Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
i
757 N
AN INTRODUCTION TO
THE GOVERNMENT OF ACHEH S S U L T A N A T E
Ij
Dr. A . M u k t i AI£
fafasan - „ N / D A " - Jogjafcarta 1970
AN 1NTRODUCTION TO
THE GOVERNMENT OF ACHEH'S SULTANATE
Dr. A. Mukti Ali Head of the Department of Comparative Religion
& Vice Rector
Institut Agama Islam Negeri A l Djami'ah „Sunan Kalidjaga" — Jogjakarta —
F I R S T P U B L t S K E D Ï970
M L RIGHTS R E S E R V E P
Jajasan — „ N I D A " — Jogjakarta
1970
P R E F A C E
This article was published in A l Djami 'ah , an official magazine
of the Institut A g a m a Is lam Negeri (State hlamic Institute) Jogja
karta, r.umber 6, !st year (1962); I, 2nd year (1963).
Author
A. M. A.
Jogjakarta, July 1970.
C O N T E N T S :
Prologue.
The forms and the Administration
of the Government.
The Shari'at and the Adat law.
Some book consul te d.
P R O L O G U E .
It is diff icult to f ix the preclse date of the in t roduct ion of Islam Into the Indonesian Arch ipe lago. Perhaps It had been carr led to this Arch ipe lago in the early centuries of the Hi j rah, A t the beginning of the seventh century A . D. trade between the Arabs and Ch ina , through Cey lon , received a great impulse, so that in the middle of the eight century A rab traders were to be found in great numbers in C a n t o n ; whi le f rom the tenth to the f i f teenth century , unti l the arr ival of the Portugese, they were undisputed masters of the trade wi th the East. I
In the Chinese annals, under the date 674 A . D. an account is given of an Arab chief, who f rom later notices is conjectured to have been the head of an A rab set t lement on the west coast of Sumatra. 2
Haji Agus Salim in his book Ri«ajat kedatangan Islam di Indonesia maintains that according to an A r a b histor ian, the A rab vessels used to sail along the sea-shore of South India to Gujerat (Malabar), then to C e y l o n , across the open sea (Indian Ocean) down to the Nicobars islands. From here they entered the Strait of Malacca, through the ncr thern part of Sumatra to Kedah. W h e n they came to the lateer place, their route b ra i ched into two d i rec t ions : e i ther to the east, then northwards to Ch ina , or to the east, to Palem-bang (Sumatra) o r Java. But usua'ly they went eastwards f i rst, then to the nortr i , through Camboja, Coch inch ina , to Ch ina . It was no wonder that the Arabs, Persians, Indians, those Muslims f rom the
1) T. W . A r n o l d , The Preaching of Islam, pp. 363-361; H. Kraemer & C . A . O .
van Nieuwenhuijze, Agama Islam, pp. II I-I 12 (citeJ hereafcer as Kraemer).
2) A r n o l d , Op. cit., p. 364.
5
west, knew Indonesla and its people from the early time when they carried their merchandise to t h e east. A l Mas udi who d,ed in 957 A D in his Muruj al-Dhahab mentioned the kingdom of Java under King Erlangga (928-1049). Thus Agus Salim draws the con clusion that by the tenth century A. D. the relat.onsh.p between
donesia and the Muslims had been established, as at that t.me no ships but those of the Muslims carried mant.me commerce through the Indian Ocean. 3
Marco Polo who visited Sumatera in 1292 says that the inha-bitants were idolaters, except the petty kingdom of Parlak on the north-east corner of the island, where the townspeople were Muslims. 4
Ibn Battuta 5 who came to Sumatera in 1345 speaks of the kindness the Sultan Al-Malik al-Zahir had done him. He says that the Sultan „is a most illustrious and open-handed ruler and a lover of theologians", and that he entered into friendly relat.on W!th the court of Delhi. 6
In t h e I3th century Acheh became important in the East having commercial and political relation with Egypt, Europa and
J a P a " The Malay chronicle gives 1205 as the date of the accession of Juhau Shan, the traditional founder of the Mushm Dynasty. 7
By 1526 the Sultanate had assimilated all the other states of northern Sumatera, and in 1568 t h e Portugese in Malacca were awed by the attack of its fleet of 300 ships with 15.000 sold.ers, among them 480 Turkish artillerists. 8
Acheh enioyed the greatest prosperity and lustre during the reign of Sultan 'Ala'udin al-Qahar (1540-1567), and lts power reached its zenith in the time of Sultan Iskandar Muda (1607-1641). At that period the territory extended from Aru opposite
3) quoted in Kraemer, Op. c/t., pp. 112-113.
4) /bid., P . 113; A r n . l d , Op. cit., p. 367; j . Paulus, Encyclopaed/e van Nederlands-
Indie, I, Ar t . „ A t j e h " p. 72 (cited hereafter as „ E N / " ) .
5) Ibn Battuta, Travels in As/a and Africa, p. 274.
6) Ibid, p. 275.
7) A r n o l d , Op. cit., p. 366.
8) H . J. De Graaf, Geschiedenis van Indonesië, p. 300.
6
Malacca around the north of Benkulen on the west, 1,100 miles of seaboard; the island of Nias with the continental States of Johor, Pahang, Kedah and Perak were subject states. 9
In the I7th century four queens successively reigned over Acheh, and in the I8th century Sultans of Arab blood (Sayyid) came on the throne. 10
In the middle of I6th century traders from the West came to the Indonesian Archipelago. The first Dutch (1592) and first English (1602) commercial venture to these islanös were to Acheh. Letters were sent from Queen Elizabeth and King James I to the Sultans of Acheh, and an emissary was sent by the Acheh Sultans to Prince Maurits of Hol land.H as well as to the Sultan of Turkey. 12
Acheh, besides having attracted traders from East and West for its pepper and several kinds of spices, its Sultan's pratonage for religious knowledge caused the court to be surrounded by learned scholars. In 1582 there arrived at Acheh two scholars from Makkah, and about the same time there came from Gujerat a Shaykh Muhammad Jaylani, who was a popular teacher of logic, rhetoric, and jurisprudence, until to meet the demand for tuition in myticism he had to go to Makkah to study it, returning later to Acheh. Soon after 1600 there came to Acheh an Egyptian teacher of meta-
9) Graa f , Op cit., p. 3 0 0 ; E e r n a r d H . M . V l e k k e , Geschiedenis van den Indischen Archipel, pp . 96 9 7 ; C . L e k k e r k e r k e r , Land en volk van Sumatera, p. 1 3 5 ; C . S n o u c k H u r g r o n j e , The Achehnese, I. p. 4.
10) G r a a f , Op. cit., p. 301 .
11) T w o m e n w e r e sen t , o n e of t h e m d i e d in H o l l a n d and t h e o t h e r came back t o A c h e h in 1604 (G raa f , Op. cit, p. 300).
12) In t h e c o u r s e of t he I6 th c e n t u r y , o n e of t h e Su l tans o f A c h e h d e e m e d i t h i gh l y necessary t o b r i n g his k i n g d o m t o t h e no t i ce o f t he l o r d o f t h e beheve rs . t h e Raio Rom, i .e , t h e Su l t an of T u r k e y . H e caused o n e o f h is b igges t sh ips t o be laden w i t h p e p p e r , the p r i n c i p l e p r o d u c t of t h e c o u n t r y , as an o f fe r ing e x p r e s s i v e o f h o m a g e t o t h e s u p r è m e l o r d . S o m e say tha t he made the j o u r n e y h i m s e l f ; a c c o r d i n g t o e t h e r s he sen t an embassy of w e a l t h y ch ie fs . T h e a m -bassadors r e m a i n e d at Is tambul a yea r o r t w o . T h e Su l tan of T u r k e y o r d e r e d a ° r e a t c a n o n t o be g i v e n t h e m as a r e t u r n p r e s e n t , and in c o m p l i a n c e w i t h t h e i r r e q u e s t he a h o gave t h e m a n u m b e r o f s k i l l e d ar t isans f r e m his k i n g d o m t o i n s t r u c t t h e i r f e l l o w - c o u n t r y m e n in v a r i o u s a r t s h i t h e r t o u n k n c w n t o t h e m . (See The Achehnese, I, Op cit., pp . 2 0 8 - 2 0 9 ) . A n d w h e n in 1873, A c h e h w a s b l o c k a d e d by t h e D u t c h , its Su l tan r e q u e s t e d m i l i t a r y h e l p f r e m t h e T u r k i s n S u l t a n a lso ( L e k k e r k e r k e r , Op. cit., p. 333).
7
physics and a Syrlan teacher of jurisprudence. There were also several famous teachers from Indonesia itself, the best known among them b e i n g Shykh Shamsuddin P a s é (Sumatera) who enjoyed much c o n s i d e r a t i o n at the court of the great Sultan Iskandar Muda; and his forerunner H a m z a h Pansur i , both were great mystics, and ' A b d al -Ra'uf of Singkal who dedicated his book on Islamic jurisprudence to one of A c h e h ' s Q u e e n . 13
During the e a r l y I7th century many Achehners went to Makkah both to p e r f o r m the Hajj and to s t u d y . 14
In the I9th c e n t u r y A c h e h had b e e n engaged In defending its rights and freedom for m o r e t h a n t h i r t y y e a r s against the Dutch invasion. T h e w a r s t a r t e d in 1873. T h e last Sultan was c a p t u r e d in 1903 and e x i l e d t o Java in 1907. T h e rea l w a r may be said to have
e n d e d in 1904, bu t b a t t l e s a n d e n c o u n t e r s o n a s m a l l s c a l e , in t h e form o f g e u r ü y a (geu r i l l a ) c o n t i n u e d t i l l 1913.
The A c h e h war has a u n i q u e p lace in t h e h l s t o r y of D u t c h c o l o n i a l i z a t i o n ; t h e l o n g d u r a t i o n and i ts c r u c i a l i t y , r m f l u e n c e o n the c h a r a c t e r o f t h e p e o p l e , t h e heavy loss o f m o n e y a n d m e n , and i ts h a v i n g a r e l i g i o u s c h a r a c t e r . 15
In 1786 C a p t a i n F r a n c i s L i g h t p o i n t e d out to the G o v e r n o r -G e n e r a l o f Benga l t ha t a s e t t l e m e n t at P u l a u P i n a n g possessed g r e a t e r a d v a n t a g e s t h a n one o n t h e A c h e h n e s e c o a s t ; „ A c h e h is a good r o a d bu t n o p lace of s e c u r i t y aga ins t an e n e m y t h e r e . The c o u n t r y is f e r t i l e b e y o n d d e s c r i p t i o n a n d v e r y p o p u l o u s . The inhabitants rigid and superstitious Mohammedans, sullen, fickle and treacherous. To form a settlement there of safety and advantage, a force sufficiënt to subdue alt the chiefs would be necessary". 16 In t h e s a m e s p i r i t w r o t e James P r i c e t o t h e C h a i r m a n o f t h e C o m p a n y in L o n d o n : „ I p r e f e r P e n a n g t o t h e P o r t o f A c h e e n as b e i n g m o r e h e a l t h y a n d e n t i r e l y f r ee f r o m t h a t oppression, war and confusion which have ever distressed and at length driven out every European nation who has attempted to settle there". 17
13) See The Achehnese, II, Op . cit., p p . 1 2 - 1 3 ; G r a a f , Op. cit., p. 3 0 1 ; K r a e m e r , Op. cit., p. 130.
14) C . S n o u c k H u r g r o n j e ; Verspreide Geschriften, IV - i i , p. 364. 15) L e k k e r k e r k e r , Op. cit., p. 3 3 2 ; See f o r e x a m p l e t h e c o n v e r s a t i o n s o f A c h e h ' s
p i l g r i m s w i t h Java's in C . S n o u c k H u r g r o n j e , Mekka in the latter part of the I9th century, pp . 2 4 5 - 2 4 6 , (c i ted h e r e a f t e r as M e k k a ) .
16) EN1, I, Op. cit., a r t . , „ A t j e h " , p. 76. 17) The Achehnese, I, Op. cit., pp . v i i i - i x , b o ; h q u o t a t i o n s .
8
Iri the present paper two topics are be introduced:
I. The form and the administration of the governmènt. M. The Shari'at and Adat Law.
T H E F O R M A N D T H E A D M I N I S T R A T I O N O F T H E G O V E R N M E N T .
The smallest social unit is the kawom (fröm Arabic qaum m people, tribe); a group of kawoms forms the gampong (yillage); gampongs form the mukim (like district); mukims förm ulèebalang-snip; ulèebalangships federated Into sagi (like provincé); and the confederation of the-three sagis, and the actual territory of the Sultan form the Sultanate.
I. The kawom in composed of families, taken from, and including, all the descendants cf a common ancestor in the male line, however far apart from one another they happen to reside. Even where the liné cannot be clearly traced, they still hail one another as fellow-tribesmen as long as the feeiing survives that they are connected in the manner indicated, with a common ancestor. Thus the kawom as the smallest unit of the political ï institution is based on a patriarchal genealogical pattern. '8 But stil! we may suppose that the kawoms were more or less territorrially distinguished from one another by position, like the tribes of the Badouins of Arabia. 19
Indeed the instinct of mutual support that Was unquestionably the weightiest factor in the fproiatióh _qf the kawoms, was most intimately connected with cornmunity of the place of abode.
From among members bf' kawom is. chosen the chief or leader, called Panglima ; Kawom, tha duty of whpm is to uphold the
18) B u t a r e m n a n t c f m a t r i a r c h s t i l l s u r v i v e d . T h e c h i l d n e v e r ceased t o r e g a r d • -.- t h e house and g a m p o n g of his .Tiother as his o w n . T h e daugh te r s c o n t i n u e ' : ' : after m a r r l a g e t o r e s ide in t h e m o t h e r ' s house p r o b t a i n a n o t h e r house i n
i ts i m m e d i a t e n e i g h b o u r h o o d . T h e sons w h e n m a r r i e d a re said t o „ g o h o m e " t o t h e i r w i v e s , ye t t h e y r a m a i n . e x c e p t w h e n v i s i t i n g t h e i r w i v e s . c i t i z e n s o f t h e m o t h e r ' s g a m p o n g . (See The Achehnese. I, Op. cit., p . 44) . ' '
19) c.f. ENI, I, Op. cit., a r t , „ A t j e h e r s " , p . 9 0 .
9
interests of his kawom, and espedally those whleb reiate to bfood feuds, W/a. 20 This office is hereditary and the newly-appointed Panglima Kawom gets his official investlture (as official appoint-ment) from the ulèebalang. 21
2. Taking for granted the hypothesis with regard to the kawoms, namely that they were originally separate in a territorial as well as in a tribal sense, we may then assume that in former times each gampong comprised a kawom or a subdivision of one, which added to its members only by marriages within its own enclosure, or at most with the women of neighbouring fellow-tribesmen. The former headmen of the gampongs would in this case have been the Panglimas of the kawoms.
The gampong is administered by three offices:
a. the Keuchi' with one or two Wakls at his disposal: b. the Ttungku; and c. the Ureueng Tuha.
The Keuchi' is the headman, and the Achehnese used to call him „the father of the gampong". He is appointed by the Ulèebalang, 22 and his office, like that of Panglima Kawom, is hereditary.
Though the Keuchi' is appointed by the Ulèebalang, yet he is not much dependent on the latter, since being the representative of the interests, and as far as possible, the wishes, of the whole gampong against the Ulèebalang himself as well as against other gampongs, he exercises the support of his subjects. The inhabitants of the gampong are convinced of the necessity of having one person act on behalf of them alt; moreover the Achehnese treat sundry family matters, such as marriage, divorce, the bringing up of orphans etc. as matt rs affecting the whole gampong. Equally convinced are they that this representative of their common interests should be someone who finds favour in the eyes cf the Ulèebalang. At the same time, he is not likely to become too willingly a tooi in the tatter's hands, for he too is a member of the gampong.
20) The Achehnese, I, Op. cit., p. 46.
21) the head of province. 22) Occaslonally the appolntment of Keuchl's rest in the hands of the Imam
(the head of mukim), when the iatter exercises a gre i t persorutt tnftuetvce. (See The Achehnese, I, Op. cit., p. 64). Keuchi* jenerally ibbrev iwed to C h i ' , signifles „ o i d " .
f0
The inherltance of the Keuchi' 's afflce 1$ aJso regarded as natural and right, not only because other offices are hereditary, but also because there is in the nature of things stored up in an ancient family of Keuchi' 's a collection of traditional knowledge with negard to the laws and usages of the country that might in vain be sought for among ohers.
As the office of a gampong headman is an honorary one, the sources of his income are worth only brief mention. They are In fact confined to the fees for his indispensable help in the arrangement of the marriage of a woman of his gampong. 23 Also the Keuchi' gets presents for referring the problems of his gampong to the administration of justice of the Ulèebalang, as hehimselfhas no judical power. At the same time, he draws a certaln percentage levied by the Ulèebalang on the division of inheritances and other slrnilar sources of income. But It is not rare that his people are contented with his mediation, as they consider him as their „father** In solving disputed matters — as the collection of debt, for example — and In this case they would give him for his trouble a small share of whar they would otherwise undoubtedly lose, if the matters were brought to the Ulèebalang. The suitors prefer — in most cases — there arbitrative decisions, sinse they know too well that the judgements they would obtain by resorting to chtefs who have less sympathy for their interests, would be more costly but not with more favourable than these of the Keuchi'.
At all gampong-festivals — and these include the most important family feast as well — the place of honour is alotted to the Keuchi'.
Thus we may say on the whole that the office of Keuchi', „the father of the gampong" Is held in high esteem chlefly"" for -nonmaterialistic reasons, but also because of the more solid advan- • tages connected with it.
Every Keuchi' has at least one Woki (from Arabic Wakil =• agent) rt ris disposal, r.nd where he exercises control over more than one gampong, 24 one for each gampong. The position taken by the Wakis greatly depends on their personal character. Some of them
23) According to adat 1/4 of a dollar, and It Is called ha' katib c r ha' chupeng (The Achehnese I, Op. cit., p. 66).
24) Most of the Keuchi's exercisc control over a single gampong only.
II
a r e n o t m u c n .more t h a s t h a m e s s e n g e r s o f t h e i r K e u c h i ' s , w h i ï e o t h e r s accua l l y t ik2 t h e ptace o f t h e „ f a t h e r o f t h e c o m m u n i t y " t h r o u g h t h e i r ^ r c a t e r s t r o r t g o f c h a r a c t e r . T h e p r o f i t s e n j o y e d b y t h e m m a y b e d e s c r i b e d as t h e g i e a n i n g s o f t h o s e w h i c h t h e K e u c h i * r è a p s f r o m h is o f f i ce .
T h e a u t h o r i t y o f t h e K e u c h i * is t o m a i n t a i n t o t h e bes t o f h is a b i l i t y t h e o r d e r and sa fe t y , a n d a l so t h e m a t e r i a t p r o s p e r i t y , o f h is d e m a i n . O f t h i s p r o s p a r i t y , a b u n d a n c e o f p o p u l a t i o n is r e g a r d e d as an i m p o r t a n t f a c t o r ; a n d t h u s a c l o s e s u p e r v i s i o n o v e r t h e c o m i n g s a n d g o i n g s o f h is p e o p l e , so f a r as t h e s e m i g h t Eend t o d i s p e r s e t he u n i t e d b o d y , is c o n s i d e r e d as a m p l y j u s t i f i e d . C r a n g e o f r e s i d e n c e o f a f a m i l y t o a n o t h e r g a m p o n g d o e s n o t t a k e p l a c e w i t h o u t t h e c o n s e n t o f t h e K e u c h i ' , a n d n o m a r r i a g e can b e - c o n -c l u d e d w i t h o u t t h e c o n s e n t o f t h e K e u c h i ' . 2 5
If t h e K e u c h i ' is c o n s i d e r e d t h e „ f a t h e r o f t h e g a m p o n g " , t h e Teungku is t h e „ g a m p o n g ' s m o t h e r " . 2 6
Jus t as t h e K e u c h i ' d e v o t e s h i m s e ' f m o r e e s p e c i a l l y t o r m i n -t a i n i n j t h e adat, t h o u g h , t h e p r o m o t i o n o f g o d l y l i v i n g a m o n g h is p e o p l e is a l s o r e g a r l e d as a p a r t o f h'S d u t y , s o t h e u p h o l d i n g o f t h e hukom ( s h a r i ' a t ) is t h e s p e c i a l p r o v i n c e o f t h e T e u n g k u , t h o u g h a k n o w l e d g e o f and r e g a r d f o r t h e adat is in his case a l s o r e g a r d e d as i n d i s p e n s a b l e . .
T h e m o s t c e r t a i n s o u r c e s o f i n c o m e o f t h e T e u n g k u a r e :
a . T h e pitrah ( A r a b i c fitrah), p a i d b y e v e r y h o u s e h o l d ( w h o is t a x a b e a c c o r d i n g t o th3 s h a r i ' a t ) f o r h i m s e l f a n d h is f a m i l y at t h e c o n c l u s i o n o f t h e f j s t (Ramadan).
25) The Achehnese, I. Op. cit., p. 63 .
' 26 ) T h e w o r d s teungku and teufcü a p p e a r t o have been o r i g i na l t y c o n t r a c t i o n s ' o f tutrokii (my l o r d ) . T h e t i t l e t e u n g k u is a p p l i e d a lso t o t h e leube ( t h e
javanese santri) w h o , even t h o u g h t o be n o s c h o l a r , o b s e r v e s h is r e l i g i o u s o b l i g a t i o n s fa i th fu l l y . t h e malem ( f r o m A r a b i c mu 'o / / im = t h e a c h e r m a s t e r ) w h o has sorr>3 k n o . v l a d g e of r e l i g i o n , t h e o'e.-n ( f r o m A r a b i c 'alim) w h o has b r o u g h t h is s tud ies t o p e r f e c t i o n , t h e utam ( t he p l u r a l o f ' o l i m , b u t used as s ingu la r ) , w h o is l o o k e d u p o n as an a u t h o r i t y o n t h e sub jec t o f re l i g i ous l a w and d o c t r i n e , and t h e sayyió, t h a d e s c e n d a n t of t h e P r o p h e t . It is a l so a p p l i e d t o b o t n m e n and w o m e n w h o g i ve e l e m e n t a r y i n s t r u c t i o n and t o t h e kali (Arabic qaéi) w h o acts as a c d e s i a s t i c a l j udge i n a u l e e b a l a n j s i p (See The Achehnese, I, Cp. cit., p. 71).
12
b. A por t ion of zakat f rom r ice, catt le, go ld , si lver o r merchandise. Buc usually the pitrah and zakat go into the hands of the Ulèebalangs, whi le the Teungku only gets the share eleswhere al lotted to the „poo r and needy" (faqir and miskin).
c. Money presents for the arrangement of marr iages.27
d . Money presents for the arrangement of the bathing, the bur ia l , etc. of the deceased.
e. W i o u s gieanings from the fees of the Keuch i ' when the Teungku accomptnies the latter on his visies to the Ulèebalang for the sett lement of prof i table suits.
The Ureuerg Tuha. which is he exact equivalent of „E lders" are the men of exper ience, wor ld ly w isdom, good manners and k n o w k d g e of adat in tha gampong. They are generally persons who have re iched a cer t i i n age, but if a youhger man is dist inguished by the above characterist ict, he is equally el igible as an „U reueng T u h a " , and is reckoned as one of the body of Elders, which lends an indispensêble support to the Keuch i ' and the Teungku.
The -number of the members c f this tcdy is i nd t f i n i te ; they are nei ther appointed nor regularly chosen but so to speak tacit ly acknow'ed fed by common assent. W h e n the Teungku and Keuch i ' meet to d'scuss important gampong tffairs ( including most family matters), the Elders are also to be found whether sumrroned or not.
It has been ment ioned scmewhere that various family matters are treated by the Achehnese E S matters affecting the whole gar -pong. Wheneve r those matters arise, the three authori t ies of the gampong dhcuss them amongst themselves. The deüberat ion of such matters which the Achehnese call rrvpeket i f rom Arab ic muwaft-qai, meaning l i te ra l ly : come to agreement) became a very important inst i tut ion under the Sultr-nste, so that w h e n , a chief neglects the del iberat ion of mufakat in solving a common prob lem, he wi l l quickly lose his influence. A t the same t ime the rrupakat forms t r e strongest factor in the statecrafc of ?n administrator among the Achehnese, as an instrument by which hc er.sures the carrying out of many a scheme.
27) The theoritical adat fixes th? ha' katib 1/4 of a do lUr (vide supra, not2 23), • but in practice thUCeticfti" gets -more a'r.d the Teungku hardly ever less than a do1!ar (See fhe Achehnese, i, Op. cit., p. 74)
28) From Arabic madrasah, meaning origlrvaüy a teaching institute. Som2times it is 'called. deqh, -d jr ived from, the Arabic zawiyah.
• •>-' . . 13
In the gampong o r In lts Immedfate nelghbourhood there 1$ always to be found the meunasah.28 The meunasah serves as a sleeping place for man, a resthouse for strangers and a house of prayer. Besldes these functions, it serves also as a place of assem* blage on various special occasions. T h e affairs of the gampong are there debated, village festivals held, contracts of marriage concluded etc. A person of rank who comes from elsewhere to pay an unex-pected vlsit to the people of the gampong, usually goes in the first place to the meunasah, and f rom there sends someone to announce hls arrival. In the neighbourhood of the meunasah there often stands a balé (public meeting house) which serves as auxiliary to the former .
The Teungku is also in charge of this meunasah, and so is he usually called Teungku Meunasah. 2?
3. Between the gampong-authorlt les and the U lèeba lang , o r the terr i tor ia! ruler, stands the Imeums (Imams) the chief of the m u -klms. T h e orlginal intentlon for this subdivision may at once be seen from the names. „ M u k i m " is an Arab ic w o r d , the p roper meaning of which is the inhabitants of a place. The Islamic Law, as Interpreted by the Shafi'ite school which is dominent In A c h e h , teaches that in order to form a quorum for a Friday service the presence of at least forty male mukims of full age is required.
Thus , where a number of gampongs lay sufficiently close to one another to admit of their being united into a single „Fr iday associatlon" in accordance with the above-mentioned behest of the religious law. they contructed a mosque (Acheh meuseugit), choostng for the purpose the most central possible site. 30
A t first the chiefs of the mukims had without doubt a wholly or largely religious task to fulfll, namely to provide that the shari'at should be enforced and especially that the prescribed rites should not be n e g k c t e d . The i r official title of imeum brings them into close connection with the meuseugit, which forms the centre of their sphere of act ion, and with the religious worship held there in . They should be for the mosque what the Teungku is for the meu-neusah.
29) Vide Supra, note 26.
30) £NJ, /, Op. cit.. A r t . „ A t j - h e r s " , p, 9 i .
14
• The Imeum owed their election to the Ulèebalangs, and so they are subordinates to the latter, but they stood superior In some respects at least to the authorites of the gampongs 31 This off.ce also Is generally hereditary, subject to the power ofappoint-ment and dismissal vested in the Ulèebalang.
The personnel of the mosque in Acheh when complete, consits of three: the Imeum, 32 who leads the daily prayers as well as the Friday service; the Hatib (Arabic Khatib) who dellvers the Friday serrnon; and the 8/7eue (Arabic Mal) who intones the call to prayer (adnan) and keeps the furniture of the mosque in order.
The Imeum is regarded by the gampongs subject to him as a sort of acting Ulèebalang, and the latter employs him as hls de-puty In making known and helping to carry out his commands and decisions wlthin his (the Imeum's) jurisdiction. in some mukims which are situated too far from the headquartes of the Ulèebalang to admit of all matters of importance being subjected to his decision. the adat has assigned a measure of juridical authority to a special board of Imeums. Groups of three or four mukims are united for this purpose, and the decision of the three or four Imeums has tne same force as that of the Ulèebalang.
This is however exceptlonal; as a rule the Imeum has just as little juridical authority as the heads of the gampongs, but in the quality of arbitrator he can deal with questions that lie outside the reach of the village authorities, in as much as more than one gampong is concerned in them. As his Income depends entirely on chance profits, he naturally makes It his object to bring as many such questions as possible within his own scope, always on the pretext of acting as mediator, so that his clients may avoid the heavy flnes and costs exacted by the Ulèebalang.
4. The Ulèebalang are actually the lords of the country, the ter-ritorlal chiefs por excellence. They are thus called the Rajas (in Achehnese parlance = chiefs) of their territories in writings as well as In the spoken language. The word Ulèebalang signifies military
31) But during the war we find the Imeumi appearing as military leaders amoiw whom the Ulèebalangs seek their support. In being so, their influence increaies and trouble themselves little about the Ulèebalangs, to whom they are no-minally subordinate. Some of them have attained to the independence o f Ulèebalangs and lack the name only (c.f. The Achehnese, I, Op. cit., p. 85),
32) Imeum here does not of course mean the chief of the mukim.
15
leader, and origlnally this name had beeft given by the Sultan, w h o endeavoured to render them subordinate and allowed them the command over the fighting men in their districts, while he tr ied gradually to monopolize the s u p r è m e power for himself. This effort, however , was unsuccessful, for the Ulèebalangs have always cont i -nued governors, judges and military leaders in their own country , in which as a matter of fact they admit no higher authority.
T h e terr i tory of an Ulèebalang has no distinctive name in A c h e h , like „ m u k i m " and „ g a m p o n g " and for the sake of convenience the Dutch used the word „Ulèebalangschap" (English uléebalangship) to indicate the Uléebalang's terr i tory . 33
A l though the title born by these chiefs may have been derived f rom the court of the Sultans, their authority is beyond ali doubt of more ancient origin and dependent on no letters-patent. The i r position was conf i rmed, not created, by the Sultans. Moreover the Sultans consider that the Ulèebalangs received their office as an inheritance from their forefather.
For the exercise of his authority the Ulèebalang has the folo-
wing attendants.
a. T h e Bantas, i .e. the younger brothers of more distant next-of -k in. O n e (banta) among them is chosen as the Uléebalang's right hand.
, b . The Rakans, i .e. the followers who live in the Uléebalang's house or its immediate neighbourhood and receive from him food and clothing for themselves and their families.
' c . T h e Pangiima Prang CPanglima = commandant ; Prang = war). A n y o n e who has distinguished himself on some occasions as a warr ior might be • raised to the rank of Panglima Prang, who received from the Ulèebalang symbolic weapons on his appointment.
d. A further measure of help is derived from the Imeums and Keuchi 's within his jurisdiction.
e. The Kali (Qadi) whom the Ulèebalang himself nominate, for the administrat ion of justice.
33) See The Achehmse, I, Op. cit., p. 88.
16
5. The uléebalangships are federated into sagi ( l i teral ly, angle). Outs ide the actual l imits of the Sultan's te r r i to ry , Acheh is devided into three sagis, each of which is ccmposed of a certain number of mukims whence they derive their names viz. the X X / / mukims, the X X W mukims, and the X X V mukims.M Each federation choose the most powerful and influental Ulèebalang as its head, and has the name of Pangiima Sagi. The authori ty of such a Pangiima Sagi is extended however only to matters of general interest. For the rest the remaining Ulèebalangs governed thei r own ter r ior ies just as though there were no sagi in existence .35
The principal revenues and profi ts of the Ulèebalang a r e : a. The three cief Ulèebalangs of Panglima Sagi used to receive
a present f rom the Sultan on the latter 's accession to the throne. 36
b. Fines imposed on his subjpcts for sundry offences. c Fees for the ver i f icat ion of th ieves.
d. In some distr icts, one or more per cent o f the value o f r icefields sold under supervis ion of the Ulèebalang. W h e r e the sale takes place w i thout his mediat ion, these prof i ts fall t o the Imeums or to the Teungkus and Keuchi 's , whi le al l w i t -nesses of the sale are treated to a feast by the vendor.
e. 10% of all inheritances d is t r ibuted by the intervent ion of the Ulèebalang (it is called ha' pra'e), a small share being reserved for the Teungku or Kal i who prepares the accounts and fo r the Keuch i ' of the gampong.
f. A share of all f ish caught by means of drag-net.
g. W h e r e there are navigable r ivers, a tafl of I dol lar on every vessel that sails up the r iver , 5 % on all goods impor ted by foreigners, and 2 to 2 1\2 % on those impor ted by natives of the count ry .
34) Later on these names do not always correspond with its actual proportions, since the increase of population here and there give rise to the formation of new mukims within the limits o f such a sag-:, yet the traditional name o f the sagi survives (The Achehnese I, Op. cit., pp. 90 91 ; Lekkerkerker, Op. cit., pp. 91-92).
35) ENI, I, Op. cit.. A r t . , „ A t j e h e r s " , p. 91.
36) This amounted to $ 500, but a newly constituted Panglima Sagi has to pay at least an equal sum to the Sultan for the letter-patent by which he confirms his appointment. (See The Achehnese, I, Op. cit., p. 116).
17
h . A p o r t i o n , o f t en v e r y c o n s i d e r a b l e , o f t h e d e b t s r e c o v e r e d by t h e U l é e b a l a n g ' s h e l p .
i . T h e m a r k e t t a x , i e v i e d by t h e R a k a n s , o r o t h e r s e p e r a t e o f f i c i a l s , o f t h e U l è e b a l a n g o n t h e f r e q u e n t e r s o f a l l m a r k e t s .
j . H o u s e s d e c l a r e d f o r f e i t by r e a s o n o f c h a n g e o f r e s i d e n c e o n t h e p a r t o f t h e o w n e r s o w i n g t o c o n t i n u a l q u a r r e l s w i t h t h e i r f e l l o w v i l l a g e r s .
k. U n t e n a n t e d r i c e - f i e l d s o r g a r d e n s w h o s e o w n e r s have l o n g s i n c e lef t t h e n e i g h b o u r h o o d a n d have n o t s i n c e b e e n h e a r d o f ; a l so t h e h e r i t a g e s o f s t r a n g e r s w h o have f o r m e d n o h o u s e h o l d in A c h e h a n d o f n a t i v e s o f t h e c o u n t r y w h o have d i e d w i t h o u t l e a v i n g any l aw fu l h e i r s .
T h e r e a r e s t i l l m a n y s o u r c e s o f i n c o m e s w h i c h v a r y w i t h t h e l o c a l i t y a n d d e p e n d m o r e o r less o n t h e c h a r a c t e r a n d i n f l u e n c e o f t h e U l è e b a l a n g . 3 7
If t h e P a n g l i m a Sagi is t h e c h i e f o f t h e U l è e b a l a n g s o f t h e s a g i , t h e Kali Rabon Jalé ( A r a b i c Qadi Rabbu-I Jalil — J u d g e o f t h e A l m i g h t y L o r d ) is t h e c h i e f o f t h e sag i ' s K a l i s . H e r e c e i v e s h is a p p o i n t m e n t d i r e c t f r o m t h e S u l t a n .
B o t h t h e r a n k s o f P a n g l i m a Sag i a n d K a l i R a b o n Jalé a r e h e r e d i t a r y , t h o u g h t h e p r i n c i p l e o f i n h e r i t a n c e c o u l d n o t o f c o u r s e be a p p l i e d t o t h e k a l i - s h i p in t h e s a m e d e g r e e as in t h e case o f o f f i ces c o n t r o l l e d by a d a t .
6. In t h e o f f i c ia l d o c u m e n t t h e h e a d o f t h e s u l t a n a t e is c a l l e d Sultan a n d t h e A c h e h n e s e , h o w e v e r , t e r m h i m Raja Acheh.
It has been sa id e l s e w h e r e t h a t t h e U l è e b a l a n g s a r e t h e r e a l r u l e r s o f t h e c o u n t r y . E v e n w h e n A c h e h was r u l e d by t h e m o s t p o w e r f u l s u l t a n s , t h e y d i d n o t i n t e r f e r e , a n d t o u c h e d t h e U l è e b a l a n g s w i t h m u c h c i r c u m s p e c t i o n . T h i s s h o w s t h a t t h e S u l t a n s , w h i l e e n -d e a v o u r i n g t o e s t a b l i s h a k i n d o f h e g e m o n y , u n d e r s t o o d t h a t t h e y w o u l d d o b e t t e r t o r e s p e c t t h e p o w e r f u l p o s i t i o n o f t h e s e p o t e n t a t e s o f t h e i n t e r i o r . W h i l e t h i s w a s t h e p o s i t i o n o f t h e U lèeba langs u n d e r t h e m o s t p o w e r f u l S u l t a n s , w e m i g h t i m a g i n e h o w fa r t h e r e s t o f t h e p e t t y r u l e r s o f b o t h s e x e s d e a l t w i t h t h e s e c h i e f s . S o f a r f r o m
37J For more details see The Achehnese. I, Op. cit., pp. 115-118.
18
l o r d i n g o v e r t h e m , t h e s e S u l t a n s w e r e c o m p e l l e d t o s e e k t h e i r f a v o u r s o as n o t t o l ose t h e i r p o s i t i o n as t h e Rajas o f A c h e h . A t t h i s j u n c t i o n , t h e p r o b l e m o f s u c c e s s i o n t o a S u l t a n d e p e n d s o n t h e w i l l o f t h e U l è e b a l a n g s . T h e y e l e c t e d t h e n e w S u l t a n , a n d d e c i d e d w h o w i l l r e i g n o v e r t h e c o u n t r y .
B u t i t m u s t be c o n s i d e r e d t h a t t h o u g h t h e t e r r i t o r i a l ch ie fs m i g h t have g a i n e d s o m e i n c r e a s e o f p r e s t i g e f r o m t h e e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f t h e i r a u t h o r i t y in t h e i n t e r i o r , s t i l l t h i s w a s n o t o f s u f f i c i ë n t i m p o r t a n c e t o i n d u c e t h e m t o m a k e g r e a t s a c r i f i c e s t o w i n i t . It is t h e S u l t a n , t h e Ra ja o f A c h e h , t ha t c o r . s t i t u t e s t h e w e a l t h a n d s t r e n g t h o f s t a t e s s u c h as t h e s e . 38
T h o u g h t h e S u l t a n is de jure t h e s u p r è m e L o r d o f t h e c o u n t r y , h is a c t u a l d o m a i n m a y be c o n s i d e r e d as t h e s m a l l t e r r i t o r y w h e r e t h e dalam ( pa lace ) a n d t h e c a p i t a l e x i s t . 3 9 T h i s t e r r i t o r y has t h e p r i o r i t y o f b e i n g n o t i n c l u d e d i n t o o n e o f t h e t h r e e sag is .
B e s i d e s t h i s s p e c i a l t e r r i t o r y , t h e e a r l y S u l t a n s a d o p t e d a n o t h e r m e a n s f o r s t r e n g t h e n i n g t h e i r i n t e r n a l a u t h o r i t y , n a m e l y t h e i n s t i -t u t i o n o f wakeueh land. „ W a k e u e h " , t h e A r a b i c waqf s i gn i f i es p r o p e r t y w i t h d r a w n in p e r p e t u i t y by i ts o w n e r f r o m a l l a l i e n a t i o n , a n d d e v o t e d t o s o m e o b j e c t p e r m i t t e d by t h e M u s l i m L a w .
B u t w a k e u e h is b e t t e r k n o w n in t h e s e n s e o f a t e r r i t o r y o f a p i e c e o f l a n d w h i c h has b e e n p l a c e d in a p e c u l i a r l ega l p o s i t i o n b y t h e S u l t a n s . T h i s a p p l i e s a lso t o t h e s t r i p o f g r o u n d s e v e n g r e a t f a t h o m s o n e a c h s ide o f t h e A c h e h r i v e r , r e s e r v e d f r o m a n c i e n t t i m e s t o t h e S u l t a n . S u b j e c t s m i g h t b u i l d o r p l a n t w i t h i n t h i s r e s e r v e b u t t h e l and n e v e r b e c a m e t h e i r p r o p e r t y , a n d t h e S u l t a n s c o u l d a l w a y s w i t h d r a w t h e r i g h t o f u s e . 4 0
In t h e c a p i t a l o f t h e S u l t a n a t e s t a n d s t h e p r i c i p a l m o s q u e , c a l l e d t h e meuseugit raya, a n d i ts head is t h e Panglima Meuseugit Raya. T h i s o f f i ce is a l so h e r e d i t a r y .
38) See The Achehnese, I, Op. cit., pp. 8, 120, 138 ; E N / , /, Op. cit.. A r t . „ A t j e h e r s " , P. 91.
39) The name of the capital is Kutaraja (the town of the raja).
40) The name tanoh-raja (the land of the raja) is indeed more ccrrcmcnly uscd than wakeueh to describe this reservation (See The Achehnese, I, Op. cit., pp. 121-122).
19
The suprème heredi tary judge bears the t i t le of Kali Malikon Adé (Qadi Maliku-I 'Adi, i .e. „Judge of the Righteous K ing" ) w h o acts as the President of the Royal C o u r t of Just ice. 41
A m o n g the pr incipal court officials is the royal secretary, w i th the t i t le of Keureukon Katibulmuluk, and his subordinates called Krani Poten (wr i ters to our suprème Lord) . 42
Besides these officials, there are Ulèebalang Poteu = Ulèebalang of ou r Lord (the Sultan), who ei ther hold a posit ion of t rust w i th in the Sultan's own te r r i to ry , o r f i l l a high post at cour t , o r else owe thei r t i t les simply to the royal favour.
In the last part of the I9th century, in the war against the Du tch , a posit ion of commander- in-chief was created. This post was held by the famous Teungku T i ro . A n d Teungku Umar , the cele-brated chief who dur ing the war obtained supremacy over the whole of the west coast, was made Amiru-I Rabr, i .e . chief of the sea. 43
THE SHARI'AT AND THE ADAT LAW.
I. The te rm „adat" has long been accepted by the Indonesians, as it has become famüiar to Dutch jurists and ethnologists.
The present wr i the r does not know whether or not it is cor rect to translate it into „customary law" , which the W e s t com-monly used. The Indonesians having for many centuries l ived under the humanitarian impress of H indu ism and Islam, their law is part of a civ i l ized heritage.
„Pr im i t i ve law" is not practical e i ther, part iculary in the present instance. Because wi th in Indonesian society one must dist inguish between the adat of the great major i ty and that of relat ively small and unimportant t r ibes which really are pr imi t ive in the usual meaning of that wo rd . To call „ p r i m i t i v e " the law of a people which for more than a thousands years has l ived under the influence
41) tbid, p. 97.
42) Ibid, p. 124.
43) The Achehnese, I, Op. cit., pp. 148-149. The present writer does not know whether or not these two posts were created during the time of the powerful Sultans.
20
of wor ld rel igions and was able to bui ld several k ingdoms and emp.res, a people wi th a l i terate intel l igentsia and official class, where representatives sit at internat ional courc i l tables, would be an e r ro r .
The Indonesian jurists w i l l never use the word „nat ive law" as a translation of adat. Because the word „na t i ve " (Dutch ' Inlander) carnes overtones of colonial snobbishness and is dis-tasteful to the resurgent feelings of Indonesians consciousness of the i r national ident i ty .
Since customary practices among most of the people of the archipelago were dominated by the Arab ic w o r d ,, 'adat" o r custom, <t wou ld be bet ter to speak of „adat that has legal consequences", „adat recht in Dutch o r „adat law" in English.44
There are, indeed, important local differences in the adat wh,ch can be traced both to histor ica! t r iba l experiences and to the environments. As among all island peoples, and peoples occupying regions broken up by mountains and marshes into sep £ ra te areas of set t lement, the ethnographic differences are often s t r ik ing. The ex t raord inary fer t i l i ty of parts of Java, and of o ther islands, due to the age-long deposit of volcanic materials, in itself must make for different degrent of intensity of occupat ion and of social cohesion.
A n o t h e r natural factor, the unusual extent of coast line in propor t ion to surface area, has given rise to a high degree of ski l l • n navigation and, hence, much intercommunicat ion has helped to lift the beliefs and usages out of the narrow grooves of immediate exper ience to consciousness of higher, al l -embracing laws. N o r have the Indonesians been isolated f rom the influence of cultural t rends which have cast off the l imi tat ions of the i r or ig in and become umversal in thei r response to common human needs. A t least two of the great rel igions. Hinduism and Islam, have caught the imagi-nation of the island people and, in the course of t ime, greatly modi f ied. even t ransformed, the indigenous att i tudes and beliefs Buddhism and Chr is t ian i ty , though they have not penetrated as deeply , also have inf luenced Indonesian society — if only through
bhchtenleer ,n Indones.a, p. 9 ; Verspreide Geschriften, IV-ii, Op cit., p. 411 ; ENI, I, Op. cit., art. „ A d a t r e c h t " , pp. 6-7. P
21
c o n t a c t w i t h t h e C h i n e s e a n d E u r o p e a n s e t t l e m e n t s in e v e r y p a r t o f t h e a r c h i p e l a g o . I n t e r n a t i o n a l t r a d e , t h o u g h m a r g i n a l t o t h e I n d o n e s i a n e c o n o m y b e f o r e m o d e r n t i m e , has e n l a r g e d t h e o u t l o o k .
A l l o f t h e s e i m p a c t s t n e v i t a t l y have e f fec ted t h e ada t a n d have c o m p l i c a t e d i t . T h e s u r p r i s i n g t h i n g , un less o n e pays a t t e n t i o n t o h i s t o r i c a l c i r c u m s t a n c e s , is n o t t h e c o n t r i b u t i o n o f o u t s i d e c o n t a c t s t o t h e d i v e r s i c a t i o n o f t h e c u l t u r e t r a i t s , i n c l u d i n g t h e ada t , b u t t h e fac t t h a t s o m u c h o f t h e o r i g i n a l , i n d i g e n o u s c u l t u r e has s u r v i v e d . T h e e x p l a n a t i o n is t h a t , o f t h e f o r e i g n r u l e s , o n l y t h o s e i m b u e d w i t h t h e m i s s i o n a r y zea l o f Is lam have p e r s i s t e n l y t r i e d t o t a k e o v e r I n d o n e s i a n s o c i e t y . H i n d u r u l e , in p r e v i o u s c e n t u r i e s , h a d t r a n s f o r m e d t h e r u l i n g g r o u p b u t had lef t v i l l a g e l i fe m u c h as i t f o u n d i t . W e s t e r n r u l e b r o u g h t m i l l i o n s o f I n d o n e s i a n s u n d e r t h e d i s c i p l i n e o f f o r e i g n e n t e r p r i s e in p l a n t a t i o n s , m i n e s , a n d u r b a n i n d u s t r i e s , b u t le f t n e a r l y t h r e e - f o u r t h s o f a l l w o r k i n g i n d o n e s i a n s t o t o i l in t h e i r o w n f i e l d s a n d t o l i v e i n t h e i r o w n v i l l a g e c o m -m u n i t i e s , s u b j e c t t o t h e i r o w n i n h e r i t e d l a w s a n d cu-s toms.
T h e a d a t , l i k e o t h e r w o r l d l y t h i n g s , c h a n g e s w i t h e v e r y s u c -c e s s i v e g e n e r a t i o n . T h e s l o w l y b u t s u r e l y c h a n g i n g i n s t i t u t i o n s o f s o c i e t y a r e t h u s r e v e r e d as f i x e d a n d u n c h a n g e a b l e by i ts i n d i v i d u a l u n i t s . 4 5
In c l ass i f y i ng I n d o n e s i a i n t o l a w - a r e a s , T e r H a a r d i v i d e d i t i n t o
19, a n d A c h e h is o n e o f t h e m . 46
2 . S p e a k i n g o f A c h e h o n l y , t h e p e o p l e b e l i e v e t h a t adat a n d sbari'at ( A c h e h hukom) s h o u l d t a k e t h e i r p laces s i d e by s i de in t h e i r c o u n t r y . „Hukom a n d adat a r e i n s e p a r a b l e , e v e n as G o d ' s e s s e n c e a n d h is a t t r i b u t e s " says t h e A c h e h n e s e p r o v e r b „ H u k u m a n d ada t a r e l i k e t h e p u p i l a n d t h e w h i t e o f t h e e y e ; t h e h u k o m is A l l a h ' s h u k o m a n d t h e ada t A l l a h ' s a d a t " says a n o t h e r o n e . 47
L a w s d e a l i n g w i t h c o m m e r c i a l a n d p o r t r e g u l a t i o n s as a f f ec t i ng d i f f e r e n t n a t i o n a l i t i e s a n d d i f f e r e n t k i n d s o f m e r c h a n d i s e , a n d t h e c o l l e c t i o n a n d d i s t r i b u t i o n o f t a x e s , t h e c u s t o m s - t a r i f f s , t h e r e g u l a t i o n
45) T h e Achehnese, /, Op. cit., p. 1 0 ; Verspreide Geschiften, I V - i , p p . 2 6 0 - 2 6 1 .
46) T h e de ta i l s , see H a a r , Op. cit., p p . 7 - 1 0 .
47) T h e Achehnese, l, Op. at., p. 72 and note.
2 2
h v C r r c C r r e m 0 n i ! S a n d s o l e m n i t i « at festivals had been wr i t ten
by he Sultans, in documents known as Sarakatas. The most i m p ^ t a n "
ï ^ £ j £ " S U k a n ! s k - d a r M " * (i607-.727)
Pk°nr„£
m,n tl"1 ^ h i c
u
h
J
c o n t r o ' ' he relat ion of chief to subject, of man to w , f e and ch idren, laws which everyone in Acheh observes and every v. lage headman has at his f inger-t ips, all these l iv ing laws, no single wr i t ten document testifies. g
iLr, Jï6 TUS S h a r i ' a t P r e 3 c r i b e s P ° s s e " , of course, a rel igious character. The prescnpt ion of the shari 'at may be classed in two mam groups according to the i r sub jec t :
(1) regulations relat ing to worsh ip and ritual duties (Ubadat); (2) regulations of a jur idical and pol i t ical nature ('uqu-bat, mu'a'malat).
In every Musl im communi ty , however, a dist inct ion is drawn m practice between what is rel igious ('ibadat) in the str ict sense and therefore mviolable. and what is of a more secular nature ( uqubac, mu'amalat) and may accordingly be modif ied to suit the requi rements of the state and of society.
A l l that belong to the first of these two categories must be accepted uncondit ional ly by every good Mus l im. Divergence f rom such laws ,s in many cases looked upon as a more serious trans-gressron than actual neglect of them. The sole concession that is made to the sinfulness of mankind is that, he who neglects o r trangresses the law is not thereby made an unbel iever, but oniy ar, imperfect bel iever provided he entertains no doubt of the validity or any of its commands. '
In regard to matters that are included in the second category much more latitude is permi t ted . Here we f ind admit ted system of rules both customary and wr i t ten , wh ich for all practical purposes supply the place of the sacred law. F
lf we know that the adat which prevails in the Acheh Sul-tanate - also throughout Indonesia - has not only the religious
48) See The Achehnese, I, Op. cit., pp. 4-6, 7. After the death of Sultan Iskandar
Mud* he had the title of Meukuta Alam (the crown of the universe).
23
c h a r a c t e r , w e m i g h t e x p t a i n t h a t t h i s a d a t is " n o n - s h a r i ' a t i c " . S u c h
a n adat c a n be m e t a l s o in o t h e r M u s l i m c o u n t r i e s . t h o u g h i t has
d i f f e r e n t n a m e s .
T h e ada ts w h i c h c o n t r o l t h e l i ves o f t h e B a d o u i n s o f A r a b i a , t h e E g y p t i a n , t h e S y r i a n a n d o t h e r A r a b c o u n t r i e s , o r t h e T u r k s , f o r e x a m p l e , a r e f o r t h e m o s t p a r t different f r o m t h o s e o f t h e A c h e h n e s e , I n d o n e s i a n , M a l a y s , b u t t h e r e l a t i o n o f t h e s e ada ts t o t h e l a w o f I s l am, a n d t h e t e n a c i t y w i t h w h i c h t h e y m a m t a m t h e m -s e l v e s d e s p i t e t h a t l a w , is e v e r y w h e r e t h e s a m e . T h e c u s t o m a r y l a w o f t h e A r a b s a n d t h e Qanun ( m u n d a n e c o d e ) o f t h e T u r k s d i f f e r f r o m t h e w r i t t e n a n d u n w r i t t e n ada t l a w o f I n d o n e s i a n s , b u t t h e y a r e e q u a l l y " n o n - s h a r i ' a t i c " , a l t h o u g h t h e y a re e q u a l l y l o u d in t h e i r r e c o g n i t i o n o f t h e d i v i n e o r i g i n o f t h e s h a r i ' a t .
T h o u g h w e t a k e f o r g r a n t e d t h e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n t ha t t h e a d a t , d u e t o lack o f r e l i g i o u s c h a r a c t e r , is n o n - s h a r i ' a t i c , w e can n o t a l w a y s say t h a t t h i s a d a t is e n t i r e l y un-lslamic; m o s t o f t h e ada t i n A c h e h a n d I n d o n e s i a c o n t r o l s j u d i c a l a n d p o l i t i c a ! m a t t e r s w h i c h have a s e c u l a r n a t u r e , w h i c h t h e r u l e m a y m o d i f y , a c c o r d i n g t o t h e d i f f e r e n t c i r c u m s t a n c e s , t o m e e t t h e i n t e r e s t s o f t h e p e o p l e . 4? M o r e o v e r w e s h o u l d r e m e m b e r t h a t t h e bas is o f t h e Is lamic l a w is " i n d i f f e r e n c e " (mubab). T h e r e a r e s o m e o f t h e a d a t s w h i c h f i l l t h e gaps w h e r e t h e s h a r i ' a t is s i l e n t ,
4 It is n o t t h e i n t e n t i o n h e r e t o f u r n i s h a l l t h e d e t a i l s a b o u t h o w t h e s h a r i ' a t a n d ada t a r e c a r r i e d c u t in A c h e h , bu t a f e w e x a m p l e s a r e n e c e s s a r y f o r t h e sake o f c l a r i f i c a t i o n . T h e p e o p l e o f A c h e h is o n e o f t h e m o s t r e l i g i o u s m i n d e d a m o n g t h e I n d o n e s i a n s .
S n o u c k H u r g r o n j e says t h a t t h e g r e a t m a j o r i t y o f t h e p e o p l e o v e r l o o k t h e d u t y o r p r a y e r ( sa /a t ) , b u t at t h e same t i m e he a d d s ; " T h e r e a re h o w e v e r m a n y e x c e p t i o n s , l oca l a n d o t h e r w i s e , t o t h e p r e v a i ü n g l u k e w a r m n e s s . W h e n e v e r an i n f l u e n t l a l u l a m a r e s i d e s t h e r e a r i ses o f i ts o w n a c c o r d a r e l i g i o u s r e v i v a l , w h e r e i n s o m e t a k e pa r t
49) The present wr i te r does not ignore the existing numerous adat practices in
Indonesia which are entirely un-lslamic, l ike the adat in Minangkabau. where
the children do not inherit f rom their fathers. This practice and the like are
the main concern of Muslim leaders since the first decade of the 20th century.
24
ï L r S K u ? " u a " d ° t h e r s f r o m s h a m e o r The plety of a
chief. be the keuchi', imeum or ulèebalang produces a like resuit which often long survives after his decease".50
it F P W V T " ? u h S «W t h e r e i s s u P e r ^ u n d a n t zeal for performine It. Few parts of the Muslim world send so large a proportion of
b y % r e a ? Ï Ï a ^ n h ° ? t h i S P i l g
f
r i m a g e ° r b n ' n « a s m u c h P w S S year by year to the holy cities of Arabia as Indonesia, of which Acheh
IheTuVn t h 3 t t 0 ° a , t ^ U g h t h e d i S t a n c e a n d t h e dimSltJe of oeonl. of XP a r ! T y- m x h g r e a t e r f ° r t h e ' ^ n e s i a n s than for the people of Egypt. Syna, Turkye or Arabia. It is true that most of the ceremonies connected with the Hajj are not always correcdy understood by the ordinary pilgrim, but the Hajj has gfven T e to
oZ thP inH 6 s P ' r i t u a ' c e " t r e of Islam. The influence of Makkah mterfeJen " S ; a n S ' , t h e A c h e h n e s ' i n r e s i s t i " g the Dutch mus no, h' m w ' a S t " " . V l 9 t h c e n t u r y ' i s remarkable and must not be under-estimated.SI
the eIÏSf?'ng ^
tHrgh i t S d i s t r i b u t i o " * not sostrlct among
the eight classes of people as the Shafi'ite school interpretes. mos! of it is stnctly given, perhaps, except the zakat of cattle.52
Ramadan' TITATI ° f ^ F°ST (SAM) i n t h e m o " t h of K-madan. The Achehnese are very strict in observing the fast Nay they «teem it more highly than is justified in theory. too k gMyZl deed m comparison with other religious obligations. This is due to the popular notjon that this month is one of atonement. which makes good the shortcomings of the rest of the year.53
S. Among the Muslims, perhaps the building up of the domestic
customs in connection with marriage are non-shari'atic 54
50) The Achehnese, II, Op. cit., p. 304 51) See Mekka, Op. cit., especiaï ly p p . 250-257, 259
bee The Achehnese, II. Op cit p 310 M ) Si ^ of " v 5 A °° A6StLC U W ' S e e ' T h e ^ " e h n e s e , /, Op. cit., p p . 295-439
pfaces ^ •' A r t ' A t , e h e r i " ' P P ' 9 I " 9 2 ; H a a r & P r i ™ °P- severai
25
To quote an exampte, it was the custom in Acheh, that girls marry at an early ages. At the age of 8 to 10. they are united in wedlock in „form only, but the actual consummation of their mar-riage is deferred to a maturer age.
The pride of the Achehnese also withholds them from marrying their doughters to foreigners, unless they are of Arab blood (sayyid), or have been long settled in the country and have attained some position. 55
Marriage which in by no means a family matter, the Achehnese treat it as an affair of the whole gampong. Thus the Keuchi has the power to prevent a proposed marriage, which he considers to be violating the adat. 56
But the legal action and legal relations connected with the married state are almost entirely governed by the religious law. The exceptions to his rule are few in number, and it may be said that in the case of marriage no deviation from the religious code would be tolerated. The laws both as to marriage and divorce and the circumstances arising out of both, as to the bringing up of children and even as to succession to property are Islamic in aü mam essen-tials. 57
6 . In Acheh — perhaps no less than in other Muslim countries — laws relating to trade and business, laws regulating property, its acquistion, transfer and confiscation, are controlled by the adat. 58
7 Without expounding here the theory of Muslim constitution, we find that in Acheh Sultanate, from the autonomus gampongs up to the sagis, there is actual separation of temporal and spiritual authority.
The Keuchi's and the Teungkus, the Ulèebalangs and the Kalis are the upholders of adat and hukom respectively.
The office of religion, due to the hereditary nature, sometimes loses its importance, because it is not always that the heir is as learned as his predecessor.
55) The Achehnese, I, Op. cit., pp. 2 9 5 - 2 9 6 . 56) Vide Supra p. 10.
g For % e \ n e t e ! è , ï ' O p . cit., P P . 2 8 3 - 2 9 4 ; H . r & Prins, Op. cit.,
in several places.
26
T h o u g h t h e o r i t i c a l l y t h e Su l t an is c h o s e n by t h e t h r e e p r i n c i p a i ch ie fs ( P a n g l i m a S a g i s ) , 5 9 p r a c t i c a l l y t h e c u s t o m c o n f i n e s t h e c h o i c e as far as p o s s i b l e t o t h e m e m b e r s o f t h e r e i g n i n g f a m i l y .
W h a t e v e r r e l a t i o n s may in past ages have e x i s t e d b e t w e e n A c h e h and T u r k e y , i t is i m p o s s i b l e t o r ega rd t h e Rajas of t h e f o r m e r as in any sense d e l e g a t e s o f t h e T u r k i s h S u l t a n s . T h e y d o n o t c o m m i t t h e f o l l y o f e v e n l ay ing c l a i m t o t h e t i t l e s o f C a l i p h , a l t h o u g h w e f i n d in t h e i r o f f i c ia l r o l l t h e t i t l e s s u c h as " A l l a h ' s s h a d o w in t h e w o r l d " 6 0 w h i c h t es t i f y a r é v é r e n c e f o r r e l i g i o u s l a w .
In fact t h e S u l t a n o f A c h e h lacks de facto p o w e r o v e r his S u l t a n a t e . H e r e c o g n i z e s t h e h e r e d i t a r y U lèeba lang a n d t h e l a t t e r m a y r u l e his t e r r i t o r y w i t h o u t t h e S u l t a n ' s i n t e r f e r e n c e . B u t f o r t h e sake o f u n i t y , p r a y e r s f o r t h e S u l t a n a r e c a r r i e d o u t e v e r y F r i d a y in t h e m o s q u e s t h r o u g h o u t t h e w h o l e l a n d .
It s e e m s t h a t t h e u l a m a s » d i d n o t o b j e c t t o f e m a l e r u l e . F o u r f e m a l e s o u v e r e i g n s in s u c c e s s i o n have o c c u p i e d t h e t h r o n e o f A c h e h .
D u r i n g t h e r e i g n o f t h e f i r s t S u l t a n a ( the f e m i n i n e o f S u l t a n ) , Sapiatodin Shah (1639— 1641 — 1675), w h o w a s f a m e d f o r h e r p i e t y , a n d w h o s e n a m e is s t i l l e x t o l l e d in t h e r o y a l e d i c t s , t h e r e c a m e t o A c h e h t h e c e l e b r a t e d M a l a y t e a c h e r A b d - I Ra 'u f , w h o s ince his d e a t h has b e e n r e v e r e d as a s a i n t . H e s e t t e d in h e r c a p i t a l , w r o t e a b o o k at h e r r e q u e s t , a n d in t h e d e d i c a t i o n p r a i s e d h e r in t h e m o s t e x t r a v a g a n t t e r m s , and p r a y e d f o r t h e l o n g e n d u r a n c e o f t h e r e i g n .
W h e n Inayat Shah, t h e t h i r d o f t h e A c h e h n e s e S u l t a n a s , as-c e n d e d t h e t h r o n e , an e m b a s s y f r o m t h e G r a n d S h e r i f o f M a k k a h c a m e t o A c h e h a f te r an u n s u c c e s s f u l m i s s i o n t o I nd ia , and was r e c e i v e d w i t h e v e r y t o k e n o f h o n o u r and s e n t h o m e l o a d e d w i t h r i c h g i f ts . T h e M a k k a h c h r o n i c l e r w h o d e s c r i b e s t h e a d v e n t u r e o f t h e e m b a s s y t akes no e x c e p t i o n t o t h e d e m i n i t i o n o f h is g e n e r o u s w o m a n , b u t p ra i ses h e r l i b e r a l i t y , w h i c h a f f o r d e d so f a v o u r a b l e a c o n t r a s t t o t h e a t t i t u d e a d o p t e d by h e r m a l e f e l l o w s o v e r e i g n , t h e G r e a t M o n g u l . 6 1
59) Vide Supra, p, 18. T h e Ka l i s and t h e i n f l u e n t i a l u lamas take par t a lso in c h o s i n g a S u l t a n .
60) See The Achehnete, I, Op. cit., p p . 190-191 ; II, Op. cit., p. 333.
61) See The Achehnese, II, Op, cit., p. 3 3 5 ; E N / , /, Cp. cit., a r t . „ A t j e h " p. 76 .
27
The Achehnese fay the utmost stress on one duty which is imposed by the shari'at, namely the carrying on of the holy war. The conviction is universal amongst the people of this country, that this obligation is among the most important that their relïgion im-poses, and that its fulfilment brings great gain while its neglect is attended by misfortune of all kinds. Nor are they lacking in zeal in the sacred course, as we know but too well. 62 Whenever their energy abates it is roused afresh by the more ambïtious among the ufamas, who have great influence not only among the masses but among the officials too.
THE END
S O M E B O O K S C O N S U L T E D :
Arnold, T. W . , The P reach ing o f I s l a m , 2nd ed., Constable & Campany Ltd., London, 1913.
Graaf, Dr. H . J. de. Geschiedenis van I n d o n e s i ë , N . V . Uitgeverij W . Van Hoeve, 'sGravenhage-Bandung, 1949.
Haar, B. Ter, Ada t L a w i n Indonesia, tr. from the Dutch, edited with an ïntroduction by E Edamson Hoebet & A . Arthur Schiller, Institute of Pacific Relation, New York, 1948.
Hurgronje, Dr. CSnouck, The Achehnese, l , [{, tr. by the late A . W . S . O'Sullivan, Late E.j . Brill, Leiden, Luzac&Co. , London, 1906.
, M e k k a i n the la t ter par t o f 19th century, tr. by J. H. Monahan, Late E. j . Brill Ltd., Leiden, Luzac & Co., London, 1913.
, Verspre ide Geschri f ten, IV - i , IV - ii, Kurt Schroeder-Bonn und Leipzig, 1924.
28
Ibn Battuta, Travels i n Asia and Africa 1325-1354, tr. and selected by H.A.R. Gibb, Lund Humphries* London, Bradford, 3rd imp., 1953.
Kraemer, Prof. Dr. H., & Van Nieuwenhuijze, Dr. C. A. O., Agama Islam, Badan Penerblt Kristen, Dja-
karta. 1952.
Lekkerkerker, C , Land en volk van Sumatra, N . V. Boekhandel en Drukkerij, voorheen E. J. Brill, Leiden, 1916.
Paulus, Mr. Dr. J., Arts. "Adat", "Adatrecht", "Atjeh", "Atjehers", in Encyclopaedie van Nederlands-Indie, I. 2e druk, Martinus Nijhoff, 'sGravenhage, N . V . v-h E. J. Brill, Leiden, 1917.
Prins, Prof. Dr. J., Adat en Islamietische plichtenleer i n Indonesië, 3e druk, N . V. Uitgeverij W.Van Hoeve, 'sGravenhage-Bandung, 1954.
Vlekke, Bernard H. M. Geschiedenis van den Indischen Archipel, J. J. Romen & Zonen-Uitgevers, Roermond-Maaseik, 1947.
29
Dr. A. Mukti Ali
Tulisan2 jang sudah terbit:
1. "Ülmu "perbanSingan Agama. (tjelakan ke 2).
2. Xe-Esaan üuhan Salam Al Qur'an. (i'ielakan ke 2).
3. Asal Xlsul Agama. (i}dakan ke 2).
U. Eüka Agama Salam TJembinaan diepribaSian Tiasional;
dan
f)emberantasan "Xcma'sialan Sari scgi Agama tJslam.
5. "Bagaimana menghampiri üsrd' VU'raSf Tlabi Besar
TftuhammaS s.a.ve. atau Jman San Ülmu TJengclahuan.
6. pemberoniakan AhmaS "Urabi atau TJerSjuangan Xonslitusi
Si Tïltsir dan n
Qerahan tlmam TYlahSi Si SuSan.
7. Alam TJikiran Vslam THoSern Si VnSonesia (tjeiakan ke 2),
dan
THoSern Jslamic Uhoughi in VnSonesia (Snglish).
8. "pelbagai "persoalan Jslam Si JnSoriesia Dewasö int.
9. fj/ie SpreaS ofj öslam in JnSomsia.
