Banjar Sufism: The Relationship between Fiqh and Sufism in the Works of Sheikh Muhammad Arsyad Al-Banjari

Abstract

This study aims to examine in greater depth the relationship between Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh) and Sufism (taṣawwuf) in the thought of Syekh Muhammad Arsyad al-Banjari, with two main objectives. First, it explores how he responded to the dynamics of the fiqh–taṣawwuf relationship in his time, particularly within the context of tensions between legalistic and spiritual approaches. Second, it analyzes how the ontological and epistemological relationship between fiqh and taṣawwuf is constructed within his intellectual framework. Utilizing a qualitative, text-based method with analytical and hermeneutical approaches, the research focuses on two of his key works: Kanz al-Maʿrifah and Fatḥ al-Raḥmān. The findings reveal, first, that Syekh Arsyad responded to the prevailing tension between jurisprudential formalism and mystical excesses by formulating a balanced position that affirms the necessity of both dimensions in Islamic practice. He positioned fiqh as a necessary structure for regulating external behavior, while emphasizing taṣawwuf as a means for spiritual refinement grounded in that structure. Second, the study shows that Syekh Arsyad envisioned an integrated religious life based on an ontological unity between fiqh and taṣawwuf, while maintaining their epistemological distinction. For him, fiqh and taṣawwuf must not be conflated, yet cannot be separated. Taṣawwuf provides the inner spirit and depth of Islamic practice, while fiqh offers the normative framework that safeguards taṣawwuf from deviation. This model reflects a coherent synthesis in which both disciplines complement and complete each other, contributing to a holistic and balanced vision of Islamic piety rooted in the local epistemology of the Malay-Indonesian Muslim world.