The Kudus Minaret as a Material-Symbolic Medium of Theological Acculturation and Social Tolerance in Contemporary Javanese Islam
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15575/rjsalb.v10i2.46689Keywords:
Javanese Islam, Kudus Minaret, social tolerance, theological acculturationAbstract
This study analyzes the Kudus Minaret in Indonesia as an expression of theological acculturation and examines how contemporary communities interpret its symbolism in relation to social tolerance in Kudus. This study is important because previous research has tended to examine the Kudus Minaret separately through architectural, historical, or tourism perspectives. The study employs a historical-interpretive qualitative approach, drawing on a literature review and semi-structured interviews with seven participants: one mosque administrator, three local residents, and three pilgrims. The findings show that the Hindu-Javanese architectural elements of the Kudus Minaret have been interpreted in the literature as forms of acculturation that integrate local symbols into an Islamic framework. The findings also show that the teachings of Sunan Kudus, particularly the prohibition against slaughtering cattle, continue to serve as a moral reference for promoting tolerance and mutual respect among religious communities. However, interpretations of the Kudus Minaret’s symbolism vary and are not uniformly understood in social life. These findings contribute to the study of Javanese Islam by positioning religious artifacts as spaces of social interpretation. The originality of this study lies in its integration of architectural, theological, and contemporary social-experiential dimensions in interpreting the Kudus Minaret.
References
Aan, A., & Nindita, V. (2025). Pengaruh Arsitektur Hindu pada Masjid Menara Kudus. Arsitektura, 23(1), 61-72. https://doi.org/10.20961/arst.v23i1.97840
Ammerman, N. T. (2014). Finding Religion in Everyday Life. Sociology of Religion, 75(2), 189–207. https://doi.org/10.1093/socrel/sru013
Anisa, A., & Lissimia, F. (2020). The influence of historic buildings' existence on economic development and regional arrangement: a case study of Menara Kudus area, Indonesia. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 452(1), 012018. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/452/1/012018
Ari Pambudi, O., Margaretha Sinaga, R., & Sri Ekwandari, Y. (2023). Makna Simbol yang Terdapat pada Menara Masjid Kudus di Desa Kauman Kecamatan Kota Kabupaten Kudus. Journal of Social Education, 4(1), 8–15. https://doi.org/10.23960/JIPS/v4i1.8-15
Ariswanto, I. (2012). Menara Kudus [Photograph]. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Menara_Kudus.JPG
Ashadi, A. (2021). Menara Kudus: Is it a Minaret or a Temple? A Study of Architectural Acculturation. Journal of Islamic Architecture, 6(3), 178–186. https://doi.org/10.18860/jia.v6i3.9856
Asrawijaya, E. (2021). Religious life in Indonesia in the Study of Post-Modernism. Khazanah Theologia, 4(1), 49-64. https://doi.org/10.15575/kt.v4i1.17871
Astor, A., Burchardt, M., & Griera, M. (2017). The Politics of Religious Heritage: Framing Claims to Religion as Culture in Spain. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 56(1), 126–142. https://doi.org/10.1111/jssr.12321
Atok, A. N. (2024). Strategi Politik Sunan Kudus Dalam Menyebarkan Agama Islam Di Kudus Pada Masa Kerajaan Demak. JSI: Jurnal Sejarah Islam, 3(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.24090/jsij.v3i1.9885
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
Casram. (2016). Membangun Sikap Toleransi Beragama dalam Masyarakat Plural. Wawasan: Jurnal Ilmiah Agama dan Sosial Budaya, 1(2), 187–198. https://doi.org/10.15575/jw.v1i2.588
Chae, K. (2026). Religious Heritage and the Governance of Living Sacred Space: A Multi-Religious Perspective. Religions, 17(4), 466. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel17040466
Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2018). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Damayanti, A. N., & Sartini. (2023). Sunan Kudus’ Strategic Approach to Cultural Adaptation in the Self-Other Perspective. Al-Shajarah: Journal of the International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization (ISTAC), 28(2), 209–235. https://doi.org/10.31436/shajarah.v28i2.1114
Firdausiyah, F. (2018). Pengaruh modal usaha dan lama usaha terhadap pendapatan pedagang wisata Menara Kudus. UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta. https://repository.uinjkt.ac.id/dspace/handle/123456789/41902
Helmiati. (2014). Sejarah Islam Asia Tenggara. Universitas Islam Negeri Sultan Syarif Kasim Riau.
Huda, M. F. (2025). Buka Luwur Kanjeng Sunan Kudus, ribuan orang berebut Sego Jangkrik. Murianews. https://berita.murianews.com/muhamad-fatkhul-huda/443801/buka-luwur-kanjeng-sunan-kudus-ribuan-orang-berebut-sego-jangkrik
Idham, N. C. (2021). Javanese Islamic Architecture: Adoption and Adaptation of Javanese and Hindu-Buddhist Cultures in Indonesia. Journal of Architecture and Urbanism, 45(1), 9–18. https://doi.org/10.3846/jau.2021.13709
Intan, B. F. (2023). Religious pluralism, public religion, and principled pluralism in Indonesia. Transformation: An International Journal of Holistic Mission Studies, 40(4), 334–349. https://doi.org/10.1177/02653788231206020
Jiwandhana, A. (2024). Jumlah peziarah Makam Sunan Kudus meningkat di bulan Muharram. Murianews. https://berita.murianews.com/anggara-jiwandhana/418429/jumlah-peziarah-makam-sunan-kudus-meningkat-di-bulan-muharram
Kementerian Agama Republik Indonesia. (2025). Indeks kerukunan umat beragama naik, tertinggi dalam 11 tahun. Kementerian Agama Republik Indonesia. https://bimaskristen.kemenag.go.id/news-1711-indeks-kerukunan-umat-beragama-naik-tertinggi-dalam-11-tahun.html
Kharis, M. A. (2020). Islamisasi Jawa : Sayyid Ja’far Shadiq dan Menara Kudus Sebagai Media Dakwahnya. Jurnal Indo-Islamika, 10(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.15408/idi.v10i1.17508
Kusuma, R. (2026). Antrean warga yang ingin ngalap berkah Kanjeng Sunan Kudus dengan mendapatkan nasi jangkrik [Photograph]. RRI.Co.Id. https://rri.co.id/semarang/budaya/2519659/tradisi-buka-luwur-sunan-kudus-ribuan-warga-rela-antre-demi-nasi-jangkrik
Marsono, Prihantoro, F., Irawan, P., & Sari, Y. K. (2018). Dampak pariwisata religi kawasan Masjid Sunan Kudus terhadap ekonomi, lingkungan, dan sosial-budaya. Gadjah Mada University Press.
Maulana, I. (2024). Ngalap Berkah Tradition (A Case Study of the Ritual of Visiting the Grave and Buka Luwur of Sunan Kudus’s Tomb). JUSPI (Jurnal Sejarah Peradaban Islam), 8(1), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.30829/juspi.v8i1.15978
Maulana, W. I. (2022). Walisongo’s Concept of Religious Moderation in the History of Islamization of Java in the 15th Century AD. Jurnal Fuaduna: Jurnal Kajian Keagamaan Dan Kemasyarakatan, 6(1), 30. https://doi.org/10.30983/fuaduna.v6i1.5521
Meyer, B., Morgan, D., Paine, C., & Plate, S. B. (2010). The origin and mission of Material Religion. Religion, 40(3), 207–211. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.religion.2010.01.010
Mujiyono, M. (2019). Masjid Menara Kudus: Refleksi Nilai Pendidikan Multikultural pada Kebudayaan Masyarakat Pesisiran. Jurnal Imajinasi, 13(1), 69–76.
Mundakir, M., & Hidayat, A. (2020). Islamic Shari’a Configuration of Buka Luwur Tradition in Kudus. QIJIS (Qudus International Journal of Islamic Studies), 8(1), 201. https://doi.org/10.21043/qijis.v8i1.7999
Nila, S. A. E., Marlina, A., & Winarto, Y. (2022). Spatial patterns of settlements in the Menara Kudus Mosque area. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 969(1), 012062. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/969/1/012062
Pauzian, M. H. (2025). Constructing Religious Tolerance in Indonesia’s Digital Public Sphere: A Critical Discourse Analysis of the Log In Interfaith Podcast on YouTube. Khazanah Theologia, 7(3), 227–246. https://doi.org/10.15575/kt.v7i3.54331
Pemerintah Kabupaten Kudus. (2023). Rencana kerja pemerintah daerah (RKPD) Kabupaten Kudus tahun 2023. PPID Kabupaten Kudus. https://ppid.kuduskab.go.id/index.php/detail/518
Pemerintah Provinsi Jawa Tengah. (2026). Buka Luwur Makam Sunan Kudus. Visit Jawa Tengah. https://visitjawatengah.jatengprov.go.id/id/event/buka-luwur-makam-sunan-kudus
Permatasari, I., & Hudaidah, H. (2021). Proses Islamisasi dan Penyebaran Islam di Nusantara. Jurnal Humanitas: Katalisator Perubahan Dan Inovator Pendidikan, 8(1), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.29408/jhm.v8i1.3406
Pratiwi, Y., Numan, I., & Idham, N. C. (2024). The Synchronization of Hindu Buddhist Spatial and Architecture in Traditional Javanese Mosques. Journal of Architectural Research and Design Studies, 8(2), 118–132. https://doi.org/10.20885/jars.vol8.iss2.art4
Pujiyanto, M., Wasino, M., Astuti, T. M. P., & Utomo, C. B. (2019). Gusjigang: The Entrepreneurship Philosophy From Sunan Kudus. Proceedings of the International Conference on Rural Studies in Asia (ICoRSIA 2018), 255-259. https://doi.org/10.2991/icorsia-18.2019.62
Rosyid, M. (2019). Menara Masjid Al-Aqsha Kudus antara Situs Hindu atau Islam. PURBAWIDYA: Jurnal Penelitian Dan Pengembangan Arkeologi, 8(1), 15–27. https://doi.org/10.24164/pw.v8i1.291
Rosyid, M. (2022). Symbolic Meaning of Buka Luwur: a Historical and Cultural Study of Sunan Kudus Grave. El Harakah: Jurnal Budaya Islam, 24(2), 283–300. https://doi.org/10.18860/eh.v24i2.17130
Rubini, R. (2018). Pendekatan Pendidikan atau Dakwah Para Wali di Pulau Jawa. Al-Manar, 4(1), 201–220. https://doi.org/10.36668/jal.v4i1.15
Safitri, A. G. (2024). Sejarah Masjid Menara Kudus, bentuk akulturasi 3 budaya yang unik. DetikHikmah. https://www.detik.com/hikmah/khazanah/d-7696248/sejarah-masjid-menara-kudus-bentuk-akulturasi-3-budaya-yang-unik
Said, N. (2014). Spiritual enterprenership warisan Sunan Kudus: Modal budaya pengembangan ekonomi syari’ah dalam masyarakat pesisir. Equilibrium: Jurnal Ekonomi Syariah, 2(2), 226–242. https://doi.org/10.21043/equilibrium.v2i2.730
Sari, A. F., Rusnaini, R., & Rejekiningsih, T. (2019). Dialog of Interfaith and Interbelief Communities of Pantura (Tali Akrap): An Overview from the Structural Functional Theory. Analisa: Journal of Social Science and Religion, 4(02), 243–261. https://doi.org/10.18784/analisa.v4i02.920
Sari, Y. (2024). Bridging Faith and Culture: Unearthing Islamic Values in the Sundanese Munggahan Tradition. Journal of Contemporary Rituals and Traditions, 1 (1), 43-54. https://doi.org/10.15575/jcrt.319
Sunanto, M. (2005). Sejarah peradaban Islam Indonesia. RajaGrafindo Persada.
Supatmo, S., & Syafii, S. (2020). Multicultural Manifestations of Menara Kudus Mosque Pre-Islamic Traditional Ornaments, in Central Java. Proceedings of the Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Science, Education and Technology, ISET 2019, 29th June 2019, Semarang, Central Java, Indonesia. https://doi.org/10.4108/eai.29-6-2019.2290405
Supriyadi, S., Prameswari, N. S., Widiyastuti, E., & Athian, M. R. (2022). Hindu culture at the Menara Kudus Mosque, Indonesia and its influence on society. Journal of the International Society for the Study of Vernacular Settlements, 9(4), 31–55.
Syakur, M. (2021). Pendidikan Karakter dalam Larangan Menyembelih Sapi (Menelisik Filosofi Ajaran Sunan Kudus). Jurnal PROGRESS: Wahana Kreativitas Dan Intelektualitas, 9(1). https://doi.org/10.31942/pgrs.v9i1.2335
Tucunan, K., Taylor, K., & Laachir, K. (2026). Rituals, memory and the city: how intangible heritage shapes Islamic sacred districts in Java. International Journal of Intangible Heritage, 21, 102–116. https://doi.org/10.35638/ijih.2026.1.21.006
Whitehead, A. (2020). A method of ‘things’: a relational theory of objects as persons in lived religious practice. Journal of Contemporary Religion, 35(2), 231–250. https://doi.org/10.1080/13537903.2020.1759902
Wijaya, W. (2025). The Theology of Beauty in Kudus Minaret’s Architecture: A Study of Javaness-Hindu-Islamic Acculturation. Journal of Noesantara Islamic Studies, 2(6), 336–343. https://doi.org/10.70177/jnis.v2i6.3401
Winarto, W., Shuhada, A., Matlawi, A. A., & Fitriyana, N. A. (2024). The Motive of the Ban on Cow Slaughter by Sunan Kudus and its Relevance to Strengthening Religious Moderation. Muttaqien; Indonesian Journal of Multidiciplinary Islamic Studies, 5(2), 113–133. https://doi.org/10.52593/mtq.05.2.02
Yusrina, J. A., & Ma’arif, S. (2020). Islam and Tolerance: The Educational Pattern of Community in Kutuk Village, Kudus. Analisa: Journal of Social Science and Religion, 5(02), 235–250. https://doi.org/10.18784/analisa.v5i02.1140
Zed, M. (2008). Metode penelitian kepustakaan (2nd ed.). Yayasan Obor Indonesia.
Zhu, Y. (2025). Contested sacred space: state power, spatial politics, and heritage tourism. Tourism Geographies, 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616688.2025.2495192
Zuhri, A., & Bakhruddin, A. (2021). The Model of Religious Moderation in Social Life: Study of Living Religion in Badongan, Kudus. ADDIN, 15(1), 71. https://doi.org/10.21043/addin.v15i1.13436
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Moh Muhtador, Irzum Farihah, Ahmad Farid Fanani, Ni’matus Solihah
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.