From Digital Gaming to Self-Discipline

Negotiating Mobile Legends and Tahfidz Practices among Santri

Abstract

he expansion of digital culture poses a challenge to Tahfidz education, as students must balance the appeal of online games with the demands of concentration and continuity in memorizing the Qur’an. Unlike previous studies that measured the impact of games on academic achievement, this study explores patterns of Mobile Legends usage, how these patterns interact with Tahfidz discipline, and the strategies students use to maintain the quality of their memorization. This qualitative case study was conducted at the Oemah Santri Islamic Boarding School in Semarang through interviews, observations, and documentation, utilizing triangulation and member checking. The results show: First, gaming patterns are flexible and occur in residual time, filling gaps after obligations and daily recitation sessions are completed. Second, negotiation occurs through prioritizing obligations, adhering to collective schedules, and self-discipline (mujahadah al-nafs). Third, strategies for maintaining memorization include ensuring muraja’ah, scheduling, layered monitoring, and limiting duration. From the perspective of Islamic Religious Education, these practices reflect the values of aulawiyat, mujahadah al-nafs, muhasabah, and amanah of time as discussed in Zainuddin al-Malibari’s Hidayatul Adzkiya, as well as the learning ethos of al-jidd, al-muwāẓabah, and al-himmah in the thought of Az-Zarnuji. This study makes an important contribution by shifting the paradigm from technological restrictions toward spiritually grounded digital self-regulation, offering an empirical foundation for Islamic boarding schools to formulate adaptive and transformative digital literacy policies without sacrificing the tradition of Qur’anic discipline.