Traditional Islamic Legal Epistemology in Pesantren’s Practice of Ḥisāb
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21580/ahkam.2025.35.2.27687Keywords:
Islamic legal epistemology, ḥisāb–ru’ya, pesantren, Hijri calendarAbstract
This study examines the epistemological basis behind the choice of four traditional Islamic boarding schools affiliated with Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) in East Java to prioritize ḥisāb (astronomical calculations) over ru'ya (crescent sighting) in determining the beginning of the Hijri month, even though NU institutionally prioritizes ru'ya. Through qualitative, empirical-legal research based on interviews, document analysis, and field observations, this study shows that the practice of ḥisāb is not merely a technical choice, but rather an expression of an epistemic orientation rooted in classical astronomical literature, the continuity of scientific chains of narration, and burhānī reasoning that emphasizes rational certainty. The use of ḥisāb is legitimized by classical al-Shāfi'iyya fiqh and the pesantren ethos, which emphasizes that knowledge must be put into practice (taṭbīq al-‘ilm). Thus, ḥisāb functions as a marker of scholarly authority, legal certainty, and the pesantren's institutional identity. Despite technical variations, all four pesantren demonstrate a common epistemological commitment: the integration of the bayānī textual approach with the burhānī scientific rationality. This study highlights how traditional institutions negotiate textual authority and scientific rationality in contemporary religious practice.
Downloads
References
Abdul, Abd Jabar. Buku Perjumpaan Pendidikan Islam Pesantren Persis dengan Nilai-Nilai Nasionalisme Kultur Indonesia. Yogyakarta: Pustaka Pelajar, 2020.
Abu Hamdan Abdul Jalil bin Abdul Hamid. Fatḥ al-Ra’ūf al-Mannān. Kudus: Menara Kudus, 1995.
Al-Haytamī, Ibn Ḥajr. Tuḥfa al-Muḥtāj bi Sharḥ al-Minhāj. Mesir: Maktabah al-Tijāriya al-Kubrā, n.d.
Alimuddin, Alimuddin. “Hijriyah Months and The Construction of Religious Moderation in The Sombaopu Community of Gowa, South Sulawesi.” Al-’Adalah 20, no. 1 (June 25, 2023): 137. https://doi.org/10.24042/adalah.v20i1.16818.
AM, Suhar, Tasnim Rahman Fitra, Abdurrohman Kasdi, Khusnul Istiqomah, Abdurrahman Abdurrahman, and Humaira Ahmad. “Collective Ijtihad Practice in Indonesia: The Role of Isbat Sessions in Addressing Legal Paradigm Differences Between Hisab-Rukyat.” Al-Risalah: Forum Kajian Hukum dan Sosial Kemasyarakatan 24, no. 2 (December 30, 2024): 105–23. https://doi.org/10.30631/alrisalah.v24i2.1537.
Ansori, Ansori. “Position of Fatwa in Islamic Law: The Effectiveness of MUI, NU, and Muhammadiyah Fatwas.” Ijtihad : Jurnal Wacana Hukum Islam dan Kemanusiaan 22, no. 1 (July 29, 2022): 53–72. https://doi.org/10.18326/ijtihad.v22i1.53-72.
Anwar, Syamsul. Hari Raya & Problematika Hisab Rukyat. Yogyakarta: Suara Muhammadiyah, 2008.
Anwar, Syamsul. “Unified Islamic Calendar in the Perspective of Islamic Legal Philosophy.” Al-Jami’ah: Journal of Islamic Studies 54, no. 1 (June 25, 2016): 203. https://doi.org/10.14421/ajis.2016.541.203-247.
Ashidiqi, Iqnaul Umam. “Irsyadul Murid Hisab of the Beginning Islamic Lunar Month on Digital Falak Web-Based.” Syariah: Jurnal Hukum dan Pemikiran 19, no. 2 (November 27, 2019): 141. https://doi.org/10.18592/sjhp.v19i2.3134.
Azhari, Susiknan. “Karakteristik Hubungan Muhammadiyah dan NU dalam Menggunakan Hisab dan Rukyat.” Al-Jami’ah: Journal of Islamic Studies 44, no. 2 (December 30, 2006): 453–86. https://doi.org/10.14421/ajis.2006.442.453-485.
Butar-Butar, Arwin Juli Rakhmadi. Esai-Esai Kalender Islam Global. Medan: UMSU Press, 2021.
Butar-Butar, Arwin Juli Rakhmadi. Kajian Astronomi Islam di Indonesia. Yogyakarta: Suara Muhammadiyah, 2020.
Ch, Mufidah. Gender di Pesantren Salaf, Why Not?: Menelusuri Jejak Konstruksi Sosial Pengarusutamaan Gender di Kalangan Elit Santri. Malang: UIN-Maliki Press, 2010.
Djamaluddin, Thomas. Menggagas Fiqih Astronomi. Bandung: Kaki Langit, 2005.
Dua, Mikhael. Filsafat Ilmu Pengetahuan; Telaah Analitis, Dinamis, dan Dialektis. Maumere: Ledalero, 2007.
Faid, Muhamad Syazwan, Mohd Saiful Anwar Mohd Nawawi, Mohd Hafiz Mohd Saadon, Khairussaadah Wahid, and Paidi Norman. “Methods In Determining New Hijri Month: A Thematic Review From Islamic Jurisprudence Perpective.” Malaysian Journal of Syariah and Law 13, no. 1 (March 26, 2025): 75–99. https://doi.org/10.33102/mjsl.vol13no1.687.
Falakiyah, Tim Lajnah. SK Tim Lajnah Falakiyah Pondok Pesantren Roudlotul Muhisnin Kuwolu Bululawang Tahun 2025, 2025.
Fatmawati, Andi Muhammad Akmal, Andi Muh. Akhyar, Azwar, and Achmad Nasyori. “Determination of Islamic Month Start by Moonsighting Australia (Case Study: 1 Dzulhijah 1441).” Journal of Islamic Thought and Civilization 12, no. 2 (December 13, 2022): 225–41. https://doi.org/10.32350/jitc.122.16.
Hasyim, Muh. Fathoni. Dinamika Pesantren di Jawa Timur: Tipologi dan Akomodasi Pesantren terhadap Pendidikan Formal. Surabaya: Sinar Terang, 2009.
Helim, Abdul. “Hamka’s Legal Methodology on Hisab–Ru’yah in His Book ‘Saya Kembali ke Ru’yah.’” JURIS (Jurnal Ilmiah Syariah) 23, no. 2 (July 12, 2024): 215. https://doi.org/10.31958/juris.v23i2.11952.
Herlambang, Saifuddin, Aulia Laily Rizqina, Ridwansyah Ridwansyah, Moh. Muslih, and Abdel Kadir Naffati. “Ḥusn Al-Jawāb ‘an Ithbāt Al-Ahillah Bi Al-Ḥisāb: Basyūnī ‘Imrān’s Method for Standardising the Determination of the Qamariyah Month in the Sultanate of Sambas (1913-1976).” Journal of Islamic Law 5, no. 2 (August 21, 2024): 222–41. https://doi.org/10.24260/jil.v5i2.2775.
Isfihani, Isfihani. “Hisab Rukyat untuk Penentuan Awal Bulan Hijriah dalam al Qur’an dan al Hadis.” Sanaamul Quran : Jurnal Wawasan Keislaman 4, no. 1 (February 1, 2023): 1–23. https://doi.org/10.62096/sq.v4i1.50.
Izzuddin, Ahmad. “Dinamika Hisab Rukyat di Indonesia.” Istinbath: Jurnal Hukum 12, no. 2 (2015): 248–73.
Izzuddin, Ahmad. Fiqh Hisab Rukyah di Indonesia: Upaya Penyatuan Mazhab Rukyah dengan Mazhab Hisab. Yogyakarta: Logung Pustaka, 2003.
Keraf, A Sonny, and Mikhael Dua. Ilmu Pengetahuan sebuah Tinjauan Filosofis. Yogyakarta: Kanisius, 2001.
Khallāf, 'Abd al-Wahhāb. 'Ilm Uṣūl al-Fiqh, Kairo: Dār al-Fikr, 1978.
Khazin, Muhyiddin. Ilmu Falak dalam Teori dan Praktik: Perhitungan Arah Kiblat, Waktu Shalat, Awal Bulan dan Gerhana. Yogyakarta: Buana Pustaka, 2004.
Koto, Ismail, Lila Pelita Hati, Afwan Syahril Manurung, and Anisa Suryani Siregar. “Islamic Holy Days: The Contention of Rukyatul Hillal and Hisab Hakiki Wujudul Hilal Disputes for Muslims in Indonesia.” Pharos Journal of Theology, no. 105(2) (March 2024). https://doi.org/10.46222/pharosjot.105.210.
Maghfuri, Alfan. “Akurasi Perhitungan Gerhana Matahari dengan Data Ephemeris Hisab Rukyat.” Al-Afaq : Jurnal Ilmu Falak dan Astronomi 2, no. 1 (June 30, 2020): 1–14. https://doi.org/10.20414/afaq.v2i1.2292.
Maghfuri, Alfan. “Hisab Waktu Shalat dalam Kitab Al-Durus Al-Falakiyyah.” Al-Mizan 14, no. 1 (2018): 122–34.
Marpaung, Watni, and Nurhayati Nurhayati. “Determination the Beginning of Qamariyah Month According to Government.” Jurnal Ilmiah Islam Futura 19, no. 2 (December 28, 2019): 278. https://doi.org/10.22373/jiif.v19i2.4867.
Marwadi, Mughni Labib, and Muhammad Fuad Zain. “Reforming the Islamic Calendar and Religious Authority: Dynamics of Hijri Calendar Calculation in Indonesia within Persatuan Islam’s Thought.” Al-Manahij: Jurnal Kajian Hukum Islam, June 30, 2025, 149–66. https://doi.org/10.24090/mnh.v19i1.10574.
Mochtar, Affandi. Kitab Kuning & Tradisi Akademik Pesantren. Bekasi: Pustaka Isfahan, 2009.
Mochtar, M Masyhuri. Dinamika Kajian Kitab Kuning di Pesantren. Pasuruan: Pustaka Sidogiri, 2015.
Moelong, Lexy J. Metodologi Penelitian Kualitatif. Bandung: Remaja Rosdakarya, 2007.
Mudzhar, Atho. Pendekatan Studi Islam: Dalam Teori dan Praktek. Pustaka Pelajar, 1998.
Muslih, Mohammad. “Pengantar Filsafat Ilmu, Kajian Atas Asumsi Dasar, Paradigma dan Kerangka Teori Ilmu Pengetahuan” Solo: LESFI 2016
Musonnif, Ahmad. “Islamic Law and Science in NU-Muhammadiyah’s Lunar Calendar Determination.” Al-Hilal: Journal of Islamic Astronomy, October 31, 2024, 199–220. https://doi.org/10.21580/al-hilal.2024.6.2.23995.
Muttaqin, Zainal. “Formalization of Islamic Law in Indonesia in the Framework of Social Engineering Theory by Roscoe Pound.” El-Mashlahah 11, no. 2 (December 23, 2021): 97–115. https://doi.org/10.23971/elma.v11i2.2825.
Nasir, A.L.A.M., R. Umar, W.N.J.W. Yussof, N. Ahmad, A.N. Zulkeflee, N.H. Sabri, W.M.Y.W. Chik, N.A. Mahiddin, A.H. Bely, and A.I.S. Izdihar. “New Crescent Moon Detection Using Circular Hough Transform (CHT).” Astronomy and Computing 51 (April 2025): 100902. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ascom.2024.100902.
Qulub, Siti Tatmainul. “Integrasi Astronomi dalam Ilmu Falak di PTAI dan Pondok Pesantren.” Al-Qanun: Jurnal Pemikiran dan Pembaharuan Hukum Islam 21, no. 2 (2018): 288–309.
Ridwan and Muhammad Fuad Zain, “Religious symbol on determining the beginning and end of Ramadan in Indonesia” HTS Teologiese Studies/Theological Studies, 77(4), 2021, 1-9. https://doi.org/ 10.4102/hts.v77i4.6397.
Rohmah, Nihayatur. “Optimizing the Wukuf-‘Arafah Time Determination Model According to the Governments of Saudi Arabia and Indonesia.” Justicia Islamica 19, no. 2 (January 2, 2023). https://doi.org/10.21154/justicia.v19i2.4839.
Saksono, Tono. Mengkompromikan Rukyat & Hisab. Jakarta: Amythas Publicita: Center for Islamic Studies (CIS), 2007.
Sari, Septi, Agus Purwanto, and Akhmad Aminuddin Bama. “Menentukan Hisab Awal Bulan Hijriyah 1436 H dengan Metode Ephemeris.” Jurnal Penelitian Sains 19, no. 3 (2018): 107–11.
Shadiq, Sriyatin. Perkembangan Hisab Rukyat dan Penetapan Awal Bulan Qamariyah. Surabaya: PT Bina Ilmu, 1995.
Syaukani, Imam. Rekonstruksi Epistemologi Hukum Islam Indonesia dan Relevansinya bagi Pembangunan Hukum Nasional, Jakarta: Rajagrafindo Persada, 2006.
Taufiq, Muhammad, Muhammad Fauzinudin Faiz, and Ziyad Ravaşdeh. “Between Sharia and State: Fatwa Authority and Pandemic Responses in Indonesia, Turkey, and Morocco.” De Jure: Jurnal Hukum dan Syar’iah 17, no. 1 (June 28, 2025): 377–94. https://doi.org/10.18860/j-fsh.v17i1.31433.
Tim Dosen Filsafat Ilmu UGM. Filsafat Ilmu; Sebagai Dasar Pengembangan Ilmu Pengetahuan. Klaten: Intan Pariwara, 1997.
Wahidi, Ahmad. Penggunaan Metode Hisab dalam Penentuan Awal Bulan Islam di Kalangan Pesantren Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) Malang. Surabaya: UIN Sunan Ampel Surabaya Press, 2021.
Zufriani, Zufriani, Asa’ari Asa’ari, Jamal Mirdad, Arzam Arzam, Ahmad Izuddin, and Anwar M. Radiamoda. “Rukyat as Determination of the Lunar Month Beginning: A Method, Obstacles, and Debate in Indonesia.” JURIS (Jurnal Ilmiah Syariah) 22, no. 1 (June 13, 2023): 53. https://doi.org/10.31958/juris.v22i1.6570.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Al-Ahkam
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
By submitting an article to the journal, the author(s) agree to transfer the published article's copyright to the journal, which will act as the publisher. This means the journal will have the right to publish the article in various forms, including reprints. The journal will maintain the publishing rights to the published articles.
In line with the license, authors and third parties (readers, researchers, and others) are allowed to share and adapt the material. In addition, the material must be given appropriate credit, provided with a link to the license, and indicated if changes were made. If authors remix, transform or build upon the material, authors must distribute their contributions under the same license as the original.
