Pramono, I. Katkova. The Works of Shams al-Dīn al-Samaṭrānī and the Doctrine of Martabat Tujuh (“Seven Grades of Being”) in Minangkabau

Pramono

Andalas University, Padang, Indonesia
E-mail: pramono@hum.unand.ac.id 

Irina Katkova

St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia
E-mail: katkova_irina@yahoo.com 

The Works of Shams al-Dīn al-Samaṭrānī
and the Doctrine of Martabat Tujuh (“Seven Grades of Being”)
in Minangkabau 

Abstract. The doctrine of the “seven grades of being”, or martabat tujuh in Malay, by which name the Indonesian variety of wujudiyya is known, was dominant in the Archipelago in the 17th century. This existential teaching was developed by Shaykh Shams al-Din al-Samatrani (1575—1630). In Aceh, northern Sumatra, the doctrine inspired considerable polemic among Muslims. It is noteworthy that the teaching was also perceived and developed in Western Sumatra. Shams al-Din's works became the primary reference for Shattariyya scholars in the Minangkabau region. Fifteen texts by Shams al-Din al-Samatrani were discovered in Minangkabau within a single manuscript containing other Sufi texts. This collection is commonly referred to as the Kitab al‑Tahqiq (“The Book of Verification”) by scholars of the Shattariyya brotherhood. The Kitab demonstrates that followers of the Shattariyya tariqa practised the teachings of wujudiyya (“the unity of being”), or the “seven grades of being”. The content of the book contrasts with the conclusion of Oman Fathurahman (2008), who argued that a dismantling of wahdat al-wujud occurred among adherents of the Shattariyya tariqa in Minangkabau. These works also link the intellectual dynamics of Acehnese Islam with that of Minangkabau. The texts provide an opportunity for comparative investigation of these two regional forms of Islam in northern and western Sumatra and their relationship. Moreover, they elucidate the early period of Islamisation and the penetration of Sufi mystical doctrines on Sumatra before the time of Shaykh Burhan al‑Din in Ulakan (1646—1692), the first propagator of Shattariyya teaching in Minangkabau. A critical period for presenting the dynamics of Islamisation in these two regions dates to the late 17th and early 18th centuries. 

Keywords: wujudiyya, Islam, Aceh, Minangkabau, seven grades of being 

DOI: 10.31250/1238-5018-2025-31-2-34-51 

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Received by the Editorial Board: 01.02.2025