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| Kyai Haji Ajengan Ahmad Sanusi, A Traditional Kyai Figure from West Java, Indonesia (Special Document sukabumiNews) |
The Beginning of the Journey
Ahmad Sanusi was born on 3 Muharram 1036 Hijri
(September 18, 1889). (5) His father, Haji Abdurrakhim bin Haji Yasin, was a
kyai (Islamic cleric) at the Cantayan Islamic Boarding School, Cantayan
Village, Cikembar District, Cibadak District, Sukabumi Division. Ahmad Sanusi
was the third child of his first wife. (6) Since childhood, he was accustomed
to an environment that paid considerable attention to religion and religious
life (Islam).
As a kyai's son, he received quite special treatment,
both from the students and the community in his father's Islamic boarding
school environment. His wishes were rarely opposed, but on the contrary, if his
actions were considered wrong and violated religious rules and norms, many
people warned and even prevented him. (7)
Not only was this considered sinful, but it was also
considered to be able to damage the name and authority of his parents. So, the
process of internalizing religious issues had been going on since he was a
child. Furthermore, his father, like most kyai in He wanted his son to become a
religious scholar like himself, so his socialization process began at an early
age.
Ahmad Sanusi initially received religious lessons and
education from his father. Once deemed mature enough, he was sent to study
outside his father's Islamic boarding school. This was intended not only to
deepen his studies but also to gain experience and broaden his social
interactions.
As a first step, Ahmad Sanusi visited Islamic boarding
schools not far from where he lived. The first teacher he visited was Kyai Haji
Muhammad Anwar from the Selajambe Islamic Boarding School in Cisaat. He then
studied with Kyai Haji Muhammad Siddik from the Sukamantri Islamic Boarding
School in Cisaat and Kyai Haji Djenal Arif from Sukaraja. (8)
After that, he headed to Cianjur Regency. There, he
studied with kyai from the Cilaku and Ciajag Islamic Boarding Schools. From
Cianjur, he then went to the Gudang Islamic Boarding School in Tasikmalaya.
There, he studied with Kyai Haji Su'jai. (9) After that, he returned to Cianjur
and studied with Kyai Haji Ahmad Satibi at the Gentur Islamic Boarding School.
(10)
Of the many teachers and Islamic boarding schools he
visited, this last one seemed to have left the greatest impression on Ahmad
Sanusi. Although he stayed at the Islamic boarding school for only three
months, a relatively short time, his fellow students considered him rude
because he dared to ask questions and express opinions that differed from those
explained by his teacher. At that time, he had a different opinion from the
kyai regarding the interpretation of a book on the science of logic (Ilm
Mantiq) that he was studying.
In 1909, shortly after returning from the Gentur
Islamic Boarding School, Ahmad Sanusi departed for Mecca. (11) According to
Kyai Haji Badri Sanusi, as quoted by Muchtar Mawardi, prior to his departure,
Ahmad Sanusi married Siti Juwariyah. (12)
His trip to Mecca was not only to perform the Hajj but
also to continue his education by studying with local scholars and visiting
scholars living in the city. Generally, the teachers he visited were Shafi'i
scholars, for example, Haji Muhammad Junaedi, Haji Mukhtar, Haji Abdullah
Jamawi, Shaikh Saleh Bafadil, and Said Jawani, a mufti from the Shafi'i school.
(13)
- Previously: Getting to Know the Figure of Kyai Haji Ajengan Ahmad Sanusi: A Traditional Kyai Figure from West Java
*Ibid
