JAKARTA — Before the Dai Ambassador’s departure to various countries, the Dompet Dhuafa Da’wah Service held Dai Ambassador Training 2023 which took place at Grand Whiz Hotel Simatupang on Thursday (16/03/2023) to Sunday (19/03/2023). This activity was a preparation participated by the Dai before being assigned with carrying out the trust for da’wah to various countries.
Ustaz Badrusalim, Dai Ambassador 2023 from Kebumen who was assigned to Suriname shared how he prepared before the departure. He said that he had previously been assigned to Timor Leste in 2016.
“My first assignment was in 2016 to Timor Leste, now I’m assigned to go to Suriname, the most distant country,” he said.
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Regarding the preparation itself, it was conveyed the same as the other Dai preparations, but specifically, there were four kinds of preparations made by Ustaz Badrusalim.
“Especially for my personal preparation when I heard that I would be assigned to go to Suriname, the first thing I wanted to know was, because in delivering a da’wah we must know the audience, so first I learned about Suriname, starting from its geographical location, from YouTube, Google, and others. Secondly, I also communicated with partners who were there. Third, I found out and asked the person who had been sent there before. The fourth is I was learning from books,” explained Ustaz Badrus.
Ustaz Badrusalim also added, related to Surinamese culture that will be visited.
“Based on the four preparations that I accessed earlier, there are several records that I’ve prepared, including cultural elements. When communicating there, I must be able to speak Javanese ngoko, because I usually speak ngapak, so I prepare myself by practicing using ngoko language with my lecture congregation,” he said.
Then, he explained more about the Javanese language and cultural traditions that exist there, such as the Kejawen tradition.
“We learn this so that tomorrow when delivering the material, it won’t be awkward because we have learned the cultural acculturation. Including the principles of Shari’a, I also received information from the partners that the Qibla problem was also there. Javanese people used to pray facing ngulon (west), until now there are mosques there that face ngulon instead of the Qibla. So there are two kinds of mosques, ones facing Qibla and the other ones facing ngulon,” he explained.
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Ustaz Badrusalim also brought many books there to introduce the culture of scholarly relay of Islamic scholars in Indonesia. The da’wah materials he prepared included Islamiyah, wathaniyah, and zakatiyah, although they were not specifically prepared. In addition to material preparation, he also prepared physically and mentally, considering that Suriname is the farthest country in the Dai Ambassador 2023 program. Not to forget, Ustaz Badrus also expressed his hope.
“Hopefully there will be benefits received by them, including in terms of religious knowledge,” he concluded.
One of the new country partners in the Dai Ambassador program is New Caledonia. Ustaz Luqman Hakim from Ponorogo who was assigned to the country also expressed his enthusiasm to carry out this da’wah syiar trust.
“I’ve also just heard about New Caledonia, so I need to ask about the country beforehand. This is a new partner of Dompet Dhuafa regarding the Dai delivery to several countries that cooperate with Indonesian Consulate General in Noumea, so the visa can be taken care of smoothly. Then what is interesting there is the Javanese community, well I happen to be from Java. After opening YouTube related to that Javanese community, it turned out that the chairman was from Magetan, so there will be a nostalgic feeling later, “said Ustaz Luqman.
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He also explained further regarding his preparations, starting from administrative preparations and scientific preparations.
“The preparations carried out in addition to administration, of course, there are also preparations in terms of science about Islam, the da’wah about Indonesia as well. In addition, because Dompet Dhuafa is a zakat institution, I also try to convey the things related to it, so that the visions and missions of Dompet Dhuafa can come to realization,” explained Ustaz Luqman.
This journey of carrying out the trust of Dompet Dhuafa in spreading Islamic syiar to various countries is something that is really prepared by the Dai on duty. Ustaz Badrus further explained that “There is an Arabic proverb saying man ‘arofa bu’da safari ista’adda, whoever knows the distance of the journey, then get ready. Then that’s the preparation I do,” he concluded.
Hopefully, Allah will give ease to the syiar journey of the 2023 Dai Ambassadors in doing their duties, until later returning to Indonesia, and they can certainly provide benefits for Muslims, especially in minority countries during Ramadan later. (Dompet Dhuafa/Awalia R)