to new areas that they have not

known before. One Turkish teacher, Abi Emre, said that when he received an

offer to do hizmet in Indonesia, he had minimal information about the

country. He even had to search the Internet to find its location.111 Abi Bayram

had a similar experience. He said, “My knowledge about Indonesia was

zero”.112 But, with religious faith they still made their way to the place where

they were assigned.

111 Interview with Abi Emre, Jakarta, 7 September 2012.



To better understand the culture of the new place, the first task the abi is

expected to undertake is learning the local language. Thus Abi Bayram

reported that in his first year he studied Indonesian intensively.113 The abis

usually learn the language at the University of Indonesia (at the Pusat Bahasa

Universitas Indonesia), probably because of its proximity to the dormitories

of Pasar Minggu and Pejaten (two of the earliest UICCI dormitories) and the

fact that the language institute at UI is one of the best in Jakarta and the

surrounding areas. One abi studied Indonesian at the State University of

Jakarta, which is close to the Rawamangun dormitory, and another took a

bachelor degree in Indonesian language and literature at Universitas

Nasional (UNAS [the National University]), Jakarta. However, there are also

some abis who have studied Indonesian privately. This is usually the case for

the particularly busy ones, such as Abi Seyfettin.

The determination of the abis to learn the local language shows that it is an

important skill which needs to be mastered in order to communicate with

local people, as well as to properly perform hizmet. It is therefore quite

common for Turkish abis who have spent a year or so living in Indonesia to

already be proficient speakers of the national language. Their resolve

demonstrates how genuine is their desire to immerse themselves in the

communities in which they do hizmet.

The hizmet mobilizing process itself usually begins with an offer made to the

Süleymancı alumni, who take up the offer voluntarily. Abi Said once said,

“We do hizmet… So wherever we are placed we should be ready [to go

there]”.114 Although, in theory, there is no obligation to do hizmet, according




to Abi Bayram, “we should go where we are assigned. [When assigned] in

Turkey, in any city, in any village, we go. However, if assigned overseas some

discussion is possible”.115 The chairman of the tekamul dormitory or the abi

directly responsible for taking care of the students is usually assigned this

task and ask for confirmation of hizmet. If the graduates themselves are

willing they should then ask their parents for approval.

It is possible for an abi to ask to be moved to another place. For this, the

applicant usually only needs to submit an explanatory request to the director,

who will then discuss the issue with the abi. However, if an abi does not want

a hizmet placement, no one can impose it. Thus, the Süleymancıs’ approach

is moderate and flexible, and much depends on the wisdom of the manager116

(in this case, the director).117

During my research, it became apparent that there are many factors to be

considered before sending abis for hizmet, or moving them from one branch

to another. However, relevant skill is the dominant factor. So, when a branch

needs an abi with a particular skill,118 it is most likely that the abi selected

will have that skill and be willing to travel to where he is required for hizmet.



117 Interview with Abi Faruk, Jakarta, 2 December 2012.

118 Interview with Abi Emre, who is among a few Turkish abis who have rich

hizmet experience in many branches of the Süleymancıs across Indonesia. He has

successfully founded the UICCI Pangkalan Bun in Kalimantan, managed the UICCI

Rawamangun, and opened the UICCI Medan, Sumatera, which had been delayed for

some time before his arrival. He is considered a capable and skilful networker.


As Abi Bayram said, “There is rotation. If an abi with certain characteristics

is needed, we send him”.119

The Süleymancıs emphasize the importance of obedience to the elder abis,

and good management. This applies both to abis from Turkey and from

Indonesia who are assigned hizmet in their home country or in a foreign

country. Hizmet is borderless. The Indonesian abis are encouraged to believe

that they have adequate skills and credibility to carry out hizmet not only in

their own country but also overseas, in such places as South Korea,

Singapore, and Australia. For the latter two countries hizmet lasts only one

month, whereas in Korea it is for a longer term as the abi is needed in the

country in his role of serving in the Süleymancı way. There have also been

some Indonesian abis assigned to hizmet in the Asia Pacific Office of the

Süleymancı central administration in Istanbul in Turkey. There, they have

worked in coordination with a Turkish abi, managing the office that is

responsible for the Asia Pacific region and Turkey.

5.3.2 Movements for Education

The circulation of students pursuing higher education forms another

common pattern of mobility among the Süleymancıs. This exchange mostly

takes place between the students’ home country and Turkey—since Turkey is

the centre of this movement and along offers its highest level of

education.The basic and intermediate levels of education within the

Süleymancı system are available in all the countries in which the Süleymancıs

have branches.At these levels sometimes the exchange takes place between

one country and another within a single region (bolge). However, the highest



education level, the tekamul, is only offered in Turkey.120 International

students who wish to study at this level must be relocated to Turkey.

The fees and other administrative matters associated with the movement of

students are handled by the Süleymancıs’ international office. However, since

the establishment of the MoU between the UICCI and the Indonesian

Ministry of Religious Affairs, some of the travel and other expenses involved,

including the pre-departure program and airfares, have been covered by the

Ministry. Accommodation and other expenses for the students abroad are

covered by Süleymancı donations from other countries.

Students who have completed primary and secondary level education may

continue to the highest education level (tekamul) in Turkey. However, before

deployment to Turkey, the students must pass selection examinations, both

academic (elementary and secondary level tests, as well as memorizing Al-

Qur’an) and non-academic (character and readiness to do hizmet after

graduating from tekamul level). Usually students sent to Turkey are still of

school or college age.121 In Turkey, students who come from Indonesia are

not grouped in the same dormitory, but are spread among a number of

hostels in Turkey, of which most, if not all, are around the Istanbul area.122

When I visited Turkey, Indonesian students were placed in the Yavuz Salim,

Zaitin Burnu, and Veva Kuran Kursu. Sometimes students who have

120 All the tekamul level of Süleymancı education is conducted in Turkey.

This provides students with a good opportunity to visit Turkey and learn about its

culture, and its language. However, due to visa difficulties for people coming from

Russia, the Süleymancıs had to establish a special condition which allowed tekamul

dormitories be built in Russia.

121 Interview with Abi Taner, Jakarta 24 September 2012.

122 Interview with Abi Aydin, Jakarta 3 October 2012.


graduated from the tekamul level are also given the opportunity to enter the

special enrichment program in Turkey, the tahfidz, and even qiraat sab’ah

(seven styles of reading the Qur’an)123 and qiraat asyrah (ten styles of

reading the Qur’an).124

Süleymancı members going abroad are not always sent to Turkey. They may

go to countries within the same region (bolge), because, for example, one

country has a better education system or facilities compared to another. This

pattern is evident in the transfer of Süleymancı students from Malaysia and

the Philippines to Indonesia, particularly to PP Tahfidz Sulaimaniyah of

Rawamangun, to study and memorize the Qur’an. Abi Zeki commented,

“Right now there are more tahfidz here, there are seventeen people, four

Malaysian, and the rest Indonesian”.125 Abi Aydin also added that “earlier

there were also some students from the Philippines who studied at PP

Rawamangun Sulaimaniyah”.126 In this case, PP Tahfidz Sulaimaniyah of

Rawamangun is the branch of the Süleymancı schools in Indonesia which has

the better system and facilities in terms of the Qur’an memorization

program.

123 Qiraat sab’ah or qiraat seven is a way to read the Qur’an in different

styles. It is called qiraat seven because there are seven priests who are famous

readers of the Qur’an, and each has his own reading style. The readers are Abu ‘Amr

bin ‘Ala’, Ibnu Katsir, Nafi al-Madani, Ibn Amir asy-Syami, Ashim al-Kufi, Hamzah

al-Kufi, and al-Kisa’i al-Kufi.

124 In addition to the above seven trusted readers of the Qur’an, there are

three more ulama of the Qur’an, namely Abu Ja’far al-Madani, Ya’kub al-Basri, and

Khalaf, making the ten ulama readers of the Qur’an.


126 Personal observation and interview with Abi Aydin, UICCI Rawamangun,

24 September 2012.


Such transfers of personnel are apparently sometimes required because

necessary facilities are not available in a particular centre. In addition, with a

transfer to a larger centre, an abi or abi candidate can simultaneously learn

what it is expected in carrying out religious service (hizmet) and gain

experience that would be beneficial to him and his work in the future. This

sort of learning experience is available to the abis in most branches,

especially the small or new branches. It enables them to conduct a

comparative study of the advantages of another branch and then duplicate

them in their own centre.127

Movement across branches for educational purposes can last from six

months to three years, depending on the program the students or abis are

enrolled in. The Malaysian abis, for example, take six months for memorizing

the Qur’an at the Rawamangun branch, while the Indonesian students take

up to three years to complete the higher education level of Süleymancı study

in Turkey. In other educational scenarios, and less frequently, transfer to

another branch can last a very short period of time. This is most common in

connection with educational supervision programs. An abi who is an expert

in a particular field of study may be sent to another branch, which could be in

the same country or in a different one, to monitor and supervise instruction

there.

In order to maintain a high standard of education, and absolute fairness, the

Süleymancıs ensure that their examinations (‘control’) are conducted and

graded by abis who come from a different dormitory to the students. This is

believed to help maintain the quality of the educational program. Abi Kadir is

127 Personal observation, UICCI Rawamangun, 26 February 2013.


one of the important figures in Qur’an and qiraat instruction. He is often

asked to test the memorization performed by Süleymancı students, not only

in Jakarta, but also in other countries, such as the Philippines. Meanwhile,

Abi Zeki, who is also an important figure in tahfidz in Indonesia, is assigned

to test tahfidz students in UICCI branches all over Indonesia. For example,

when the author was in Medan, Abi Zeki was sent from Medan to test

students in Tahfidz UICCI in Aceh.

In addition to the long-term peripatetic programs of hizmet and education,

the members of the Süleymancı organization also periodically make visits for

shorter period, in order to carry out specific tasks. Financial supervision is

one reason for such travel. Abi Bayram said that an abi could be sent from

the main centre to check on financial matters in other branches. This should

not be seen in a negative light. Rather, it shows impartiality, and is a way of

achieving high standards collectively. As Abi Bayram observed:

You may have a person sent from the headquarters, and you need to

understand that there must be mutual trust in the management of financial

matters. The person sent will guarantee the way we record the transactions

has been done properly.128

Abi Arif added that when he recently served as a dormitory idareji

(manager), he felt lucky because he found an abi who supervised him.

Usually this is someone from another boarding school who has expertise in

the field.

It seems like yesterday that we were told how to manage the financial issues

from an abi from Australia. He is an accountant.129


129 Interview with Abi Arif, Jakarta, 27 December 2012.


In addition to the data checks and invoices that already exist, abi idareji also

provide training in how to use computer software and invoices correctly.

As well as the circulation of teachers (abis) and students (telebe) among

branches, there are visits by ikhwan (initiated brother) and muhibban

(sympathizer) to branches other than their own. These visits are usually

made to provide assistance or support, and so meet the needs of some other

branch.130 During my observations, German and Australian Süleymancıs

were the most active donors to Indonesian Süleymancı branches, and some

travelled to Indonesia to witness the organization’s work there. In October

2012, when I visited UICCI Rawamangun, I saw some foreign visitors arrive

as guests. When I questioned the abi, he said that were German ikhwan who

had come to visit Indonesian branches and give donations for their

development. As these donors tend to be people who are quite influential in

Germany and are mainly prosperous businessmen,131 they have money to

spend on religious hizmet. Furthermore, because of the favourable exchange

rate money from developed countries such as Germany, even in small

amounts, mean a lot to the UICCI. Another visitor was Abi Fathir, from

UICCA (Australian Süleymancıs). He is a Turkish migrant who lives in

Melbourne, but who regularly visits and donates to the Indonesian branch of

Süleymancıs, and also to branches in other developing countries. Abi Fathir

said he came regularly, and would like to continue to do so in the future.

130 ‘Ikhwan’ is derived from Arabic, meaning ‘brother’, but was then also

used conversationally to mean ‘helper’. In the Süleymancıs’ role structure, ikhwan is

one of four roles. It is mostly understood as graduates of the Süleymancıs who do

not devote their time to teaching the students, but who instead help with the hizmet

from other angles, normally concerning financial matters.

131 Personal observation and interview with Abi Nacib, UICCI Rawamangun,

15 October 2012.


This circulation of Süleymancı personnel, students and sympathisers around

branches, both within and across national boundaries, and driven by the

religious imperative to expand hizmet, creates informal networks

overlapping and reinforcing the formal bureaucratic structure that holds the

Süleymancıs together as a global organization. The informal personal links

knit into a transnational network that is as important to the organization as

the formal structure itself. This illustrates the importance of the role played

by religions as transnational social movements in creating global cultural

flows and linkages, a theme relatively neglected in previous studies of

transnationalism and social movements (Eligür, 2010, p. 12).

The inter-branch mobility of Süleymancı members not only affects the

transfer of resources, but it also helps create a shared identity, transcending

local and national organizational boundaries. As a part of the long and

remarkable history of the last caliphate in Islam, the Turkish people pride

themselves on being the representatives of Islam in the world, and because of

this they seek to educate their students to the highest level so that they can

once again provide world leadership for Islam. As acknowledged by the

tekamul hoca in Istanbul, the purpose of sending students to Turkey is to

allow them to experience and understand the Islamic culture there. Mobility,

then, is closely connected to the formation of an international, albeit Turkish-

inflected, Islamic identity. As Christian Smith observes (Eligür, 2010, p. 12),

religion, with its organizational resources, enables a shared identity,

motivational and moral systems, and public legitimacy, all of which have

great potential to mobilize the masses. The sense of identity is a powerful

force in creating the feeling of being united in a big movement, in this case,

the Süleymancıs. Also the sense of unity within a religious movement helps

empower the community to achieve their common goals. Such social


dynamics have inevitably contributed to the Süleymancıs’ growth in numbers

and continued spread across the world. As Eligur suggests, “[t]his form of

communication helps members overcome a feeling of powerlessness and the

belief that they are individually unable to change societal conditions” (Eligür,

2010, p. 22).

It is important to underline that as well as creating ties among the members

travel activities by religious practitioners are bidirectional between the

centres (Mahler & Hansing, 2005, p. 124). This is so for the Süleymancıs,

further strengthening the sense of unity among its more than 6,000 centres.

As argued by Eligür (Eligür, 2010, p. 25), “[i]nterpersonal ties encourage the

extension of an invitation to participate and they ease the uncertainties one

experiences when joining a new group”. The exchange activities of

transnational religion organizations such as the Süleymancıs has a goal, as

suggested by Eligür,

“to Islamise the society from below by changing individual habit and social

relations, through engaging in pious activities (praying, fasting, reading the

Qur’an, and giving alms to the needy), Islamic values and norms, thus

mobilizing by developing an Islamist collective identity” (Eligür, 2010, pp.

3-4).


Figure 24: Indonesian students in one of Süleymancı Kur’an Kursu, Turkey

Figure 25: Indonesian students visiting graveyard of Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan at Kabri Şerif


5.4 FINANCING THE UICCI

Establishing and running modern and deluxe Islamic boarding schools

across Indonesia requires substantial funds. As an example, to give some

indication of the cost involved, the Rawamangun dormitory in East Jakarta

required about IDR 250 million (AUD 2,500) per month to function.

Considering that the average Indonesian income is about AUD 1,000 or less,

this obviously presents challenges, particularly as the number of dormitories

is growing. The Indonesian Süleymancıs have employed many strategies in

order to meet their financial needs, both locally and internationally.

5.4.1 Transnational Fundraising

The transnational network that connects the UICCI with the rest of the global

Süleymancı movement across the world is important in providing financial

support for the UICCI’s development in Indonesia. This part of the chapter

will illustrate the needs for finance among the UICCI branches and the ways

these needs are met. In addition, it will explain how the transnational

network plays a role in raising finance through international donations.

Developed countries, such as Turkey, Germany and Australia, are valuable

funding sources for a number of reasons. Most contributors to the Islamic

religious movements are business people with Turkish backgrounds. After

the economic reforms instigated by the Turkish government of Prime

Minister Turgut Özal, which enabled many Turkish small business to grow

and their owners to join the upper middle class. Newly affluent Muslims

found themselves in a position to contribute financially to religious activities.

Many Turkish migrants to Europe, Australia and elsewhere have also done

well financially. In Germany, Turks form the largest ethnic minority, with


estimates of their numbers ranging from 2.5 to 2.7 million, while more than 4

million Turks and German citizens claim part or full Turkish ancestry—about

four to five per cent of the German population. Many in this large group of

ethnically Turkish people, the majority of whom are Muslim, have the means

to contribute generously to the funding of religious institutions close to their

heart. As for Australia, according to Louise Asher in the Milliyet newspaper,

in 2013 there were 300,000 people of Turkish origin living in Melbourne

alone. Official data in the 2006 Australian Census shows only 59,402 people

in Australia who claimed to be of Turkish ancestry. Recent estimates suggests

that there are 150,000 Turkish Australians and between 40,000 and 120,000

Turkish Cypriot Australians. Most Turkish Australians are engaged in

business activities and live mainly in Melbourne and Sydney.

In the Süleymancı organization, donations are received by the relevant

regional (bolge) coordinating office at the organisation’s global headquarters

in Turkey. This is so for the Asia Pacific Süleymancı region. The Asia Pacific

Süleymancı regional coordinating office is İfa Derneği, sometimes known as

‘ofis’. The Indonesian Süleymancıs (UICCI) have been grouped with other

countries in the Asia Pacific region. The branches in Indonesia, as also in

other countries, can submit a funding proposal for either routine or non-

routine expenses, although there is, of course, no guarantee that all the

proposals will be accepted. All proposals from every branch of a country are

managed by the country manager, who forwards them to the regional office

of (in this case) the Asia Pacific in Turkey. Then, when funds for the Asia

Pacific Süleymancı region have been received (from Turkey or elsewhere),

that central office then transfers the money to the intended recipient country

(in this case, Indonesia) to be distributed to the relevant branches, depending

on the branches’ needs and proposals.


On one occasion, during my visit to Istanbul, Turkey, I had the opportunity

to visit the ofis (İfa Derneği) there, which occupies one level in the three-level

building. The ofis is headed by Abi Daud Eveler, who has lived in Indonesia,

and carryied out hizmet there. His knowledge of Indonesia, the coordinating

country of the Asia Pacific Süleymancıs, is therefore extensive. In his job he

receives support from another Turkish abi and two Indonesian abis who

have graduated from the tekamul level in Istanbul and are carrying out their

hizmet at this ofis, in Turkey.

The Süleymancıs’ central ofis activities range widely, from fundraising

undertaken by ofis staff, welcoming overseas guests, providing religious

services such as contributing to weddings, and participating in bazars, to

making presentations about hizmet in various bolge, making video

presentations and setting up telelink communications. The ofis is dedicated

to actively supporting the development of the Süleymancıs’ dormitories in

Turkey and around the world.

The working system of the ofis is quite simple, in my opinion. It invites

Turkish business people or other wealthy benefactors, who normally donate

to religious charities, to donate those funds to the Süleymancıs for their

hizmet. The Turkish ofis manages overseas funding for all regions (including

the Asia Pacific region), and then distributes it to the office of the

coordinating country of the region, in this case, Indonesia. That regional

centre will then distribute funds to the Asia Pacific Süleymancıs’ country

branches. Thus, the funds run from Turkey or other countries to the ofis, and

are then sent via the regional office in Indonesia to (in this case) the UICCI

dormitories.


By using the ofis as the main coordinator for matters of finance, the

Süleymancıs support the development of mutual relationships between

branches in neighbouring countries, such as Australia and Indonesia. For

instance, one sympathizer, Abi Fatir, comes from Australia to the

Rawamangun Jakarta branch. When I asked him how often he does this, he

said that he travels to Indonesia a number of times a year, sometimes for

qurban distribution, but also to bring donations from people in Australia to

Süleymancıs in other countries such as Indonesia and Bangladesh, for the

sake of Allah.

The benefits for the Süleymancı branches in a developing country of

receiving overseas funds are clear. In Indonesia, this funding goes towards

establishing boarding schools across the country. As the abis admitted, the

initial attempts at establishing the Indonesian Süleymancıs were strongly

dependent on the global Süleymancı networks, such as the German and

Australian Süleymancıs, who helped to fund the first dormitory at

Rawamangun, the headquarters of the Indonesian Süleymancıs.

There are benefits, too, for the donors in the richer country, that come from

making contributions to Süleymancı hizmet in developing countries. For a

variety of reasons, followers of Islam in countries such as Germany or

Australia, who have money to spend on religious activities, may not be able to

participate (either in person or by donation) in Eid al-Adha in their new

country of residence. Practising the qurban is a challenging process in

Australia, for example, as it goes against Australian regulations, which do not

allow the mass slaughtering of animals without a licence, and many Muslims

in Australia do not have such a licence. In any event, qurban lacks

significance in most developed countries, since meat is readily available even

for the poor, unlike in countries where many families cannot afford it. Given


the challenges donors face in their adopted countries, sending money in the

name of religion to other countries where people can benefit from it, is an

understandably attractive choice.

The organization of qurban in developing Muslim countries shows how

dependent the Süleymancıs are in their various regions on international

funding, and how important the networks of the Süleymancı sympathizers in

developed countries are to the organization in supporting its global presence.

This confirms what Vetovec has argued (Vertovec, 2001, p. 575), that

transnational connection has a significant impact in terms of economic and

socio-cultural, as well as political matters, not only on migrants but on the

organizations that connect them to their home country and their global faith

community.

5.4.2 Local Fundraising

In addition to the welcome support from Süleymancıs in Turkey and the

Turkish diaspora communities, the Indonesian Süleymancıs also seek local

help, particularly for incidental needs over and above their regular financial

commitments. The abis of the UICCI approach local Muslim business people

and other wealthy Muslilms who are sympathetic to the UICCI’s activities, to

give support in financial matters. During my fieldwork, I met a number of

people in this category. Some hold important positions, as members of the

House of Representatives. Another is a property developer. The abis also

receive donations when they participate in religious activities in the broader

society. Abi Said mentioned that during the fasting month of Ramadhan,

some abis are invited to be imams (preachers) at the mosques in the areas

surrounding their dormitories. Although the abis do not expect financial

benefits, the communities may give an honorarium, and that money then


goes towards the dormitories’ expenses.132 To attract financial support in

Indonesia, the Süleymancıs also seek local sponsorship by advertising their

UICCI as a charity which supports students. They do this through their

websites, which offer several options for making donations.

As Indonesia is a predominantly Muslim country, the prevalent religious

attachment to Islam is a useful tool in seeking funding, as the Süleymancıs

are Muslims trying to touch the hearts of fellow Muslims regarding religious

activities. Once these fellow Muslims make a connection with the

Süleymancıs and become helpers through their donations, they are called

‘muhibban’ (T. sympathizer). Later, if they want to become an integral part of

the organization, they do so by taking rabita (a pledge of spiritual devotion to

the Syeikh) and so become ikhwan.

The initiator of Pangkalan Bun dormitory in Central Kalimantan provides an

illustration of how someone may become an ikhwan. He was a member of

Parliament, who became so impressed with the hizmet of the Süleymancıs

that he offered the use of a big house he owned in Pangkalan Bun, rent free,

so that they could run a dormitory in his home town. He then decided to take

rabita. Several years later, he is still playing his part in providing free

accommodation for about 25 students at Pangkalan Bun boarding school, the

most distant Süleymancı dormitory in Indonesia. Another example is the

sympathiser in Medan whose background was in real estate and who offered

132 In the Indonesian context, the invited preacher receives money from his

activities. Therefore, although it might not be a full time job, many benefit

financially from this activity and make it a kind of side-line job. This might have

started with a simple idea of giving the preacher a transport fee, but later the

amount of the ‘transport’ fee was considered in relation to the preacher’s social

status or his popularity in the society.


the Süleymancıs a building which he had initially intended to sell. He also

took rabita and became an ikhwan. As an ikhwan he has continued to

donate, first paying for the renovations of the building he donated so that it

could be used as a dormitory in the city and thereafter responding to other

needs of the local Süleymancıs. He sees this as a way of securing a good

afterlife for himself.

In addition to making one-on-one contact with people, the Süleymancıs also

run institutional relationship programs to help fund their dormitories. Thus,

for example, on establishing new branches in Aceh and Puncak they worked

with the Habibie Centre133 to found and run the new dormitories. The Centre

has also provided some land for the establishment of other Süleymancı

dormitories in Indonesia. This kind of generosity makes it possible to save

some of the operating funds sent from overseas to set up other dormitories

and cover the expenses of existing ones.

The Indonesian Süleymancıs have also approached the national government

for support. By classifying themselves as providers of pondok pesantren

tahfidz education, they qualify for support from the Ministry of Religious

Affairs, under the category of pendidikan diniyah dan pondok pesantren

(elementary religious education and Islamic boarding schools). The former

Minister of Religious Affairs visited the dormitory in Rawamangun in 2013

and indicated his support for the Süleymancıs. A formal Memorandum of

133 The Habibie Centre is a foundation that seeks to promote modernization

and democratization in Indonesia, which is based on the morality and integrity of

cultural and religious values. The Habibie Centre was established on 10 November

1998, by Professor Dr BJ Habibie, former president of the Republic of Indonesia. In

response to the tsunami tragedy in Aceh in 2004, the Habibie Centre established

shelter houses (rumah singgah) for children who lost their homes and families.


Understanding was then issued to provide financial support for sending

outstanding Indonesian students to pursue higher education at the tekamul

level of the Süleymancı schools in Turkey. The number of students taking up

this opportunity increased steadily, showing that government support has

been well utilized by the Süleymancıs (Nuh, 2010).

Despite its efforts to attract support within Indonesia, the movement still

relies mostly on funding from Turkish networks overseas. Only about ten to

twenty per cent of the total expenses can be paid from local donations,134

while the rest of the funding comes from Turkey and its networks around the

globe. Thus, the usual way of establishing a new dormitory is to make a

proposal to the Turkish headquarters, where its desirability and funding

possibilities will be discussed. It is evident that the UICCI’s ongoing

transnational linkages are crucial to its survival and expansion.

5.4.3 Commission for Finance and Fundraising

In order to manage the Süleymancıs’ financial matters, special commissions

have been created within the movement. The finance commission is probably

the most strict, as its task is crucial. It as known as idareji among the

Süleymancıs, and is responsible for financial matters, from the planning

stage through to reporting on actions taken. In terms of the latter, all

transactions are recorded, with very tight control, closely following the rules.

Although the people who give donations do not ask for a receipt, the

Süleymancı abis are encouraged to provide such proof of payment. This is

done to keep the trust of the donors.135 In addition, transactions are recorded

134 Interview with Abi Zeki, Jakarta, 17 October 2012.



both on a computer, using special software, and in a hard copy record, so that

if there is a problem with the computer, the hard copy data still exists. The

payment receipt is always saved as an attachment. If no receipt is obtained,

idareji can create a receipt itself with the ratification of three parties: the

director of the hostel, the treasurer, and the buyer him/herself who spent the

money.136

To maintain the highest accountability, idareji is also supervised by top

financial management within the organization. As Abi Mukhtar said,

[i]n terms of financial control, a supervisor who is expert in the field can be

sent from outside the boarding schools. Once, a supervisor was sent from

Australia to check the work of an accountant. A wide range of issues from the

initial invoice to the computer data were investigated, even touching on the

management on the computer.137

Teberru komisyonu (donation committee), as its name indicates, is the

commission responsible for finding sources of funding to support the

running of the UICCI’s boarding schools. This commission manages the

income for the branch. Its mission is to find donors, and in the Indonesian

contex, the commission distributes ‘donation boxes’ in the mosques and

musholla and to companies. This is a vital task, because the Süleymancıs

have a policy that in the future branches will have to be able to finance 50 per

cent of their expenses from local donations, although support from

transnational Süleymancıs is still available. The support given by the

transnational Süleymancı organization in terms of donations (T. teberru) is

managed by İfa Derneği [http://www.ifa.org.tr], the office which manages

the donations of the Süleymancıs in the Asia Pacific region.


137 Interview with Abi Mukhtar, Jakarta, 21 December 2012.


5.5 CONCLUSION

This chapter has shown how the formal Süleymancı transnational

organizational structure is reinforced and strengthened by global networks

arising through the circulation of personnel and the transnational flow of

finances. Personnel circulation comes about through hizmet assignment for

the abis. The abis are often transferred to different branches according to

their skills and the organization’s needs. This circulation might be local,

within a country, or international. Another kind of personnel circulation

occurs as Süleymancı students pursue a higher degree in Turkey. As tekamul

(the highest level of education within the Süleymancı educational system) is

only available in Turkey, students who achieve the highest level of religious

education available in their home countries and are eligible to continue their

studies, will be sent to Turley to complete their education.

In addition to personnel movements up and down and across the

organization’s managerial and educational hierarchies, there are often

translocal and transnational flows of funds. These financial flows are

coordinated at the international centre of the Süleymancı movement in

Turkey, where offices of the five regional divisions of the global organization

handle the transfers. Those offices receive donations and distribute the funds

to national branches of the Süleymancıs for further distribution to local

branches. Such fund donations are crucial to establish new schools and to the

running of already established schools across the world, but especially in the

later-developing countries. Both circulation of personnel and fund flow

between the branches of the Süleymancıs undergird and strengthen the

formal structure of the global Süleymancı movement.


CHAPTER VI: SUFI ELEMENTS OF SÜLEYMANCI PRACTICE

6.1 INTRODUCTION

The UICCI has adapted to Indonesian society largely by presenting itself as a

religious education provider, very much like an Indonesian pesantren. Also,

although the Süleymancıs in Indonesia say little about this, they, like some

pesantren, they have strong connections with a Sufi order. For some people,

especially from a traditional Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) background, the Sufi

elements in the Süleymancıs would be praised as both familiar and

admirable. As a Sufi movement, the UICCI thus implicitly contests anti-Sufi

constructions of Islam promoted by numerous transnational Salafi

organizations in Indonesia today.

This chapter documents the Sufi elements of Süleymancı teaching and

educational practice. Although on one level the movement is structured as a

modern formal organization using a bureaucratic structure, and is well

known as the provider of courses in Qur’anic studies, the Süleymancıs

nonetheless actually began as a Sufi brotherhood (A. tariqat; I. tarikat),

affiliated with the historically and globally important Nakşibendi Sufi order.

The Süleymancı movement still has many prominent Sufi features.

The Sufi elements of the Süleymancı movement can be traced back to its

earliest history. Syeikh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan, the founder, was an

authorized Sufi master (sheikh) in a line of Nakşibendi initiation in Turkey.

The charisma of the Syeikh, which derived initially from that authorization

and later from his spiritual accomplishments in that role, remains an


important part of Süleymancı life. It inspiries students’ commitment to him

and the organization, and is reinforced by an oath of allegiance (T. rabita; A.

bai’at) to him at the time of their initiation. Through the spiritual link (uwasi

irsyad) thereby established, the student is allowed to receive spiritual advice,

even now that he is physically deceased. The followers of Syeikh Süleyman

(who later became known as Süleymancıs) regard him (not the living teacher

who initiated them) as their only Sufi master.

The importance, to the Süleymancıs, of their Sufi heritage (A. tasawwuf) can

be seen in the kinds of Islamic teachings they offer, which are coloured by

Sufi literature revealing the possibility of an inner, felt connection with God.

It can also be seen in the ritual practices the Süleymancıs use, which are also

described in this chapter. Sufi rituals are used in Süleymancı daily practice

and are considered important to fostering their studies and forming a person

of high moral character.

This chapter shows how the classic structural features of Sufi organization,

the hierarchical bonds of Sufi loyalty to an initiating master and the lateral

bonds of brotherhood with fellow initiates, have been adapted by the

Süleymancıs as tools to underpin the modern, formal organiztion of the

Süleymancıs. This amalgam of traditional personal bonds and modern formal

organization has helped create a distinctive, sturdy transnational

organization. Further, Sufi understanding of Islamic spiritual life, and

supporting Sufi rituals, reinforce the distinctive pattern of personal bonds

underlying the formal organization and give the Süleymancı organization a

unique character.

This chapter also suggests that the Sufi approach taken by the Süleymancıs

has been an important part of the appeal of the UICCI to Indonesian


Muslims. Not only can the Süleymancı boarding schools be recognized as

similar to existing Indonesian pesantren, but they resemble a particular kind

of pesantren headed by a kyai (pesantren head) who holds an initiation in a

Sufi order and so is authorized to teach tasawwuf. Thus Sufism is readily

recognized by many as a valuable part of the spectrum of Islamic education

in Indonesia. Although being affiliated with a tarikat would be seen as

negative by some Indonesians of a Modernist or Salafist orientation, still

many Indonesian Muslims see the association of a school for Islamic studies

with a Sufi lineage as positive.

The chapter begins by sketching the important role played by Sufism in

Indonesian society over time. This will provide a basis for understanding the

Indonesian reception of Süleymancı Sufi practices and thus of the

Süleymancı organization in Indonesia.

After briefly reviewing the history of Sufism in Indonesia and then Turkey,

the chapter compares the use of a common Nakşibendi Sufi heritage by all

three of the modern Turkish Islamic outreach organizations that Yavuz

(1998, 2003, 2004b) described as operating in new ‘opportunity spaces’ of

liberalizing, Kemalist Turkey in the latter half of the twentieth century: the

Fetullah Gülen movement, the Süleymancıs, and the Jama’at Nur. As

mentioned previously, these three Turkish movements are presently active in

Indonesia. It will be argued that while Sufi elements can be found in all three,

but only the Süleymancıs have preserved the inner, hierarchal spiritual

structure of a Sufi order based on initiation linking the student to the

charismatic leader—in the case of the Süleymancıs, Süleyman Hilmi

Tunahan. Although the external formal administration of the Süleymancıs

was established after the death of Tunahan, the inner spiritual bond and the

traditional social structure of tarikat were already strongly present within


the early Süleymancı movement and still persist today. This is not the case

with the Fethullah Gülen movement and the Nurcu. The sense of personal

obligation to the focal figure—Fethullah Gülen in the Gülen movement, and

Said Nursî in the Nurcu movement— might be found among those two

groups’ members. They do not have an initiation process.

The chapter goes on to document in detail Sufi understandings that

undergird spiritual leadership and brotherly solidarity within the

Süleymancıs movement and then describes the rituals (generally associated

with the Sufi tradition) through which spiritual connections and motivations

for devotion and service are instilled in participants in the movement.

6.2 INDONESIAN SUFISM AND THE INFLUENCE OF OVERSEAS

SUFIS

6.2.1 The History of Indonesian Sufism

The study of Sufism in Indonesia can be traced back as far as the fourteenth

century, through the Muslim Javanese author, Abdullah bin As’ad Al-Yafi’i

(1298–1367). Al-Yafi’i devoted much of his life to recording the miracles of

the Sufi master, Abd al-Qadir Al-Jilani (1077–1166) (Laffan, 2011, pp. 4-5).

This work has helped us understand that there were Sufi fraternities which

were established and lead by Sufi syeikhs in that era. The following era of

Indonesian Islam has been marked the emergence of Sufi-related theological

works, evidencing that Sufism was an important part of Indoneisan history in

the following centuries. These included Sulalat al-Salatin, Mirat al-Thulab,

and Shath al-Wali. Many notable historians have documented the


significance of Sufism in the development of Indonesian Islam (Azra, 2004;

Bruinessen, 1998, p. 199; Laffan, 2011, p. 24; Ricklefs, 2006, 2007).

6.2.2 Sufism, Islamization and Islamic Revival in Indonesia

It is widely argued that Sufism and the Sufi orders played a crucial role in the

Islamization process in the Archipelago (Bruinessen, 1994, p. 1; Laffan, 2011,

p. 24). According to Bruinessen (1994, p. 1), the first Islamization of

Southeast Asia took place in the same period as the rapid development of

medieval Sufism and the growth of the Sufi orders (tarikat). Therefore, the

version of Islam that was taught to the first Southeast Asian converts was

strongly coloured by Sufi teachings and values. It is also suggested that it was

the Sufi colouration of Islam in that period that made it attractive to

converts. As Bruinessen observed, “the development of Sufism was one of the

factors making the Islamization of Southeast Asia possible” (Bruinessen,

1994, p. 2).

Michael Laffan (2011) has shown in his work, Makings of Indonesian Islam,

that Sufi praxis was part of Islamization since the fourteenth century.

Mystical fraternities known as tariqats (tarikat) and lead by Sufi syeikhs

were also known in that era. As already mentioned, we have evidence of this

in the works of Abdullah bin As’ad Al-Yafi’i.

In the following centuries, Sufi figures played important roles in the

Islamization of the Archipelago. In the fifteenth century of Indonesian Islam,

the legendary Nine Saints (Wali Songo) dominated stories of spreading

Islam. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, Sufi mystics, such as

Hamzah Fansuri and Abdurrauf Singkil, were leading Muslim figures in

Aceh, the famed gateway of Islam into the Archipelago. In the eighteenth


century, the time of neo-Sufi reformism, the prominent Sufi, al-Falimbani,

worked to mediate between the Sharia (Islamic law) and tasawwuf (Sufi

metaphysics) (Azra, 2004, pp. 109-112; Laffan, 2011, pp. 4-24).

The important role played by Sufi syeikhs and brotherhoods in former times

in Indonesia was resumed in the later twentieth century, in the midst of

Indonesia’s Islamic revival. Howell (2001) argues that the picture of Islamic

revival in Indonesia, which started in the 1970s, as it did also in other parts of

the Muslim world, and appeared to be scripturalist, did, in fact, include a

revival of Sufism. Howell showed the ‘inner’ side of Islamic revival, which

was represented by ‘Sufi-inspired forms of piety’ to which Muslims turned to

supplement the otherwise dry, rule-oriented Wahhabi, Modernist, and

Salafist piety regimes. The late twentieth century Sufi revival engaged sectors

of society previously thought to find Sufism’s devotional and mystical

traditions unappealing: urbanites, women, and young people. As Howell has

observed,

…devotional and mystical intensifications of core Islamic practice—in short

‘Sufism’—have survived. Indeed, they are being enthusiastically pursued, and

not only by the elderly village men once thought to be Sufism’s sole refuge in

the twilight of its existence (Howell, 2001, p. 702).

Since the turn of the twenty-first century, new forms of Sufi piety promotion

have proliferated and reached wide audiences (Hoesterey, 2009; Howell,

2012). These include tasawwuf courses taught in commercial, adult Islamic

educational institutes, Sufi-inspired televangelism, and mass rallies featuring

revivalist preaching along with sung prayers.


6.2.3 Pre-Modern Sufi Networks and Turkish Influence

In addition to the significant development of the study of Sufism in Indonesia

and the indications of its having a bright future, I would argue that

Indonesia has also experienced a transnational Sufi wave that contributes to

Islamic revival in the country. This is another way of seeing interaction

between the global movement of Islamic revival and Indonesian Islam. Many

studies have recorded the influence of Saudi Arabian, Egyptian and Persian

Islam in this regard (Fox, 2004; Laffan, 2011, pp. 10-12), but seem to have

neglected the role played by the Sufi-oriented Turkish movement operating

in Indonesian as a part of the global piety movement. Although Laffan (2011,

pp. 10-12) mentioned the connection between the Ottoman empire and Aceh

in sixteenth century Indonesian Islam, the emergence of a new wave of

Turkish influence shows no necessary connection with the old history, and

therefore can be seen as a new stimulus to Islamization introduced by the

modern Turkish transnational movement.

The Turkish organization’s role in Indonesian Islam is relatively new, as it

only began its outreach in Indonesia in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

However, its progress is significant. To date, (as indicated previously) three

Turkish movements have established branches in Indonesia and run many

kinds of religious hizmet, mostly in the education sector. Among the three,

only one organization encompasses a traditional Sufi order with a fully

authenticated Nakşibendi affiliation, the Süleymancıs. The following section

will highlight the elements of Sufism inherent in this transnational Turkish

Islamic movement currently active in Indonesia.


6.3 TURKISH SUFISM AND THE SÜLEYMANCIS

Sufis have been prominent in the history of Turkish Islam, and Sufi orders in

Turkey can be traced back to medieval Anatolia. Aspects of Sufism were

discernible in Anatolia from the thirteenth to the eighteenth centuries

(Papas, 2006, p. 83). Central Anatolia was on the main trade route of Central

Asia, and the Ottoman western provinces were sites of the dervish lodges,

which mark the foundation of Sufi communities through their literary

representation and references to them in the historic record. These lodges

“functioned as centers for the support, identification, and definition of

religious communities formed around charismatic figures” (Papas, 2006, p.

84).

Between the thirteenth and eighteenth centuries, in Turkey, as elsewhere,

Sufis organized themselves into religious orders (A. s. tariqa; pl. turuq; I.

tarikat), and systematized esoteric and exoteric knowledge within different

schools of thought. Thus, first in medieval and then in modern Anatolia,

Nakşibendi as well as Qadiri Sufis studied and commented on classical Sufi

texts, such as Ibn al-Arabi’s Futuhat al-Makkiyya and Fusus al-Hikam, Jalal

al-Din Rumi’s Mathnawi-yi Ma’nawi, and Abd al-Karim al-Jili’s Al-Insan al-

Kamil. Throughout the Seljukid and Ottoman periods, Sufi orders continued

to be important in Anatolian cities.

Yavuz, among others, describes the modern face of Turkish Sufism. He shows

that the Nakşibendi order, in its many different manifestations, continues to

be an important part of Turkish life. Thus after a close examination of the

Nakşibendi orders, Yavuz (2003, p. 134) concludes that


(1) the Nakşibendi are by far the most politically active of the tarikats and

indeed represent a model for virtually all subsequent major contemporary

Islamic sociopolitical movements in Turkey; (2) the order is also the most

useful avenue for understanding the social interactions between politics and

religion in the country; and (3), the Nakşibendi orders played a formative

role in the evolution of Islamic identity in Turkey by developing three

patterns of interaction with the state: confrontation, withdrawal, and

engagement.

Turkish Sufism takes the form of groups with a Sufi lineage at their core (like

the Süleymancıs) and groups that contains some Sufi elements or teach Sufi

values (like the Gülen-affiliated groups), but do not have Sufi initiations and

master-disciple relationships. The following section examines the three most

prominent contemporary Turkish piety movements showing Sufi influences,

and compares the way the Sufi heritage has been drawn upon by them.

6.4 SUFI ELEMENTS IN THE THREE TURKISH MUSLIM

MOVEMENTS

6.4.1 Sufism in the Gülen Movement

Fethullah Gülen is the charismatic leader of the Gülen Islamic learning and

Muslim development movement, which takes form in numerous social

initiatives, like schools, media companies, and local associations. Gülen and

the people he inspired started to build schools in Turkey in the early 1980s.

The first two of these Gülen-inspired high schools were established in 1982,

one in Izmir and the other in Istanbul (Ebaugh, 2010, p. 29). Now, his

followers in Turkey are estimated at 70 million, and activities run by them

include Turkey’s leading newspaper (Zaman), a financial institution (Bank

Asya), a TV Channel (Samanyolu), hospitals (e.g., Sema Hospital) and

hundreds of Gülen-inspired schools (Barton, 2006, pp. 156-158; Ebaugh,


2010, pp. 10, 117). There are also Gülen-inspired Islamic social action

organizations all over the world, for example, Affinity Intercultural

Foundation in 2001 and Kimse Yok Mu Relief Organization in 2002. It is

estimated that around the world as many as eight to ten million people are

involved in Gülen-connected associations (Ebaugh, 2010, p. 118). Many of

these groups are active in promoting interfaith dialogue, suggesting an

outlook counter to that of Islamic radicals. Some see in this Gülen’s carrying

forward the Ottoman approach to religious diversity within a multi-faith

empire.

Several authors have alluded to the ‘Sufi’ character of Gülen’s movement.

Terry Ray, for example (in Kim and Raines (2012, p. ix), referred to Gülen

himself as an influential Turkish Sufi. However, Gülen never claimed to be a

Sufi syeikh, nor did he try to model his movement or its affiliates as a Sufi

brotherhood. He does not claim any authorization to act as a Sufi master and

does not initiate anyone. Yet while he cannot be called a Sufi syeikh, Sufism

(tasawwuf) was part of his early religious education and in various ways

colours the kind of religious and social formation students receive through

Gülen schools.

Among the most influential teachers Gülen had in his early years was a Sufi,

Sheikh Muhammed Lutfi Efendi (d. 1956) (Ebaugh, 2010, p. 33). Muhammed

Lutfi Efendi had a unique principle in his life: ‘not having food without a

guest’. Gülen was at one time a house-guest of the Syeikh, and then later, at

ten years of age, became the Syiekh’s student. For the last period of Syeikh

Efendi’s life Gülen continued to study at Efendi’s tekke, where he received

spiritual lessons and practised Sufi principles and practices until the age of

sixteen (H. C. Kim, 2008, p. 120).


According to Kim (2008), for Gülen, Sufis can be divided into two types:

“those who stress knowledge and seek to reach their destination through

knowledge of God (ma’rifat), and those who follow the path of yearning,

spiritual ecstasy, and spiritual discovery (H. C. Kim, 2008, pp. 216-217)”. In

this regard, Gülen favours the first Sufi type. Therefore, he does not

distinguish between Sufism and Islamic law (Sharia). Nor has he attached

himself to any particular Sufi sheikh for guidance; for him, the Qur’an is a

superior master and guide. Yet, one can still see some Sufi concepts in his

understanding, such as the concepts of tawba (repentance), zuhd (resistance

against desire), tafakkur (meditation), and sayr ila Allah (journey to God)

(Saritoprak, 2003, pp. 161-162). These are attitudes related to the cultivation

of spiritual intimacy in Islam and all refer back to the exemplary conduct of

the Prophet Muhammad (H. Kim & Raines, 2012, p. 134).

Gülen was also active in Nursî reading circles that were known as cemaat.

The cemaat were a new type of association for religious study, founded

initially in Turkey in the 1950s by Said Nursî (1877–1960). Nursî was an

acclaimed commentator on the Qur’an, who nonetheless advocated

combining general education (including the study of science) with Islamic

learning. The cemaat were a kind of Islamic self-help organization, which

used intimate learning circles, similar to the gatherings of Sufi brotherhoods

(tekke) but also in important respects different from them. According to

Ebaugh (2010, p. 34), “the cemaat had no formal membership requirements,

no initiation rites and required no specific building or room in order to

convene; therefore, it was not a Sufi group”. Nonetheless, the Nursî cemaat

did have some Sufi colouration which, according to Saritoprak (2003, p. 169),

justifies considering them Sufi. For example, the Nursî cemaat practised

zikir litanies and purification rituals in an effort to become closer to God;

their interpretation of Islam reflected Sufi understandings and they practised


an ascetic lifestyle. So, although Gülen does not call himself a Sufi, he has

what might be called a ‘tasawwuf-style’ of living, meaning that even though

he and his followers are not attached to any particular Sufi order and have

not become devotees of a Sufi sheikh, they still practise tasawwuf in a

general way, in line with the Qur’an and the prophetic tradition embodied in

the Sharia (Islamic law) (Barton, 2014, p. 291; Saritoprak, 2003, p. 169;

Weller & Yilmaz, 2012, p. 150).

6.4.2 Sufism in the Nurcu Movement

Bediüzzaman Said Nursî is the charismatic figure at the centre of the Nurcu

or Jama’at Nur movement. Nursî was born and raised in eastern Anatolia, an

area where Nakşibendi Sufi orders had a significant influence. Therefore,

Nursî felt that he benefited from the teachings of the Sufi masters. Probably

because of this early childhood experience, many scholars have mistakenly

defined Nursî as a Nakşibendi Sufi. Although Sufism had an important

impact on his ideas and spiritual experiences, Nursî never identified himself

with the Nakşibendi, the Qadiri order, or any other tarikat (Kuru & Kuru,

2008, p. 105).

However, taking the above into account, Nursî acknowledged that his most

famous work of Qur’anic commentary (Risale-i Nur) and Sufism have similar

ends, even if they achieve them by different means. Sufism aims at self-

purification in order to experience the nearness of God, while Risale-i Nur

emphasizes the need of aqidah (understanding). However, both aim at the

clarification and unfolding of the truth of faith and at becoming closer to God

(Nursi, 1994, p. 38). For that reason, Aydin argues that Risale-i Nur’s

teachings are compatible with Sufism (Aydin, 2003, p. 219).


Nursî refers to Sufi masters to justify his service of faith (Nursi, 1994).

Further, he claims that Risale-i Nur accepts all of the benefits of Sufism

without committing its followers to a Sufi path to ecstatic experience. In

addition to this, the Nurcu have practices of ‘remembering’ God known as

tasbihat, much like the Sufi zikir138 practices. They also encourage a strong

sense of brotherhood among the ‘students of Nur’ based on ukhuwah (A.

brotherhood), similar to a Sufi brotherhood. So, without establishing a

formal Sufi group, in the view of Kuru and Kuru (2008, p. 108) Nursî tried to

offer a way of reaching the goals of Sufism (spiritual refinement that brings

greater intimacy with God) but using a more text-based and rational method.

6.4.3 Sufism in the Süleymancı Movement

Unlike the groups described above, which share some elements of Sufism

although they are not connected formally to any particular Sufi order (A.

tariqat, I. tarikat), the Süleymancıs readily acknowledge that they are linked

with the Nakşibendi Sufi order. This has been confirmed by many scholars,

including Yavuz (2003, p. 11) and Chernov-Hwang (2009, p. 194). The first

evidence comes from the fact that the charismatic leader of the Süleymancıs

was the thirty-third mursyid kamil (an initiating master of the highest level)

of the Nakşibendi Sufi order. Tasawwuf and Sufi practices like rabita (oath

taking), zikir (litany recitation), and khatim (zikir in a group run three times

a week), have been important elements of the Süleymancıs’ education. These

are taught in the Süleymancı boarding schools, and importantly, zikir and

khatim are practised by all Süleymancıs. The Süleymancıs also take the

initiation pledge (T. rabita, A. bai’at) to Syeikh Süleyman. This creates a

spiritual connection between the disciples (telebe) and the Syiekh and also

138 ‘Zikir’ literally means ‘to remember’ (God).


with other disciples of the Syeikh, in other words with the rest of the global

Süleymancı community. The members also regularly practise Sufi rituals,

principally zikir rituals (consisting of multiple repetitions of short phrases

from the Qur’an or reciting the ninety-nine ‘beautiful’ names of God) both in

individual and in group devotions. Thus Sufi brotherhood undergirding the

Süleymancı movement helps to create a strong and solid commitment among

the Süleymancıs to live according to the way of hizmet (religious service).

6.5 THE SOURCES OF THE SÜLEYMANCIS’ CONCEPTION OF

SUFISM

The main source of Sufi teaching within the Süleymancı tradition is a special

book called Atun Silsile, which, in Turkish, literally means ‘godly chains’ (I.

silsilah emas). The first part of the book explains the general idea of Sufism

and what a Muslim needs to know. The second part describes 33 Sufi masters

(mursyid kamil) who form the chain of spiritual initiation and authorisation

in their line of esoteric Sufi teaching. According to the Süleymancıs,

Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan, the charismatic initiator of the Süleymancı

movement, is the last of these thirty-three Sufi masters. This means they

consider that since his death there has been no other mursyid kamil (perfect

master) and thus there is no other comparable spiritual authority in the

world today.

According to the Atun Silsile, human beings (insan) have two bodies, maadi

and rohani. The first one is the physical body, while the second is

metaphysical. However, in order to survive, both need nourishment. While

the maadi body is nourished by food, the rohani body must be nourished by

nur Allah (A. the light of Allah), which comes from God through the person


of a Sufi master (mursyid kamil). If the metaphysical body (rohani) does not

receive the light of Allah, then it will get sick and eventually die. Thus the

death of the metaphysical body (maknawai) leads to a situation in which the

maadi body lives, but in a state of (metaphysical) death.

It is considered important to learn Sufi teachings (tasawwuf) so one can

receive the light of Allah and thereby nourish one’s spiritual being. In this

regard, it is also said that the first step to becoming involved in a Sufi order

(tarikat) is to find a true Sufi master (mursyid kamil hakiki). One needs to

learn from him and submit to (obey) him so as to become his student

(murid) who can then learn how to be blessed by the light of Allah.

This light is passed on in the following way. The messenger of Allah

(Muhammad PBUH) takes the light of Allah directly from Him. The Sufi

master (mursyid kamil) then takes it from the messenger of Allah and passes

it on to ordinary people. All who are involved in or committed to the Sufi

orders must love their mursyid. There is a common saying among

Sulemancis that ‘a person sticks with the one he loves’ (‘al maru ma’a man

ahabba’).

6.6 THE SUFI SPIRITUAL HIERARCHY AND BROTHERLY

SOLIDARITY IN THE SÜLEYMANCI MOVEMENT

6.6.1 Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan as Mursyid Kamil

In the Sufi (tasawwuf) tradition, it is recognized that there are people who

through spiritual cultivation have a very particular closeness to God. Such

people are referred to as wali (pl. aulia). ‘Wali’ literally means the ‘friend’ of

Allah, so this is an especially high position which few people can reach, and


indeed the word is often translated as ‘saint’. The conception of walaya (A.

sainthood) emerged from the ninth century (Cornell, 1998). Among the

Süleymancıs there is an understanding of ranks of wali, among whom the

highest is the wali kutub (A. pole saint). The wali kutub themselves have

three levels: aktab, ghasul azam, and ulah. Aktab (A. pole of pole saint) is

the highest of the three and such saints are called mursyid kamil (A. perfect

masters and heirs of the Prophet). Kutub aktab (A. the highest pole saint) are

also referred to as mursyid kamil (A. perfect masters), insan kamil (A.

perfect human), syiekh (A. leader and noble person), or waris rasul (A. heir

of the Prophet). They are the ‘friends’ of Allah, who can take light from Him

and share it with human beings. The Süleymancıs regard Süleyman Hilmi

Tunahan as a wali aktab and mursyid kamil.

The Süleymancıs believe that becoming a mursyid kamil is not something

that one can ask for or which can be achieved through one’s own efforts;

rather it is a position for which one must be chosen by Allah Himself. It is

said that Syiekh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan made this clear when he said, “O

my children [students], this [to become the mursyid kamil] is not my desire;

I was chosen by Allah”.

Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan’s status among his followers, as a wali kutub of the

highest rank, means that he still has spiritual authority, which is evident

socially in a number of ways. Not only does he inspire the devotion of

numerous followers, which has been the basis of the Süleymancı movement,

but he also holds the highest position among the members and is accepted as

their only Sufi master and advisor. His death has not diminished this role, as

the Süleymancıs accept the view, expressed in the book of Altun Silsile, that a

muryid kamil (such as Syeikh Süleyman) is capable of giving advice (irsyad)

directly to his initiates through what is called ‘uwasi irsyad’ (A. guided


without meeting), even though he has passed away. In the Nakşibendi Sufi

tradition, there are several reported cases of irsyad (A. guided) using the

above mechanism, the most popular one involving Abul Hasan Harkani.

With this mechanism of uwasi irsyad, the Süleymancıs maintain the idea of

Syeikh Süleyman serves as the sole spiritual director on the esoteric plane for

all initiates in the movement. He is also regarded as the final heir of the

Prophet Muhammad PBUH, having been born to refresh the religion

(mujadid) of Allah after a period of a hundred years since the death of the

next-to-last mursyid kamil.

Figure 26: Altun Silsile


6.7 SUFI RITUALS OF THE SÜLEYMANCIS

Central to the Sufi character of the Süleymancıs is their attachment to the

Sufi master, Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan. This is embedded in the spiritual

framework of Süleymancı teachings, which undergird classroom lessons,

Islamic ritual, and everyday life in the dormitories. First, during the

recruitment of students, interviewers try to detect the potential students’ true

motives for studying in a Süleymancı school. This affects their choice of

students. Once living in a dormitory, students absorb appropriate

understandings through ritual habituation and personal spiritual contact

with the abi, and, once initiated, with the Sufi master, Syeikh Tuhanan. For

students who go on to advanced study, understandings are stabilized and

maturated at the tekamul level. Finally, authority as a graduate of the

Süleymancı schools is granted to the students on their completion of this

level. Sufi rituals such as rabita (making a connection to the Sufi master,

initially through initiation) and khatim (group zikir), described below,

provide the setting and techniques for experiencing spiritual intimacy, via

Syeikh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan, with God.

6.7.1 Rabita: The Guru–Student Connection

As previously mentioned, among Süleymancıs and among Sufi brotherhoods

generally, it is understood that in order to perform Sufi practices safely, one

needs to devote oneself to a Sufi master. This can be done by making a

pledge, generally called bai’at, to a Sufi master to establish a bond of loyalty

and obedience. Through this bond a spiritual connection is opened. In the

Süleymancı tradition, the pledge is called ‘rabita’. Originally derived from

Arabic, this word was used in Turkish with the same meaning as bai’at,

namely ‘to bond’ or ‘a bonding’. Among the Süleymancıs, it means a


connection (bond) between Syeikh Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan and his

students.

The ritual of the rabita itself takes place in stages. Generally speaking, new

applicants to the Süleymancıs will be asked during their interviews about

their understanding of Islamic mysticism (tasawwuf). If they reject the idea

completely, then they most likely will not be admitted as a student. If they

accept the idea but have already taken a pledge with another Sufi master and

show no intention of changing their minds to be bound instead to the Syeikh

of the Süleymancıs, then they will also be rejected. An applicant who

indicates that he or she would like to learn more about Sufism and ultimately

form a spiritual connection with the Syeikh is likely (other things being

equal) to be a successful applicant. It is very important to the Süleymancıs to

make sure that their students are prepared to form this spiritual bond with

Syeikh Süleyman as their Sufi master.

When applicants have been accepted as students by the Süleymancıs, they

are introduced to the study of Sufism (tasawwuf) using the Altun Silsile as a

text. At the same time, they are given simple rituals to practise. They are then

observed to see if they are ready for the next stage, the initiation. This period

of observation is particularly important for beginners in the Sufi practice.

Only if they show the ability to regularly practise what they are taught to do,

will they be asked if they would like to take rabita. I myself was once offered

the opportunity to take rabita during my period of data collection at the

Rawamangun Süleymancıs’ dormitory. However, for several reasons,

including the fact that I was in the process of research, I declined the offer.

However, as I observed, when a person accepts the offer to take rabita, and

does so, then he will be required to practise the initiation prayers and litanies

regularly. The rabita ritual is actually quite simple and short. One needs only


to recite a particular zikir (lit. remembrance [of Allah]; in practice, a short

phrase from the Qur’an repeated a specified number of times) and imagine

himself before the Syeikh making a personal connection with him. The ritual

takes about fifteen minutes and is usually done in the early morning before

the morning (fajr) prayer.

Among the Süleymancıs, there is considerable appreciation for students who

have taken the rabita and practise it. This is because in taking rabita, a

person officially becomes a real part of the Süleymancı brotherhood. By

connecting oneself to the Sufi master, one actually connects to the rest of the

Süleymancı membership all over the world. A person is then expected to

maintain a program of spiritual life in the Süleymancıs’ way. During some

rituals, the members of the movement who have taken the rabita are

allocated special seating positions distinguishing them from the rest of the

congregation.

The next stage of the rabita is bestowal of the authority to give rabita to

others. This is mostly given to students who have already graduated from the

highest level of the Süleymancı education system, the tekamul. The tekamul

is a relatively exclusive level of education, available only in Turkey. When

students have completed this particular level, they are given authority to

teach and give rabita to other people. This authority establishes a person in a

distinct status and gives prestige. Such a person becomes the ‘arms of the

Syeikh’, connecting initiates to Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan as their Sufi

master. However, on an esoteric level, the initiation establishes an enduring

spiritual connection between the initiate and Syeikh Süleyman, not with the

initiating abi.


6.7.2 Khatim: Group Remembrance Ritual

While rabita is an individual practice undertaken by initiates, khatim is

normally practised in a group and includes people who are not initiates. The

basic form of the khatim is a long recitation of zikir litanies, which can be

divided equally among the members if it is practised in a group. The group

practice is meant not only for personal spiritual benefit but also to foster the

connection among Süleymancıs or between the Süleymancıs and outsiders.

When outsiders attend, they can learn about Sufi spirituality as it is

understood and practised by the Süleymancıs.

Among the Süleymancıs in Indonesia, khatim is scheduled three times a

week in the evening, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Sundays. During my

period of observation, the khatim was attended at times by as few as five

people, or by as many as 150 or more members of the organization. The

Süleymancıs welcome outsiders to participate in the khatim rituals, although

this might be in a limited way because they have not been initiated to the

Syeikh. This particular activity still provides outsiders an occasion where they

can learn more about the Süleymancıs’ activities. For the Süleymancıs, the

event is also a useful place for networking with other members. Further, it

serves to display the Sufi features and identity of the Süleymancıs before the

public.

6.8 IDENTITY

According to Bruinessen (Bruinessen, 1994, p. 19), Sufi orders fulfill a

number of functions, not only religious but also non-religious. Each tarikat is

a social network, and membership in a tarikat can bring one social contacts

which are potentially useful for finding work, a place to live, help in


difficulties, and so on. For some members the tarikat is also a substitute for,

or supplement to, family bonds, offering the emotional warmth and

protection the initiate does not find elsewhere. Dominguez Diaz (2011, p.

230) has argued that ritual practice can showcase the identity of religious

groups, as well as serve as a mechanism for personal religious

transformation. In the case of the Süleymancıs, the Nakşibendi Sufi order of

which they are a part fosters a strong sense of identity. By taking a rabita to

the Syeikh, one not only connects to the Syeikh himself and through him to

God, but one also connects to the entire body of students of the Syeikh

everywhere. Initiates become part of the jamaah (the community) of the

Süleymancıs. As they say, “Later we will be resurrected in the hereafter with

our community. And we will be resurrected with the Syiekh among us”.

6.9 CONCLUSION: THE SÜLEYMANCIS AS A SUFI-ORIENTED

PIETY MOVEMENT

This chapter has argued that the three Turkish-origin transnational Islamic

movements use a common Nakşibendi Sufi heritage, each in their own way.

Neither the Nurcu nor the Gülen movements claim to have followed any

particular Sufi order (tarikat). However, many studies have shown that both

Said Nursî and Fethullah Gülen were inspired to a certain extent by

Nakşibendi Sufism. This influence can be seen in the Sufi lifestyle practised

by the members of both the Nurcu and Gülen movements. In addition to

that, Sufi influence can be seen in the values they teach and in their activities

and programs.

Of the three movements, the Süleymancı movement is the only one that

claims an affiliation with a Sufi order, through its spiritual connection


(rabita) with its Syeikh, who is a master in the Nakşibendi godly chain of

authority (silsilah) reaching back to the Prophet. The Süleymancıs have been

able to preserve this classic form of Sufi spiritual community and esoteric

practice in modern Turkey and actually extend it around the world today.

They have been able to combine their variant of esoteric Sufism with other

exoteric teaching in a way that is both familiar and attractive to Indonesians,

despite the movement’s foreign origins.

This examination of Sufi linkages underpinning the Süleymancı global

movement and of the ways these linkages have supported the growth of the

Süleymancıs in Indonesia, lends further weight to the estimation thatt

tarikat Sufism has a future as part of Indonesian Islam and can be

successfully wed to modern institutional forms (cf.(Howell, 2012)).


CHAPTER VII: CONCLUSION

7.1 INTRODUCTION

The establishment of the Turkish Süleymancı movement in Indonesia has

been shown to exemplify the growing prominence and vigour of

transnational religious movements. Since the appearance of the first

universalistic religions, particularly Buddhism, which conceived a path of

salvation which is in principle open to any human being, religions have been

spreading beyond their place of origin to diverse geographic and cultural

communities across the globe. After the formation of nation states, and the

spread of bureaucratic organization across modernizing societies, the

universalistic religions have become literally ‘trans-national’ religious

movements, and increasingly rely on bureaucratic structures and modern

communications technologies to maintain and build their global connections.

The Süleymancı movement from Turkey, is one such movement. By

effectively utilizing modern communications and bureaucratic structure, the

movement has been able to extend beyond Turkey, first to European Turkish

diaspora communities, and then to non-diaspora communities, including to

Indonesia and maintain tight supervision across national boundaries. This

study of the Süleymancı movement in Indonesia, the largest Muslim majority

country in the world, but one with only a very small Turkish diaspora

community has been investigated to show how the Süleymancı movement

has been able to successfully establish itself and grow in the Indonesian

context.

This thesis has addressed this question through the lens of transnationalism

theory, opportunity space theory and the concept of glocalization. As

background, the thesis reviewed the origins of the Süleymancı movement as a


proselytizing religious organization active in the public sphere in secular

modern Turkey and then followed accounts of its transformation into a

transnational movement, initially in countries with large Turkish diaspora

communities, through the practice of hizmet (religious service).

7.2 THE SÜLEYMANCIS AS A TRANSNATIONAL RELIGIOUS

REVIVAL ORGANIZATION IN INDONESIA

The UICCI’s name reflects the organization’s efforts to identify its outreach in

such a way as to be acceptable within the legal framework of religious

administration in Indonesia, and not cause alarm to the Indonesian public.

In a similar way, the Süleymancı organization in Indonesia later adopted the

term ‘pondok pesantren’ to describe its outreach centres.

While the Süleymancıs have made some adaptations to the Indonesian social

environment, the branch there is firmly integrated into the transnational

bureaucratic organization. The Süleymancı organization in Indonesia is

linked to the Süleymancı movement in Turkey and to branches of the

movement in other parts of the world through a formally constituted, multi-

level organization, the main office of which is in Istanbul, Turkey. Followers

of the Süleymancı movement in Turkey and in Turkish diaspora communities

have been crucial to the operation of this transnational organization. They

donate their services to the organization, making many kinds of short and

longer visits to Indonesia, and some have moved there to help run the

Indonesian Süleymancı branches. Turkish Süleymancıs in wealthier regions

of the world also donate funds that are crucial to running the organization in

Indonesia. However, in Indonesia and elsewhere, local Muslims have been

important partners in the establishment of the organization and, as the


movement has grown in Indonesia, in its everyday operation. Thus, alongside

the formal bureaucratic structure that links the Süleymancı movement across

time and space, other informal and highly personal linkages have formed and

help underpin formal global linkages.

The thesis has also described the religious bonds, such as initiation and

obligation to one’s initiating teacher (rabita), that helps motivate

commitment to the organisation and contributions to it. The rabita connects

the Süleymancıs to their Sheikh, Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan, founder of the

Süleymancı movement, and so also to fellow initiates and the movement

generally.

The Süleymancı education system, like the formal organisation that delivers

it, also spans the globe. It has four levels, ranging from basic to advance.

However, the advanced level of Islamic education is only available in Turkey,

which means that students wanting to graduate from this highest level of

Süleymancı education must travel to Turkey to study. As noted, students

from Indonesia who have gone on to advanced study in Turkey see this as a

positive thing. If chosen to go, they have the opportunity to experience the

Islamic culture of Turkey, with its long history stretching back to the

Ottoman era and the time of the last caliphate in the Islamic world. They are,

however, then morally obliged to serve the organization as teachers and

administrators, often in countries other than their place of origin. These

moral bonds further reinforce the strength of the formal administrative

structure, which binds the Süleymancı movement across local and national

boundaries.

Unlike the transnational militant and fundamentalist Islamic groups in

Indonesia, documented by Hasan (2009), Süleymancı organizations value


peaceful accommodation to Islam and religious diversity. This is

demonstrated by their identification with the ahlussunnah wa al jamaah, of

which the largest Indonesian Islamic voluntary organization is the Nahdlatul

Ulama. It is also demonstrated by their reliance on the practices of the

Hanafi School of Islamic law, while still accepting the validity of other

schools of law, such as the Syafi’i School (dominant in Indonesia). This

identification is reflected in the UICCI curriculum and in its ritual practices,

which are similar to that of NU pesantren. The UICCI also promotes

Nakşibendi Sufi practices, which are condemned by scripturalist and Islamist

movements.

The moderate approach of the Süleymancıs in Indonesia has proven useful in

two ways. First, it is able to find acceptance in Indonesia, where most

Muslims reject radical Islam. Second, it is able to create a successful outreach

program. Indeed, its moderate attitude to religious pluralism,139 and its role

139 The vast majority of Indonesian Muslims are moderate and positive in

attitude toward the religious pluralism. This can be seen from their acceptance of

the Pancasila, set out in the Preamble to the Constitution, as the basis of the state.

The Pancasila, or Five Principles of citizenship, include as their first principle

keTuhanan Yang Maha Esa (‘belief in One God’). Read together with passages in

the Constitution on religion (agama), the Pancasila guarantees religious freedom.

Historically, there have attempts by some Indonesian Muslims to establish an

Islamic state in Indonesia through rebellion such as that of the Darul Islam

movement (Dijk, 1981), or via Islamic parties that have sought by democratic means

to amend the Constitution to require the state to impose Islamic law on Muslim

citizens. But all these attempts have failed (Baswedan, 2004; Hosen, 2010). This is

because Islamic parties calling for Indonesia to be an Islamic state when Indonesia

has had free elections have never won a majority of seats. This has shown that

Indonesian Muslims are overwhelmingly pluralist. In addition, the existence of two

large Muslim organizations with significantly different approaches to Islamic

exegesis and law (the Nahdlatul Ulama and the Muhammadiyah), rather than one

dominant group also arguably encourages the community to be more open towards


in encouraging the peaceful co-existence of different religious tendencies in

society, justifies treating it as, in Asef Bayat’s (2005, 2007) terms, a ‘post-

Islamist’ piety movement (see also Barton (2014, p. 289)). Its ‘post-Islamist’

posture is also evident in its avoidance of politics in Indonesia, and in the fact

that it does not aim for an Islamic state.

Since its establishment in 2005, the United Islamic Cultural Centre of

Indonesia (UICCI), the Indonesian branch of the Süleymancıs, has opened

seventeen branches across the country. This has made it the most successful

Süleymancı organization in the Asia Pacific region. The Süleymancı

movement in Australia, however, has grown comparatively little over a longer

period of time, even though it helped found the Indonesian branch and

Australian Süleymancıs make significant contributions to the UICCI.

This thesis has also demonstrated that the success of the Süleymancı

movement in Indonesia has been facilitated by its sensitivity to its new

cultural environment, and its effective utilization of what Yavuz (2003) called

‘opportunity spaces’ in Indonesian society.

7.3 THE SÜLEYMANCI MOVEMENT AND ‘OPPORTUNITY SPACES’

IN INDONESIA

In Indonesia, as in Turkey, the success of the Süleymancı movement can be

attributed to its practical and effective use of ‘educational opportunity

spaces’. In Turkey the Süleymancıs have been able to find and utilize

opportunity spaces in education, politics, and the economy. In Indonesia the

the complexities of social life and recognize the diversity of opinion among Muslims,

even on matters of Islamic law and how it should be applied in a modern nation

state (Mujani, 2007).


UICCI (Indonesian Süleymancı organization) has utilized only the ‘education

opportunity space’ recently expanding because of the popularity of private

Islamic education, and especially Qur’an memorization. While private

Islamic education has been offered by many providers in Indonesia, the

Süleymancı movement has been able to compete by offering free Islamic

studies tuition and high quality dormitory accommodation with provision for

students to attend general curriculum schools. They also offer a distinctive

Turkish Ottoman Qur’an memorization method, which, it claimed, yields

much faster results than other methods currently used in Indonesia. The

Süleymancı’s unique method for memorizing the Qur’an, its study system,

and its institutional setting met the educational needs and piety aspirations

of a significant number of young Indonesian Muslims, especially those from

less affluent homes.

A number of other factors have served to attract students and movement

supporters in Indonesia. The Süleymancıs run a second charitable service

(hizmet) program alongside their free Islamic education program: qurban

(the ritual distribution of meat to the Muslim community). Charity to fellow

Muslims is a particularly important commitment for Süleymancıs. Since its

foundation in Turkey, the movement has emphasized this form of service as

an important religious duty. Another factor in the popularity of the

Süleymancıs in Indonesia is that they have by now produced a number of

Indonesian graduates who have subsequently gone on to become teachers

(abi) in UICCI dormitory schools. These abis are now playing important roles

in the UICCI schools and are seen by the Indonesian public as exemplars of

what the Süleymancı educational system can produce.

The Süleymancı hizmet in its several forms has enabled the movement to

attract significant approval and patronage in Indonesia. Local supporters


(ikhwan) of the Süleymancı movement are also contributing to the

establishment of schools in cities across Indonesia (for example in

Kalimantan, Aceh and Medan) and supporting their local schools.

While access to a growing Islamic education opportunity space in Indonesia

has been shown to have facilitated the Süleymancıs’ establishment there, it is

worthwhile pointing out the historical and social factors that have made

possible the expansion of that ‘opportunity space’ in Indonesia. These include

both developments in the political and in the economic spheres in the years

leading up to the arrival of the Süleymancıs and in the time of their recent

operation there.

7.3.1 The Indonesian Government and Democracy

After the demise of former President Suharto’s authoritarian New Order in

1998, and the advent of the Reformasi (Reform) era, democratic reforms

allowed the formation of independent political parties, inclulding many new

Islamic parties, and a much broader range of religious expression. It became

easier, also, for religious groups and movement of all sorts to operate freely

in the country. While there has been a considerable restriction of religious

expression since 2005, nonetheless mainstream Islamic groups clearly

affirming syariah and not challenging the democratic state (like the

Süleymancıs) have actually enjoyed both popular and government support.

7.3.2 Economic Neoliberalization

In the 1990s in Indonesia the New Order government began to loosen state

control over the country’s economy. This economic liberalisation continued

in the post-1998 period of political reform and facilitated further expansion


of the Indonesian middle class. That early period of rapid growth of

Indonesia’s middle class had begun in the 1970s in the early years of the New

Order as a result of that regime’s strenuous push for economic development

and expansion of education (both in state schools and in Islamic schools

prepared to include general curriculum studies). The New Order economic

development programs and investment in education benefitted Indonesian

children in the Islamic schools sector as well as others and resulted in the

growth of a ‘new Muslim middle class’ (Hefner, 2000).

The continuing growth of Indonesia’s new Muslim middle class in the

Reformasi period has meant that in Indonesia, as in Turkey since its

economic liberalisation, Muslims oriented to religious charities have had

more funds to offer, and Muslims generally have increased their aspirations

for quality Islamic education with a global outlook for their children. The

Süleymancıs have been able to join home-grown charities and schools

catering to Muslim middle class families aspirations to use their money to

conduct pious lives.

7.4 ADAPTATION OF THE SÜLEYMANCI MOVEMENT IN THE

INDONESIAN CONTEXT

Using the concept of ‘glocalization’, this thesis also explored other factors

that helped the Süleymancı movement to attract Indonesian Muslims and

gain support from the Indonesian government.

By the time the Süleymancı movement arrived in Indonesia it was already a

well-established transnational religious movement with standardized

institutional practices. In Indonesia, the movement adapted to local

understandings. One example of this was the way in which the movement


presented its Islamic boarding schools to Indonesians. Initially, Süleymancı

dormitories were called asrama Turki, which literally translates from the

Turkish word ‘yurt’ (I. asrama). After several years, the Indonesian

Süleymancıs recognized that this term did not properly represent their idea

of a boarding school, nor was it attracting Indonesian Muslims. This was

primarily because the word ‘asrama’ means ‘shelter’ rather than ‘Islamic

boarding school’.

The Süleymancı movement adopted the local term, ‘pondok pesantren’,

meaning ‘Islamic boarding school’, for its schools in Indonesia. This enabled

the movement to connect its dormitory, character-focused, religious

education with similar, well-respected, and widespread indigenous religious

educational institutions in Indonesia. This facilitated popular local

understandings of the Süleymancı educational approach. It also meant that

Süleymancı boarding schools were entitled to support from the Ministry of

Religious Affairs. In Indonesia, the Ministry of Religious Affairs is tasked

with providing support to educational institutions or pondok pesantren.

Notably, however, the Süleymancı movement made a distinction between its

pesantren and other pesantren in Indonesia. To highlight its unique

educational program, specifically speed-learning to recite the whole Qur’an

from memory, the Süleymancı movement officially renamed its centres

‘Pondok Pesantren Tahfidz Sulaimaniyah’ (Sulaimaniyah Qur’an

Memorization Islamic Boarding Schools). This name was first used for the

UICCI Rawamangun school in East Jakarta.


7.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE RESEARCH

This case study of a Turkish transnational Islamic reform movement in

Indonesia is the first of its kind. Previous studies of the Süleymancıs have

focused on the Süleymancı movement in Turkey, and the movement’s early

spread into Turkish diaspora communities in Europe. This study is the first

to investigate the movement’s development in Asia. It is also the first to study

the movement from the perspective of transnational organizational

dynamics.

This study demonstrates that in a region such as Indonesia, where the

Turkish diaspora community is hardly evident, a Turkish religious movement

can not only be successfully established but also develop significantly. It

follows, therefore, that the successful development of a Turkish Islamic piety

movement need not be confined to Turkish diaspora communities.

Nontheless, this study shows the vital importance of Turks, in their home

country and in diaspora countries, to outreach efforts in poorer Muslim

heritage regions, that are the developing countries where significant number

of Muslims lives. Moreover one might speculate that the recipient branches

in poorer countries, such as in Indonesia, benefit the global Süleymancı

organization, not only by enlarging its sphere of influence but by offering

opportunities for more pious Turkish Süleymancıs to cultivate their own

piety through donations of funds as well as of their own time and talents.

7.6 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE WORK

At the outset it was noted that Indonesia is now home to two other Turkish

transnational movements with somewhat different programs. Further work

might examine the Gülen movement in Indonesia from the same theoretical


perspective, in order to provide a more systematic comparison of these

movements.

Further work might also examine Süleymancı organizations in other Muslim-

heritage regions that do not have a Turkish diaspora community, to identify

other circumstances that have helped or limited the movement’s growth

there.

In general, there is a need for studies that provide a more complete picture of

transnational Islamic movements. At present, studies of Islamic revivalist

movements are weighted towards state-capture and violent groups, and

groups originating from Arabia, Central Asia, and South Asia. Further work

could redress this imbalance. It would also allow for further theoretical

refinement and better appreciation of the cultural and political scope of

transnational Islamic movements. This would provide a better understanding

of transnational Islamic movements in the contemporary world.


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transnational religion: a case study of the ......dr arskal salim, my associate supervisors at the...

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