The Ghosts of the Past in Southern Thailand: Essays on the History and Historiography of Patani

Chapter 5: The Intellectual Network of Patani and the Haramayn

0 Numan Hayimasae cHaPter 5 the Intellectual Network of Patani and the Haramayn Numan Hayimasae 0 Since the 17th century, the Haramayn (the holy cities of Mecca and Medina in present-day Saudi Arabia) played a crucial role in disseminating Islamic knowledge to Southeast Asian Muslims, among them the Muslims of Patani. Previous studies of Patani that discuss the influence of the Haramayn tend to focus on the religious scholars who resided there for the purposes of acquiring and disseminating knowledge, but do not describe in any detail the intellectual phenomena they experienced.1 This chapter argues that the intellectual experience of religious scholars in the Haramayn played a direct role in the shaping of educational institutions in Patani. It will examine the origins of the intellectual network linking the Haramayn and Patani. It discusses the development of the tradition of Malay-Muslims journeying to the Haramayn for their education, the role of Patani’s ‘ulama, and the study patterns of the Malay-Muslims from Patani. The chapter concludes by reflecting on the impact that Patani’s intellectual network with the Haramayn had on the establishment of the madrasah system in southern Thailand. Patani Malay-Muslims in the Haramayn There is no clear evidence to show who the first individual or group from Patani was to have traveled to the Haramayn. Generally, apart from the purpose of education, the trip to the Haramayn was undertaken in order 1 See, for instance, works by Ahmad Fathy al-Fatani and Wan Mohd. Shaghir Abdullah. Intellectual Network of Patani and the Haramayn  to perform the Hajj. Among the Malays from the Malay peninsula, Syeikh Abdul Malik Abdullah of Trengganu (1650–1736) was regarded as having been the first individual to have reached the Haramayn (Mecca).2 Linkages between Patani and the Haramayn appear to have begun following Patani’s conversion to Islam around the middle of the 15th century. The coming of Islam had a considerable impact on Patani’s intellectual development as Islam began to penetrate the daily lives of the lay persons to create a new Muslim community. Syed Muhummad Naquib al-Attas compares the coming of Islam to the Malay-Indonesian world with the impact of Islam upon Europe, when the advent of Islam and the consequent culture of knowledge it fostered pushed the Europeans into the “Modern Era.”3 Numerous sources point to the early significance of Patani as a prominent place of learning in the Malay-Indonesian world. For example, the Sejarah Melayu describes a Malay noble from Patani who had instructed Sri Lanang to write the Hikayat. The person who supported me to write the Sejarah Melayu is Raja Dewa Said Nara Wangsa whose name is Tun Bambang, a son of the King of Patani, who was the most honourable man with a high-ranking status compared to others in an assembly of nobles …4 Patani’s intellectual prestige in the 18th century is also well-described in the Hikayat Patani: Some time later Alung Yunus became King in Air Lilih for a period of eleven months. While he was reigning as King he was called Yang Dipertuan by the people. He was the man who built the mosque in the port, and this mosque was originally the palace which Raja Dajang constructed in the town. Alung Yunus had it pulled down and transferred to the port where it was rebuilt as a mosque. It was at that time that Sayyid Abdullah came to Patani from Trengganu. Sayyid Abdullah was a descendent of the prophet of God, and he originally came from Jerusalem; and Haji Yunus was a Malay from Patani. Sheikh Abdul Kadir was a man from Pasai and Haji Abdurrahman a Javanese; on his way back from a pilgrimage to Mecca he took a wife here in Patani, 2 Mohammad Redzuan Othman, “The Role of Makka-Educated Malays in the Development of Early Islamic Scholarship and Education in Malaya,” Journal of Islamic Studies 9, 2 (1998): 147. 3 Syed Muhammad Naquib Al-Attas, Islam dalam Sejarah dan Kebuyadaan Melayu (Kuala Lumpur: UKM Press, 1972), pp. 18–9. 4 W.G. Shellabear, Sejarah Melayu (Kuala Lumpur: Fajar Bakti Sdn. Bhd, 1979), p. 2.  Numan Hayimasae Fakih Abdul Mannan was a Minangkabau who came from Kedah and took a wife in Pujut. All these wise men took counsel on the sufferings of the people of Patani in accordance with the law of God as it...