The Sasak people live mainly on the island of Lombok, Indonesia, numbering around 3.6 million. They are related to the Balinese in language and ancestry, although the Sasak are predominantly Muslim while the Balinese are predominantly Hindu. Sasak people who practice pre-Islamic beliefs are also known as Sasak Boda in reference to the name of the Sasak people's original religion, Bodha.
Etymology
There is a possibility that the origin of the name Sasak came from the wordsak-sak, which means "boat". In the Nagarakretagama, the word Sasak is mentioned together as one with Lombok Island, namely Lombok Sasak Mirah Adhi. According to local tradition, it is believed that the word Sasak came from sa'-saq which means "the one". Followed by the word Lombok which originates from the word Lomboq, meaning "straight". Hence by combining the words together Sa'-saq Lombok, it means "something that's straight". Other translations also includes "a straight road". Lombok Sasak Mirah Adhi is taken from the Nagarakretagama literature, a scripture written by Mpu Prapanca that records the power and rule of the Majapahit kingdom. The word Lombok in Kawi means "straight" or "honest", Mirah means "gem", Sasak means "statement", and Adhi means "something that's good" or "utmost". Therefore Lombok Sasak Mirah Adhi means "honesty is the gem that states out goodness".
History
Little is known about Sasak history except that Lombok was placed under direct rule of the Majapahitprime Minister, patih Gajah Mada. Islam arrived into the area around the 15th century. The Sasaks converted to Islam between the late 16th century to early 17th centuryunder the influence of Pangeran Prapen, the son of Raden Paku or Sunan Giri himself and the Muslim Makassarese, frequently mixing basic Islamic beliefs with Hindu-Buddhist beliefs, thus creating the Wetu Telu religion. Lombok was conquered by the GelgelBalinese kingdom in the early 16th century, thus bringing a large population of Balinese to Lombok. The Balinese population of Lombok today is about 300,000, 10–15% of Lombok's population. The Balinese have also strongly influenced the Wetu Telu religion of Lombok.
Language
The Sasak language is an Austronesian language that belongs to the group of Indonesian type language. Specifically, Sasak belongs to the languages of Western Indonesia which also means it is closely related to the languages of Java and Bali. There are also a number of Sasak dialect in various regions such as Kuto-Kute, Meno-Mene, Meriak-Meriku, Ngeno-Ngene, Ngeto-Ngete and so on.
Religion
Most of the Sasaks today are adherents of the Lima Waktu version of Islam. Lima Waktu or Five Times signifies the five daily prayers which Muslims are required to do. The term Lima Waktu is used to distinguish them from the Sasaks who are practitioners of Wetu Telu or Three Symbols who only pray three times a day. Orthodox Islamic teachers generally instruct adherents to pray five times a day. Large numbers of people adhering to the Wetu Telu faith can be still found throughout the island, especially in the village of Bayan, where the religion originated. Large Wetu Telu communities can be still found in Mataram, Pujung, Sengkol, Rambitan, Sade, Tetebatu, Bumbung, Sembalun, Senaru, Loyok and Pasugulan. A small minority of Sasaks called the Bodha are mainly found in the village of Bentek and on the slopes of Gunung Rinjani. They are totally untouched by Islamic influence and worship animistic gods, incorporating some Hindu and Buddhist influences in their rituals and religious vocabulary. This group of Sasak, due in part to the name of their tribe, are recognized as Buddhists by the Indonesian government. The Bodha have the same magico-religious officials and institutions as the Wetu Telu. The Bodhas recognize the existence of five main gods, the highest of which is Batara Guru, followed by Batara Sakti and Batara Jeneng with their wives Idadari Sakti and Idadari Jeneng, though they also believe in spirits and ghosts. The Bodha religion is also to some extent influenced by both Hindu and Buddhist concepts. Of late, they have come under the influence of mainstream Buddhism from Buddhist missionaries.
