CERITACERITAKU.COM – The story of Wali Songo Sunan Kalijaga, Da’wah with Javanese Puppets and Songs – Sunan Kalijaga is a popular Islamic propagator in Java, especially Central Java. He preached using a method that was very closely related to the Javanese culture at that time.
Wali Songo had a big role in the history of the entry of Islam in Java. As a pioneer of Islam, the story of Wali Songo when he spread his teachings should be a role model for the community.
Quoted in the Wali Songo Journal, a guardian is a person who has advantages over his closeness to Allah SWT. Wali becomes wasilah or intermediary between humans and Allah SWT.
Wali comes from the Arabic word Waliyullah which means people who are loved and love Allah SWT. Meanwhile, Songo comes from the Javanese language which means nine.
So that the word Wali Songo is interpreted as nine people who love and are loved by Allah SWT. They have a sacred duty to teach Islam.
One of the Wali Songo who spread Islamic broadcasts in Central Java was Sunan Kalijaga.
Quoted from the book Sunan Kalijaga (Raden Said) by Yoyok Rahayu Basuki, Sunan Kalijaga was born in 1450 AD. His real name is Raden Said. His father was a duke of Tuban, Tumenggung Wilatikta or Raden Sahur.
Sunan Kalijaga is also known as Lokajaya, Sheikh Malaya, Prince Tuban, and Raden Abdurrahman.
It is said that when he was a teenager, Sunan Kalijaga liked to rob. According to various sources, his actions were motivated by the injustice felt by the small people because they had to pay taxes or tributes.
Finally he dismantled the food warehouse and stole and distributed it to people in need. However, his actions made his father feel ashamed. So he was expelled.
It is said that once, Sunan Kalijaga was about to rob without knowing that the person who was the target was Sunan Bonang. Finally Sunan Kalijaga was guided by Sunan Bonang to become his student.
This is the forerunner to the change of Raden Said’s name to Sunan Kalijaga to become the successor of his da’wah.
In preaching, Sunan Kalijaga uses methods that are closely related to people’s lives. At that time the Javanese people were thick with arts and culture such as wayang and gamelan.
The religions that were developing at that time were Hinduism and Buddhism. Sunan Kalijaga also likes to study the science of puppeteers and the art of performing arts as a provision for his da’wah strategy.
It was this community tradition that Sunan Kalijaga later used as a way of preaching. He incorporates Islamic teachings through wayang plays (red stories) accompanied by Javanese gamelan.
Several stories in wayang were successfully composed by Sunan Kalijaga to be easily accepted by the public.
Apart from wayang, Sunan Kalijaga also spreads Islamic teachings through Javanese songs. Among his famous songs are Lir-ilir, Turi-turi Putih, and Lingsir Wengi. Other works left by Sunan Kalijaga are Serat Dewaruci, Suluk Linglung book, and Song of Rumekso Ing Wengi.
The teachings conveyed by Sunan Kalijaga through wayang and Javanese songs are easily conveyed to the public. That is the strength of Sunan Kalijaga in teaching Islam in the Java region.
The Short Story of Wali Songo Sunan Kalijaga, Da’wah with Javanese Puppets and Songs
