There is little doubt that that the

There is little doubt that that there is a lot of diversity within Islam and Muslims, not
least in Southeast Asia; in fact they live in multicultural societies. Muslims are of course
majority in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei Darussalam; but they are minority in Singapore,
Thailand, and the Phillipines. There are substantive segments of non-Muslims in Southeast
Asia in general.
Furthermore, the diversity among Muslims is true not only in terms of Islamic
religious doctrines and understanding, but even more in terms of social, cultural, economic,
and political lives. Therefore, it is very misleading indeed to view Islam or Muslims as
monolithic entity. There are of course some universal fundamental aspects of Islamic
teachings that are beleved and practised by Muslims—including those of Southeast Asia, for
instance, but these do not conceal a much greater diversity and multiculturalism within Islam
and Muslims.
While in due course I am going to elaborate further diversity and plurality in Islamic
thought, I would like to indicate diversity within Islam and Muslims by locating at least eight
cultural realms in the Islamic (or Muslim) world. Each of Islamic cultural realm represents
some distinctive features vis-à-vis other Islamic cultural spheres.

The eight Islamic cultural realms are as the following: First, Arab Islamic cultural
realm; second, Persian (or Iran) Islamic cultural realm; third, Turkish Islamic cultural realm;
fourth, the Indian sub-continent Islamic cultural sphere; fifth, Malay-Indonesian Islamic
cultural sphere; sixth, sub-Sahara (or black Africa) Islamic cultural realm; seventh, Sino International Conference on Muslims in Multicultural Societies * 14-16 July 2010, Grand Hyatt Singapore
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Islamic cultural realm; and eight, Western hemisphere Islamic cultural realm. It is no place to
discuss each of the cultural realm; therefore, for the purpose of this paper, a special attention
will be given only to the Malay-Indonesian (Southeast Asian) Islamic cultural realm.

Diversity of Islamic Thought

Islamic thought is very complex. The complexity of Islamic thought is even greater
in philosophical, dogmatic, theoretical, and conceptual aspects of it especially if one puts it in
the context of recent international development such as the September 11, 2001 terrorist
attack in the U.S, and the subsequent US military campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq. There
is a lot of on going discussion among Muslim scholars and thinkers on the meaning of jihad,
for instance, in relation to perceived enemies of Islam and Muslims.
The complexity is also great in the context of Southeast Asian Islam, particularly in
Indonesia. In addition to having a great deal of affinities with Middle Eastern Islam, Islam in
this region possesses a number of distinctive characters due its different historical, social,
cultural and political realities.
There has been a lot of discussion whether or not Islam is one or many and by
extension whether or not Islamic thought is monolithic or pluralistic. There are many among
Muslims who maintain that Islam is only one; they refuse the perception that Islam is many.
Responding to this matter, I would argue that at the level of the Qur’an—the original and
primary source of Islam—Islam is one. There is no disagreement among Muslims that the
Qur’an is God’s revelation sent down to the Prophet Muhammad. But Muslims from the
time of post-Prophet Muhammad have been in disagreement about the the Prophetic
tradition (hadith, the second source of Islam). This because many Muslim religious scholars
(`ulama’) regards a certain portion of hadith is false and fabricated by certain people.
However, it is important to make it clear that the Qur’an and valid hadith need
interpretation (ijtihad) from the `ulama’ in order to formulate workable and implementable
Islamic doctrines. The formulation of the `ulama’ especially in the field of `aqidah (beliefs)
and fiqh (elaborated interpretation of general principles of shari`ah contained in the Qur’an, International Conference on Muslims in Multicultural Societies * 14-16 July 2010, Grand Hyatt Singapore
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or rather, Islamic jurisprudence) are generally very detailed. Influenced by certain
sociological, cultural, historical and political factors, differing if not conflicting interpretation
of certain verses of the Qur’an and hadith among Muslim `ulama’ have been existing not long
after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. As a result at the sociological level, there are
many “Islams” or, to put it in a more precise way, there are many expressions of Islam
throughout Islamic history.
Sunni and Shi`i
It is important to point out that much of the differences among Muslims had its
origins not in the religious discourse, but in the political disputes and conflicts between the
followers of `Uthman ibn Affan, the third caliph, and of `Ali ibn Abi Talib, the fourth caliph
of the four rightly-guided caliphs (al-khulafa’ al-rashidun). The conflicts, involving civil wars
(al-fitnah al-kubra), among Muslims, resulted not only in the continued political struggles in
the subsequent periods of Islamic history, but also in the rise a great number of theological
schools (kalam).
The first small splinter group was the Kharijis (seceders) who seceded from the
ummah (Muslim nation) because they believed that other Muslims who had involved in the
conflicts were sinners and, therefore, became infidels (kafir). Taking literal interpretation of
certain verses of the Qur’an, the Kharijis maintained that all differences and conflicts among
Muslims should be resolved (tahkim) according to the Qur’an only. Citing a verse in the
Qur’an, they insisted that those Muslims who did not resolve their conflicts by using the law
of God, they had become infidels (kafirs). Based on this belief, the Khariji launched
subversive and violent activities against any ruler in the region now is known as the Middle
East. The reminiscent of the Kharijis can also be found in a number of violent and radical
Muslim groups in the Middle East today, whom could be called as “neo-Khariji” groups.
The second group which is much larger are the followers of `Ali ibn Abi Talib,
whom had been persecuted by Mu`awiyyah ibn Abi Sufyan, the most prominent and shrewd
leader of the `Uthman ibn Affan group. Claiming the caliphate for himself at the expense of
`Ali, Mu`awiyyah’s son, Yazid, killed Husayn, `Ali’s son, in the battle of Karbela, Iraq. Since International Conference on Muslims in Multicultural Societies * 14-16 July 2010, Grand Hyatt Singapore
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then the followers of `Ali have had been known as the Shi`ite, simply means the “party” of
`Ali, but later developed a distinct religio-political doctrines. The growth of the doctrines had
a lot to do with Shi`i’s bitter political experience during much of their history since the time
of `Ali ibn Abi Talib, the first imam of the Shi`is.
In terms of theology, however, the Shi`is have not developed their own. Rather, they
generally adopted the rational and philosophical theology that had been formulated by the
Sunnis, more precisely by the Mu`tazilis, discussed briefly below. The case is also the same in
Sufism, where the Shi`is mainly adopted philosophical or theoretical Sufism as proposed by
great Sunni thinkers such as Ibn `Arabi. In terms of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) there are
more affinities and similarities rather than differences between the Shi`is and Sunnis. Some
differences among them related mainly to the issue of nikah mut`ah (marriage for
convenience), that is generally accepted by some Shi`i `ulama’ but is despised by their Sunni
counterparts.
The most apparent distinctive trait of Shi`ism lies in the religio-political field. Again,
this has a lot to do with Shi`i bitter political experience in much of their history. Religiously
and politically, the Shi`ites are led by the imams by way of a hierarchical rigid structure of the
`ulama’. Generally there were 12 imams who were responsible for leading the Shi`ite masses
in political struggles against any rulers whom were regarded as having had usurped the
imam’s sole rights of the political power. In the medieval period of Islam, there were a
number of Shi`i dynasties in the Middle East such as the Buwaihid and the Fatimids, but
they did not last very long until in the early 16th century during which the Muslim world saw
the rise of the Safavid dynasty in Persia. In the contemporary time Sh`ism has its strongest
ground in Iran, Iraq and the Yemen.
The third largest—in fact the majority of Muslims—is the Ahl al-Sunnah wa alJama`ah,
or better known simply as the Sunnis. Despite their dislike of the way Mu`awiyah
and Yazid treated `Ali ibn Talib, Hasan ibn `Ali, and Husayn ibn `Ali, the Sunnis preferred
to keep the unity of Muslims (jama`ah) under the banner of the “caliphate” of the Umayyad,
Abbasids, Ottoman, and other Sunni Muslim political entities. In the political thought and
tradition, as we will elaborate below, the Sunnis have been very submissive to the rulers who International Conference on Muslims in Multicultural Societies * 14-16 July 2010, Grand Hyatt Singapore
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were able not only to co-opt the `ulama’ but also to gain religious justification from the
`ulama’ for their absolute power.
In terms of theology, as a response to the Khariji, a limited number of the Sunni
`ulama’ developed Mu`tazilite theology, which basically proposed that Muslims who had been
involved in the conflicts between the followers of Mu`awiyah ibn Abi Sufyan and `Ali ibn
Abi Talib were neither Muslims nor kafir (infidels), but rather they were in a place between
two places (al-manzilah bayn manzilatayn). The Mu`tazilites developed a very intricate
theological doctrines relating to the “nature” of God. Basically, the Mu`tazilites formulated
an anthropocentric theo

Hasil (Bahasa Indonesia) 1:

Ada sedikit keraguan bahwa yang banyak keragaman dalam Islam dan Muslim, tidak adasetidaknya di Asia Tenggara; bahkan mereka hidup dalam masyarakat multikultural. Muslim yang tentu sajamayoritas di Indonesia, Malaysia, dan Brunei Darussalam; tetapi mereka minoritas di Singapura,Thailand dan Filipina. Ada substantif segmen dari non-Muslim di TenggaraAsia pada umumnya.Selanjutnya, perbedaan di antara Muslim benar tidak hanya dalam hal Islamdoktrin agama dan pemahaman, tetapi bahkan lebih dalam hal sosial, budaya, ekonomi,dan politik kehidupan. Oleh karena itu, sangat menyesatkan memang untuk melihat Islam atau Muslim sebagaientitas monolitik. Tentu saja ada beberapa aspek mendasar yang universal Islamajaran-ajaran yang beleved dan dipraktekkan oleh Muslim — termasuk Asia Tenggara, untukMisalnya, tapi ini tidak menyembunyikan jauh lebih besar keragaman dan multikulturalisme dalam Islamdan Muslim. Sementara pada waktunya aku akan menjelaskan lebih lanjut keragaman dan pluralitas pribadi dalam Islamberpikir, saya ingin menunjukkan keragaman dalam Islam dan Muslim dengan menempatkan setidaknya delapanalam budaya di dunia Islam (atau Muslim). Masing-masing bidang budaya Islam merupakanbeberapa keistimewaan vis-à-vis bulatan-bulatan lain budaya Islam. Delapan alam budaya Islam adalah sebagai berikut: pertama, Arab Islam budayaalam; kedua, Persia (atau Iran) Islam budaya dunia; ketiga, Turki Islam budaya dunia;keempat, India sub benua Islam lingkup budaya; kelima, Malay-Indonesian Islamlingkup budaya; keenam, sub Sahara (atau hitam Afrika) alam budaya Islam; ketujuh, Sino International Conference on Muslim di masyarakat multikultural * 14-16 Juli 2010, Grand Hyatt SingaporeFotokopi draft. Tidak untuk dikutip.- 2 -Alam budaya Islam; dan delapan, belahan bumi barat wilayah budaya Islam. Hal ini tidak ada tempat untukmembahas masing-masing bidang budaya; oleh karena itu, untuk tujuan karya tulis ini, perhatian khususakan diberikan hanya kepada Malay-Indonesian (Asia Tenggara) Islam budaya dunia.Keragaman pemikiran Islam Pemikiran Islam sangat kompleks. Kompleksitas dari pemikiran Islam bahkan lebih besardalam aspek filosofis, dogmatis, teoritis dan konseptual itu terutama jika satu menempatkan dalamkonteks perkembangan internasional seperti teroris 11 September 2001menyerang di AS, dan berikutnya kami kampanye militer di Afghanistan dan Irak. Adaada banyak diskusi terjadi di antara cendekiawan Muslim dan pemikir pada arti jihad,Misalnya, dalam kaitannya dengan dirasakan musuh Islam dan Muslim. Kompleksitas juga besar dalam konteks Islam Asia Tenggara, terutama diIndonesia. Selain memiliki banyak afinitas dengan Timur Tengah Islam, Islam didaerah ini memiliki sejumlah karakter khas karena yang berbeda sejarah, sosial,realitas budaya dan politik.Telah ada banyak diskusi Apakah Islam satu atau banyak dan olehekstensi apakah atau tidak pemikiran Islam monolitik atau pluralistik. Ada banyak di antaraMuslim yang mempertahankan bahwa Islam adalah hanya satu; mereka menolak persepsi bahwa Islam banyak.Menanggapi hal ini, saya akan berpendapat bahwa pada tingkat Al Qur'an — yang asli dansumber utama Islam — Islam adalah satu. Ada tidak ada ketidaksepakatan antara Muslim yangAl Qur'an adalah wahyu Allah yang diturunkan kepada Nabi Muhammad. Tapi Muslim dariwaktu pasca Nabi Muhammad telah bercanggahan tentang profetiktradisi (hadits, kedua sumber Islam). Hal ini karena banyak ulama MuslimSalam ('ulama') suatu bagian tertentu dari hadits ini bohong dan palsu oleh orang-orang tertentu.Namun, sangat penting untuk membuat jelas bahwa Al Qur'an dan Hadis yang valid perluinterpretasi (ijtihad) dari ulama' untuk merumuskan bisa diterapkan dan diimplementasikanDoktrin-doktrin Islam. Perumusan ulama' terutama di bidang ' aqidah (keyakinan)dan fiqh (diuraikan interpretasi dari prinsip-prinsip umum dari syariat yang terkandung dalam Al-Qur'an, International Conference on Muslim di masyarakat multikultural * 14-16 Juli 2010, Grand Hyatt SingaporeFotokopi draft. Tidak untuk dikutip.- 3 -atau lebih tepatnya, Fiqih Islam) umumnya sangat rinci. Dipengaruhi oleh tertentuSosiologi, budaya, sejarah dan politik faktor, berbeda jika tidak bertentangan interpretasiayat-ayat tertentu Al Qur'an dan Hadis antara Muslim 'ulama' telah ada tidak lamasetelah kematian Nabi Muhammad. Hasilnya di tingkat sosiologis, adabanyak "Islam" atau, untuk memasukkannya ke dalam cara yang lebih tepat, ada banyak ungkapan Islamsepanjang sejarah Islam.Sunni dan Syi'ahSangat penting untuk menunjukkan bahwa banyak perbedaan antara Muslim punya nyaasal-usul tidak dalam wacana keagamaan, tetapi dalam politik perselisihan dan konflik antarapengikut ' Utsman bin Affan, Khalifah ketiga, dan ' Ali bin Abi Thalib, Khalifah keempatdari empat benar dipandu Khalifah (al-khulafa' al-Khulafaur Rasyidin). Konflik, melibatkan perang sipil(al-fitnah al-Kubro), diantara umat Islam, mengakibatkan tidak hanya melanjutkan perjuangan politik diperiode berikutnya sejarah Islam, tetapi juga dalam kebangkitan sejumlah besar teologisSekolah (kalam).Kelompok sempalan kecil pertama adalah Khawarij (seceders) yang keluar dariUmmah (umat Islam) karena mereka percaya Muslim yang lain yang telah terlibat dalamkonflik adalah orang berdosa, dan oleh karena itu, menjadi orang-orang kafir (kafir). Mengambil penafsiran literal daribeberapa ayat-ayat Al-Qur'an, Khawarij menyatakan bahwa semua perbedaan dan konflik di antaraMuslim harus diselesaikan (tahkim) menurut Al-Qur'an hanya. Mengutip sebuah ayat dalamAl-Qur'an, mereka bersikeras bahwa kaum Muslim yang tidak menyelesaikan konflik mereka dengan menggunakan hukumAllah, mereka telah menjadi orang-orang kafir (kafirs). Berdasarkan keyakinan ini, Khariji diluncurkankekerasan dan subversif kegiatan terhadap setiap penguasa di wilayah itu sekarang dikenal sebagai tengahTimur. Mengingatkan Khawarij juga dapat ditemukan dalam jumlah radikal dan kekerasanKelompok Muslim di timur tengah hari ini, yang dapat disebut sebagai "neo-Khariji" kelompok.Kelompok kedua yang jauh lebih besar adalah para pengikut ' Ali bin Abi Thalib,yang telah dianiaya oleh Mu'awiyyah bin Abi Sufyan, yang paling menonjol dan cerdaspemimpin ' kelompok Utsman bin Affan. Mengklaim kekhalifahan untuk dirinya di expense' Ali, Mu'awiyyah's putra, Yazid, membunuh Husain, ' Ali putra, dalam pertempuran Karbela, Irak. Sejak konferensi internasional tentang Muslim di masyarakat multikultural * 14-16 Juli 2010, Grand Hyatt SingaporeFotokopi draft. Tidak untuk dikutip.- 4 -kemudian para pengikut ' Ali memiliki telah dikenal sebagai kekhilafahan, berarti "Partai"' Ali, namun kemudian berkembang doktrin-doktrin politik agama terlindungi berbeda. Pertumbuhan doktrin telahbanyak yang harus dilakukan dengan Syi'ah di pengalaman pahit politik selama sebagian besar sejarah mereka sejak zamandari ' Ali bin Abi Thalib, imam pertama Shi'is.Dari segi teologi, namun, Shi'is belum berkembang sendiri. Sebaliknya, merekaumumnya mengadopsi rasional dan falsafah teologi yang telah dirumuskan olehSuni, lebih tepatnya oleh Mu'tazilis, dibahas secara singkat di bawah ini. Kasus ini juga samaTasawuf, dimana Shi'is terutama mengadopsi filosofis atau teoritis tasawuf yang diajukan olehSunni pemikir besar seperti Ibn ' Arabi. Dalam hal fikih Islam adalebih afinitas dan kesamaan daripada perbedaan antara Shi'is dan Sunni. Beberapaperbedaan antara mereka terutama berkaitan dengan masalah nikah mut'ah (nikah untukkenyamanan), yang umumnya diterima oleh beberapa orang 'ulama' tetapi dibenci oleh Sunni merekarekan-rekan.Sifat khas paling jelas dari Shi'sme terletak di bidang politik agama terlindungi. Sekali lagi,ini memiliki banyak hubungannya dengan pengalaman politik pahit Syi'ah di sebagian besar sejarah mereka. Agamasecara politis, beranggapan dipimpin oleh para imam dengan struktur kaku hirarkis'ulama'. Umumnya terdapat 12 imam yang bertanggung jawab untuk memimpin massa kekhilafahandalam perjuangan politik penguasa-penguasa yang dianggap sebagai mempunyai dirampasImam sole hak kuasa politik. Dalam periode pertengahan Islam, adanomor Dinasti-dinasti Syi'ah di Timur Tengah seperti Buwaihid dan Fatimiyah, tetapimereka tidak terakhir sangat lama hingga di awal abad ke-16 di mana dunia Muslim melihatmunculnya Dinasti Safawiyah di Persia. Dalam waktu kontemporer Sh'ism memiliki yang terkuatTanah di Iran, Irak dan Yaman.Terbesar ketiga — bahkan mayoritas Muslim — adalah Ahl al-Sunnah wa alJama'ah,atau lebih dikenal sebagai Sunni. Meskipun mereka tidak suka cara Muawiyahdan Yazid diperlakukan ' Ali Ibnu Talib, Hasan ibn ' Ali, dan Husain bin ' Ali, orang Suni yang disukaiuntuk menjaga kesatuan umat Islam (jama'ah) di bawah bendera "Khilafah" Umayyah,Abbasiyah, Ottoman, dan Sunni Muslim politik entitas. Dalam pemikiran politik dantradisi, seperti kita akan menguraikan di bawah ini, orang Suni telah sangat tunduk kepada para penguasa yang International Conference on Muslim di masyarakat multikultural * 14-16 Juli 2010, Grand Hyatt SingaporeFotokopi draft. Tidak untuk dikutip.- 5 -mampu tidak hanya untuk mengkooptasi ulama', tetapi juga untuk mendapatkan justifikasi keagamaan dari'ulama' untuk kekuasaan absolut mereka.Dari segi teologi, sebagai respon terhadap Khariji, sejumlah terbatas Sunni'ulama' dikembangkan Mu'tazilite teologi, yang pada dasarnya mengusulkan bahwa Muslim yang telahterlibat dalam konflik-konflik antara pengikut Muawiyah bin Abi Sufyan dan ' Ali binAbi Thalib Muslim maupun kafir (kafir), tapi agak mereka di suatu tempat antaradua tempat (al-manzilah atarsnz manzilatayn). Mu'tazilites dikembangkan sangat rumitdoktrin berkaitan dengan "sifat" Tuhan. Pada dasarnya, Mu'tazilites dirumuskantheo antroposentris