Semar Mesem among Santri: A Phenomenological Study of Magical Practices
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32678/alqalam.v42i1.12433Keywords:
trust, mysticism, social dynamics, romantic relationshipAbstract
This study examines an interesting phenomenon in the world of pesantren: the use of the magical practice "Semar Mesem". Through a qualitative approach, this research seeks to understand this practice’s meaning, purpose, and consequences in pesantren life. The study results show that Semar Mesem is not just a magical practice but also reflects the social and psychological dynamics in the pesantren environment. The practice is influenced by various factors, from internal factors such as self-discovery and social pressure to external factors such as cultural and environmental influences. In this study, religious education is correct and comprehensive in responding to this phenomenon. Religious education is not only limited to theoretical understanding but must also be able to form a strong and critical character. In addition, an open dialogue between Santri, scholars, and the community is also needed to find the right solution to overcome these problems.
Downloads
References
Abitolkha, A. M., & Muvid, M. B. (2021). The Education of Love and its Relevance to Islam as a Religion of Compassion: A Study on the Concept of Mahabbah of Rabi’ah al-Adawiyah. Religió: Jurnal Studi Agama-Agama, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.15642/religio.v11i1.1659
Ainul, M., Uin, F., Mas, R., & Surakarta, S. (2022). PERAN PESANTREN DALAM MENJAGA TRADISI-BUDAYA DAN MORAL BANGSA. In PANDAWA : Jurnal Pendidikan dan Dakwah (Vol. 4, Issue 1).
Al Ayubi, S. (2012). Magi Di Lingkungan Pesantren (Studi Magi Dalam Kitab Mujarrabat Al-Dairabi Al-Kabir Karya Syeikh Ahmad Al-Dairabi Al-Shafi‟ i di Pondok Pesantren Salafiyah Banten. FUDPress.
Alfian, A. (2023). REINTERPRETING MANTRAS AS RELIGIOUS HEALING IN INDIGENOUS PEOPLES IN INDONESIA: THE INDIGENOUS RELIGION PARADIGM AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO “WORLD RELIGIONS.” Studies in Interreligious Dialogue, 33(1). https://doi.org/10.2143/SID.33.1.3292291
Andrade, C. (2021). The Inconvenient Truth About Convenience and Purposive Samples. Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine, 43(1), 86–88. https://doi.org/10.1177/0253717620977000
Arfianti, A., Rachmawati, M., & Setijanti, P. (2022). Primbon: Representation of Kraton Yogyakarta. Interiority, 5(1), 115–132. https://doi.org/10.7454/in.v5i1.177
Ayu, R. K., Suud, F. M., & Suud, F. M. (2022). EMOTIONAL QUOTIENT DAN DERAJAT DEPRESI SANTRI MADRASAH ALIYAH PESANTREN TAHFIDZ QURAN. Psikoislamedia : Jurnal Psikologi, 7(2). https://doi.org/10.22373/psikoislamedia.v7i2.13231
Ayubi, S. Al, Alif, M., Agniya, U., Taqiyudin, H., & Naquib, K. N. Al. (2023). Realizing a New Spiritualism: Development of Religious Authority during the COVID-19 Pandemic through Ngaji Online. Hong Kong Journal of Social Sciences, 62. https://doi.org/10.55463/hkjss.issn.1021-3619.62.19
Ayubi, S. Al, & Masruri, M. (2025). Ritual learning method for mystical ijazah at pondok pesantren salafiyah. Journal of Education and Learning, 19(1), 314–321. https://doi.org/10.11591/edulearn.v19i1.21090
Bassar, A. S., Ruswandi, U., & Erihadiana, M. (2021). Pendidikan Islam: Peluang dan Tantangan di Era Global dan Multikultural. J-PAI: Jurnal Pendidikan Agama Islam, 8(1), 63–75. https://doi.org/10.18860/jpai.v8i1.9577
Brahmandika, P. G. (2021). Mantra Pengasihan Tungtung Tangis Perspektif Bentuk Fungsi dan Makna. Dharma Sastra: Jurnal Penelitian Bahasa Dan Sastra Daerah, 1(1). https://doi.org/10.25078/ds.v1i1.2333
Brastyan, A. P. (2019). Analisis Semantik pada Lirik Lagu Jaran Goyang Nella Kharisma. In Skripsi Universitas Jember.
Bruinessen, M. van. (1994). Pesantren and Kitab Kuning : Maintenance and Continuation of A Tradition of Religious Learning. Wolfgang Marschall (Ed.).
Burchett, P. E. (2008). The “Magical” Language of Mantra. Journal of the American Academy of Religion, 76(4), 807–843. https://doi.org/10.1093/jaarel/lfn089
Ćuković, J. (2023). Intangible cultural heritage as a resource for “self-stakeholderisation”: fieldwork among politically active civil society stakeholders in the province of Vojvodina, Serbia.
Hadzantonis, M. (2020). Shifting the Semangat: Parallelism in the Central Indonesian mantra. Pages 38-46.
Hidayatulloh, U. (2020). PENGARUH DAN PERANAN KYAI DALAM MENGAWAL KERUKUNAN UMAT BERAGAMA DI KOTA TASIKMALAYA. Mutawasith: Jurnal Hukum Islam, 2(2). https://doi.org/10.47971/mjhi.v2i2.151
Huyler, D., & McGill, C. M. (2019). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches, by John Creswell and J. David Creswell. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publication, Inc. 275 pages, $67.00 (Paperback). New Horizons in Adult Education and Human Resource Development, 31(3), 75–77. https://doi.org/10.1002/nha3.20258
Jamaludin, O. (2021). Peran Pesantren Salafi dalam Peningkatan Kualitas Akhlak Santri. Iktisyaf: Jurnal Ilmu Dakwah Dan Tasawuf, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.53401/iktsf.v3i1.38
Key, K. D., Furr-Holden, D., Yvonne Lewis, E., Cunningham, R., Zimmerman, M. A., Johnson-Lawrence, V., & Selig, S. (2019). The continuum of community engagement in research: A roadmap for understanding and assessing progress. Progress in Community Health Partnerships: Research, Education, and Action, 13(4), 427–434. https://doi.org/10.1353/cpr.2019.0064
Kouri, J., & Hytönen-Ng, E. (2022). The change in the researcher’s position in the study of shamanism. Approaching Religion, 12(1), 117–131. https://doi.org/10.30664/ar.111072
Marchinkowski, G. W. (2022). Where ‘the unbelievable and the obvious collide’: Spiritual practices and everyday life. Verbum et Ecclesia, 43(1), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.4102/ve.v43i1.2654
Martin van Bruinessen. (2015). Kitab Kuning, Pesantren, dan Tarekat (A. Mumuk (ed.); Cetakan I). Gading Publishing.
Meliani, F., Basri, H., & Suhartini, A. (2023). Learning System in Salafi Manhaj Boarding School. Munaddhomah: Jurnal Manajemen Pendidikan Islam, 4(2), 175–186. https://doi.org/10.31538/munaddhomah.v4i2.300
Muhtadi, B., Soderborg, S., Mujani, S., Liddle, R. W., & Irvani, D. (2023). Banjarese Muslim Figures in the Works of Karel A. Steenbrink and Martin Van Bruinessen. Studi Islamika Indonesia Jurnal For Islamic Studies, 30(1). https://doi.org/10.36712/sdi.v30i1.27646
Mustaf, M. (2020). KONSEP MAHABBAH DALAM AL-QUR’AN (Kajian Tafsir Maudhu’i). Al- Asas: Jurnal Ilmiah Ilmu Dasar Keislaman, 4(1).
Niemyjska, A. (2015). How does love magic work? The regulation of closeness and affect by magical thinking. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 32(1), 57–77. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407514523552
Nurjamilah, A. S. (2015). Mantra Pengasihan: Telaah Struktur, Konteks Penuturan, Fungsi, dan Proses Pewarisannya. Riksa Bahasa: Jurnal Bahasa, Sastra, Dan Pembelajarannya, 1(2).
Pamungkas, O. Y., Hastangka, H., Raharjo, S. B., Sudigdo, A., & Agung, I. (2023). The spirit of Islam in Javanese mantra: Syncretism and education. HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies, 79(1), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v79i1.8407
Pamungkas, O. Y., Ma’rifataini, L., Warnis, W., Zuhrah, F., Purwoko, D., & Al Masjid, A. (2024). Exploring the Cultural Significance of Javanese Literature: A Study of Mantras. International Journal of Society, Culture and Language, 12(2), 138–149. https://doi.org/10.22034/ijscl.2024.2025848.3440
Pasha, K., Sulhan, W., & Sahrul H, W. (2018). MAKNA DAN PERSEPSI MASYARAKAT TERHADAP MANTRA SEMAR MESEM DI DESA BURENG. Jurnal Pendidikan Bahasa Indonesia, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.30659/j.6.1.26-31
Patnaik, S., & Pandey, S. C. (2019). Case Study Research. Methodological Issues in Management Research: Advances, Challenges, and the Way Ahead, November 2019, 163–179. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-78973-973-220191011
Prasetyo, W. (2020). PENGHIMPUNAN PENDAPATAN NGEFANS SAWERAN : MISTIK SEMAR MESEM PENYANYI DANGDUT (Studi pada Penyanyi Orkestra Melayu New Kendedes). Jurnal Riset Akuntansi Dan Bisnis Airlangga, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.31093/jraba.v5i1.204
Rahman, I. A., Yoesoef, M., & MPSS, P. (2023). Tinjauan Semiologi Pada Mantra Perguruan Pencak Silat Buhun Ameng Sepor Para Wali Di Kecamatan Cibalong, Garut Selatan, Jawa Barat. Pena Literasi, 6(1), 101. https://doi.org/10.24853/pl.6.1.101-108
Rodin, K. (2010). Mantra and Metaphor in Nepali & Indian Himalayan Communities. The International Journal of the Humanities: Annual Review, 8(8), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.18848/1447-9508/CGP/v08i08/43006
Rohmayani, I. (2019). Makna Mantra Pengasihan Semar dalam Perspektif Masyarakat Jawa Indah. Prosiding Seminar Nasional Linguistik Dan Sastra (SEMANTIKS), Kajian Linguistik pada Karya Sastra.
Subhan, R., Supratno, H., & Darni, D. (2021). Semiotics Analysis of Semar Mesem Spell Performed by The Coastal Community of Jember, East Java, Indonesia. Budapest International Research and Critics Institute (BIRCI-Journal): Humanities and Social Sciences, 4(2). https://doi.org/10.33258/birci.v4i2.1964
Thille, P. H., Rotteau, L., & Webster, F. (2021). More than words: Methods to elicit talk in interviews. Family Practice, 38(4), 545–547. https://doi.org/10.1093/fampra/cmab043
Wardani, A. P., Darmayanti, N., & Sofyan, A. N. (2021). Struktur Mantra Kekuatan Dalam Buku “Jangjawokan Inventarisasi Puisi Mantra Sunda”: Kajian Etnolinguistik. Kajian Linguistik Dan Sastra, 6(1), 54–71. https://doi.org/10.23917/kls.v6i1.12334
Wati, I. A., & Hasanah, U. (2021). Studi Tasawuf Irfani. Spiritual Healing : Jurnal Tasawuf Dan Psikoterapi, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.19109/sh.v2i1.10686
Widayat, A., & Dwiadmojo, G. N. (2023). The Javanese philosophy behind the Panakawan characters: An ethnolinguistic analysis of the play Semar Mbangun Kahyangan. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 13(2), 343–357. https://doi.org/10.17509/ijal.v13i2.63094
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Sholahuddin Al Ayubi, Ursa Agnia, H.S. Suhaedi, Nouval Syamsu, Kholilullah Kholilullah
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
