THE TARlQAT AL- 'ALAWIYYAH AND THE EMERGENCE OF THE SHI'I SCHOOL IN INDONESIA AND MALAYSIA

The recent emergence and current development of the Imami Shi'i school in Indonesia and Malaysia can only be understood against the backdrop of the early history of the Si 'ah, as well as that of the history of the Islamization of the Malay-Indonesian tor that binds these three historical processes together in a remarkable case of "conversion" within Islam is the 'olawiyyali sufi order (al-tariqah Archipelago. The common fac-al- 'alawiyyah). The tariqah al- 'alawiyyah is the path of the Siidat Bani 'alawiyyah. The Siidah al- 'alawiyyah (sing. sayyid), of the Shafi'i madhab (school of jurisprudence), originate from the Hadramawt, Yemen and played a major role in the Islamization of East Africa, Southern India, and the Malay- Indonesian Archipelago. The Sayyids of Hadramawt share a common his- tory with the Shi'i school and to some extent it is this commonality that caused Shi' i elements and tendencies among the descendants of Hadrami Siidat emigres in the Malay-Indonesian Archipelago to surface, particu- larly after the Iranian revolution of 1978. Today, the Hadrami Sayyids of the Malay-Indonesian world continue to playa role in the religious life of the region.


Introduction
T he recent emergence and current development of the Imami Shi'i school in Indonesia and Malaysia can only be understood against the backdrop of the early history of the Si 'ah, as well as that of the history of the Islamization of the Malay-Indonesian Archipelago. The common factor that binds these three historical processes together in a remarkable case of "conversion" within Islam is the 'olawiyyali sufi order (al-tariqah al-'alawiyyah).
The tariqah al-'alawiyyah is the path of the Siidat Bani 'alawiyyah. The Siidah al-'alawiyyah (sing. sayyid), of the Shafi'i madhab (school of jurisprudence), originate from the Hadramawt, Yemen and played a major role in the Islamization of East Africa, Southern India, and the Malay-Indonesian Archipelago. The Sayyids of Hadramawt share a common history with the Shi'i school and to some extent it is this commonality that caused Shi' i elements and tendencies among the descendants of Hadrami Siidat emigres in the Malay-Indonesian Archipelago to surface, particularly after the Iranian revolution of 1978. Today, the Hadrami Sayyids of the Malay-Indonesian world continue to playa role in the religious life of the region. With this in mind, it is important and interesting to observe that the' alawiyyah 'ulamii' in particular and community in general is becoming differentiated into a number of orientations vis a vis the Shi'i school. To date, the literature on Islam in Indonesia, Malaysia and the rest of the region has not taken note of this phenomenon, with the exception of a few journal articles and a handful of newspaper and magazine items. Even then, these works falsely labour under the assumption that the rise of the Shi'i school in the region is symptomatic of the current wave of Islamic fundamentalism, being a result of the establishment of a Shi'i republic in Iran in 1979. It would be more accurate to say that the Iranian revolution had resulted in whatever Shi'i tendencies that had already existed among the 'Alawiyyiin of the Malay world being articulated with greater clarity, fervour and sense of mission.
* -This essay on the Shi'i school in Indonesia and Malaysia is merely a preface to a larger work and is based on materials gathered during an exploratory two weeks field trip in Indonesia during the summer of 1993. Funding for this trip was provided by the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore.
The purpose of this study is to examine the emergence of the Shi school in the Malay-Indonesian archipelago, in the context of the origin and early history of Shi'i Islam as well as that of the Islamization of th Malay world.
The next section on the origins and development of Shi'i Islam touches upon various aspects of the political history of early Islam, th development of the five legal schools (maddhib), as well as the pendulum rise of the Shi'i state in Iran. This is followed by a discussion on the question of the principle d vergences between the Sunni and Shi'i schools, not only in terms of juris prudence but the rational sciences (al-'ulum al-'aqliyyah) and politica theory as well.
The discussion moves on to the tariqan al-'alawiyyah, tracing its or gins in Hadramawt, and its spread to the Malay world by the Sayyids Hadramawt. It is also here that I elaborate on the belief system (taqidah of the Hadrami Sayyids (i.e. the tariqahy, and locate the 'Alawiyyiin hi torically and doctrinally vis a vis the Sunni-Shi"i divide.
The final section then shifts to a discussion on the rise of Imiimi Si'a among the 'Alawiyyiin of the Malay world both before and after the Ir nian revolution of 1978. This section illustrates the various orientations toward the Shi'i schoo among the 'Alawiyyiin. The question of adherence to the Sunni or Shi schools refers to more than schools of jurisprudence but to political th ory, historical consciousness, philosophy, theology and sufism, but th argument is not developed in the present essay.

The Origins and Development ojSl'ah Islam
The division of the ummah into its Sunni and Shi'i branches emerged originally as a result of irreconcilable political differences over the su cession of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him) and the leader ship of the community. It is only much later that further differences terms of belief systems, philosophy and jurisprudence emerged. Thes will be treated in the next section.
There are several theories on the rise and early development of Islam their propounders being Muslims as well orientalists, historical material ists, and a number of other Western scholars.
The Muslim explanations of the origins of early Islam broadly fall in two groups, the standard Sunni ' and Shi'i 2 versions. In addition, there a also critical accounts that are based on both Sunni and Shi'i sources.I Apart from these standard Muslim perspectives, modem scholars of Islam have also attempted to account for the rise and early development of Islam. Many of these theories locate the rise of Islam around the theme of Mecca as a centre of caravan trade in the Arabian peninsula." Whatever the role of trade, ecology and various sociological factors in the rise and subsequent development of Islam, it is equally plausible to view these developments in Khaldunian terms, for which the concept of 'asabiyyah is of paramount importance.> The eventual rise of the Umayyah dynasty left the Si'ah (party) of Imam 'All, a group that gathered around 'All and his descendants, in the opposition. The revolt of Imam al-Husayn against Mu'awiyah's successor, Yazid, and his tragic destruction in the battle of Karbala' imuharram 6110ctober 680) signified the end of anti-Umayyah activism of the Si'ah. The fourth, fifth and sixth Imams, that is, 'All Zayn al-'Abidln, Muhammad al-Baqir and Ga'far al-Sadiq retreated to Madina and diverted their attention to the development and codification of the turiit (heritage). In fact, it is the last who elaborated on the doctrine of the imiimah, giving it its final form. The imdmah is an office bestowed by God upon a chosen person from among the descendants of the Prophet through 'All and Fatimah (Ahl al-Bayt). 6 Nevertheless, the Si'ah never controlled a state till the emergence of the Safavids in 907/1501 and it was only in 1979 that the arbiib-i 'amd'im (religious institution) captured state power.

Sunni and Shi 'i: Principle Divergences
Many Muslim scholars and laymen alike are often quick to point out that the differences between the ahl al-sunnah wa 'l-gam a 'ah and the Si'ah are minor and that both groups co-exist in Muslim brotherhood (ubiiwat al-isliimiyyah}, While this form of brotherhood is true historically as we as at the present, this must not lead us to underestimate the differences philosophy and outlook between the two.
More often than not, the Sunni-Shi'i divide is perceived in terms ofju risprudence and the principles of jurisprudence and in fact, this is the are where the differences between the two are the least. Thus, it is importan not to reduce the Sunni and Sl'ah to schools of jurisprudence (madiihib as if they differ along only these lines.
In fact the principle divergences between the Sunni and Si'ah exis across the whole spectrum of the belief system. While the initial differ ences concerned notions of justice and the question of succession, the tw groups that evolved separately as a result of these differences developed distinct traditions in political theory, philosophy, theology, mysticism and jurisprudence.
The 'aqidah can be utilized as an organizing principle with which w may develop comparative dimensions to appreciate Sunni-Shi'i differ ences. In a more restricted sense, 'aqidah refers to article of faith, the fo mulation of doctrine or dogma, or even a formula that seeks to define th stance of a scholar or individual, usually with respect to theological i sues. In a more general sense, 'aqidali refers to epistemological and othe philosophical issues and, therefore, approximates the total outlook or be lief system of an individual or school. This would of course, be in keep ing with the modern rendition of 'aqidah as ideology, at least in the Ara bic language.
The Sunni and Shi'i 'aqii'id, therefore, differ across the whole spec trum of doctrines, concepts, theories, and rulings.
Of paramount importance is the question of historical consciousness. The event of the Saqifah, the murder of Sayyidna 'All, and the tragedy o Karbala' are historical events about which Muslims cannot be neutral The average Sunni is unaware of these events and, therefore, lacks an his torical dimension to the question of justice and truth in Islam. What ha prevailed as the "truth" is that which is held by the majority (ahl a gamii 'ah). The degree to which this historically early majority were ah al-sunnali as well is a matter of contention from the Shi'i point of view The proclamation of majority status by those claiming to adhere to th sunnah of the Prophet resulted in the definition of historical reality through silence and falsification, it has been claimed. As standard SUIm interpretations of early Muslim history took root, their legitimacy wa boosted by the fact that these views were held by the majority. This re minds us of Alexis de Tocqueville's theory of democracy where he spok of the tyranny and degradation of the majority.
The different notions of justice and truth are also reflected in the po litical theories to which the Sunnis and Shi'is subscribe, that is, the theory of the caliphate (lJiliifah) on the one hand and the theories of imamate (imiimah) and wiliiyat al-faqih on the other.
There are, of course, the well-known differences in the areas of jurisprudence and its principles, concerning the five schools as well as the question of madhab Ahl al-Bayt.
In theology, the Sunnis tend to be either mu 'tazilah or followers of al-As'ari. The Si'ah belong to their own school of theology, while borrowing from the mu 'tazilah, In tasawwuf, the tariqah is seen by the Sunnis as 'irfdn, involving a near total rejection of rational deduction while the Si'ah combine rational deduction and the Sufi spiritual path (tariqah}.
From Imam to Sayyid: The Tariqah al-'Alawiyyah, the SI'ah, and the

Islamization of the Malay-Indonesian Archipelago
Having observed the differences between the Sunni and Si'ah in terms 'aqidah, we are now in a better position to locate the tariqah al-'alawiyyah in Shi'i history and in the history ofIslam in the Malay world. The persecution of the descendants of the Prophet during Umayyah and Abbasiyyah times led to their retreat from political activism. One of the members of the House of the Prophet (Ahl al-Bayt), Imam Ahmad ibn 'Isa ibn Muhammad ibn 'All al-Tlraydi ibn Ga'far al-~adiq, also known as Ahmad al-Muhagir, left Basra as a result of persecution by the Qariimitah in 317 h., with the aim of performing the I}agg in Mecca." He was finally able to perform the I}agg in 318/930, after which he went to Yemen with his second son 'Ubaydallah and two descendants of Imam Miisa al-Kazim, Salim ibn 'Abdallah and Muhammad ibn Sulayman.f Finally, in 340/952, Imam Ahmad al-Muhagir settled in Hadramaw which at that time, according to Hadhrami accounts, was dominated by t Ibadi. Imam Ahmad, with the support of the inhabitants of WadI Daw'an sympathizers of the Ahl al-Bayt, began the process of conversion Hadramawt to the Shafi'i school.?
Most Hadrami Sadat 'ulamii' maintain that Imam Ahmad belonged the Shafi'i school. 10 Nevertheless, there had been some debate in this ce tury between' Alawi ibn Tahir al-Haddad, the Hadrami mufti of Johor an various historians of Saiwim, Hadramawt, in which it was suggested th Ahmad al-Muhagir was an Imami Sl'ah. 11 The fact that Imam Ahma was of the 8th generation from Imam 'All and the 4th generation fro Imam Ga'far al-Sadiq lends credence to this view. Since it was dangerou to hold Shi'i views in an Ibadi-dominated area such as Hadramawt, it possible that Shi'i' views were held under conditions of taqiyyah (di simulation) while the Shafi'i views were openly propagated. According this reading, Imam Ahmad disseminated the Shafi'i school but had t historical consciousne;s of the Sl'ah.
The grandson of Imam Ahmad, 'Alawi ibn 'Ubaydallah was the on one among his brothers Basri and Gadld to leave male issue and it is who gave his name to the clan of the Hadrami Siidah, variously known Banii 'Alawi, Bd 'Alawi, or Banii Siidah 'alawiyyaht?
'Alawiyyiin 'ulamii' divide the historical development of the 'Alawiy yiin into four stages. 13 During the first stage, which lasted from the third century to the se enth century h., 'Alawiyyiin leaders such as Ahmad al-Muhagir and h grandson, 'Alawi ibn 'Ubaydallah were mugtahids and carried the title Imam. They were not followers of any particular madhab or tariqah While it is true that a great deal of their igtihiid was in line with Imam Safi'i, this may have been partly due to the circumstances in Hadramaw at that time.
Having ibn al-Husayn.!" It is interesting to note that during this first stage the names Abu Baler, 'Umar and 'Utman were not given to the 'Alawiyyiin.t? In the silsilah of Al al-tAttas, for example, the first time that any of these names appear is in 992h. when the first al-'Attas, of the 27th generation from Imam 'Ali, was named 'Umar ('Umar ibn 'Abd al-Rahman ibn 'Aqil ibn Salim ibn 'Abdallah ibn 'Abd al-Rahman ibn 'Abdallah ibn 'Abd al-Rahman al-Saqqaf). This had led some to suggest that the 'Alawiyyiin, up until this time, were Shi'i. In the opinion of Sayyid al-Hasan al-'Attas, however, the reason for the absence of such names in some of the genealogies of the 'Alawiyyiin has to do with the preference for names that occur earlier on in the silsilah resulting in other names not appearing for several generations. Among the descendants of Sayyidna al-Husayn ibn AbI Talib one of the most frequently occurring names is 'All. Sayyidna al-Husayn himself named three of his sons 'All, that is, 'All al-Akbar, 'All Zayn al-'Abidfu and 'Ali al-Asgar.!" As a result, for several generations since the time of Sayyidna al-Husayn ibn AbI Talib, the names such as Muhammad, 'All, al-Husayn, al-Hasan, and 'Alawi appear more frequently in some houses (buyiit) than others due to precedence established by a father or grandfather.
The second stage, then, is that of the development and consolidation of the tariqah al-'alawiyyah. This stage lasted from the seventh century to the eleventh century h.
The tariqah is a simple one which does not stress halwah but rather worldly activities while at the same time denouncing materialism. It may be referred to as a this-wordly tariqah and is based on the simple formula of 'ilm, 'amal, tahalli, tahalli. It is the only order in which nasab and tariqah come together, and this is where the importance of the Khaldunian concept of 'a~abiyyah is evident.
The third stage in the development of the 'Alawiyyiin lasted from the 11th century to the 14th century h .. During this period, the 'Alawiyyiin 'ulamii' and awliyii' came to be known by the title of habib. This was the period of emigration to India and Southeast Asia.'? For more than fifty years various theories have been presented as attempts at delineating the causes and modes of conversion to Islam as well as the consequences of the coming of Islam to the Malay-Indonesian archipelago.lf Many authors stressed the fact that Islam was brought to the region by traders from Arabia, Persia, India and China. Although it was clearly through trade that Islam was initially introduced into the archipelago it is extremely doubtful that the large-scale conversions to Islam can be explained simply in terms of these early trading contacts. Theories that suggest other modes of conversion to Islam need to be considered. These theories explain large-scale conversion in terms of economic and political motives, rivalry between the Muslims and Portuguese, inter-marriages, and Sufi proselytization.
It was van Leur, among others, who stressed the significance of political factors in the islamization of Indonesia. His reading was that Islam was adopted as a political instrument against Indian trade, Siam, China, and the Hindu Majapahit regime in Java.'? Several objections can be made to this view. One is that even if it was established that rulers in general converted to Islam for political and economic reasons, one cannot leap to the conclusion that the whole archipelago did so for the same reasons. Also, if the logic of conversion for economic and political reasons was operating, why were there no conversions to Chinese religion during the thirteenth to the sixteenth centuries when China was a regional power in the archipelago'F? Schrieke had discussed the conversion to Islam in terms of Muslim-Portuguese antagonism in the archipelago. Although he was fully aware that the large-scale conversions to Islam began in the thirteenth century." that is, before Portuguese dominance, he nevertheless insisted that it is "impossible to understand the spread of Islam in the archipelago unless one takes into account the antagonism between the Moslem traders and the Portuguese". 22 The theory that the conversion of the archipelago resulted from intermarriages between members of royal and merchant families received special attention by Harrison who referred to the ability of the marriage institution to spread Islam from Malakka to the north in Pahang and Kedah, and to the south in Sumatra.P Before Harrison, Veth had referred to the marriage factor in the advent of Islam in the archipelago.e' This view of islamization seems rather unconvincing as there were only a relatively small number of foreign Muslim merchants who had settled in the Malay-Indonesian archipelago during the period under consideration. They were sporadically settled along coastal areas and mostly transient.s> While inter-marriage was probably a means of islamization, it would only explain conversions in the coastal areas.
The view that Sufism was responsible for the conversion of Indonesia to Islam was propounded by Johns. He pointed out that the Sufi "interpretation of Islam was certainly suited to the background of the Indonesians ..." and that the "conversion of Indonesia to Islam was very largely the work of the tarikas even though they are ungratefully spumed at the present day".26 While it is very true that Sufis were involved in the proselytization of Islam in the archipelago, there is little mention of the tariqah al-'alawiyyah in this respect, although the role of the Hadrami Arabs in the islamization of the region is well-known. Works that discuss islamization had generally neglected the contribution of this community in the conversion of Southeast Asia to Islam. The view that Islam had spread in the archipelago largely as a result of marriages between royal and merchant families, or as a consequence of Sufi missionary activities, is mere speculation or, at best, incomplete unless supported by empirical studies on the histories and genealogies of the various Hadrami Arab as well as Indian Muslim families, many of which were assimilated into the indigenous societies in the archipelago. Hadrami Arab and Indian Muslim traders had been engaging in trade and missionary activities in the region for centuries and constituted an integral part of the Muslim trade diaspora which stretched from Egypt to the Malay world.
In the last century, European scholars had held that islamization was brought about as a result of direct contact with Arab traders, a thesis which was first rejected by the Dutch scholar PijnappeJ.27 Pijnappel ascribed the spread of Islam in the region to the work of Arabs from Gujerat and Malabar.28 After Pijnappel, it was Snouck Hurgronje who developed the view of islamization from India. In a lecture on Arabia and the Netherlands Indies delivered at Leiden University in 1907, Snouck asserted that the view that colonies of Arab traders were established in Java and Sumatra before the 16th century was incorrect. 29 Here Snouck suggests that all things of Arab origin that made their way to the Malay archipelago passed through India and that Islam was introduced to the region through the intermediation of India.'? Decisive Arab influence as far as the spread of Islam in the Malay world is concerned was only after the 16th century and this came out of Hadramawt in South Arabia and Mecca.'! The Hadrami influence in Southeast Asia is, of course, evident from the large numbers of Hadrami settlers who have become permanent additions to the demographic landscape of the Malay world.
Earlier, in 1883, Snouck proposed the thesis of the South Indian origins of Indonesian Islam but, as Drewes pointed out, fails to identify the region of South India from where these proselytizers came.V In addition to this, Snouck did not specify the region in Arabia that the Arabs, coming via India, originated from.
The large-scale islamization of the Malay-Indonesian archipelago which began in the 14th century was carried out by Indians as well as by Indians of Arab origin and Arabs who came to the region via India. The Indo-Arab origins of Islam in Southeast Asia must be understood in the context of the modes of conversion such as trade, marriage, and the role of the Sufi tariqahs. What has been conspicuously absent in .the literature on the history ofIslam in Southeast Asia, especially with regard to the period in question, is recognition of the role of the Hadrami tariqah al-'alawiyyah in the process of conversion. In other words, the question of who were the Arabs who traded, intermarried, and established tariqahs in the region comes to mind. A prominent case in point is that of the so-called legend of the nine saints (Jav. wali songo) of Java.
The Babad Tanah Jawi, a generic title referring to several Javanese manuscripts, attributes the conversion of Java to the work of the wah songo. 33 These manuscripts contain some historical records but are, for the most part, legendary accounts on the islamization of Java. The accounts of the nine saints are usually couched in fantastic terms with descriptions of their magical powers. This had led many scholars to regard the legends more as insights into how the Indonesians viewed the process of islamization rather than as historical records of conversion to Islam.v' In some cases, the specific Hadrami origins appear to be unknown to some authors. For example, Raffles refers to some of the walis as originating from Arabia but does not refer to their Hadrami origins nor to the fact that they were settled in India prior to coming to Southeast Asia." Arnold refers to one of the walis, Malik Ibrahim, as a descendant of a grandson of the Prophet, Zayn al-'.Abidin and a cousin of the Raja of Chermen." According to Veth, Chermen is located in India while Rouffaer places it in Sumatra.F Majul refers to these walis as being Indians or Arabs originating from Arab settlements in India.I" Indonesian works, however, know these walis to be historical personalities.I? Furthermore, Hadrami sources contain the genealogies'i? of these walis who lived in Java during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. It is from these genealogies that it is known that many were Hadrami Arabs who had come to the Malay archipelago via India. The names of the walis of whom there were more than nine can be listed as follows+' 14. al-Malik Ibrahim ibn Barakat Zayn al-'Alam ibn al-Imam Gamal aI-DIn al-I:Iusayn 55 (of Gapura).
In addition to the above, Chehab lists Bab Allah ibn 'Abdallah ibn 'All Niir al-'Alam ibn al-Imam Gamal aI-DIn al-Husayn-c but the ljidmat al-'ASirah does not list Bab Allah in this genealogy.
The link of the wali songo to Ahmad al-Muhagir confirms their Hadrami origins. Nevertheless, some would claim that the Hadrami sayyid origin of the wali songo is a fabricated reconstruction. 57 Such a position is probably due to a lack of familiarity with earlier Hadrami sources, that is, those that are more or less contemporaneous with the wah songo themselves. The Hidmat al-'Asirah itself is a twentieth century document but is based on a The question of Hadrami origins is important not merely for the sake of historical accuracy but because it laid the foundations for the tariqah which was firmly established by Hadramis later and partly explains the Shii tendencies to be found in Indonesia today.
There are a number of derivatives of the tariqah al-'alawiyyah such as the 'aydrusiyyah /a'ifah founded by Abu Bakr ibn 'Abdallah al-'Aydrus (d. 914/1509) in Tarim which spread to East Africa, India and Indonesia. There is also the tariqah al-'attasiyyah which established itself in the Indian sub-continent and Burma.

Elements of Shi 'i Culture in Indonesia
Any discussion on the presence ofShi'i Islam in Southeast Asia must distinguish between the Shi'i school of jurisprudence on the one hand and Shi'i culture on the other. To be sure, both are found although there are differences in their genesis and development. While the vast majority of Indonesian Muslims belong to the Safi'i madhab aspects of Si 'ah Islam can be found in their culture and mores, these having been implanted in the region centuries ago. It is only in this century, particularly after the Iranian revolution of 1978, that there has been a consciousness and awareness of the Si'ah and their history, which was sometimes accompanied by "conversion" to the Shi'i school, but more often resulted in the study and 54 -Ibid.

-Ibid.
56 -Chehab, Asal-usul, cit., p. 15. 57 -Sec, for example, Bruinessen, van M., "Najmuddin al-Kubra and Jarnaluddin al-Akbar: Traces ofKubrawiya Influence in Early Indonesian Islam", in: Bijdragen to de Taal-, Land-en Volkenkunde 150,2 (1994), p. 326. spread of Shi'i teachings without necessarily involving a change in nwrjhab. The rise of the Shi'i madhab in Indonesia and Malaysia will be taken up in the next section. For now, I wish to enumerate the aspects of Shii culture to be found in Indonesia. In this connection two points should be noted.
One, the vast majority of Indonesians are unaware of the presence of Shi'i customs and norms in their practice ofIslam.
Two, the Shi'i influences in Indonesian Islam are both the result of direct contact with Shi'i commumties in India and West Asia as well as the 'Aiawiyyun factor in the islamization of the Malay world.
The Shi'i customs to be found in Indonesia can be listed as follows: 1. The commemoration of 'alura' (Ind. perayaan asyura), on the anniversary of the matyrdom of Imam al-Husayn at Karbala' . 58 This takes place in Aceh, Palembang, Minangkabau, Bengkulu and includes a procession of the tabut of al-Husayn, drawn in procession by an ornately designed catafalque." This ceremony resembles that of the ta 'ziyah of Iran and the subcontinent.
2. 'Alura' porridge. Known as bubur suran in Java and kanji acura in Sunda, this porridge is made from rice and other cereals with coconut milk and is offered to neighbours during the month of muharramP ' 3. Various literary works give a special place to Imam 'All and his family. For example, in the Hikayat Raja Khandaq, 'All is aided in battle by the angle Gibril. In the Hikayat Mohammad Hanafiyah, MUQammad Ibn al-I:Ianafiyyah dreams that the Prophet orders him to revenge the deaths of al-I:Iasan and al-I:Iusayn. 61 4. The lavishly decorated tombs [maqdm) and the practice of ziyarab is seen as more as an element of Si:'ah Islam that found it way into Indonesia. 62 These Shi'i elements in Indonesia are possibly a result of Shi'i influence from West Asia as well as India. They are also a result of the influence of the 'Alawiyyiin in Indonesia.v' The maghab of the 'Alawiyyiin , though formally Shafii, is also referred to as madhab Ahl al-Bayt because of the genealogical link of the practioners of the tariqaii al-'alawiyyah with the Prophet (peace be upon Him). Nevertheless, it is incor-rect to say that the 'Alawiyyiin; including the wali songo, introduced Sl'ah Islam to Indonesia, as suggested by some.vt because the 'Alawiyyiin have always been strict Shafi'is, regardless of their Shi'i scent (Indo. bau Syi 'ah).
The Rise of the lmami Shi 'i Among the' Alawiyyun It has already been mentioned that there are Shi'i tendencies among the 'Alawiyyiin, the main reason for this being the genealogical convergence between the 'Alawiyyiin and the Si'ah.
So far we have said nothing of the actual practices of the Imiimi or Ga 'fari madhab among the 'Alawiyyiin. This is something that took place in the fourth stage of the development of the 'Alawiyyiin which began in the 14th century h., that is, the period of acculturation and assimilation in the Malay world of Southeast Asia.
The actual "conversion" to Sl'ah Islam took place generally after the Iranian revolution of 1979. Nevertheless, throughout the history of the 'Alawiyyiin there have been instances of practioners of Sl'ah Islam both among the wildyati and the muwalladiin.
One 'alawi scholar, about whom it is uncertain as to what extent he was a Sl'ah, was Muhammad ibn 'Aqil al-'Alawl (1863-1931) of the al-Yahya house.s-Muhammad ibn 'Aqll was born in I:Ia~ramawt in Masilah 'All SaYI), lived part of his life in Singapore where he did some writing, and finally settled in al-J:Iudaydah, Yemen. He had written a number of historical works on the early history of the Sl'ah, some of which were published in Iran and some in Jakarta.
Worth mentioning in this connection is Sayyid Abu Bakr ibn 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Sahab of Tarim, Hadrarnawt whose writings were in defense ofMul)ammad ibn 'Aqil's views and of Sl'ah Islam in general.sv Nevertheless, it has been mainly among the muwalladiin, particularly in Malaysia and Indonesia, that we have a renewed interest in Si 'ah Islam. There are three major reasons for which this happened.
. One is the self-perceived general lack of development among the 'Alawiyyun with respect to the other religious and ethnic communities of Southeast Asia.v?