Others
62-717: Islam in Malaysia is represented by the Shafi‘i school of Sunni jurisprudence. Islam was introduced to Malaysia by traders arriving from Persia , Arabia , China and the Indian subcontinent . It became firmly established in the 15th century. In the Constitution of Malaysia , Islam is granted the status of "religion of the Federation" to symbolize its importance to Malaysian society, while defining Malaysia constitutionally as
124-562: A secular state. Therefore, other religions can be practiced legally, though freedom of religion is still limited in Malaysia. Malaysia is a country whose most professed religion is Islam . As of 2020, there were approximately 20.6 million Muslim adherents, or 63.5% of the population. Various Islamic holidays such as Eid al-Fitr , Eid al-Adha and Mawlid have been declared national holidays alongside Christmas , Chinese New Year , and Deepavali . The draft Constitution of Malaysia did not specify an official religion . This move
186-532: A 13-year-old Dayak schoolgirl complained to the police, along with her parents, after being sequestrated at her school by two of her teachers who wanted to convert her to Islam by forcing her to recite Shahada. The latter then rewarded his conversion by donating 250 ringgit. In order to ease interfaith tensions, the two teachers were subsequently fired and transferred out of the state of Sarawak. On 4 December 2015, Malaysian feminist and human rights activist, Shafiqah Othman Hamzah wrote, "What we are living in Malaysia
248-690: A 14th and 15th century Chinese explorer, is credited to have settled Chinese Muslim communities in Palembang and along the shores of Java , the Malay Peninsula , and the Philippines . These Muslims allegedly followed the Hanafi school in the Chinese language. This Chinese Muslim community was led by Yan Ying Yu, who urged his followers to assimilate and take local names. The Sunni Islam of
310-477: A Hindu couple married since 2003. In this case, the father N. Viran converted to Islam in November 2012 under the name of Izwan Abdullah decided to impose his conversion to his two children, his son Mithran and his daughter Sharmila. Shortly after that, the children had their names changed to Nabil for the son and Nurul Nabila for the girl. Becoming the only person judged capable of raising them, he had obtained from
372-641: A Malay if a non-Malay citizen with a Malaysian parent converts to Islam and thus claims all the Bumiputra privileges granted by Article 153 of the Constitution and the New Economic Policy (NEP). However, the convert must "habitually speak the Malay language " and adhere to Malay culture. A tertiary textbook for Malaysian studies following the government-approved syllabus states: "This explains
434-486: A coordinator in charge of the Democratic Action Party, claimed that it was inconsistent from a Quranic point of view to forbid Muslims from freely changing beliefs, but from his point of view was the best alternative that the power had found to preserve its Malaysian electorate and consequently to remain in power continuously. In May 2014, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said during his speech about
496-469: A men's house, and are built on high posts. In contemporary usage, "surau" is often used to refer to either a small mosque, or a designated room in a public building (such as a shopping mall, a university, or a rest stop along a highway) for men or women to do salah . Surau among the Minangkabau of Sumatra date to pre-Islamic times. Men lived together in them. The first Islamic Surau in Minangkabau
558-523: A political uproar and remains controversial. There is also an Islamic university in Malaysia called the International Islamic University Malaysia , and a government institution in charge of organising pilgrimages to Mecca called Tabung Haji (Pilgrim Fund Board of Malaysia). In addition, the government also funds the construction of mosques and suraus . The Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM)
620-611: A princess from Pasai , of present-day Indonesia . The religion was adopted peacefully by the people of the coastal trading ports in modern-day Malaysia and Indonesia, absorbing rather than conquering existing beliefs. By the 15th and 16th centuries it was the majority faith of the Malay people. Contemporary Islam follows the Shafi‘ite school of Sunnism. Some Islamic terms, such as the word "Allah" (Arabic for "God"), are forbidden to non-Muslims both orally and in writing. The government ban on
682-540: A secular State with Islam as the official religion". Four of Malaysia's states, Kelantan , Terengganu , Kedah , and Perlis , are governed by Pan- Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS), which is a conservative Islamic political party, with a proclaimed goal of establishing an Islamic state . The newest format of the Malaysian identity card ( MyKad ) divides Malaysians into various religious groups, e.g., Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Buddhist. The introduction of this card caused
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#1732773036576744-720: A statute belonging to the Revealed Law or the Shari'a ". This statute is either presented as such in the Qurʾān or the Sunnah or it is possible, by means of analogical reasoning ( Qiyas ), to infer it from the Qurʾān or the Sunnah. As-Shafiʽi was the first jurist to insist that Ḥadīth were the decisive source of law (over traditional doctrines of earlier thoughts). In order of priority,
806-672: Is Al-Arqam . Muslims who believe Mirza Ghulam Ahmad to be the fulfilment of the Islamic prophecies concerning the return of Jesus, the Ahmadiyya , are also present. There are approximately 2,000 Ahmadis in the country. Though small in number, they face state sanctioned persecution in Malaysia, as they do elsewhere in the Muslim world. Muslims who reject the authority of Hadith , known as Quranists , Quraniyoon, or Ahl al-Quran, are also present in Malaysia. The most notable Malaysian Quranist
868-632: Is almost no different from apartheid. While segregation was racial in South Africa, in our country we live in religious segregation." She criticised some politicians and community leaders for leading to "a multi-racial and multi-religious country, but it is with a heavy heart that I say we are not in harmony." On 9 February 2016, the Putrajaya Federal Court ruled on a scandal termed the "S Deepa Affair" dating back to 4 September 2013, involving forced conversions of children to Islam in
930-524: Is an Islamic assembly building in some regions of Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula used for worship and religious instruction. Generally smaller physical structures, its ritual functions are similar to those of a mosque, allow men and women, and are used more for religious instruction and festive prayers. They depend more on grassroots support and funding. They can be compared to the Arab zawiya . In Minangkabau society, they continued pre-Islamic traditions of
992-418: Is believed to have been built in the late 17th century in the coastal town of Ulakan . Smaller surau are known as Surau Mangaji, and consist mostly of a small room for 20 students and one teacher who is usually also the imam and teaches Quran recitation. Large Surau, during the heyday of Surau culture in the 18th century, helped up to 1,000 students and included up to 20 buildings. The central figure of Surau
1054-609: Is currently lost. Al-Shāfiʿī fundamentally criticised the concept of judicial conformism (the Istiḥsan ). Al-Shāfiʿī ( c. 767 –820 AD) visited most of the great centres of Islamic jurisprudence in the Middle East during the course of his travels and amassed a comprehensive knowledge of the different ways of legal theory. He was a student of Mālik ibn Anas , the founder of the Mālikī school of law, and of Muḥammad Shaybānī ,
1116-522: Is one of the four major schools of Islamic jurisprudence within Sunni Islam . It was founded by the Muslim scholar , jurist , and traditionist al-Shafi'i ( c. 767–820 CE ), "the father of Muslim jurisprudence", in the early 9th century. The other three schools of Sunnī jurisprudence are Ḥanafī , Mālikī and Ḥanbalī . Like the other schools of fiqh, Shafiʽi recognize
1178-471: Is one of them and it follows that it is constitutionally legally impossible for a Muslim to change his belief. Many Muslims who have changed their religion, whether it is conversion to Buddhism, Christianity, Sikhism, Taoism and other beliefs, are forced for their own safety to lead a double life. In some cases, denunciations of apostasy have already been reported as being reported to the authorities by family members or co-workers. In February 2014, Edry Faizal,
1240-505: Is potentially explosive. " The state banishes and sanctions non-Muslim proselytism, but encourages conversions to Islam and remunerates them in order to facilitate the reduction of the non-Muslim population within the nation. Among the new rights provided to converts, if a man has children, he has the right to convert his children to Islam, without having to consider the approval of his wife. In March 2015, unrest erupted in Miri, Sarawak , when
1302-666: Is so ingrained in Malay life that Islamic rituals are practised as Malay culture. Muslim and Malays are interchangeable in many daily contexts. Hari Raya Aidilfitri ( Eid ul-Fitr ) is an important festival celebrated by Malaysian Muslims. Muslim women generally wear the tudung ( hijab or headscarf) over their heads. However, Malay women not wearing any headgear are not reprimanded or penalised. Prominent Malaysian female examples are Rafidah Aziz , International Trade and Industry Minister and Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali , wife of then Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad . However, with
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#17327730365761364-424: Is the scholar Kassim Ahmad . Islam is central to and dominant in Malay culture. A significant number of words in the Malay vocabulary can trace their origins to Arabic which is the common language of Islamic prayer and rituals. This is, however, not exclusive and words from other cultures such as Portuguese , Chinese, Dutch , Sanskrit , Tamil , English, and French can also be found in the Malay language. Islam
1426-413: The Constitution of Malaysia , Malays must be Muslim, regardless of their ethnic heritage; otherwise, legally, they are not Malay. Consequently, apostate Malays would have to forfeit all their constitutional privileges, including their Bumiputra status, which entitles them to affirmative action in university admissions and discounts on purchases of vehicles or real estate. It is legally possible to become
1488-590: The First Four Caliphs as the Islamic prophet Muhammad 's rightful successors and relies on the Qurʾān and the "sound" books of Ḥadīths as primary sources of law. The Shafi'i school affirms the authority of both divine law-giving (the Qurʾān and the Sunnah ) and human speculation regarding the Law. Where passages of Qurʾān and/or the Ḥadīths are ambiguous, the school seeks guidance of Qiyās (analogical reasoning). The Ijmā' (consensus of scholars or of
1550-827: The Indian Ocean , as far as India and Southeast Asia . The Shafiʽi school is now predominantly found in parts of the Hejaz and the Levant , Lower Egypt , Somalia , Yemen and Indonesia , and among the Kurdish people , in the North Caucasus and generally all across the Indian Ocean ( Horn of Africa and the Swahili Coast in Africa and coastal South Asia and Southeast Asia ). One who ascribes to
1612-647: The Naqshbandīyya and Qadiriyya . Some students visited various Surau succession and could be introduced in different orders. The fact that the students of Tuanku shaikh as Mureed or Faqīr are called, shows the great impact of Sufism on the Surau culture. Early 19th century was the Surau system of Hāddschis that in Mecca with the teachings of the Wahhabi had come into contact, radically questioned. They and their followers,
1674-558: The Shafi'i school of thought is the official, legal form in Malaysia, although syncretist Islam with elements of Shamanism is still common in rural areas. Mosques are an ordinary scene throughout the country and azan (call to prayer) from minarets are heard five times a day . Government bodies and banking institutions are closed for two hours every Friday so Muslim workers can conduct Friday prayer in mosques. However, in certain states such as Kelantan , Terengganu, Kedah and Johor ,
1736-476: The 12th century CE. It is commonly held that Islam first arrived in the Malay peninsula since Sultan Mudzafar Shah I (12th century) of Kedah (Hindu name Phra Ong Mahawangsa), the first ruler to be known to convert to Islam after being introduced to it by Indian traders who themselves were recent converts. However, the recent discovery of a Muslim tombstone in Pahang which has been dated to 419 H (1028 CE) suggests
1798-758: The Baghdad Ḥanafī intellectual. The Shafiʽi school is presently predominant in the following parts of the world: The Shafiʽi school is one of the largest school of Sunni madhhabs by number of adherents. The demographic data by each fiqh, for each nation, is unavailable and the relative demographic size are estimates. In Hadith : In Tafsir : In Fiqh : In Usul al-Fiqh : In Arabic language studies : In Theology : In Philosophy : In Sufism In history Statesmen From Middle East and North Africa : From Southeast Asia : From South Asia : Primary sources Scholarly sources Surau A surau
1860-466: The Constitution of Malaysia . Nine of the Malaysian states, namely Kelantan , Terengganu , Pahang , Kedah , Perak , Perlis , Selangor , Johor , and Negeri Sembilan have constitutional Malay monarchs (most of them styled as Sultans). These Malay rulers still maintain authority over religious affairs in states. The states of Penang , Malacca , Sarawak , and Sabah do not have any sultan, but
1922-438: The Federation." Article 11 of the constitution provides: "Everyone has the right to profess and practice his religion and to propagate it." Originally authorised for the country's independence in 1957, apostasy became illegal following an amendment to the country's constitution in 1988. The internationally reported attempt by Lina Joy to convert from Islam to Christianity is one of the most famous representations. While this
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1984-501: The Muslim prayers. In 2017, it was reported that Wahhabism is spreading among Malaysia's elite, and that the traditional Islamic theology currently taught in Government schools is gradually being shifted to a view of theology derived from the Middle East, particularly Saudi Arabia. The Malaysian government has strict policies against other Islamic sects, including a complete ban on Shia Islam , allegedly to "avoid violence between
2046-516: The Shafi'i school is called a Shafi'i , Shafi'ite or Shafi'ist ( Arabic : ٱلشَّافِعِيّ , romanized : al-shāfiʿī , pl. ٱلشَّافِعِيَّة , al-shāfiʿiyya or ٱلشَّوَافِع , al-shawāfiʿ ). Including: The fundamental principle of the Shafiʽ;i thought depends on the idea that "to every act performed by a believer who is subject to the Law there corresponds
2108-576: The Shari'a court of Seremban their sole custody and through this the dissolution of his marriage. Their marriage, which had been celebrated according to the Hindu rites and subsequently registered in the civil registers, was thus dissolved by the Shari'a court on the sole ground of the conversion to Islam by the husband, making it immediately obsolete. However, the Seremban High Court ruled that
2170-471: The Surau culture at the Minangkabau. On the Malay Peninsula, the functional difference between mosque and Surau is not always so clear. In rural areas the Surau was for centuries the center of Islamic worship and thus tantamount to a mosque. In today's urban area in Malaysia and Singapore there are also Surau. Sharifa Zaleha who has dealt with Surau in Malaysia, concludes that the difference between
2232-678: The annulment of the marriage was illegal and decided to return the custody of the children to the mother on 7 April 2014. However, two days later Izwan kidnapped his son during a home visit by his ex-wife. Deepa quickly requested the High Court for police aid in getting her son back. Izwan decided to appeal the decision by the Seremban High Court and sought the help from the Shari'a court to assert his rights. The Court of Appeal rejected both appeals in December 2014. Child custody in February 2016
2294-737: The back of the head. Some regard the tudung to be an indication of Arabic influence in Malay Muslim culture, and point to incidents such as the banning of the traditional Malay wayang kulit in the state of Kelantan (which was ruled by the Islamist PAS ) to be "un-Islamic". Malaysia's top Islamic body, the National Fatwa Council, ruled against Muslims practising yoga , saying it had elements of other religions that could corrupt Muslims. The same body has ruled against ghosts and other supernatural beings. As defined by
2356-686: The community) was "accepted but not stressed". The school rejected the dependence on local traditions as the source of legal precedent and rebuffed the Ahl al-Ra'y (personal opinion) and the Istiḥsān (juristic discretion). The Shafiʽi school was widely followed in the Middle East until the rise of the Ottomans and the Safavids . Traders and merchants helped to spread Shafiʽi Islam across
2418-508: The earlier years. Malays, who represent 50.4% of the total population, are almost all Muslims. About 70% of Malay Muslim women wear headscarves, but was marginal until the 1980s. The traditional Malay garment, of Islamic origin, is also worn by many Malays. Article 3 (1) of the Malaysian Constitution provides: "Islam is the religion of the Federation; but other religions can be practiced safely and peacefully in all parts of
2480-536: The fact that when a non-Malay embraces Islam, he is said to masuk Melayu ("become a Malay"). That person is automatically assumed to be fluent in the Malay language and to be living like a Malay as a result of his close association with the Malays". Islam in Malaysia is thus closely associated with the Malay people, something some have criticised, for example saying that Malaysian Islam is "still clothed in communal garb; that Muslims in Malaysia have yet to understand what
2542-628: The four primary Sunni schools of Jurisprudence as the only one to fully require FGM. The groundwork legal text for the Shafiʽi law is al-Shafiʽi's al-Risala ("the Message"), composed in Egypt . It outlines the principles of Shafiʽi legal thought as well as the derived jurisprudence. A first version of the Risālah , al-Risalah al-Qadima , produced by al-Shafiʽi during his stay in Baghdad ,
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2604-473: The future of the country that: "We will never tolerate any demand for the right to apostasy by Muslims, and we refuse that Muslims can have the right to be tried by courts other than sharia courts, and we will not allow Muslims to participate in LGBT activities". But he concluded that this was necessary because: "This is in line with our efforts to make Malaysia a modern, progressive Muslim country in order to achieve
2666-496: The influx of Arabic travellers, foreign Muslim women ( Arabs ) wearing hijab that leave only their eyes exposed are often spotted in tourist attractions, not the least at the shopping malls. At certain Malaysian institutions such as the International Islamic University, wearing of the tudung is mandatory; however, for non-Muslim students this usually amounts to a loosely worn piece of cloth draped over
2728-532: The institution of the pesantren , which was initially distributed only to Java. Many Surau were simultaneously centers of Sufi orders. In this case, the Tuanku Shaikh was the spiritual leader of Surau-residents, and this kept him the oath of allegiance. The Surau of Ulakan served as a center of Shattāriyya Order, which had been introduced by Burhan ad-Din , a student of Abd al-Ra'uf as-Singkilī . Other orders, which had their own Surau in Minangkabau, were
2790-516: The king ( Yang di-Pertuan Agong ) plays the role of head of Islam in each of those states as well as in each of the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur , Labuan , and Putrajaya . On the occasion of Malaysia's first prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman 's 80th birthday, he stated in the edition of 9 February 1983 of the newspaper The Star that the "country has a multi-racial population with various beliefs. Malaysia must continue as
2852-436: The mainstream media often present Iran in a bad light while often glorying Saudi Arabia. For example, in 2019 Malaysian police raided multiple private functions commemorating the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali at the battle of Karbala , arresting scores of foreign and local Shia Muslims. While the true numbers are not known, the number of Malaysian Shia Muslims is estimated at around 250,000. A notable sect that has been outlawed
2914-411: The mufti of the state of Perak. The latter highest estimate when put in the context of the 2010 population census would make them between 3 and 4% of the Malaysian majority. Nevertheless, no data estimating the number of Malay who converted to another religion was provided. Nonetheless, these remarks later triggered a polemic often repeated in the media by Islamist and nationalist circles that recognising
2976-468: The right of the Malayans and the entire Muslim community to be free to choose their own beliefs would risk provoking a "Massive exodus of apostates" within the nation, the same slogan has also been listed on the official website of Islam in Malaysia. On 17 December 2015, Malaysian Police Chief Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar during a speech, alluded to this mysterious report: "I can not tell you how much this issue
3038-568: The so-called Padris, denounced the Surau as centers of dissemination un-Islamic teachings and practices and burning some of them during the so-called Padri Wars (1821–38) down. Other steps that heralded the demise of Surau culture, were in 1870 to introduce a new type of school, the so-called Sekolah Nagari, by the Dutch, and in 1900 the intellectual attacks of reformist Muslims who denounced the Surau as hoards of backwardness and own secular schools established. Today, there are tentative attempts to revive
3100-601: The sources of jurisprudence according to the Shafiʽi thought, are: The school rejected dependence on local community practice as the source of legal precedent. The concept of Istishab was first introduced by the later Shafiʽi scholars. Al-Shafiʽi also postulated that "penal sanctions lapse in cases where repentance precedes punishment". Views on FGM The school does not differentiate male and female circumcision and considers female circumcision ( Female Genital Mutilation ) alongside male circumcision to be wajib (obligatory). This makes it unique among
3162-434: The status of a developed nation with a high income for 2020". In recent years, more and more voices have been asked to try to determine the number of ethnic Malay people supposed to have left Islam. The government has remained silent on the question, believing that it is much too controversial to be debated. However estimates go from 135, according to Ridhuan Tee, a Muslim preacher, to 260,000, according to Harussani Zakaria ,
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#17327730365763224-517: The thesis that Islam had been in presence in the Malay world much earlier, even though majority of those inscriptions were about foreign Muslims. In the 13th century, the Terengganu Stone Monument was found at Kuala Berang , Terengganu, where the first Malay state to receive Islam in 1303 Sultan Megat Iskandar Shah, known as Parameswara prior to his conversion, is the first Sultan of Melaka . He converted to Islam after marrying
3286-502: The two faiths that has sometimes broken out in other parts of the world by promoting only the Sunni faith". Due to decades of Saudi funding , Shia Islam is openly and freely demonised and Shia Muslims are oppressed in the country, their prayers and gatherings are broken up, and the state secret service allegedly engages in Shia forced disappearances . Anti-Shi'ism reaches such an extent that
3348-686: The universal spirit of Islam means in reality". Parallel to the civil courts, there are Sharia courts which conduct legal matters related to Muslim family sphere. Legal issues like Muslim divorce and Muslim apostasy are conducted in the Syariah Courts . However, there are cases whereby apostasy cases are tried in the Federal Courts. Non-Muslims are not bound by Sharia. Shafi%E2%80%98i In terms of Ihsan : The Shafi'i school or Shafi'ism ( Arabic : ٱلْمَذْهَب ٱلشَّافِعِيّ , romanized : al-madhhab al-shāfiʿī )
3410-476: The use of the word "Allah" by non-Muslims reversed the 2009 ruling of a court of first instance. Until the 1970s, many Malay Muslims followed a liberal and moderate Islam, like Indonesian Muslims. At this time, a wave of Islamisation emerged (sparked by various social and ethnic conflicts, linked to the Al-Arqam parties and Islam Se-Malaysia), so that today, Malaysia lives in a more Islamic environment compared to
3472-484: The weekends fall on Friday and Saturday instead of Saturday and Sunday. It has been introduced to several states, notably Kelantan and Terengganu, all businesses close for 2 hours on every Friday for prayers. Failure to comply would result in fines. Since it is compulsory for Muslims to perform a prayer 5 times a day no matter where they are, almost all public places, including shopping malls, hotels, condominiums, usually have allocated spaces called " Surau ", for performing
3534-605: Was authorised by the Conference of Rulers, another called muzakarah (discourse) is held occasionally without the order of the Conference of Rulers. Individual Arab traders, including Sahabas , preached in the Malay Archipelago , Indo-China, and China in the early seventh century. According to local traditions, Islam was introduced to the Malay Peninsula coast by Arabs in 674 CE. Islam was also brought to Malaysia by Arab Muslim and Tamil Indian Muslim traders in
3596-558: Was established under the Prime Minister's Department. Besides, every state also has its own version of JAKIM. Various Islamic rules and regulations governing the public and family life were codified into law that is compliant to Islam. Government policies have also be permissible in Islam, in other words 'halal'. The National Fatwa Council was established by Conference of rulers to issue fatwas . It conducts two types of meetings, one
3658-463: Was finally divided by the Court of Appeal. The guard of the son was entrusted to the father, in this case, Izwan and the guard of the daughter to the mother, S Deepa. Asked by the media at the announcement of the verdict, she announced in tears: "This is injustice, I am upset. It was my last hope that the court would return my two children, but it was not so. Only my daughter was given to me." Zheng He ,
3720-541: Was not a problem during the colonial era, Muslims wishing to change their religion face severe deterrence. Before 1988, the question of freedom of religion and therefore of questions relating to the desire of citizens to change their religion was exclusively within the jurisdiction of secular courts. But since the law has changed, an amendment stipulates that secular courts no longer have the right to deal with claims by Muslims and that only Islamic Shariah courts have jurisdiction to discuss issues related to human rights. Apostasy
3782-533: Was supported by the rulers of the nine Malay states, who felt that it was sufficient that Islam was the official religion of each of their individual states. However, Justice Hakim Abdul Hamid of the Reid Commission which drafted the constitution came out strongly in favour of making Islam the official religion, and as a result the final constitution named Islam as the official religion of Malaysia. All ethnic Malays are Muslim, as defined by Article 160 of
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#17327730365763844-455: Was the Tuanku shaikh who mostly as carriers of Baraka was. He oversaw in large Surau usually a large number of teachers who as Guru were called and had mostly learned even with him or even met with him. The establishment and maintenance of Surau performed usually by foundations (waqf) and donations from parents as well as by the work of Surau residents. Minangkabau Surau has great similarities with
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