This thesis has three major objectives which are inter-related. Firstly, it investigates some important aspects of the traditional history of the Malay Archipelago, the early development of Islamic thought, culture and the religious traditions which is represented by the Kitab Jawi. The history and development of the Kitab Jawi and its contribution to the traditional Islamic heritage are explored. This development was accompanied by the emergence of traditional scholars ('ulamā') such as Nūr al-Dīn al-Rānīrī (d. 1666, Acheh), Shams al-Dīn al-Sumatrānī (d. 1630, Sumatra), 'Abd al-Ṣamad al-Falembānī (d. 1764, Palembang), Raja 'Alī al-Hājī (d. 1784, Johor-Riau), Muḥammad Arshad al-Banjārī (b. 1812, Banjarmasin), Dā'ūd b. 'Abd Allah b Idrīs al-Faṭānī (d. 1840, Patani), 'Abd al-Ṣamad b Muḥammad Ṣāliḥ (Tuan Tabal) (d. 1840, Kelantan), Sayyid 'Uthmān b Yaḥyā al-Betāwī (d. 1886, Batavia or Jakarta), and their contribution to the Kitab Jawi tradition is examined in detail. Secondly, the theological discussion among the traditional scholars became a dominant factor in intellectual circles as a result of the popularity of and high demand for theological disciplines among the masses, the high position accorded to these scholars and their close relationship with the sultans or rajas. Among the disciplines of theology is the 'ilm al-Tauḥīd (the Unity of Allah) in which Sanūsī's Umm al-Barāhīn played a very vital role. The most notable feature of this creed is the teaching of Sifat Dua Puluh (the Twenty Attributes of Allah) as the result of which this teaching became the basic religious teaching among the people of the Malay Archipelago. The present study attempts to show how strong the effects of this teaching have been and how it has survived through the centuries. Finally, an annotated translation of a Jawi text of Umm al-Barāhīn is followed by a detailed analysis of the text in relation to the Twenty Attributes. A brief conclusion attempts to draw these strands together and to assess their importance for Islam in the Malay Archipelago.

Thesis (M.A.)--Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminaries, 1991. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 80-82).

Thesis (M.A.)--Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminaries, 1991. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 80-82).

Thesis (M.A.)--Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminaries, 1991. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 80-82).