Islam in Tana Toraja (“Retracing” The Divine Light in Culture, History, and Diversity)

   

    What enters your mind when you hear the name of Indonesia? Beautiful landscape, kind people, and a Moslem country will be most of the answers. In fact, Indonesia is a country with largest Moslems population. Despite the Moslems majority, Indonesia is a country with complex society in culture, tribe, language and religion. Church, cathedral, and temple are easy to find across 34 provinces. In most of the cities Moslems are dominated, but not many people know about the areas where Moslems become minority. One of the moslem-minority areas is Tana Toraja, a region located in northern part of South Sulawesi. During the Dutch Colonization, this place had been one of the centres for the spread of Christianity, therefore most of the inhabitants are Christian. Meanwhile, According to the most recent data from Ministry of Religion, value of Moslems in Toraja is about 20% from the population, consist by native inhabitants or comers from nearest Moslem areas like Palopo, Pinrang and Makasar. The small values of Moslems doesn’t represent their roles in the society. Torajanese Moslems involved in development of the area since many years ago. The history of Islam in Tana Toraja is rarely to be exposed yet it worth to share. There are not much scientific evidences and literatures which talk about it because people,  locals, and even Moslem communit rarely consider this issue as a concern. Related to the history and development of Islam in Tana Toraja, there are several things to be high lited such as brief introduction about the areas and cultures, the origin of Islam in Toraja,  and the roles of Moslems in the local society.

    Anyone who came and visited Tana Toraja will be agree to remark it as one of the most astonishing places on earth. This place consists by mountains and high lands, so the weather is always cold. Due to the geographical condition, it is effortless to find wonderful stone cliffs and caves around people settlement. Roads are winding decorated by hills, pine forests, and terraced rice fields. It is the perfect place for several types of plant to grow such as clove and coffee. The culture of the local tribes is also breath-taking. The famous one is the death ceremony which is very sacred for the people and held for several days with expensive cost, the special thing from the ceremony is that the death body instead of being burried or cremated,  it preserved in the coffin and ‘saved’ in caves, sculptured huge stones, trees, or hanged on stone cliffs. Torajanesse considered death person still alive and stay with them, therefore, the corpse have to be treated like normal human being. In particular time, the grave will be opened, and the family will gather to change the corpse clothes and clean the coffin. This ceremony called Ma Nene. Beside the death ceremony, Toraja is famous for the traditional house called Tongkonan. The architecture is unique, with roof that looks like upside-down ship, which designed in that shape to remind the people about their ancestor. Tongkonan decorated by awesome wood carvings with meaningful symbols. Instead of that, Toraja famous for the expensive woven fabric. The culture of peace in the community is very strong. The existence of tolerance between religions can be endured in plural society. People live together, unite in diversity without any chaos and hatred.

    Preaching of Islam entered Tana Toraja much later than most of the areas in South Sulawesi those located on the seafront. The rural area is difficult to reach for the Arabian, Pakistani, and Gujarati traders those mentioned in most of the history subject books as ‘carrier’ and ‘spreader’ of Islam to Indonesia. According to several sources, there are five versions of how Islam brought and spread in Tana Toraja. The valid version is currently unclear because there is no intense research and most of the version delivered orally. The most trustable sort is that Islam came to Toraja through two directions, those are from Palopo and Sidenreng Rappang, two areas surroundings Tana Toraja. Islam brought from Palopo by A Moslem name Opu Demmakallu’ who lived in an area of Toraja called Madandan and married to a local aristocratic girl name Rangga in 1876. Meanwhile, Islam also brought from Sidenreng Rappang by a Quran Teacher name Guru Siduppa and spread it in 1897 around Makale, which presently become Capital city of Tana Toraja. Guru Siduppa then married to a local girl name Lai’Biu’ and many years later one of their descendants, namely Muhammad which known as Ambo’ Kapala became a regent in Makale. Guru Siduppa came to Toraja with his sons and cousins, those also married to Torajanese and build a Moslem community. One of Guru Siduppa’s cousins which also name Siduppa, soon after arriving in Toraja extended his journey to Madandan and tied the knot to Rangga, the girl who mentioned above as a wife of Opu Demmakallu’, after her husband died. Rangga became a local influential figure in Madandan, and her descendants in addition occupy significant positions in government and applied the Islamic values in their governances. The thing to be underlined is that Islam brought to Toraja with peace, without any conqueror or war. In fact Islam came to Toraja before the Christianity, but the spreading is not as easier as Christianity because there are several laws in Islam those are opposite to local strong culture, for example the prohibition of pork, meanwhile Pig is one of the important and sacred animals in Torajanese beliefs. Instead of that, Islamic funeral is very different to the local funeral which expensive and take a long time for the family to bury the corpse. Even so, after the first Moslem community grew, Islam spread wider in Tana Toraja and Moslem population is keep growing until now.

    As preaching of Islam entered Tana Toraja, during the Colonization of Dutch, Moslems youths with the spirit of Jihad appear as pioneers of resistance. Moslem undertook to construct the society and developed the education marked by the opening of Muhammadiyah Junior High School in 1935 which became the first Junior High School in Tana Toraja. This school brought teachers from Sumatra and Mandar to teach Torajanese youths from various backgrounds and religions. Students of this school later become influential figures and pioneers of resist to struggle against colonizations. There were lot of Moslem youths involved in war between Dutch and Torajanese in the 1940s. Most of them died as martyrs, arrested, and exiled. Several famous Moslem heroes nicknames such as Musa and Ikhwan enshrined as the name of streets in Makale City. Musa street is near to the local market and Dakwah Centre of Muhammadiyah located in this place. Musa was an independence fighter who was arrested and sentenced to shoot in a field located not far from the street where his name now immortalized. Meanwhile, Ikhwan died after being tortured by Dutch in the jail. Nowadays, Torajanese Moslems are giving contribute to the society through various field, like politic, health, economy and education. It is susceptible to find Moslem politicians, teachers, traders, farmers, and health workers in Tana Toraja those implement the value of Islam in their jobs. They contribute in building society and generation to be better.

    Tana Toraja is a famous tourism destination where Moslems are minority but able to bring bright colors in the society. The origin of Islam in Tana Toraja is still unclear yet, but the most reliable version is justly that Islam came from two directions, from the north; Palopo and from the south; Sidenreng Rappang in the 19th century. Moslem sufficiently occupy critical roles in social development of indigenous during the colonization, and nowadays still contribute to the successful establishment of Tana Toraja. Further research from Moslem scholars, especially from Moslem youths is dearly needed to find out the valid version of how Islam came and spread across Toraja, and I believe there are still many contributions of Moslems as minority to that precious land. As for me, being a local Torajanese Moslem girl undoubtedly represent such a generous gift from The Almighty. Retracing the history of Islam on the magnificent land where I was born prompt me to one of my favorite sentences “And We have not sent you, O Muhammad, except as a mercy to te worlds” (Holy Quran 21:107), this noble verse represents the fact that Rasulullah PBUH and deen-ul-Islam were unrevealed for a specific place. The verse revealed to The Prophet in Arabic Peninsula and many centuries later, Islam has spread across the globe. Not only the people (Moslem) but also practical knowledges, prevailing customs, and many aspects of life in modern society are originally adapted from Islamic teaching. Peace and dignity of Islam has knocked and unlocked a billion hearts of people without considering the background, identity, race,  nation, skin colour and country. The fundamental fact that Moslems have offered beneficial influences in my hometown is a conclusive evidence that this religion generates lights to any spaces and creatures those never goes out from time to time.

Sources:

-Holy Qur'an
-Drs. H. Nurdin Baturante in His Book " Tongkonan dan Kerukunan"

-Interviews with Ust.Syamsuddin Paisal (Local Muslim Priest) and Mr. Herman Tahir, S.Pd. ( Headmaster of Junior High School 1 Tana Toraja,  Local Public Figure) on June, 2015

- Thesis of Drs. M. Yasim  (My Dad lol hahahaha) for his graduation from Faculty of Ushuluddin, Alauddin Islamic State University , forgot the tittle but it is about the history and development of three religions  (Islam, Christianity, and Chatolic) in Tana Toraja.