Ritual Contestation in Contemporary Acehnese Islam: An Ethnography of Fasting and Pilgrimage Practices in Blang Pu’uk, Nagan Raya, Aceh, Indonesia

El-Usrah: Jurnal Hukum Keluarga https://jurnal.ar-raniry.ac.id/index.php/usrah/index ISSN: 2620 – 8075 ║ E-ISSN: 2620 – 8083 Vol. 8. No. 2. December 2025 DOI: 10.22373/ujhk.v8i2.27103 Ritual Contestation in Contemporary Acehnese Islam: An Ethnography of Fasting and Pilgrimage Practices in Blang Pu’uk, Nagan Raya, Aceh, Indonesia Safira Mustaqilla1, Dedy Sumardi1, Jamhuri1, Juhari Hasan1, M. Amir HM2 1 Universitas Islam Negeri Ar-Raniry Banda Aceh, Indonesia 2 Institut Agama Islam Negeri Bone, Sulawesi Selatan, Indonesia Email: Abstract Islamic ritual practices such as fasting and pilgrimage (ḥajj) are normatively codified within Islamic jurisprudence. Nevertheless, these normative frameworks are not uniformly enacted across Muslim societies. This article examines localized and contested religious practices within the Muslim community of Blang Pu’uk Kulu Village, Nagan Raya Regency, Aceh, Indonesia, where fasting is observed without ifṭār and pilgrimage rituals are performed locally within a dayah during the ḥajj season. Employing a qualitative approach grounded in ethnographic observation and in-depth interviews, this study examines the modalities of ritual performance, the sociohistorical conditions that sustain these practices, and their implications for communal religious life. The findings demonstrate that these rituals are embedded within a hereditary religious tradition and are construed by adherents as ascetic disciplines aimed at cultivating spiritual proximity to God, sustaining perpetual repentance, achieving inner serenity, and preparing for death (sakharāt al-mawt). From a normative Islamic legal perspective, these practices provoke substantial doctrinal debate, particularly regarding the absence of ifṭār during fasting and the permissibility of chewing betel leaves during daylight hours to facilitate continuous dhikr. Likewise, the localized enactment of pilgrimage rituals—such as circumambulation around a Kaʿbah-like structure and the conferment of the designation “minor ḥajj” constitutes a departure from orthodox Islamic requirements. However, practitioners categorically reject interpretations framing these practices as deviant. Drawing on Pierre Bourdieu’s concept of habitus, this article argues that these ritual practices function as embodied religious dispositions reproduced through collective memory and socialization. Despite external accusations of doctrinal deviation, the community’s religious authority and symbolic capital remain intact, enabling the sustained reproduction of these practices across generations. Keyword: Ritual Contestation, Fasting, Pilgrimage, Religious Habitus, Aceh 1254 Safira Mustaqilla, et.al., Ritual Contestation in Contemporary Islam 1255 Abstrak Praktik-praktik ritual Islam seperti puasa dan ibadah haji secara normatif dikodifikasikan dalam fikih Islam. Namun demikian, kerangka normatif tersebut tidak selalu dipraktikkan secara seragam di seluruh masyarakat Muslim. Artikel ini mengkaji praktik-praktik keagamaan yang bersifat lokal dan diperdebatkan di kalangan komunitas Muslim Desa Blang Pu’uk Kulu, Kabupaten Nagan Raya, Aceh, Indonesia, di mana puasa dijalankan tanpa ifṭār dan ritual haji dilaksanakan secara lokal di dalam sebuah dayah pada waktu pelaksanaan ibadah haji. Dengan menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif yang berbasis pada observasi etnografis dan wawancara mendalam, penelitian ini menelaah bentuk-bentuk pelaksanaan ritual, kondisi sosial-historis yang menopang keberlangsungan praktik-praktik tersebut, serta implikasinya terhadap kehidupan keagamaan komunitas. Temuan penelitian menunjukkan bahwa ritual-ritual ini berakar pada tradisi keagamaan turuntemurun dan dipahami oleh para penganutnya sebagai laku asketik yang bertujuan untuk menumbuhkan kedekatan spiritual dengan Tuhan, menjaga pertobatan yang berkelanjutan, mencapai ketenangan batin, serta mempersiapkan diri menghadapi kematian (sakharāt al-mawt). Dari perspektif normatif hukum Islam, praktikpraktik ini memunculkan perdebatan doktrinal yang signifikan, khususnya terkait ketiadaan ifṭār dalam puasa dan kebolehan mengunyah daun sirih pada siang hari sebagai sarana untuk memfasilitasi dzikir secara terus-menerus. Demikian pula, pelaksanaan ritual haji secara lokal seperti thawaf mengelilingi bangunan yang menyerupai Kaʿbah dan pemberian sebutan “haji kecil” merupakan penyimpangan dari ketentuan ortodoks Islam. Namun demikian, para pelaku praktik tersebut secara tegas menolak penafsiran yang memandang praktik-praktik ini sebagai bentuk penyimpangan. Merujuk pada konsep habitus Pierre Bourdieu, artikel ini berargumen bahwa praktik-praktik ritual tersebut berfungsi sebagai disposisi keagamaan yang terwujud secara embodied dan direproduksi melalui memori kolektif serta proses sosialisasi. Meskipun menghadapi tuduhan penyimpangan doktrinal dari pihak luar, otoritas keagamaan dan modal simbolik komunitas ini tetap terjaga, sehingga memungkinkan reproduksi praktik-praktik tersebut secara berkelanjutan lintas generasi. Kata Kunci: Kontestasi Ritual, Puasa, Haji, Habitus Keagamaan, Nagan Raya, Aceh Introduction Nagan Raya Regency is one of the regencies in Aceh Province, Indonesia, with its capital in Suka Makmue, located approximately 287 km or a 6-hour drive from Banda Aceh. This regency was established based on Law No. 4 of 2002, dated July 2, 2002, as a result of the division of West Aceh Regency. As of mid2024, Nagan Raya's population was 179,108. Nagan Raya, Aceh, is one of the regencies in Aceh Province, located in the southwestern part of the province, with Suka Makmue as its capital. The regency is https://jurnal.ar-raniry.ac.id/index.php/usrah/index Vol. 8 No. 2, December 2025 Safira Mustaqilla, et.al., Ritual Contestation in Contemporary Islam 1256 approximately 287 kilometers, or about six hours of travel, from Banda Aceh, the capital of Aceh Province. Within this regency lies a small village known as Blang Pu’uk Kulu. This regency was established based on Law No. 4 of 2002, dated July 2, 2002, as a result of the division of West Aceh Regency. As of mid-2024, Nagan Raya's population was 179,108. One of the subdistricts is Seunagan, with 35 villages, including Blang Pu'uk Kulu. The main livelihoods of the people in Nagan Raya are in the agricultural sector, particularly rice, and other potential livelihoods include livestock and palm oil plantations. There is one interesting thing about the village of Blang Pu'uk Kulu: the practice of fasting and Hajj, which is not common among the Acehnese people in general.1 This controversy concerns the methods and procedures for fasting and performing pilgrimage (ḥajj) among the community of Blang Pu’uk Kulu, which, over time, has become a subject of intense debate among local residents and within the broader public sphere. Amid strong religious traditions and deeply rooted local values, differing opinions have emerged regarding how women should properly practice these acts of worship.2 This issue is not mere (...truncated)