The importance of togetherness

The Prophet said Islam is like a building in which things within it related to each other. That’s why, Islam calls for its adherents to be always in unity. In performing the five daily prayers, we are encouraged to perform them jointly. At least five times a day. If not, once a week while performing Friday prayers. This tenet is a fixed price except inevitable matters. Even, the togetherness has been all of the time strengthened in international level while Muslims all over the world going to Mecca. It means, the sense of togetherness may be absolutely experienced once a year, at least at the moment of what so-called as idul fitri holiday.

Because of the importance of the togetherness, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Indonesia’s Muslims in general had tried being in single voice in celebrating the idul fitri holiday. What is to say dealt with the matter is that if we could no longer be in unity, at least we could celebrate this year’s lebaran. For that reason, the government had formerly tried to facilitate Indonesia’s Muslims willing to be in unity to reach such agreements in determining the moment of lebaran jointly.

For that considerations, East Java’s Regional Board of Nahdlatul Ulama (PWNU) decided to celebrate the holiday on Monday, 23 October 2006. As the country’s largest Muslim organization, Nahdlatul Ulama was deeply concern in responding to raising questions of the people and especially from other Muslim organizations having the same agreements in accordance with their own hisab and rukyah methods, saying that it’s impossible to celebrate the lebaran on 23 November.

Indeed, within the body of NU the differences of lebaran celebration have been so far made public. Yet, the differences have been usually made by Islamic boarding schools or certain organizations within the Indonesia’s biggest Muslim organization. In this respect, NU itself has not voiced officially either NU of branch board or regional not to speak out regionally and nationally. 

Seeing the fact above, the Central Board of Nahdlatul Ulama (PBNU) through its committee of astrology (Lajnah Falakiyah NU) had expected NU followers to celebrate the lebaran jointly and avoided such anxiety in the grass root level. For that reason, the PBNU had called on East Java NU experts of astrology to reach the same perception. At least NU circles had agreed to settle both hisab and rukyah. If the agreements were to be perfected, yet they were to be also expectedly obeyed jointly. And if the perfection and amendment was inevitable, the agreements could be purposefully amended jointly.

Through the steps above, the togetherness among Muslims and especially between NU followers might let on. The NU followers have been now separated due to political parties and regional administration chief elections (Pilkada). It’s unavoidable the difference of this year’s lebaran caused dispute. With reference to the information coming from various regions, it’s proven how they (the people) were at odds with one another over the dissenting opinion. Even there were some taking choice inconsistently and belittling both fasting and lebaran.

In a region of Sumatra for instance, there was a professor making his followers disappointed for being a leader of idul fitri prayers on Tuesday. In fact, he celebrated the lebaran and performed ied prayers on Monday. There was also an Islamic teacher (ustadz) fasting on Monday, but he was a preacher and leader of idul fitri prayers on the same day. This case was really disappointed how the persons easily conducting such acts without religious principles. They did this because of not conviction, but based on orders to be preachers, prayers leaders or merely to seek popularity.

Overall the fact, kiai Maimun Zubair has reminded us of determining the lebaran to be based on Islamic principles and not on arrogance, individual desires, and ignorance. Even Chairman of Jam’iyah Thariqah Muktabarah an-Nahdliyyah, KH Habib Luthfi said that matters of lebaran were matters of belief and spiritual rather than matters of individual desires.

The agreements can be reached without violating syaria principles and should be based on them otherwise. And PBNU, in this respect, tends to use the brilliant steps as ever said by KH Ma’ruf Amin that NU should settle the beginning of Ramadhan dan Syawal based on valid hisab and rukyat. This is important because related to the matters of worship, so the religious organization like NU must be responsible for the matters religiously and socially before the followers of NU. More over in the future, the potency of dissenting opinion among people would likely increase. That’s why, this should be soon anticipated.

Various strategic measures are being planned, so next the willingness to be able to carry out both valid hisab and ruky