Spending Ramadhan in Lirboyo Islamic boarding school

Mon, June 19, 2017 / 03:34 pm

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Santri (students) of Lirboyo Islamic boarding school bathe before studying. JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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A student walks to the mosque. JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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A student sleeps while others recite the Quran. Lessons start after subuh (dawn) prayers until dhuhur (midday) prayers. JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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Students sleep without mattresses and have to cramp into a room. Sometimes they take turns to sleep because of limited space. JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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The atmosphere in front of a student’s room. Some of them rest while others prepare to recite the Quran. JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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Students read the Quran on the roadside because of overcrowding at Lirboyo school during Ramadhan. JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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A santri walks in front of a langgar (small mosque). JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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A santri carries a Quran on his head on his way to the mosque to study it while waiting to break the fast. JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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A student recites the Quran at the Lirboyo mosque. It is a routine activity for students at the boarding school. JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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A student cooks instant noodles to break the fast. JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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Students wait to break the fast by singing, accompanied by a tambourine. JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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Students share food and drinks when breaking the fast. JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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Hundreds of santri in Lirboyo Islamic boarding school, East Java, recite the Quran after tarawih (evening prayers) on the street. During Ramadhan, the number of students increases drastically. JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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Hundreds of santri in Lirboyo Islamic boarding school, East Java, recite the Quran after tarawih (evening prayers) on the street. During Ramadhan, the number of students increases drastically. JP/Sigit Pamungkas
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A student takes notes while reading the Quran, locally known as Kitab Kuning (Yellow Book) due to its color. JP/Sigit Pamungkas

Hundreds of young male santri (students) from across Indonesia usually flock to the Lirboyo Islamic boarding school in Kediri, East Java, to study the Quran – locally known as Kitab Kuning (Yellow Book), simply because of its color – during school holidays instead of returning home to their families.

The boarding school, which was established by Sholeh Banjarmelati and his son-in-law Abdul Karim in 1910, is well-known for teaching Quranic verses.

Lirboyo is one of the biggest Salafiyah boarding schools, which still teaches the Quran and the hadith from different aspects. The difference with other Quran recital lessons is that the scholars teach written Arabic without punctuation or phonemes.

Therefore, hundreds of students spend Ramadhan not only fasting but also reciting the Quran at the boarding school. Lirboyo applies no age limit to those wanting to study the Quran. Those attending lessons range from elementary school students to clerics.

The boarding school charges Rp 50,000 (US$3.80) for a one-month stay during Ramadhan to study in Lirboyo. Because of high demand, the boarding school is always overcrowded during Ramadhan, forcing between 30 and 50 students to cramp into a 15-square-meter bedroom. Some of them have to sleep in the corridors or the mosque. They do not mind though, because for them, studying the Quran in Lirboyo during Ramadhan is far more important. [yan]