A SOCIOLOGICAL STUDY OF KERAMAT BELIEFS IN SINGAPORE

Abstract

This thesis documents the belief in keramats, held by the Malay community in Singapore. It aims to examine and gain insights into the belief. However, the concern with understanding how the belief and practices of keramats which are inconsistent with Islam, co-exist with the observed dogmas of the religion forms the larger theoretical interest of this project. Although there are various different categories of keramats, this study was mainly concerned with the common everyday understanding of keramats - graves of people who are regarded as saints because they are believed to be capable of performing some form of miracles. Despite the inherent tension between the belief and Islam, my fieldwork has highlighted various explanations made by the Malays who visit keramats, to refute claims that the belief is inconsistent with Islam. Through my discussion with them, I realize that keramat beliefs are very popular because it has definite functions and serve certain goats in life of the people who subscribe to them. This would explain the tenacity and resilience of the belief in the face of uncompromising attitude in doctrinal matters of Islam. Interestingly, the belief in keramats is not only confined to the Malays. Keramats in Singapore have also been noticed to attract people from other cultures and religious orientations, especially from the Chinese community. This is mainly because the belief in keramats is congruent to their own religious orientation. Eventually, it was observed that their religious influences have also come to be accommodated into the belief. Aside from that, symbolic aspects of the belief were also looked into. The conduct of rituals and practices form an integral part of keramat beliefs. Interestingly, my examination of most of these rituals and practices indicated that they are not of an Islamic influence or even inconsistent with the religion. It is believed that the Malays are conscious of this and have therefore made various accommodations to the rituals and practices performed in keramats, such that they appear consistent with Islam. Finally, the study looks at Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS), position with regard to the keramat beliefs and highlights clearly the doctrinal contradiction of the belief with Islam. My investigations also showed that MUIS have implemented various policies to ensure that the keramat beliefs and practices are not inconsistent with the strict tenets of Islam. These efforts were implemented with the aim of strengthening the character of orthodoxy within Islam. The study then concludes with an evaluation on how MUIS, urbanization and modern values have had an adverse impact on the survival of the belief. In sum, the significance of this study is not only to introduce keramat beliefs among Malays in Singapore but also unravels the tensions which exist between the belief and Islam which is the official religion of the Malays.