Vol. 1, No.

1, June 2018

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Badrus Sholeh

MANAGING EDITOR
Minatur Rokhim

MANAGING EDITORS
Imam Subchi
Khoeron Siri
Ulil Abshar
Rena LatifaJauhar Azizy

INTERNATIONAL EDITORIAL BOARD

Abubakar Ebyhara (University of Jember, Indonesia)
Arskal Salim (Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakartaa, Indonesia)
Azyumardi Azra (Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta, Indonesia)
Dzuriyatun Toyibah (Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta, Indonesia)
Flori Ratna Sari (Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta, Indonesia)
Greg Barton ( Deakin University, Australia)
Greg Fealy (Australian National University, Australia)
Hamka Hasan (Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta, Indonesia)
Julian Millie (Monash University, Australia)
Julie Chernov Hwang (Ghoucher College, USA)
Kamaruddin Amin ( Alauddin State Islamic University of Makasar, Indonesia)
M. Adib Misbachul Islam (Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta, Indonesia)
M. Nur Kholis Setiawan ( Sunan Kalijaga State Islamic University of Yogyakarta, Indonesia)
Masdar Hilmi ( Sunan Ampel State Islamic University of Surabaya, Indonesia)
Masykuri Abdillah (Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta, Indonesia)
Munzier Suparta (Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta, Indonesia)
Nadirsyah Hosen (Monash University, Australia)
Noorhaidi Hasan (Sunan Kalijag State Islamic University of a Yogyakarta, Indonesia)
Robert W. Hefner (Boston University, USA)
Siti Nurul Azkiyah (Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta, Indonesia)

ASSISTANT TO THE EDITORS

Ahmad Dzikrullah Akbar, (Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta, Indonesia)

LANGUAGE ADVISOR
Maria ulfa, (Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta, Indonesia)
Makyun Subuki, (Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta, Indonesia)
Review of Islam in Southeast Asia (ISSN 2621-8496; E-ISSN:) is peer-reviewed international
journal published biannually by the Center for Human Resources Development (PPSDM)
Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta, INDONESIA. It specializes in
Southeast Asian Islam in general, and is intended to communicate original research and
current issues on the subject. This journal warmly welcomes contributions from scholars of
related disciplines.

The journal focuses on Islam and Muslims in Southeast Asia from multi-disciplines such
Islamic studies, law, philosophy, history, politics, sociology, anthropology, economy, interna-
tional relations, and other social sciences.

Editorial Office:
RISEA, Pusat Pengembangan Sumber Daya Manusia (PPSDM)
Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta,
Jl. Ir. H. Juanda No. 96, Ciputat Timur, Tangerang
Selatan 15412 Indonesia
Phone: +6221 7443 329 Fax: +6221 7493 364
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://journal.uinjkt.ac.id/index.php/risea
 Millenarianism and Islamic Resurgence: Exploring the Intertwining of
Religious Belief and Politics in Contemporary Indonesia
Millenarianism and Islamic Resurgence:
Exploring the Intertwining of Religious Belief and Politics in
Contemporary Indonesia

Luthfi Makhasin
Jenderal Soedirman University
Email: [email protected]

Abstract: The current Islamic resurgence, simply defined as the return of Islamic
beliefs, doctrines, and values as a sources of personal identification manifested in per-
sonal, political, cultural, and social life, poses positions Indonesian Muslims in the an
enduring struggle to reconcile between religious tradition and modern life. Canonical
traditions and classical Islamic texts that prophesied prophesy the imminent coming
of Yaumul Qiyamah (Armageddon) and their popular reception among Indonesian
Muslims reveal how religious texts still have a powerful influence in shaping the way
Indonesian Muslims perceive the world and how they deal with it. This paper seeks
to address continuing scholarly debate on the interconnection of Islamic tradition
and modernity in contemporary Indonesia. It deals particularly with popular books
on millenarian topics published in the last 15 years. Millenarian discourse on the
imminent coming of Mahdi (the Savior) requires and implies that Muslims to be
strongly committed to perform all religious obligations as prescribed in the Shariah
(Islamic law). Millenarian discourse on the coming of Dajjal (the Deceiver) and the
spread of Fitnah (Confusion) and Jahiliyya (Ignorance) has also becomes an ideological
tools to make a demarcating line between Muslim-ness and Kafir-ness, and between
the so-called dar Islam (House of Islam) and dar Harb (House of Unbelievers).

Keyswords: Millenarianism, Islamic Resurgence, Indonesia

Introduction
Millenarian beliefs has have long been identified as one of the main
ideological forces in traditional peasant societies in Asia and Africa(Bur-
ridge, 1969; Hobsbawn, 1959; Kartodirdjo, 1966, 1971, 1973, 1984; Wors-
ley, 1968). There are also those who suggest that millenarian-apocalyp-
tic ideas, though not mainstream, are well-established within the Islamic
traditions, stemming from social turmoil and political crisis (Cook, 1997,
2002, 2005; Filiu, 2011). All of these scholarly studies imply that millena-
rian-apocalyptic beliefs plays a significant role in driving popular revolu-
tionary and socio-political movements because it they sets promote a high
level of religious commitment and offers a coherent and total vision of

Volume 1, No. 1, June 2018 | 1

Luthfi Makhasin
socio-religious change. The idea of the Mahdi in Islam has been used to
rally support for moral purification, armed struggle, economic demands,
and political protest (Furnish, 1999, p. 22).
This paper explores millenarianism view as embraced by a Sufi group
named Naqshbandi-Haqqani in Indonesia. This millenarian view is a dis-
tinctively feature of Naqshbandi-Haqqani, and not shared that is not com-
mon compared to with other Sufi groups. I argue that millenarian beliefs
plays an important role in shaping personal religious piety among Indone-
sian Muslims. , as well as I also argue that millenarian belief plays a part in
in providing a religious basis for symbolic political resistance.
To support the this argument, this paper’s elaborates discussion is
divided into five sections. First, it introduces the subject by it deals with
introduction by elaborating upon current scholarly studies on millenar-
ianism. Second, it examines the method of data collection and analysis
adopted in this paper. Third, it gives a brief background about Naqsh-
bandi-Haqqani in Indonesia to which this millenarian-apocalyptic belief
comes from. Fourth, it explores in details the millenarian views held byas
seen among Naqshbandi-Haqqani’s Haqqani disciples in Indonesia. Fi-
nally, this paper analyses the socio-political significance of this millenarian
view as an expression of Islamic piety and symbolic political resistance.

Method of Data Collection and Analysis Methods

This paper is based on a research project entitled The Politics of Con-
tending Piety: Sufism and Islamic Social Movement in Indonesia. Data are was col-
lected through in-depth interviews with respondents in Jakarta, Yogyakar-
ta, Batam, and Tangerang. The interviews complete were complemented
with library research, particularly to collect primary texts on millenarian-
ism written by Naqshbandi-Haqqani leaders and disciples of Naqshban-
di-Haqqani in Indonesia. Framing I also adopt framing analysis, a special
theoretical approach in social movement theories to find out discover di-
agnostic and prognostic aspects of social movements, was adopted to bet-
ter comprehend transcripts of interviews and primary texts.

Naqshbandi-Haqqani in Indonesia
Millenarian-apocalyptic belief has been a signature theme for of the
Naqshbandi-Haqqani in Indonesia (Atay, 1994, p. 200; Damrel, 2006, p.
122; Habibis, 1989, p. 225, 1990, p. 605). Indonesian Muslims get access
to this materials from oral transmission, books, and online publication.
Naqshbandi-Haqqani uses the terms (such as Jesus Christ, Anti-Christ,

2 | RISEA (Review Journal of Southeast Asia)

 Millenarianism and Islamic Resurgence: Exploring the Intertwining of
Religious Belief and Politics in Contemporary Indonesia
Armageddon, etc.) that is not commonly understood among ordinary
Muslims because this teaching was initially disseminated to the general
audience in the West. This becomes one of some distinctive features of
Naqshbandi-Haqqani’s religious teaching compared to other Sufi groups
in Indonesia.
Among Naqshbandi-Haqqani’s Haqqani disciples, this millenari-
an-apocalyptic belief is attributed primarily attributed to three Sufi mas-
ters to whom Indonesian followers pay their veneration, Grand Sheikh
Abdullah Faiz (1891-1973), Sheikh Nazim Haqqani (1922-2014), and Mu-
hammad Hisham Kabbani (b. 1945). Naqshbandi-Haqqani itself is an off-
shoot of Naqshbandi Sufi movement, the most widespread Sufi group in
the Muslim world. The Naqshbandi-Haqqani movement is named after its
founder, Sheikh Nazim Effendi Adel al Qubrusi al-Haqqani, a Turkish Cy-
priot who was born in Larnaca, a region located in the southeastern part
of Cyprus inhabited mostly by Greek Cypriots. Sheikh Nazim al-Haqqani,
as he is known among his disciples, was born on 23 April 1922 in Larnaca
and died on 7 May 2014.
In the formative period of his mission between the 1940s and 1960s,
Sheikh Nazim Haqqani travelled extensively to conduct religious preach-
ing, and if possible, initiate new disciples across Cyprus, Turkey, Syria
and Lebanon, and occasionally visiting Jordania, Iraq, Egypt and Saudi
Arabia as well. His uncompromising stance often led to clashes with the
political establishment in the countries where he conducted his preaching
missions. In his extensive walking tours between the 1940s and 1960s,
Sheikh Nazim Haqqani encouraged people to ‘leave atheism, secularism
and materialism and to come back to God’ (Kabbani, 1995, p.385).
Increasing hostile political and religious environments in the Middle
East bring about internal change and shift in social basis. Between 1970s
and 1980s, Naqshbandi-Haqqani began to spread among Turkish Muslims
immigrants living in Western Europe. During this period, it managed to
have permanent basis in London, Paris, Roma, Vienna, and so forth. Since
1990s, Naqshbandi-Haqqani has begun to attract followers in the USA. In
1991, Sheikh Nazim’s son-in law, Muhammad Hisham Kabbani even got
refugee status and moved from Lebanon to the USA. He established per-
manent basis in Fenton, Michigan, from where he started global mission
to propagate Naqshbandi-Haqqani across the world, including Indonesia.
According to some sources, some Indonesian Muslims living in Eu-
rope and North America had known about Naqshbandi-Haqqani since
late 1980s. Asniar Sahab was among the first Indonesian Muslims who
Volume 1, No. 1, June 2018 | 3
Luthfi Makhasin
joined this Sufi group. She was an Indonesian journalist who met and was
then initiated directly by Sheikh Nazim Haqqani in London in 1991. In her
book entitled The Spiritual Journey of Celebrities, she explains that she came
to know Sheikh Nazim Haqqani through the help of his friend, Sabar
Prayoga, an Indonesian Muslim living in Rotterdam, Netherland (Sahab,
2001, p. 21).
Through personal networks and online dissemination, Naqshban-
di-Haqqani has been popularly known among Indonesian Muslims only
after 1997 following the coming of Sheikh Nazim’s son-in law, Sheikh
Muhammad Hisham Kabbani, a Lebanese-American Muslims coming
from Michigan. Until now, Naqshbandi-Haqqani has about 12 affiliated
Pesantren (Islamic boarding school), 3 affiliated social foundations, and
more than 100 dzikir centres across Indonesia with around 5,000 active
followers across Indonesia. Though small in number, this Sufi group is
well integrated into a large Sufi community which claims to have more
than 70 millions active followers throughout Indonesia.

Millenarian Views and the Naqshbandi-Haqqani Community: The

Coming of Mahdi and Dajjal
Initially, this this millenarian-apocalyptic belief was at the beginning
only transmitted orally (sohbet). Afterwards, it was disseminated global-
ly through written materials and online publications by Faiz’s his deputy
(Sheikh Hisham Kabbani) and other disciples. This openly proclaimed
millenarian-apocalyptic belief is certainly one of the main features dis-
tinguishing Naqshbandi-Haqqani from other Sufi movements in Indone-
sia. In a translated book entitled Kiamat Mendekat: Kronika Terobosan Ilmiah
dan Peristiwa Akhir Zaman yang Membuktikan Ramalan Nabi, Sheikh Hisham
Kabbani has stated that his master attempted to elaborate an established
eschatological view among Sunni Muslims and addressed this distinctive
teaching to both fellow Muslims and Westerners people.
Through this book, Sheikh Hisham Kabbani echoed his master in
his attempts to provide a textual basis from the Quran and Prophetic tra-
ditions (hadiths) as well as compelling scientific evidence that the Muslim
community has passed a thousand years in of triumph and currently lives
within the five hundred years of decline that will soon be followed by the
revival of soon be revived by the Mahdi and Jesus Christ. The emphasis
on millenarian belief and the last days departs is based in from the an
interpretation of the a hadithProphetic tradition implying that God only
granted the Muslim community only fifteen hundred years in this world,

4 | RISEA (Review Journal of Southeast Asia)

 Millenarianism and Islamic Resurgence: Exploring the Intertwining of
Religious Belief and Politics in Contemporary Indonesia
which meansing that less than 70 seventy years are left. Sheikh Hisham
Kabbani has written:
For the first millennium of Islamic civilization, the Muslims were
favoured by Allah with advancement unparalleled before or after...
After its first millennium, a gradual yet definite decline began within
the Ummah which has continued until our present time. As the
Muslims have wandered away from the way of the Prophet and
Allāh’s heavenly message of Islam, the divine blessings and support
have similarly diminished. Miraculously, the Prophet predicted that
this process would take one thousand years and it came to pass. The
second prediction in this hadith is that the Ummah will continue
further for five hundred more years in decline (Kabbani, 2003, p. 35).
The contemporary era is therefore perceived therefore as a critical
time of preparation for the coming of the last days, in a time in which the
Naqshbandi-Haqqani in particular and the Muslim community in general
will again play a great historical role, once and for the last time.
Abdullah Faiz reportedly made prophesies that “there would be a
war in the Gulf area involving the whole world”, “Germany and England
would lead the whole of Europe”, and “in Germany there would be a
saint assigned by the Mahdi and Jesus who would raise and train peo-
ple there in spirituality”. He also prophesied that “‘there would be a big
change in the approach of Arabs to politics, ; one powerful regime was
going to change to a better way of government”, “communism would
collapse”, and “a peace deal would occur between Israel and Arabia which
the United States would broker”. In addition, he also predicted that “in the
midst of peace, suddenly there would be an attack and invasion of Turkey
by a close neighboring country that would lead to a big war causing a great
disaster across the world during which the Mahdi would come forth and
Jesus Christ would return on to earth”.
This millenarian belief, as held among Naqshbandi-Haqqani’s disci-
ples, is closely related to the notion of the Signs of the Hour. These signs
relate to all unfolding events in the past, present, and future that affect hu-
manity and the Muslim ummah. Echoing his master, Abdullah Faiz Dages-
tani, Sheikh Nazim Haqqani believes that the minor Signs of the Hour
have already passed and that the major ones are soon to come.
The minor Signs have to do with the widespread moral decadence re-
sulting from weakening weakened religious norms in in regulating people’s
daily lifelives. The Signs of the Hour are characterised by massive wide-

Volume 1, No. 1, June 2018 | 5

Luthfi Makhasin
spread injustice, oppression, bloodshed, tyrannical rule, and especially sex-
ual permissiveness, affecting everyone in all walks of life, especially the
innocent, those who are not guilty, the poor, and the weak. The minor
Signs of the Hour are also related to modern fashion that disregards mod-
esty in clothing , (especially among women), pornography, same-sex rela-
tionships, and other forms of sexual permissiveness as being foretold by
the Prophet Muhammad (Kabbani, 2004, pp. 113–179). Such minor Signs
thus apply practically to present self-examination of the contemporary
moral decadence within the Muslim ummah.
The major Signs of the Hour include major occurrences: the time
when the sun will rise from the West, smoke will cover the whole world,
massive earthquakes, and plagues that will affect everyone in the world.
Sheikh Hisham Kabbani relates the major signs of the hour to the current
state of countries in the Middle East, about which the Prophet reportedly
said that, in the last days, “the barefoot, naked, indigent shepherds com-
pete in building tall structures” and “the barefoot and naked, the deaf and
dumb are the kings of the earth” as narrated in Sahih Muslim, and that “…
the destitute (al-buhm) camel-herders compete in building tall structures”
as recorded in Sahih Bukhari. Sheikh Hisham Kabbani has also said that,
… the Prophet (s) said: “Sawfa tudi’u narun min ardi Najdin yashra’ibbu
laha a’naqul ibili bi Busra,” “Such a fire will come from the land of Najd
that camels in Basra will run away from its heat” (Bukhari, Muslim).
That happened last year [Iraq warWar]. Prepare yourselves, therefore,
not for the best, but for the worst. Dark ages, not progress, [are] is
coming ahead. Only after the dark ages will the golden age of Islam
come about, which is the age of Mahdi (s). In the very near future
many events are going to take place around us. Every one of us must
be careful concerning his beliefs, the beliefs of his wife and family,
and of his children. Satan is not leaving anyone alone. He is trying
to change your beliefs and to remove you from the love of saints, of
Sufi people, and of the Prophet.
Sheikh Hisham Kabbani also related the prophecy of the ‘fire in He-
jaz’ to what is happening in Arab countries. He attributed all of these de-
velopments to the economic boom in the Gulf countries and, particularly,
to the war for oil and the chaotic situation in Gulf areas (Kabbani 2004a,
340). Sheikh Nazim Haqqani and Hisham Kabbani have taught their disci-
ples that the world is heading towards an imminent Armageddon. Sheikh
Nazim described this it as follows,
Armageddon is the war between East and West, and it is written

6 | RISEA (Review Journal of Southeast Asia)

 Millenarianism and Islamic Resurgence: Exploring the Intertwining of
Religious Belief and Politics in Contemporary Indonesia
that the West will win and the East will vanish. The biggest of all
wars is between the believers, followers of Jesus Christ, people who
have prepared themselves for the savior, and the followers of the
Anti-Christ, unbelievers, who are running after this life’s pleasures,
following materialistic thoughts, seeking pleasure that their egos are
asking for, asking for every freedom. They are people who always
come into contact with the devil, falling under his control, and
supporting the kingdom of Shaytan. They will be with the Anti-
Christ because they are evil in themselves. The devils will carry them
to the source of evil and devils, the Anti-Christ (Haqqani, 2004, p.
67).
The coming of Armageddon, —depicted as the great battle be-
tween Good and Evil, and between Truth and Falsehood, between be-
lievers and unbelievers—, is a constant theme in Naqshbandi-Haqqani’s
Haqqani apocalyptic teachings. The great battle is personified by the well-
known figures in Islamic apocalyptic literature: the Mahdi, Jesus Christ,
the Dajjal/Anti-Christ, and Gog and Magog. The Mahdi and Jesus Christ
are always depicted as representing the forces of Good, while the Dajjal
(Anti-Christ) and Gog and Magog are badrepresent evil. The Mahdi is de-
scribed as a direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad who was born
in the Wadi Fatimah, a green valley on the way from Jeddah to Medina,
between 1930 and 1940. He is the fortieth generation in the line of Hasan
and Hussein’s descendants.
Sheikh Nazim has further stated that the world has been heading to-
ward a catastrophic situation in which people will be killed en masse. Only
one out of seven will survive, and the number of women will be 40 forty
times higher greater than men. Yet, in many of his sohbet, Sheikh Nazim
Haqqani changes the details of what when and what will actually happen
and when the apocalypse will come, though he is consistent in saying that
the new era will come during his life time. In the 1980s, Sheikh Nazim, for
instance, associated this catastrophic event with a nuclear war. During the
1990s, he explored this topic in relation to the fear of the coming Y2K
bug and its impact on computer networks across the globe. Currently, he
elaborates the last-day scenario in relation to the socio-political dynamics
in the aftermath of the attacks on the World Trade Centres and Pentagon
on September 11, 20019/11, especially in the Middle East. He pays partic-
ular attention to the role that Turkey will play in the global conflict.
Sheikh Nazim has asserted that the Mahdi is already alive now but
remains hidden because ordinary people are not ready yet ready to physi-

Volume 1, No. 1, June 2018 | 7

Luthfi Makhasin
cally see him physically. His first appearance, he holds, was in 1960, when
12,000 saints gathered and gave bai’at to him. He The Mahdi, Nazim
writes, is now still hidden in a place behind the Mountain of Qaf, in the
empty quarters, the Ruba Qali, a desert between Yemen and Saudi Ara-
bia. No one can go there, because of the quicksand, moving sands. The
place is protected by genies that send out electricity that can kill intruders
or drive them away. He is living with his 99 ninty-nine caliphs and other
highly spiritual and powerful people (Haqqani, 2004, p. 67). The Mahdi
will eventually appear during the Hajj-Akbar in Mecca when people will
gather and give bai’at to him en masse (Haqqani, 2004, p. 64). Sheikh Nazim
has given these details about the Mahdi:
He will appear for all people, according to the Lord’s Command, in the
Great War, Armageddon. There are one hundred and one hindrances
which he must overcome before he can appear; ninety-nine of those
hindrances have passed. Now only two are remaining. Then there
are 7 stations on his way from Damascus to Istanbul- Homs, Hama,
Trablus/Tripoli, Halep/Aleppo, Konya, Bursa/Turkiye, and in
Istanbul he will take out the flag of the Prophet peace be upon him
from the Topkapi Palace. But before that, the Padishah will appear
and they will meet in Konya where Mehdi will put on the sword of
the Prophet and his coat, the Holy Amanats/The Relic. After Mehdi
has taken out the flag in Istanbul, the Anti-Christ will come quickly
through Khorasan in Iran, and run to Jerusalem, to go around the
whole world from there for 40 days. Muslims are expecting Sayyidena
Mehdi and they are waiting also for Sayyidena Isa/Jesus Christ to
come from the Heavens. Christians are expecting Jesus Christ to
come back from the Heavens, too. But the Jews, because they do
not believe in Sayyidena Isa and Sayyidena Muhammad peace be
upon them, are still waiting for a prophet from among themselves
to appear…There will be a Heavenly Announcement: “The enemy
of Allah, dajjal, has appeared. Whoever wants to save himself from
him must go to Damascus, Mecca or Medina… so believers will
run because dajjal will be after them. They will run like streams to
Damascus, and all believers must be there for 40 days..… The dajjal
will go around the whole world, but 700 Angels, 700 Jinn/beings
made of smokeless fire who inhabit the earth with us, and 700
Awliya/Saints from Budala, Nujaba, Nuqaba, Autad and Ahyar will
protect Damascus so he won’t be able to enter.
Meanwhile, Ahmed Amiruddin, one of Sheikh Nazim’s disciples liv-

8 | RISEA (Review Journal of Southeast Asia)

 Millenarianism and Islamic Resurgence: Exploring the Intertwining of
Religious Belief and Politics in Contemporary Indonesia
ing in Canada, associates the coming of the Mahdi with the finding of the
Ark of the Covenant. Quoting al al-Suyuti, Ahmed Amiruddin has written
that “the reason he will be known as the Mahdi is that he will show the
way to a hidden thing. He will bring the Ark of the Covenant to light from
a place called Antioch”. He has further stated that the Ark will emerge
from the Tabariya Sea through the efforts of Imam al Mahdi and it will be
placed before him at the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
The Mahdi will rely on Jesus Christ to defeat the Dajjal because he
will not manage to face the Dajjal alone. Sheikh Nazim Haqqani stated this
about Jesus Christ’s descent to earth during the Armageddon:
After 40 days, Isa alaihi salaam peace be upon him will come down
from the Heavens. It will be the time of the fajr/dawn prayer when
he comes down in the Omayyad Mosque in Damascus. He is coming
down to a minaret of that Dome in the East, under which Sayyidena
Yahya, John the Baptist, is buried. Two Angels will protect him with
their wings, and bring him down to earth. He will be wearing a green
turban, and he will be shining. He has the most beautiful face, rosy
and white. His beard is red, and he is sweating. And he has a sword.
When he was on earth, he never touched a sword, but now he is
coming as a Savior to save people from the hands of the Anti-Christ.
His sword is a miraculous sword, a Heavenly sword; it can reach any
point to where he sends it. The Lord gave it to him. He is not coming
as a Prophet anymore but as a member of the ummah/nation of
Sayyidena Muhammad, following his shariat (2004, 65-66).
The Dajjal or Anti-Christ is described as an arch enemy of both the
Mahdi and Jesus Christ. The Dajjal is depicted as a one-eyed man coming
from Khorasan who will lead the world to disobey God and His com-
mandments. He will offer a worldly paradise to those who follow him and
a worldly hell to those opposing him. Under these circumstances, the most
illiterate believer can recognise him because kafir will be clearly encrypted
marked on his forehead. Like the Mahdi, he is now ready to appear but still
remains hidden. Sheikh Nazim has said:
He is now in chains imprisoned on an unknown island that no one
can approach because he is saying: “I am your Lord”, claiming to
be the Lord of mankind, not just a prophet but the Lord... He can’t
move from there. He is shaitan, the father of all devils. He is giving
orders, and he has 30 deputies who are preparing people for his
coming.

Volume 1, No. 1, June 2018 | 9

Luthfi Makhasin
As revealed in this statement, Sheikh Nazim Haqqani asserts that the
Dajjal will appear and proclaim himself as the Lord for of human beings.
On his appearance, the Dajjal will be the main source of confusion and
create a rift and discord within and among Muslims. However, before the
true Mahdi appears, Sheikh Hisham also asserts that there would be thirty
false Mahdi and, by implication, thirty false Dajjal (Kabbani, 2004, p. 229).
Sheikh Hisham Kabbani describes the Dajjal and what he will do to the
Muslim believers as follows:
The Dajjal will have powers of the devil. He will terrorize the
Muslims into following him, converting them into unbelief. He
will conceal the truth and bring forth falsehood. The prophet said
that the Dajjal will have the power to show the image of one’s dead
ancestors on his hand, like a television screen. The relative will say,
“Oh my son! This man is correct. I am in Paradise because I was
good and I believed in him.” In reality that relative is in hell. If
the relative says, “Believe in this man, I am in hell because I didn’t
believe,” one must say to the Dajjal, “No, he is in Paradise. This is
false.” The Prophet said: the Dajjal will say to a Bedouin Arab, “what
will you think if I bring your father and mother back to life for you?
Will you bear witness that I am your lord? The Bedouin will say,
“Yes.” So two devils will assume the appearance of his father and
mother, and say, “O my son, follow him for he is your lord (Kabbani,
2003, pp. 223–224).
According to Sheikh Nazim Effendi, the coming of Armageddon, in
which a deadly clash will occur between the believers and non-believers, is
a prerequisite for the coming of a new, much- awaited golden era, under
which Muslims would will eventually be led by a true spiritual-political
leader. Under his leadership, Muslims and all of humanity human beings
around the world will eventually embrace and seek deeper spirituality, live
in a naturally way, be concerned only with God, and take no heed of
worldly things. The new awaited era is also characterised by justice, peace
and by implication the disappearance of oppression, ignorance, confu-
sion, and disunity or division. This last-end-of-daysdays theme therefore
projects both a grim scenario of the a coming of massive global conflict,
in under which people will suffer terribly, and a positive utopian vision
of the a heavenly kingdom on earth afterwards. Sheikh Nazim Haqqani
has further stated that the Mahdi and Jesus Christ will support each other
during the Armageddon. He has explained that,
Sayyidena Mehdi will offer the place to Jesus to be Imam, but Jesus

10 | RISEA (Review Journal of Southeast Asia)

 Millenarianism and Islamic Resurgence: Exploring the Intertwining of
Religious Belief and Politics in Contemporary Indonesia
will refuse. Sayyidena Mehdi will lead the prayer once, and after that
Jesus will be Imam… And Sayyidena Mehdi will be with him for 7
years…Jesus will kill the Anti-Christ, break the crosses, and make
clear the truth about himself and his mother Sayyidena Mariam/
Meryem/Mary the Virgin. He will govern the Heavenly Kingdom
on earth for 40 years. In his time, all technology will be destroyed,
and everyone will be given miraculous powers so that when you
look somewhere and you say: “BismillahirRahmanir Rahim, by Your
Divine Permission, Oh My Lord, You honored me to be Your Deputy,
I ask of You”, and if He gives permission, you may put your step
from here to there. After Jesus has killed the Anti-Christ, there will
be no more devils…people will live a life like in Paradise, Paradise
Appearances, Tajallis/Divinely Visions will come on them…At that
time, the purpose of Allah’s creation will appear. Isa will marry and
have children. When he is going to die, he will be buried in Medina,
in the fourth tomb next to the Holy Prophet, Sayyidena Abu Bakr
and Sayyidena Omar may Allah be well pleased with them, that is
empty now. Then all believers will die by a sweet scent from Paradise.
Everything terrible after that will come to the unbelievers who will
have started to reappear during Jesus’ time...
Soon after the Dajjal is defeated, the new awaited era will prevail in
which people can fulfil their potential as God’s servants. The new awaited
era will be led by the Mahdi and Jesus Christ. Under the Mahdi and Jesus
Christ, evil rule will eventually be demolished and an Islamic order will
be established in which the Mahdi will give constant spiritual guidance. In
addition to that, during the time of the Mahdi and Jesus Christ, spiritual
people will do miraculous things without the help of modern technology.
Sheikh Nazim has further stated that,
After this big war people will be like a candle ready for the match.
Sayyidina Mahdi will open the seed of faith in their hearts, opening
the hearts of the believers who lived through that war. Common
people will be dressed in sainthood and will be granted miraculous
powers and lights from Allah Almighty. Awliya will be love springs.
People will be perfect servants of Allah, living on prayer and dhikr,
and swimming in love oceans. Everywhere you will find the love
of the Lord. Creatures will take from you that divine love. We are
created for that. The perfection of creation should appear in those
days (2004, 68).
Together both will uphold justice and peace over the whole world.

Volume 1, No. 1, June 2018 | 11

Luthfi Makhasin
The Mahdi and Jesus Christ will lead people into spiritual life and polit-
ical harmony. Sheikh Nazim even stated that during the Mahdi era, the
73 different sects in of the Muslim community, and as well as religious
divergence among Muslims and between Muslims and non-Muslims, will
eventually disappear. Sheikh Hisham Kabbani has also said that the caliph
is a spiritual leader who will give guidance to political leaders. According
to Sheikh Nazim Haqqani, the 21st century is the age of truth, as peo-
ple will come to realise their basic existential mission as God’s servants.
Sheikh Nazim said that the coming of Armageddon is one of the two last
unfulfilled prophesies before the last day. According to him, the coming
of Armageddon is inevitable, as it must in order to cleanse the world and
to draw a distinction between sincere believers and non-believers. During
the Armageddon, no place in the world, except Mecca, Medina, and Da-
mascus, will be safe.
Sheikh Hisham Kabbani said that the Mahdi, with the help of Jesus
Christ, will act as a mujtahid mutlaq (a religious reformer of absolute au-
thority) in the modern era. Sheikh Hisham Kabbani has also said that the
title of caliph is reserved exclusively to the Mahdi as a spiritual leader, not
as a political leader (Kabbani, 2004, p. 279). Interestingly, Sheikh Nazim
also relates a future scenario for the unity of the ummah in accordance with
in line with the Mahdi prophecy. For example, he said that under the Mah-
di, all people will be united, to the extent that all religious rifts and political
divergence will end. He has further proclaimed a utopian vision under the
Mahdi and Jesus Christ, in which all human beings will be united. On the
29th November 2010, Sheikh Nazim al-Haqqani stated that,
The Lord wants to change everything now…[a] new declaration [for
the] first time in Islamic history, that 73 sects will now be made one…
they are putting a line for ending Tasawwuf (Sufism), from now until
end of world because [the] Holy Prophet and Quran never spoke on
it…no more Naqshbandi, Qadiri, 40 tariqats, no Tasawwuf (Sufism)
or Salafi, Wahabi…nowhere it is saying [does it say] Israel chosen
ones, twelve sects (the twelve tribes of Israel mentioned in Surah al-
Maidah v. 11-12) no more…from now until [the] end of world we
must say we are Rabbaniyoon…no[t] any Tasawwuf, I am not Sufi, I
am Rabbani, that is [the] highest honour, this is for Christians, Jews,
[the] whole Islamic world, to end all nifaq (treason), that order coming
tonight, don’t say “I am Naqshbandi, I am Haqqani”…just say I am
Rabbani, finish…. O `ulamas! If anyone asks you what is your way, say,
“I am trying to be Rabbani,” or “I am Rabbani.” Finished! La ila aha

12 | RISEA (Review Journal of Southeast Asia)

 Millenarianism and Islamic Resurgence: Exploring the Intertwining of
Religious Belief and Politics in Contemporary Indonesia
illa-Llah.That is bombardment on the fortress of Shaytan. Finished!
Don’t say, “I am Christian,” “I am Jewish,” “I am Maronite,” “I am
Orthodox,” “I am Catholic,” “I am Protestant,” “I am Shi`a,” “I am
this, or that”. No! No more using the term “tasawwuf ” as it was
never used by the Sahabah (r)!…Quran saying only Rabbaniyeen, no
more Naqshbandi, no more Tasawwuf (Sufism)….you must be for
whole nations…no more fighting between Mutasawwif (Sufis) and
Salafis….I am saying first for myself, that I am not Mutasawwif, but
trying to be Rabbani (Divine).
By Rabbani, Sheikh Nazim refers to those who commit themselves
only to serve God and humanity. He therefore proposed a total vision not
only for Muslims but expanded this total vision to include the followers
of other religions: Jews, Christians and others. Sheikh Hisham Kabbani
describes this total vision by referring to a prophecy that in the last days,
Islam will enter every house and people will voluntarily embrace Islam,
including those in the West (Kabbani, 2004, pp. 253–263).
the Mahdi and Jesus Christ are gone, the world will again descend
into moral decadence, leading to total natural destruction which and will
also be the end of the times for all believers and the world. The final signs
for the Judgement Day will then appear, which includesing the emergence
of Dabbah (the beast) from underground, heavy smoke in the sky, the sun
rising from the west, the destruction of Ka’bah in Mecca, and the appear-
ance of Gog and Magog (Yajuj and Majuj) who will destroy everything in
sight (Habibis, 1990, p. 608; Kabbani, 2004, pp. 289–302). The final signs
will also include the flooding of Egypt and Cyprus, and the eruption of a
volcano near Bursa. Next, there will be a time when the Angel Israfil will
blow the first trumpet resulting in the death of all remaining believers.
This will be followed by resurrection day, the day when Angel Israfil blows
the second trumpet. Between the first and second soundings of Israfil’s
trumpet, there will be heavy rain lasting for 40 forty days, during which
all humans beings will be resurrectedrise to life again, ready for the judge-
ment day, the day when human beings will go to God’s court. Only those
who did good deeds will go to Paradise, whereas those who carried out
bad deeds will receive Hellfire.
Having elaborated in detail on the signs of the hour and the coming
of Armageddon, Sheikh Hisham Kabbani ends his account by simply in-
structing his disciples to recite the verse Al Kahf verse and a formula of
dzikr recommended for avoiding the Dajjal’s fitnah (Kabbani, 2004, pp.
343–347). By doing this, he uses millenarian-apocalyptic narratives to cre-

Volume 1, No. 1, June 2018 | 13

Luthfi Makhasin
ate a dramatic effect that which is used as a teaching method (Atay, 1994;
Damrel, 1999, p. 1/6; Habibis, 1989, pp. 221–240, 1990, pp. 603–619).
This ritual-devotional practice is employed as ‘what has to be done’–—a
practical recipe for anticipating the imminent coming of Armageddon,
and the Mahdi and/ Jesus Christ for individual Muslims. In this respect,
Naqshbandi-Haqqani is not completely unique compared to other Islamic
movements.

Islamic Piety and Symbolic Political Resistance

Millenarian-apocalyptic belief has closely to do with emerging pi-
ety growing political awareness among Indonesian Muslims. A millena-
rian-apocalyptic belief also represents a world-view for dealing with the
world and the self-perception of those who play a part in it. Through the
prism of millenarian-apocalyptic scenarios, Naqshbandi-Haqqani provides
both negative and positive scenarios about the future. Through ambigu-
ous and symbolic narratives of this millenarian-apocalyptic view, Naqsh-
bandi-Haqqani not only offers a distinct world-view, but also attempts to
change religious preference, ritual, and behaviour in line with a traditional
Sufi religious repertoire.
However, in political sense, the millenarian-apocalyptic belief as em-
braced by Naqshbandi-Haqqani is quietist rather than revolutionary in
nature because this belief is primarily concerned with cultivating self-pi-
ety and is disseminated as an instrument for teaching. The motivational
framing is not directed to drive broader socio-political changes, but to
changeing personal behavior and religious preference practice. Millenarian
view justifies the acceptance of miracles, spirituality, and the quest for re-
ligious-spiritual guidance. Using this millenarian-apocalyptic scenario, the
Naqshbandi-Haqqani community rejects the a secular world-view, which
they consider to puts too much emphasis on the importance of science,
and technology, and rationalistic thinking to address all humanity’s prob-
lems.
The case of Naqshbandi-Haqqani demonstrates that millenarianism
remains popular religious belief among Indonesian Muslims. This reli-
gious belief derives from the Prophetic tradition transmitted and main-
tained through generations. It basically foretold huge challenge and salva-
tion Muslims have to face ahead. Though it employing employs different
religious terms, Naqshbandi-Haqqani resembles other Islamic movements
in its insistence on upholding a utopian vision about Islam and the Muslim
umma and their role in addressing current socio-political problems.

14 | RISEA (Review Journal of Southeast Asia)

 Millenarianism and Islamic Resurgence: Exploring the Intertwining of
Religious Belief and Politics in Contemporary Indonesia
Furthermore, the Naqshbandi-Haqqani maintains that personally
cultivating a good character is a basic foundation requirement for endur-
ing social and political changes. The Naqshbandi-Haqqani consider comes
to a diagnostic framing that modern people to have rejected spirituality
because of their addiction to technology, and believe that modern science
enslaves people who depend on it rather than on their own faculties. In
the end, this community tends to simplify the problems by offering spiri-
tual piety as a ‘“magic solution to cure all illness and diseases”. This shows
that, as a faith-based movement, Sufi collective action involves more emo-
tional attachment than rational calculation.
To sum up, the case of Naqshbandi-Haqqani shows that millenari-
anism becomes is becoming an integral part of contemporary Islamic re-
surgence in Indonesia. By turning to old prophecies, people comprehend
the current world, their problems and possible future solutions in the fu-
ture. Millenarianism, as a religious teaching, is thus still powerful enough
to project socio-political changes within contemporary Muslim society.
However, millenarianism it also represents a social crisis within Muslim
community. , one This crisis is so so severe that Muslim turn to a divinely
redemptive solution which is utopian in nature.

References
Atay, T. (1994). Naqshbandi Sufis in Western Context”. PhD Thesis, School of
Oriental and African Studies. London: University of London.
Burridge, K. (1969). New Heaven, New Earth: A Study of Millenarian Activi-
ties. Oxford: Blackwell.
Cook, D. (1997). Moral Apocalyptic in Islam. Brill, 86, 37–69. https://doi.
org/10.2307/1595805
Cook, D. (2002). Studies in Muslim apocalypticApocalyptic, (Studies in late Late
antiquity Antiquity and early Early Islam). Princeton N.J: Darwin Press.
Cook, D. (2005). Contemporary Muslim apocalyptic Apocalyptic literatureLiter-
ature. 1st ed., Religion and politics. Syracuse, N.Y: Syracuse University
Press.
Damrel, D. . (1999). A Sufi Apocalypse.
Damrel, D. . (2006). Aspects of the Naqshbandi-Haqqani Order in North Amer-
ica.” In Jamal Malik and John Hinnels (eds.) Sufism in the West. New York:
Routledg.
Filiu, J. . (2011). Apocalypse in Islam. Berkeley: University of California Press.

Volume 1, No. 1, June 2018 | 15

Luthfi Makhasin
Furnish, T. (1999). Mahdism in the Sunni Arab World Today.
Habibis, D. (1989). Millenarianism and Mahdism in Lebanon, 30(2), 221–
240.
Habibis, D. (1990). Mahdism in a Branch of A Contemporary Nashban-
di Order in Lebanon “ In Marc Gaborieau, Alexandre Popovic and
Thierry Zarcone (eds.). Naqshbandis: Historical Development and
Present Situation of a Muslim Mystical Order, 603–619.
Haqqani, M. N. . (2004). The Path to Spiritual Excellence. Fenton: Islamic Su-
preme Council of America. Fenton: Islamic Supreme Council of Amer-
ica.
Hobsbawn, E. (1959). Primitive Rebels. Manchester. Manchester: University
of Manchester Press.
Kabbani, M. . (2003). The Approach of Armageddon: A Chronicle of Scientific
Breakthroughs and World Events that Occur During the Last Days as Foretold
by Prophet Muhammad. Fenton: Islamic Supreme Council of America.
Kabbani, M. . (2004). The Naqshbandi Sufi Tradition: Guidebook of Daily Prac-
tices and Devotions. Fenton: Islamic Supreme Council of America.
Kartodirdjo, S. (1966). The peasants’ Peasants’ revolt Revolt of Banten in 1888 :
its Its conditionsConditions, course Course and sequelSequel : a A case Case
study Study of social Social movements Movements in Indonesia. Gravenhage:
H.L. Smits.
Kartodirdjo, S. (1971). Messianisme dan Millenarisme dalam Sedjarah Indonesia.
Yogyakarta: Seksi Penelitian, Djurusan Sedjarah, Fakultas Sastra dan Kebu-
dajaan. Yogyakarta: Universitas Gadjah Mada.
Kartodirdjo, S. (1973). Protest Movement in Rural Java: A Study of Agrarian
Unrest in the Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries. Kuala Lumpur:
Oxford University Press.
Kartodirdjo, S. (1984). Pemberontakan petani Petani banten Banten 1888,
kondisiKondisi, jalan Jalan peristiwaPeristiwa, dan kelanjutannyaKelanjutann-
ya: sebuah Sebuah studi Studi kasus Kasus mengenai Mengenai gerakan Gera-
kan sosial Sosial di Indonesia. Jakarta: Pustaka Jaya.
Worsley, P. (1968). The Trumpet Shall Sound: A Study of Cargo Cult in Melane-
sia. New York: Schocken Books.

16 | RISEA (Review Journal of Southeast Asia)