Mbah Wahab raises nationalism awareness in pesantren circles

Surabaya, NU Online
KH Abdul Wahab Hasbullah, commonly known as Mbah Wahab, was a figure contributing to raise a collective consciousness in pesantren circles in the fight against the invaders for the collective awareness was really needed in the time.<>

Deputy Chairman of Nahdlatul Ulama Scholars Association (ISNU) of East Java Ainul Yakin made the remarks when speaking at a meeting held by the Regional Board of Gemasaba, East Java, at the Wisma Bahagia Surabaya over the weekend (26/1).

Nationalism as a movement of resistance against the invaders was present in the first half of the 20th century with a number of modern organizations such as Budi Utomo, Syarikat Islam (SI ), Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and so on, he said.

"The establishment of NU itself actually began from its young cadres. Mbah Wahab became the motor raising the collective consciousness among pesantren circles," said the former board member of the East Java's Indonesian Muslim Students Movement (PMII).

Previously, Yakin continued, the awareness against the invaders had actually existed. All this was due to the sense of resistance was not a collective and well-organized consciousness.

When the resistance appeared sporadically and localized. "Thus, the strength of resistance  is not so great for repelling invaders as a whole," he said.

While nationalism is related to the collective consciousness . Namely, the awareness for independence, taking a stand against the invaders, being sovereign, independent , in the shade of the state and the nation, he said.

Editing by Sudarto Murtaufiq