The Integration of Islamic Values and Bimanese Customary Law in the Judicial System of the Majelis Syara’ in the Nineteenth Century: A Study of Religiosity and Local Culture
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21009/hayula.010.02.04Keywords:
Islamic law, Customary Law, Majelis Syara', Bima Sultanate, Legal PluralismAbstract
The integration of Islamic law and customary norms (adat) is a defining characteristic
of the Indonesian legal system, yet studies examining how this integration was
institutionalized in judicial practices within Eastern Indonesia remain limited. This
study aims to analyze the integration of Islamic values and Bima customary law within
the Majelis Syara’ judicial system, and to explicate the role of religiosity and local
culture in shaping the social legitimacy of judicial authority in the 19th-century Bima
Sultanate. Employing a qualitative method with socio-legal and historical
interpretative designs, data were gathered through the analysis of historical
manuscripts, archival documents of the Bima Sultanate, and literature reviews,
complemented by interviews with local historians, cultural observers, and heritage
institution representatives. Data analysis was conducted using historical-critical
interpretation and source triangulation. The findings reveal that the Majelis Syara’
functioned as a judicial institution that harmonized Shafi'i jurisprudence (fiqh) with
Bima customary values, specifically Maja Labo Dahu and Sara Dana Mbojo. This
integration was reflected in judicial principles, evidentiary mechanisms, dispute
resolution, and the imposition of sanctions oriented toward justice and the maintenance
of social harmony. The legitimacy of the 19th-century Bima judiciary was forged
through the interaction between Islamic law, adat, clerical authority, and sultanate
power. These findings contribute to the discourse on Islamic legal pluralism by
demonstrating that legal authority in the case of Bima was constructed not merely
through the enforcement of religious norms, but through a process of negotiation
between religious texts, local traditions, and political structures that yields a socially
accepted system of justice.
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