THE CEREMONY BUKA LUWUR SUNAN KUDUS IN THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE STUDY OF ISLAMIC CULTURE

The teachings of Islam come from a single source, God the Almighty. However, the application of Islam in people’s lives has become very diverse because of the interaction between these teachings with the local culture and traditions of the adherents. The differences and diversity that arise in the practices of Islamic teachings, if not treated properly, can lead to blaming other people’s practices of Islamic teachings. Buka Luwur Ceremony is a culture in the Kudus area, Central Java, which has interacted with Islamic values. Buka Luwur Ceremony aims to pray for the spirit of Sunan Kudus, and at the same time to commemorate his services for successfully spreading Islam in Kudus area. In addition, it is also intended to model the success of Sunan Kudus in laying the foundation in preaching. In Islamic teaching perspective, Buka Luwur ceremony is full of Islamic and cultural values relevant to be applied in the midst of radicalism. Buka Luwur ceremony is able to unite two different principles between Islam and the culture/traditions of society.


A. INTRODUCTION A. INTRODUCTION A. INTRODUCTION A. INTRODUCTION A. INTRODUCTION
Sunan Kudus (Syekh Ja'far Shodiq) is a member of Walisongo (the term Walisongo refers to the nine main figures who spread Islam on the island of Java). Sunan Kudus was so central in the life of Kudus community because he succeeded in laying the foundation of tolerance in religious and cultural teachings. The form of tolerance can be seen in the eight showers called padasan, which are still functioned as ablution water containers. Each shower is decorated with a relief statue as an aesthetic enhancement ornament. The number eight in the showers was adopted from the teachings of Buddha called Asta Sanghika Marga or the Eight Main Paths, which became the guide of lives for the society at that time. This is evidence that the teachings of tolerance of Sunan Kudus are increasingly relevant in the midst of current radicalism and religious fundamentalism.
Islam and culture are two things that influence each other. In Kudus, the Buka Luwur ceremony is a form of connection between Islam and local traditions. This ritual is carried out to replace the cloth covering the tomb of Sunan Kudus and to carry out general Islamic preach, recitation of the tahlil prayer, and the installation of the new ones (Syam, 2005: 17). This ceremony is intended to honor Sunan Kudus by replacing the covering clothes of his tomb with the new ones. In addition, this is also intended to emulate the struggle of Sunan Kudus, a figure who was very influential in the formation of the city of Kudus, in spreading Islam. Some people argue that the purpose of Buka Luwur ceremony is to remember God the Almighty, as a reminder that nothing is eternal in the world.
It is a fact that there have been a lot of researches on Buka Luwur ceremony, which means that this is an interesting topic to be revealed more deeply, especially about its relation with Islamic teaching in the perspective Value, based on Steeman's view in Adisusilo (2013: 56), is something that gives meaning in life, provides a reference, a point of departure and a purpose in life. Values are upheld and can animate one's actions. A value is more than just a belief; it is always about thought patterns and actions, so there is a close relationship between values and ethics.
The source of the principles that determine the value system in the view of Islam is Allah's revelation, which is recorded in the Qur'an, and as-Sunnah. This means that the Islamic value system formed by the guidance of this revelation is not subjective and abstract. On the contrary, this value is clear in the Qur'an and as-Sunnah. Traditions, habits, practices, and culture that the teachings of revelation consider good remain good to the society. On the other hand, what is considered bad or evil by revelation is bad and evil for society. In fact, after research, we often find religious behavior motivated by things that are contrary to religious values, such as motives for position, wealth, power, and others (Nurcholis Madjid, 2000: 6).
Therefore, the value in Islam is a view whether a certain case is good or bad, useful or futile, based on the Qur'an and Sunnah, not only depending on either collective or individual human thinking .
As a value, Islam can be seen from two main visions, namely: Islam as a religious institution, and Islam as a point of view. In the perspective of Islam as a religious institution, the object of Islamic studies is focused on the meaning of Islam, the characteristics of Islam, the qualifications of its adherents and the sources of Islamic law. Meanwhile, Islam as a point of view is interpreted as a distinctive inter-connective perspective on the dimensions of human life. Islamic values are used as a way of looking at the practical life of mankind in all its dimensions, including social, political, economic, educational and cultural dimensions. Religion consists of various socio-cultural symbols providing a conception of reality and interpret plans for it, which is the central hypothesis of this study. For example in the case of natural symbols, these symbols correspond to reality but do not correspond to it. As defined by Geertz in this sense, religion is understood as a "cultural system" (Tibi, 1999: 13).
When a religion is viewed from a cultural perspective, it is treated as culture, namely as a guideline for community life whose truth is believed to be. Meanwhile, if religion is seen and treated as knowledge and belief by a society, a belief will emerge that religion is something that includes only holy and sacred things, which can be distinguished from sacred and profane knowledge and beliefs that characterize culture. (Koentjaraningrat, 1988: 73).
According to Amer al-Roubai, Islam is not a product of culture. However, Islam actually builds a culture, a civilization. This civilization is based on the Qur'an and the Sunnah of the Prophet and is called Islamic civilization. With the above understanding, we can start to place Islam in our daily lives. We can also build Islamic culture on the basis of concepts that come from Islam as well (Fitriyani, 2012: 133). This opinion is supported by Geertz, who states in the book Religion as a Cultural System He believes that religion is a cultural system that can shape the character of society (Geertz, 1966: 235).
From this explanation, it can be seen that Islam has two aspects, namely a religious aspect and a cultural aspect. Thus, there is Islam and there is Islamic culture. In the scientific view, the two can be distinguished, but in the view of Islam, they cannot be separated. The second and the first form a strong integration which is often difficult to differentiate whether it is a case of religion or culture. For example, marriage, divorce, reconciliation, and inheritance. From a cultural perspective, these matters are cultural matters. However, the provisions of these cases come from God. In human relations with God, humans obey His commands and prohibitions, while in humanhuman relations, these matters are included in the cultural category (Gazalba, 1989: 110).
The first record of the appearance of Islam in Javanese society dated in 14th century, and Islam continued to spread until it spread all over the archipelago at the end of the 15th or 16th century. According to van Leur, as quoted by al Qurtuby (2003: 107), the main factors of the spread were economic and | 275 DOI: https://doi.org/10.24090/ibda.v18i2.3800 political factors. The history of Islamic civilization in the archipelago is not far from the influence of Hinduism and Buddhism. The development in the early days of Islam in the archipelago, especially in Java, began with a Walisongo da'wah strategy which was able to cultivate Islam to the local. In addition to fostering public interest, this also makes the culture carried out continuously from generation to generation until now. This da'wah strategy was carried out by Sunan Kalijaga using wayang and singing media. Similarly, Sunan Bonang also used music as a means of preaching. In addition, the influence of Islam in the form of buildings or architecture can be seen in the architecture of the Mosque of Kudus. You can see the patterns that still use the characteristics of Hinduism. A series of events accompanying the procession of Buka Luwur begins with penjamasan, i.e. cleansing the heirlooms of Sunan Kudus, named Cintahaka or Ciptaka. The time for cleansing is usually held on Monday or Thursday after Tasyrik day. It starts at 7 o'clock in the morning. Before penjamasan is carried out, people start with a pilgrimage to the Sunan Kudus's tomb, in which there is a short ceremony beginning with iftitah, followed by reciting tahlil, and ends with prayer. The short opening ceremony is then followed by cleansing the heirlooms, led Mr. H. Faqihuddin. After the cleansing process is finished, again tahlil is recited accompanying the process of storing the heirlooms in its special storage place, called tajug. This activity was ended in hospitality among the participants of the ceremony while they enjoy a special dish called opor ayam (chicken braised in coconut milk), a traditional meal of Kudus and special snacks called jajanan pasar (snacks usually sold in traditional market in Kudus). These kind of snacks is chosen because it symbolizes hospitality and prosperity. Market is associated with a place for various goods, such as market snacks, fruit, cakes, flowers, and so on (Sholikhin, 2020: 37 The covering cloth, called luwur, of Sunan Kudus's tomb and other tombs in the surroundings, is put off on 1 Muharram at 6 AM. This ceremony begins with tahlil and other prayers recitation. Taking off the covering cloth of Sunan Kudus's tomb is performed symbolically in the area of Sunan Kudus's tomb, and then followed with taking of the covering clothes of other tombs in the area done by certain pointed figures. The used luwur (the cloth used to cover Sunan Kudus's tomb) was then kept by the committee to be cut into pieces to be distributed to the local community on the 10th of Muharram. Some people believe that the luwur contains blessings because for full 24 hours people continued to read the al-Qur'an and prayers around the tomb of Sunan Kudus. After the luwur was removed, on the 10th of Muharram the tomb's cover was replaced with a new luwur. The taking off the luwur and making a new luwur as well as putting it on are the responsibility of luwur committee. The new one was made on the 6th to 9th of Muharram. Luwur has some types, one of the which is called wiru.Wiru is made by folding the cloth horizontally and neatly into some layers. This type is pinned on the wall of the building as well as inside placed outside the tomb of Sunan Kudus (Budiyanto, 2012: 28-29 Munadharah is a routine participated by ulama and common people in the society. The series of munadharah activities was held on 6 Muharram 1440 H/16 September, 2018. In this activity, Islamic scholars gathered to discuss the problems of ummat/Moslem society. The topics discussed in this forum were people's frequently asked questions which were viewed from various perspectives. Doa rasul (the recitation of prayers to express compliments to Prophet Muhammad) and terbang papat (traditional musical performance of Kudus) was held at the night of 8 Muharram, started from 8 P.M. The location of this performance was in the front yard of Menara Kudus. This event was performed by a local music group called qasidah. This music group is especially sings religious songs with specific style. The name terbang papat refers to the name of a musical instrument (terbang) and the duration of performance, i.e. 4 kinds of instruments and 4-hour duration of performance (papat, a Javanese word, meaning four). In addition, the name terbang papat also refers to the number of the musical instruments used, which consists of 4 terbang/rebana, and 1 jidur, which were played for four hours continuously. The four terbang/rebana consists of kemplong, and telon as the lead rhime, salahan and lajer as the ornamental of the rhime sound variation. The position of terbang papat players are as follows: the right side of the spectators are kemplong players, the left side of the spectators are terbang lajer players, and between them were the players of telon and salahan (Budiyanto, 2012: 12 The distribution of Asyura porridge is associated with the story of Prophet Noah and his followers who could survive from the hostile flood. It was told that being on the boat during the flood, Prophet Noah and his followers were lack of food; very little food were remained to support their life. At that time, the porridge were made of red and white wheat, and many kinds of nuts. In the present time, Asyura porridge is made of rice with a kind of topping made of shrimps, salted fish, tofu, tempe (fermented soybean), penthul (a kind of food made from grated coconut and given special spices like curry), sliced fried-egg, sliced red chilly, raw sprout, and balinese orange. After it is ready, the porridge is put into a container made of round-shaped banana leaf, called samir or uter and takir (bowl-shaped banana leaf). The porridge then was distributed to the inhabitants of Kauman and the people in the surroundings as well as the readers of al barjanji. In the year 2018, the number of portions of Asyura porridge was 873 samir and 326 takir. 9 . 9 . 9 . 9 . 9 . The Recitation of Qosidah The recitation of the Qasidah al barjanji was carried out by a male and female group separately. The recitation begins after the evening prayer around 19.30 PM. The male group took place in the Tajug pavilion south of the tomb of Sunan Kudus, while the women's group took place at Pawestren (a place for women's prayer) at the al-Aqsa mosque arena, Menara Kudus.  The distribution of general brekat is done on 10 Muharram, started at 6 A.M. However, many people are ready to queue for getting the berkat very early in the morning. In order to avoid uncontrolled crowd in the process of dividing the brekat, the committee separates men and women queues. (10 Muharram LUWUR IN ISLAMIC CUL  IN ISLAMIC CUL  IN ISLAMIC CUL  IN ISLAMIC CUL  IN ISLAMIC CULTURAL TURAL TURAL  TURAL TURAL PERSPECTIVE  PERSPECTIVE PERSPECTIVE  PERSPECTIVE PERSPECTIVE Islam and culture originate from different things. Islam as a doctrine refers to the teachings of the revelation of the Qur'an brought by the Prophet. Meanwhile, culture refers to the results of human thought related to creativity, initiative, and human work (Koentjaraningrat, 1959: 76). Islam as a religion with a set of values has influenced the cultural patterns and traditions of its adherents. This influence does not necessarily eliminate the socio-cultural aspects of the local community. In subsequent developments, popular culture absorbed many Islamic concepts and symbols so that it seemed that Islam emerged as an important source of culture. Likewise in certain ceremonies, Islamic nuances are clearly visible, including in Sunan Kudus Buka Luwur ceremony. All ceremonies carried out by a certain community, including Buka Luwur, of course have specific purposes. The desired goal in the Buka Luwur ceremony becomes more concrete to realize the desires of the community. What is desired by the community is concluded in the elements of the ceremony carried out.

Luwur Installation Ceremony
Various types of luwur or mori in the area of Sunan Kudus's tomb Source: researchers' private document From several researches and interviews with pilgrims, the purpose of the community to attend the Buka Luwur ceremony is because of blessings. It seems that the term blessing has become an important icon in the series of Buka Luwur and the pilgrimage to the tomb of Sunan Kudus.
According to Victor Tunner's theory in Koentjaraningrat (1985: 56) the purpose of the ceremony can be viewed from the elements of what is done, what is said, and what is shown. The element that is carried out is that people flock to come and follow the ceremony to pray and get blessings. The elements spoken are stories or descriptions of the history and struggle of the spreaders of Islam and the history of Sunan Kudus in people's lives. Meanwhile, the elements provided are uyah asemrice , cricket rice, asyura porridge, and luwur.
Based on the elements carried out in the Buka Luwur ceremony, the performers of the ceremony ask God for forgiveness and increased blessing for Sunan Kudus. Meanwhile, the elements spoken aim to make the public know the story of the struggle of Sunan Kudus and imitate him, and the means of the ceremony provided are intended to increase community's blessings. This pilgrimage tradition contains at least two meanings for the perpetrators, namely commemorating the services of spreading Islam and asking for blessings. In the first aspect, the purpose of the pilgrimage is not different from ceremonies such as the Prophet's birthday, which aims to remember and implement the teachings of the Prophet. Buka Luwur ceremony belongs to the community and their culture, but the series of ceremonies are full of Islamic values, such as khataman (reading the Qur'an to completion), 1 Muharram/ New Year preaching and general preaching, and tahlil recitation.
From the cultural aspect, this pilgrimage strengthens the tradition of praying for blessings, tawasul, and praying for people who have died. Thus, the pilgrimage strengthens the religiosity of some Indonesian Muslim community. Meanwhile, the blessing aspect in the Buka Luwur and brekat tradition is based on the view that Sunan Kudus is one of God's chosen guardians who has karamah, i.e. privileges given to him by God. Thus, Buka Luwur ceremony carries a message to respect and remember the services of its predecessors, to practice the values of Islamic teachings (in this case embodied in the Khatmil Qur'an, recitation, and shadaqah, and care for orphans). Buka Luwur Ceremony is a preservation of the diversity of the community in ritual aspects, such as pilgrimage, reading tahlil, tawassul, sending prayers and distributing asyura porridge, also a means of socializing the culture of the Kudus community to the millennial generation which is expected to strengthen the sense of tolerance of the people amid the swift currents of radicalism.
From a normative perspective, Islam is one, originating from the One God, but when Islam lands in the midst of people's lives, it interacts with culture and social traditions. The appearance of Islam can vary; of course there are differences. Likewise, the appearance of Islam in Indonesia has many differences from the appearance of Islam in Saudi Arabia.
Buka Luwur Ceremony has special value from the point of view of Islamic teachings and cultural history as well. To develop Islamic civilization, through the understanding of Buka Luwur Sunan Kudus ceremony, we can imitate the attitude of Sunan Kudus in spreading Islam with the following attitudes: tawassut (moderate), tawazun (balanced), and tasamuh (tolerant). These three attitudes are in line with the teachings of the Qur'an about the middle way of the ummatan wasathan (moderate people). Based on the theological arguments above and epistemological considerations, Buka Luwur has become an Islamic cultural strategy in strengthening the national position of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI) and in line with the state principles, Pancasila. Buka Luwur Ceremony shows how the successors of Sunan Kudus emulate and preserve cultural da'wah, namely by cleansing heirlooms and replacing the mosquito nets of Sunan Kudus' tomb. This strategy is proof of what is known as local knowledge which is epistemologically sourced from local wisdom, namely a strategy of preaching that is full of wisdom by promoting Islamic values in dialogue with local culture.
Apart from the attitude of some people who are too excessive in consoling blessings, which can result in reducing their tauhid beliefs, preserving Buka Luwur tradition is a necessity. Buka Luwur Ceremony is a tradition representing an assimilation between Islamic and Javanese cultures. For that reason, it is natural that from the context of Islamic theology, there is a controversy.
Buka Luwur Sunan Kudus Ceremony is a culture and tradition that has been rooted and accepted massively by the Muslim community of Kudus and its surroundings. Such a condition can be used as a kind of reinforcement in the formulation of fiqh law. Fiqh is the result of ijtihad, a product of human thought, which is dynamic in line with the dynamics of society. Therefore, a fiqh framework cannot be imposed on society as a whole from different eras and places, except from its universal values. The mixing of Islam with local culture (Buka Luwur tradition) is recognized by the ushul fiqh. In ushul fiqh, there is a term ٌ ‫ﺔ‬ َ ‫ﻤ‬ ‫ﱠ‬ ‫ﻜ‬ َُ ‫ﳏ‬ ُ ‫ة‬ َ ‫ﺎد‬ َ ‫ْﻌ‬ ‫ﻟ‬ َ ‫ا‬ . The point is that customs can be used as a legal basis. This means that the customs and traditions of a community can be used as a source of law in Islam, of course the customs in question are customs or habits that are carried out by the community repeatedly and do not violate the normative teachings of Islam. The spirit of the universality of Buka Luwur can be seen from the aspects of recitation, uswah hasanah, prayer together as previously explained.
Islam is present in the community to bring grace to the universe. Islamic teachings apply universally. The universality of Islamic teachings allows acculturation with the particular tradition and culture based on the location where Islam exists.

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.24090/ibda.v18i2.3800 tahlil and prayers, in the hope that the blessing of Allah would be poured into the people who participated in the recitation as well as those who get the brekat. 2. Brekat is derived from the word barokah, which means increasing. This is in line with the revelation which says: lain syakartum meaning: that whoever is grateful will have more enjoyment. Accordingly, the distribution of is a way of giving thanks to God, so that there is hope that God will increase goodness and prosperity.
Many helpers are wrapping nasi jangkrik-uyah asem Source: researchers' private document All series of Buka Luwur events, such as giving compensation to orphans, sharing brekat and so on represent the essence of exemplary, namely shodaqoh with various advantages.
With such a meaning, the essence of porridge and brekat is the manifestation of gratitude to God by saying prayers to Him and giving something to fellow human beings. Giving something to others is a command that is emphasized in Islamic teachings.
From the above explanation, it can be said that Buka Luwur ceremony and the series of activities that accompany it cannot be simply eliminated. This is because the Buka Luwur ceremony is a culture that shows a social dialectical process and natural creativity, which is seen as an element that can be adopted selectively. Thus it can be seen that Islam teaches its adherents to be selective and give appreciation of a local tradition. in this context is the Buka Luwur ceremony, in which Muslim community participates positively and wisely.