An Example of Neo-Tarekat in Bandung, Indonesia

<p><em>At present, several </em>tarekat<em>s surfaced in the urban centers of Indonesia and continued to perform as a vehicle of social and cultural cohesion. The emergence of these so-called </em>neo-tarekat<em>s (neo-sufi mystical orders) introduced rational reference to the sacred texts and Islamic law and rejected the close association between </em>tarekat<em>s and the veneration of saints and holy places as generally known as </em>silsilah <em>in the old version of </em>tarekat<em>s. This article depicts a close look at of Tarekat Kadisiyyah, an example of the neo-</em>tarekat<em>s, located in central Bandung city of West Java. Most of the followers of this </em>tarekat<em> come from young and educated among urban people in Bandung. </em>Mursyid<em> (Ar: </em>murshid<em>) of this </em>tarekat <em>refers to a person named Suprapto Kadis, who experienced the absence of an outward </em>mursyid <em>(</em>lahiriah<em>), but received direct guidance from Allah. There is no chain of transmission of mystical knowledge from a special </em>mursyid <em>to him. This kind of </em>mursyid <em>reminds us the concept of </em>uwaysiyah <em>in classical Islamic literature. Uways is the person who knew the prophet Muhammad but never met him in person. Another concept can be used to analyzes this phenomena is the notions of </em>khidr<em> functioning as an invisible guide for the </em>mursyid<em>. Tarekat Kadisiyyah trained its students that one should become his own self in order to know Allah. In doing this, Tarekat Kadisiyyah concluded that </em>shari>‘ah <em>is important as it is the vehicle to gain closeness to Allah.</em></p> <p><strong>Keywords</strong>: Tarekat Kadisiyah, Suprapto Kadis, neo-tarekat, <em>mursyid</em>, <em>suluk</em></p&gt