ABSTRACT
This chapter demonstrates a complex Islamic spectrum in Java. Muslim healers, labeled locally as dukun, kyai, ustadz, amongst other categories, do not represent distinct types; similar to abangan, santri, general categories are integral to, and fluctuate within, dynamic social and cultural processes. Cultural anthropologists traveling overseas to conduct ethnographic research in societies other than their own is often considered a necessary rite of passage for becoming a professional anthropologist. Many Javanese thought that Suharto, born into a poor agricultural family, possessed a special form of charisma based in his perceived spiritual ties with a Majapahit king and ties through marriage to the Surakarta royal family. Javanese Sufi-oriented visions merged with the traditional views in respect to charismatic leaders; however, they projected leaders with Islamic knowledge who receive the exceptional spiritual powers from Allah and through the intercession of Muslim holy men.
