Sjamsoeddin van Pasè (Sjamsoeddïn as-Samatranï) was the leading heterodox mystic who was favoured by Sultan Iskandar Moeda of Atjèh (1607–1636). His conflict with the orthodox scholar Noer-ad-dïn ar-Ranïrï led to the orthodox victory under Sultan Iskandar Thanï, who had Sjamsoeddin executed and his works burned.
The heterodox mysticism
Sjamsoeddin van Pasè was the leading figure of the heterodox mystic tradition — a pantheistic Wujudiyyah mysticism — that flourished at the court of Sultan Iskandar Moeda. Alongside the famous poet Hamzah Pansoerï “of Baros,” Sjamsoeddin represented the literary and spiritual high point of this tradition. He enjoyed full royal patronage and domicile at the kraton court.
Account from Atjèh by J. Kreemer (Deel II)
Kreemer records that Sjamsoeddin was favoured (begunstigd) by Iskandar Moeda, as was Hamzah Pansoerï. When Noer-ad-dïn ar-Ranïrï returned to Atjèh in 1637, he found the court under Sultan Iskandar Thanï still influenced by Sjamsoeddin’s heterodox teachings.
Ar-Ranïrï’s polemic led to the orthodox victory: Sjamsoeddin was executed by Iskandar Thanï (having died around 1630, his memory and works were condemned), and the works of the heterodox mystics — including those of Hamzah Pansoerï — were burned before the great mosque Beit ar-rahman (the future Meusigit Raja). This destruction of the heterodox literature in the reign of Iskandar Thanï (1636–1641) represented a decisive shift in the religious culture of the Atjèhnese court.
Significance
The conflict between Sjamsoeddin and ar-Ranïrï represents a pivotal moment in the religious history of Atjèh — the triumph of orthodox Shafi’ite Islam over the heterodox pantheistic mysticism that had flourished under Iskandar Moeda. This orthodox victory shaped the subsequent development of Atjèhnese Islamic institutions, and the memory of the burned books marked the end of Atjèh’s golden age of Malay mystical poetry.
See Also
- Sultan Iskandar Moeda
- Iskandar Thani
- Nur al-Din al-Raniri
- Hamzah Pansuri
- Meusigit Raja
- Wujudiyyah
- Aceh
- 1630
- 1636
- 1637
Sources
Atjèh. Algemeen samenvattend overzicht van land en volk van Atjèh en onderhoorigheden, door J. Kreemer, Archivaris van het Atjèh Instituut. Tweede Deel. Leiden: N.V. Boekhandel en Drukkerij voorheen E.J. Brill, 1923. Identifier: Delpher MMKB02B:000001798.
The Achehnese, Vol. I, by Dr. C. Snouck Hurgronje, translated by A.W.S. O’Sullivan, indexed by R.J. Wilkinson. Leyden: E.J. Brill, 1906.