THE AMULETIC CULT OF MAʿRŪF AL-KARḫĪ IN THE MALAY WORLD Annabel T. Gallop introduction During my doctoral researh on Malay seals1 – deined as seals from Southeast Asia with inscriptions at least partially in Arabic script – a special study was made of talismanic elements in the inscriptions.2 It could be argued that, in theory, it is diicult to diferentiate clearly between talismanic and ‘orthodox’ religious elements in Malay and other Islamic seals, since nearly all the magical elements are Islamic in haracter, while equally, all seals with religious inscriptions could be regarded as talismanic to some extent because of the perceived protective value of words suh as Allāh.3 In practice, though, there is a group of Malay seals with inscriptions whih are wholly or partially unambiguously magical in haracter, where the meaning is 1 When I began working on my PhD on Malay seals, Leyden University Library loomed large as one of the world’s three great treasure houses of Malay leters and documents (alongside the library of the Shool of Oriental and African Studies in London and the National Arhives of Indonesia in Jakarta). For personal and professional reasons, I was only able to make brief researh trips to Leyden to document these seals, and without the kindness, understanding and collegial hospitality of Jan Just Witkam, I would never have been able to gather the materials needed in the short time available. One incident stands out: in September 1997 I spent a week in Leyden documenting Malay seals, making use of every single minute (and more) that the Reading Room was open. One evening, while feverishly noting and photographing seals (in sigillography an image is worth a thousand words), my lash made an ominous ‘pop’ sound – the bulb had burst. A colleague must have mentioned this to Jan Just, for he soon appeared, full of concern. Fortuitously, it happened to be late-shopping night in Leyden, and so he whisked me of on the bak of his bicycle to a specialist camera shop and arranged for the loan of a lash for my remaining days in Leyden, thus enabling me to accomplish my task. Even today, I have the occasional pleasure of receiving a leter or an e-mail from Jan Just containing an interesting seal he has hanced upon. his paper is ofered to Jan Just as a small token of my appreciation for his myriad acts of academic generosity over many years. 2 his paper is partially based on Chapter III.7, ‘Talismanic elements’ from my PhD dissertation (Gallop 2002, pp. 216-242), and two conference papers (Gallop 1998 and 2003). For their ongoing encouragement and interest in my investigations into Maʿrūf al-Karḫī, I would like to thank Muhammad Isa Waley and Mihael Lafan. 3 Cf. Porter 1998, pp. 135-137. 168 annabel t. gallop consciously obscured or ‘veiled’, sometimes through the use of recognizably magical devices suh as negative script and disconnected leters. he talismanic elements found in Malay seals include magic and Latin squares and the related word budūḥ, the names of the aṣḥāb al-kahf (‘the Companions of the Cave’) and their dog Qiṭmīr, number sequences based on the abjad value of words, and magical symbols suh as the ‘Seven Seals of Solomon’. None of these amulets are unique to Southeast Asia; all are common to Islamic magical practices in other parts of the world, and tend to be used in similar ways for general protective purposes.4 Most of the Malay seals available for study were seal impressions stamped in lampblak, ink or wax on leters, treaties and legal papers, and in the course of siting through large quantities of suh manuscript documents it was noticed that some of the same talismanic formulae inscribed on the seals could also be found writen on leters and envelopes. his observation relected the fact that amongst the large number of ‘general purpose’ Islamic amulets, a small subset is believed to be particularly eicacious in protecting leters and pakages, ensuring a safe arrival at their intended destination. One of the most prominent suh epistolary amulets found on Malay seals and manuscripts has, however, not been traced outside Southeast Asia: the name of the Sūfī saint Maʿrūf al-Karḫī, whih is nearly always encountered writen in disconnected leters. Presented here is a study of the use of epistolary amulets on seals, leters and envelopes in the Malay world, focussing on the intriguing case of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī. In order to forestall disappointment, it must be admited straight away that it has not been possible to solve 4 here are numerous studies of Islamic magic, of whih the recent magisterial work (with a comprehensive bibliography) by Savage-Smith (1997) stands out. Of the earlier studies, still the most helpful for the decipherment of talismanic elements on Malay seals is Canaan 1937. Historically the terms ‘amulet’ and ‘talisman’ have oten been used interhangeably, with the distinction between them arbitrary and unclear. Following Savage-Smith (1997, v1 p. 133), some writers have adopted the deinition of an amulet as a small object intended to ensure protection and made of durable materials, unlike a talisman whih is made of more ephemeral materials suh as paper, while the adjective ‘talismanic’ is used broadly to describe any object on whih there is a magical design. hese deinitions work well in discussions of museum collections of artefacts (cf. Blair 2001, p. 101 n3), but for the present purposes have been found to be unduly restrictive. While adopting Savage-Smith’s deinition of ‘talismanic’, this paper uses the term ‘amulet’ more broadly, usually to refer to a particular sequence of leters, numbers or symbols associated with magical properties. the amuletic cult of maʿrūf al-karḫī 169 fully the mystery of how and why the name of a Sūfī saint who lived in 9th-century Baghdad came to be appropriated for this particular purpose in Southeast Asia. here are, however, hints that the answer may lie buried in sources from south Sulawesi writen in Bugis and Makassarese, held within the treasure trove of Oriental manuscripts in Leyden University Library. magic squares, budūḥ and qiṭmīr Any discussion of Islamic epistolary amulets must start with magic squares, whih are among the most common talismanic elements in Malay seals. A magic square is an arrangement of a series of numbers in a square in suh a way that the vertical, horizontal or diagonal summation of the numbers is always the same. he most wellknown is the 3 x 3 magic square of the numbers 1 to 9 in whih the sum total in any direction is 15, whih had been recorded in China by the irst century ad (Cheng 1972, p. 151). In Islamic literature, the square is irst referred to in writings atributed to the alhemist Jabir ibn Hayyan, compiled in the 9th or early 10th century (Savage-Smith 1997, p. 106), but its popularity spread widely when it was cited by al-Ġazālī as an aid for diicult hildbirth5 (Macdonald 1981, p. 153). Fig. 1: Seal of Seri Nara Diraja of Kedah, containing a 3 x 3 magic square in the middle, arranged: 4 9 2 ¶ 3 5 7 ¶ 8 1 6. he border inscription reads:  � �‫� ك‬ ‫ د‬ ‫�ا ر د �ر‬ ‫� ا �ل�ك�ه ��سر�ی‬ ‫��عو‬ �‫ا �لوا ث� ق‬ ‫�ر�ی ك�د ه د ا ر‬ �  ‫ ؁‬1208 � ‫الا �م�ا‬ ‘al-wāṯiq bi ʿawn allāh Seri Nara Diraǧa di negeri Kedah dār alamān sanät 1208, ‘He who trusts in the help of God, Seri Nara Diraja, in the state of Kedah, abode of security, the year 1208’ (1793/4 AD). SOAS MS 40320/7, f.229 (#206, Gallop 2002: 2.298) 5 his context for the use of the magic square is also found in Malay manuscripts, for example in a kitab tibb from Kelantan dated 1871/2 held in the Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, Kuala Lumpur, MS 33, p. 355 (I am grateful to Farouk Yahya for this reference, pers. e-comm., 26.1.2010). 170 annabel t. gallop here seems to have been a particular interest in magic squares in Kedah during the second half of the 18th century, for nine seals from this period have been documented all containing or consisting wholly of squares with numbers, three of whih contain the 3 x 3 magic square. On two of these seals, including that of Seri Nara Diraja (ig. 1), the magic square is set in a circle surrounded by a border in- Fig. 2: Seal of Seri Maharaja Dewa of Kedah, comprising a Latin scription giving the title of the seal square made up of the auspicious holder, but the third seal consists number set 2 4 6 8; late 18th only of the magic square in the century. SOAS MS 40320/3, f.30 shape of an octagon whih cuts (#203 Gallop 2002: 2.297). diagonally across eah of the four corners, highlighting the even numbers therein.6 his physical demarcation is signiicant because the even numbers at the corners of the square, 2 4 6 8, have a special signiicance in Islamic magic and are looked upon as a particularly luky sequence (Canaan 1937, pp. 91, 101). he square found on another octagonal Kedah seal, belonging to Seri Maharaja Dewa, is composed just around the four auspicious numbers 2 4 6 8 (ig. 2). his type of square is known as a Latin square, where eah row or column contains the same set of symbols (whether numbers, leters or abstract marks) but always in a diferent sequence (Savage-Smith 1997, p. 107). When the numbers of the 3 x 3 magic square are replaced with their equivalent leters according to the numerical ordering of the Arabic abjad, the auspicious number set 2 4 6 8 (8٦42) in the corners of the square is represented by the leters b d w ḥ ( ‫� د و‬ ). his has given � rise to the artiicial talismanic word budūḥ, a name whih is oten applied to the whole square itself. Shown below is, on the let, the numerical 3 x 3 magic square and, on the right, its abjad equivalent, with the auspicious elements shaded: 6 #232; Gallop 2002, 2.305; the number following the hash (#) here and elsewhere in this paper denotes the unique record number assigned to eah Malay seal documented, the concordance of whih can be found in Gallop 2002, 3.631-641. the amuletic cult of maʿrūf al-karḫī 4 9 2 4 9 2 3 5 7 3 5 7 8 1 6 8 1 ٦ � ‫ب� ��ط‬ �‫ب� �ه ب‬ ‫ج‬ � ‫�و ا‬ ‫ج‬ ‫د‬ 171 d ṭ b j h z ḥ a w In Arabic-script sources the numerical form of budūḥ is usually written 8٦42, representing the leters ‫� د و‬ (b d w ḥ) whih of course are � writen from right to let. However, as Arabic numbers and dates are generally (albeit not always) read from let to right, the resulting numerical sequence is oten misread in sources as the number 8642 (eight thousand six hundred and forty-two),7 illustrating just how quikly the understanding of the origin of suh esoteric formulae can be lost. he word budūḥ is used widely for magical purposes, being engraved on jewels, metal plates or rings whih then serve as amulets, and inscribed Fig. 3. Seal of Sulṭān Maḥmūd Badru d-Dīn of Palembang (r.1804-1821), with the amulet 2468 in the border. Inscribed: َ َ �  ّ ّ   ‫ق ؤ‬  َ � ‫� � ا ق�و م‬ ‫ل��س��ل��ط�ا‬ � � ‫��لق�����ه ا لمو�َم����ق� ا‬ � ‫ا‬ ‫��ل�د‬ ‫��د ر ل�دق� ی‬ ‫ح���مود‬ ‫ر‬ َّ َّ � ‫ ل َ ث ا ا‬ ‫ق‬ ‫ق‬ ‫ق‬   � ‫ه‬ 8٦42 ‫ل��س�لا ¶ ��س�����ه‬ � ‫و�ق�ه �ص��لی ا �ل��ك�ه‬��‫ح�ج�ره ا �ل�م‬ ‫��ع د ر‬ ‫���ص‬ ‫م‬ َ ‫ث‬  ‫ق‬ ‫ق‬ َ ‫���ه �ع��سث‬ ‫( �م�ا‬sic!)  ��� ‫ع�لَ���ه َ ��س��ل ا �ل��� �م�ا‬ �‫و ق‬ ‫و ق‬ ‫ر‬ ‫ق و م‬ ḫalīfät al-muʾminīn as-Sulṭān Ratu Maḥmūd Badru d-dīn fī balad Palembang dār as-salām ¶ sanat 8642 hiǧrä an-nabawiyyä ṣallà Allāh ʿalayh wa sallam alf wa miʾatayn wa ṯamāniyät ʿašr — Caliph of the faithful, the Sulṭān Rātū Maḥmūd Badr adDīn, of the state of Palembang, abode of peace ¶ 8642 the year of the hiǧrä of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, one thousand and two hundred and eighteen’ (AD 1803/4). BL MSS Eur.D.742/1, f.54. #684, Gallop 2002: 2.211. 7 Uzunçarşılı (1959, p. 20) describes 8642 as “the sum of the numerical value of the Arabic leters comprising the word beduh.” 172 annabel t. gallop at the beginning of books as a preservative. A highly visible manifestation of its perceived protective powers is the presence of a plaque engraved Yā Budūḥ set into the walls of the 14th-century citadel of Gulbarga in the Deccan (Schimmel 1982, pl. xiiic). Nonetheless, its most common use is to ensure the safe arrival of leters and pakages (Macdonald 1981, p. 153), Fig. 4. Seal of Teuku Umar of Aceh, with the Budūḥ amulet, designed and it is probably in this context so that the inal hāʾ encircles (and that we should interpret its use presumably thus protects) the name of on seals.8 the sealholder. Inscribed: In the Malay world, budūḥ is ١٣.٦1 ‫مق��ا ��س�مق��ا‬��  � ‫� ا ����ه �ع�م‬ ‫�ح ا �ل��س��ل��ط�ا‬ ��‫��د ا�م‬ � ‫چ ق ر‬ ‫ و� قر ر‬ ‫ق‬ also known as a general protecBudūḥ Amīr Baḥr as-Sulṭān Ačīh tive amulet,9 but is especially ʿUmar bin Nantā Setyā 13061? (i.e. evident in an epistolary context. 1306) It occurs on 13 Malay seals from Budūḥ, Admiral of the Sultan of Aceh, ʿUmar, son of Nanta Setia, 1306’ Palembang, south Sulawesi, (1888/9 AD). Aceh and west Kalimantan, UBL Cod.Or.8232.2. #577, Gallop 2002: both in its numerical form 8٦42 2.78 (ig. 3) and writen as budūḥ ( �‫��د و‬ or �‫� د و‬ – ig. 4), while ive seals from west Kalimantan contain in the border inscription the personiied form Yā Budūḥ alongside exhortations to the most Beautiful Names of God. A suggestion that Budūḥ was one of the names of God has been summarily dismissed,10 but as the Kalimantan seals show, it was 8 Seals containing the word budūḥ are described in Hammer-Purgstall 1850, no 34; Reinaud 1828, 2.243-4; Uzunçarşılı 1959, pp. 19, 32-33, 41. 9 When a preliminary version of this paper was presented at a conference in Makassar (cf. Gallop 2003), a female madrasä student from Makassar approahed me to tell me that she had overheard an old man telling someone that if you really want something from another person, you should look into that person’s eyes and say Budūḥ three times; then when the request is made, that person will have to grant you whatever you ask for, even a marriage proposal (Dra. Nurbaety, pers. comm., 7.6.2003). In its invocatory form, Budūḥ is also found in north Sumatra in a Gayo invulnerability spell (Bowen 1993, p. 91). 10 Macdonald 1981, p. 153. Cf. Hammer 1830, p. 72; Uzunçarşılı 1959, p. 19; Hammer-Purgstall 1850, p. 47, where the meaning of Budūḥ is given as: “[He] who the amuletic cult of maʿrūf al-karḫī 173 used regularly in a context whih could easily lead to this assumption. Other legendary explanations give Budūḥ as the name of an angel harged with the duty of conveying writen papers and leters to their destination (Uzunçarşılı 1959, pp. 19-20) or the name of a pious merhant whose pakages and leters never went astray, “but for the popular mind Budūḥ has become a Djinni whose services can be secured by Fig. 5. he numerals 2468 and Maʿrūf al- writing his name either in Karḫī writen at the end of a leter from leters or numbers” (MacdonSultan Mahmud Syah of Johor, 1797: ald 1981, p. 153). In the Malay �  8٦42 ‫�ی‬ ‫ں‬ world, budūḥ is also found ‫�مع ر و � ا ل ك ر� ق‬ UBL Cod.Or.2241.I.8. writen on leters and envelopes as an amulet to ensure safe delivery; for example, 2 4 6 8 is found at the end of two leters from Sultan Mahmud Šāh of Johor writen in 1797 and 179911 (ig. 5), while the word budūḥ is oten found at the head of late 19th-century leters from Aceh. he numerical form 8642 is prescribed in a 19th century Malay terasul manuscript described below, and in an exemplar for Malay leters composed by Šayḫ Aḥmad al-Fatḥānī,12 where it is writen under the date at the end of the leter (Mohd. Shaghir 1992, p. 75). strides forwards with an ever-constant step”, an interpretation derived from the constant rate of increase in the numerical sequence 2-4-6-8. 11 UBL Cod.Or. 2241.I.8, 15. 12 Šayḫ Aḥmad al-Fatḥānī (1856-ca. 1907) was born in Patani but spent most of his life in Mecca, where he moved with his family at the age of four. He wrote proliically in Arabic and Malay, and was responsible for editing all the Malay works printed in Mecca from 1877 to 1889 (Mohd. Shaghir 1992, p. 50). Although the model leter mentioned above is undated, Šayḫ Aḥmad discusses the principles of Malay leterwriting in his ‫ر�ه�ا ر‬ ‫��د ق���ق���هق الا‬, writen in Malay in Mecca in 1890, presumably as a guide to correspondence for his many students living in places suh as Patani, Kelantan and Cam [Cambodia] (ibidem, pp. 47, 71-75). 174 annabel t. gallop Fig. 6. he numeral 2 with a line underneath, used as an abbreviation for the amulet 2468, on a leter addressed in Bugis. UBL NBG Boeg 118 he earliest known critical comment on the use of this amulet in a Southeast Asian context occurs in the Makassarese anthology compiled by B. F. Mathes13 in 1860: Voorts vindt men aan den voet van het addres het Arabishe cijfer twee, met een streepje er onder (2), hetgeen bijna nooit ahterwege wordt gelaten, en een verkorting is voor 8٦42, dat insgelijks voorkomt. Deze cijfers nu duiden geen jaargetal of iets dergelijks, maar de leters van het woord �‫��د و‬ (badūḥ) aan, dat onder de Muzelmannen een onheilafwendend Amulet te kennen geet (let. klaarblijkelijk), en op de navolgende wijze geshreven wordt. … Dit amulet zal, volgens den Inlander, den brief stellig doen te regt komen. Zelfs zou het gebeurd zijn, dat een’ missive, welke men van dit teeken voorzien had, uit zee opgevisht en toh niet nat geworden was! (Matthes 1860, p. 482). ‘Moreover, we ind at the foot of the address the Arabic cipher two, with a litle line underneath (2) whih is almost never let out, an abbreviation for 8٦42, whih is likewise found. hese numerals do not indicate the year or anything similar, but the leters of the word ‫��د و‬ (badūḥ), � that according to Muslims is believed to be an amulet to ward of calamity … According to the natives, this amulet ensures the certain safe arrival of leters. Indeed, it is almost as if it was expected that a leter bearing this sign, if ished out of the sea, would not even have got wet!’ 13 B. F. Mathes (1818-1908) was a Duth missionary who was the irst person to study scientiically Makassarese and Bugis. He lived and worked in south Sulawesi from 1848-1858, 1861-1869 and 1876-1880, and translated the complete Bible into both languages (Noorduyn 1991, pp. 140-144). the amuletic cult of maʿrūf al-karḫī 175 he abbreviated form 2 can indeed be seen on numerous envelopes of Bugis and Makassarese leters from Mathes’ own collection (ig. 6) now held in Leyden University Library, but has not yet been encountered elsewhere in the Malay or wider Islamic world. Another common epistolary amulet is the names of the Companions of the Cave and their dog, whih have come to Fig. 7. An amulet in the form of the name of the Companions of the Cave play an important role in Islam- writen in a circle around the name of ‫ ا �ص‬their dog, Qiṭmīr. Muhammad Amin � ic magic.14 he story of the � ‫ح�ا‬  �� ‫ا‬ bin Haji Abas al-Bugis, Pelajaran ��������‫ ل‬, ‘those of the cave’, told in bahasa Arab Melayu dan Bugis. Surā 18 of the urʾān, is based Singapore, 1893. BL 14629.d.3, p.155. on the Christian legend of the ‘Seven Sleepers of Ephesus’: seven youths, seeking refuge in a cave from persecution for their faith, sank into a miraculous sleep lasting several centuries. he names of the youths and even their precise number are not given in the urʾān itself, and the names found in Islamic sources derive from the Greek names Johannes, Maximilianus, Martinianus, Malhus, Dyonisius, Serapie and Constantinus (Canaan 1937, pp. 89-90).  �� ‫ ا �ص‬is known in various guises through� he story of the �������� ‫� ا ل‬ ‫ح�ا‬ out the Malay world, with Acehnese,15 Malay, Javanese, Batak and even Philippine versions (cf. Damsté 1939, pp. 5-6). he names are also found in compendia of esoteric knowledge, and an Arab-BugisMalay thesaurus by Šayḫ Muḥammad Amīn bin Haji Abas al-Bugis published in Singapore in 1893 introduces one suh amulet with the words:16  �� ‫ ا �ص‬in Islamic magic, see Paret 1960, 1.691; Reinaud 1828, 2.59� 14 On the �������� ‫� ا ل‬ ‫ح�ا‬ 62; Seligmann 1914; Macdonald 1912; and Canaan 1937, pp. 89-90. ‫� ق‬ 15 he Acehnese version is known as ‫��ا‬ ��‫�� قا��هق �م�ل��ق‬ ‫( � ك‬evidently derived from ‫��ا‬ ��‫ ق�م�ل��ق‬by the simple misplacing of the two dots of the initial yāʾ from below the line to above it); cf. Snouck Hurgronje 1906, 2.169; Damsté 1939; Damsté 1942. 16 For another Malay amulet of the Seven Sleepers from Krui, Sumatra, see van 176 annabel t. gallop Inilah nama2 segala aṣḥāb al-kahf, iaitu azimat amat besar terlampau makbul pada tiap2 suatu2 seperti dibuat tangkal karena demam atau tā‘ūn atau tangkal perniagaan atau kebun atau barang sebagainya beginilah umpamanya: Tamlīkhā Maksyalīnīā Masylīnīā Marnūsy Dabernūsy Syādhnūsy Kafsyṭitīūsy ¶ Qiṭmīr (Muḥammad Amīn 1893, p. 155) ‘hese are the names of the people of the cave; it is a tremendous and superefective amulet for all purposes; for example it can ward of fever or pestilence, or can protect trading concerns or plantations and other suh things; it goes like this: Tamlīḫā Makšalīnīā Mašlīnīā Marnūš Dabernūš Šāḏnūš Kafšṭitīūš ¶ Qiṭmīr’ with the names writen in a continuous circle around Qiṭmīr in the middle (ig. 7). As hinted at by the form of this amulet, in Islamic magic special significance is atahed to the dog Qiṭmīr,17 whih is believed to be one of the few animals whih entered heaven (Canaan 1937, p. 90). As with budūḥ, it was believed that writing Qiṭmīr on an envelope would ensure the safe arrival of a leter (Paret 1960, p. 691, Damsté 1939, p. 7-8), and examples are known from Persia and the Caucasus18 to the Ḥiǧāz (ig. 9). he names of the Companions and Qiṭmīr are also found on ive 19thcentury Malay seals, four from Aceh Fig. 8. he seal of Abdul Salam of Tiro, Aceh, dated 1309 (1891), engraved with the names of the Companions of the Cave and their dog: ‫ ¶ ي ��يم��ل ب‬1309 �‫��ي��ح���� �ع���دا �ل���� ال ا �ل�ي�� �و‬ ‫���ا‬ �� ‫م ير‬ ‫ح ب‬ ‫ي �ب ��ش � �ب ��ش‬ ‫��شث��ل�ب��ا �مش���ل�ب��ا‬ ‫� ك‬ ‫د‬ ‫�م‬ � � � � � ‫( روي �� بر و‬sic!) ‫ي‬ ‫م�� ي‬ �� �� ‫��ب� ش‬ ‫ب‬ ‫ش‬ ‫ش‬ ‫ش‬ � � � � � ‫ك‬ � �� �� �� � � ‫����د ��و � ��ط�ي‬ ‫ط�و � ��ط�م�ي ر‬ ṣaḥīḥ ʿAbdu s-Salām atTīrāwī 1309 ¶ Yamlīḫā Mak[š]līnā Ma[š]līnā Marnūš Dabernūš Šāḏnūš Kāfšāṭīṭīūš Qiṭmīr Museum Nasional E.225. #583, Gallop 2002: 2.122. Ronkel 1912, p. 308. 17 In Makassar, Rosma Tani informed me that she was told by her kiai (religious teaher): ‘if you are confronted by a dog, say ‘Qiṭmīr’ and the dog will leave you, because Qiṭmīr is the king of the dogs’ (pers. comm., 7.6.2003). In an interesting relection of the ambivalent Malay(sian) Islamic view of dogs, I was informed by Dr. Ghazali Basri that when he was young, he was told that Qiṭmīr was a cat (pers. comm., Jan. 1998). 18 Damsté 1939, pp. 7-8. the amuletic cult of maʿrūf al-karḫī 177 Fig. 9. Envelope from the Imām of Muscat, with Qiṭmīr writen three times and 2468, annotated: ‘Covers of Arabic leters from the Persian Gulph, illustrative of the custom of writing three times over, the name of the dog of the Seven Sleepers, Kitmir, and adding the igure 2468, as a harm to ensure safe arrival. As commemorated by De Sacy, Chresthomathie Arabe, Tom III, pp.353, 350. he above is from the Imām of Maskat, 1820.’ BL Add.21954, f.43v (cf. ig. 8) and one from Pulau Pinang; furthermore Qiṭmīr is oten encountered writen on Malay leters. In many of the seals and leters mentioned above, the eicacy of the amulets used is enhanced by an esoteric device oten encountered in Islamic magic, namely the use of ‘disconnected leters’, whereby all the leters in a word are writen separately (Canaan 1937, pp. 74-76). With no evident breaks between words, it is important to stress just how opaque this form of writing renders any inscription writen in Arabic script, and thus serves to veil its meaning from any casual observer. All the amulets discussed have widespread currency, and Malay usage is broadly in line with wider Islamic practice. More intriguing, and apparently unique to the Malay world, is the amuletic cult of the Sūfī saint Maʿrūf al-Karḫī, whose name, nearly always writen in disconnected leters, is used an an epistolary amulet all over the Islamic 178 annabel t. gallop regions of Southeast Asia. his phenomenon will be explored below, irstly by documenting hronologically examples of this amulet, and then by investigating possible reasons for its emergence. maʿrūf al-karḫī in the malay world Abū Maḥfūẓ bin Fīrūz, known as Maʿrūf al-Karḫī (‘the learned one of Karḫ’), was one of the most celebrated of the early ascetics and mystics of the Baghdad shool. He is said to have been born of Christian parents, his nisbä al-Karḫī probably deriving from his association with the Karḫ area of Baghdad where he lived. Among his pupils was Sarī s-Saqaṭī, who was in turn the teaher of one of the most famous Sūfīs, al-Ǧunayd. Maʿrūf al-Karḫī is regarded as a pivotal igure in the development of Islamic mysticism, and numerous anecdotes of his life have been preserved in various sources (cf. Arberry 1966, pp. 161-165). Maʿrūf al-Karḫī died in ah 200 (ad 815/6), and his tomb at Baghdad is still an object of veneration and pilgrimage (Nicholson 1991, pp. 613-614). he earliest known occurrence of the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī in amuletic form in the Malay world is on the seal of Pangiran Šarīf ʿAbdu r-Raḥmān (1742-1808), the founder of the Pontianak sultanate on the west coast of Kalimantan (ig. 10). Šarīf ʿAbdu r-Raḥmān was the son of an Arab from the Ḥaḍramawt, Sayyid aš-Šarīf al-Ḥabīb Ḥusayn bin Aḥmad al-ḫadrī Jamal al-Layl (1708-1770),19 Fig. 10. he earliest known use and a Dayak mother. Following of the Maʿrūf al-Karḫī amulet in the Malay world, on the seal of the death of his father, Šarīf ʿAbdu Pangiran Šarīf ʿAbdu r-Raḥmān r-Raḥmān let his home in Mempaof Kuala Langat, ca. 1772. SOAS wah on December 24th 1771 to form MS 40320/2, f.10. #44, Gallop a new setlement at the junction of 2002: 3.421. the Landak and Kapuas rivers. It was 19 Ater leaving the Yemen, Ḥabīb Ḥusayn is said to have spent some years in Aceh, Batavia and on the north coast of Java before arriving in Matan in west Kalimantan in 1734 or 1735. His fame as a religious leader led to an invitation to move to Mempawah in 1749, where he lived until his death in 1770 (Matheson–Andaya 1982, p. 151; Alqadrie 2007, p. 538). the amuletic cult of maʿrūf al-karḫī Fig. 11. he seal of Pengiran Temenggung Hāšīm of Brunei, with Maʿrūf al-Karḫī writen in disconnected leters. Inscribed: ‫ك ث ث‬ ‫ ق� ��ثع‬ ��‫���عث‬ ‫�د‬ ‫ا �ل ا ث� ق ا � ّٰ�ه �ه‬ ‫� ل��ك‬ � ‫و‬ ‫قر� م‬ � �� ‫�وع ا �ه�ا ��سق�م �ص�ا‬   ّ �‫ ا‬�‫� ا‬  � ‫ع‬ � ‫ل‬ � � ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫� ل��س��ل��ط�ا �م ع�� ��س���� ل�د مم‬ ‫����حر‬ ‫ا �ل‬ ‫م‬‫ق� قر و‬ �‫ � ر لی ق‬ ‫�� ق‬ � ‫¶ �ا‬ ‫��� ع ر �� و ا ل ك‬ ‫� ك‬ �‫�ر� رق‬ ‫ر م‬  1272 ‫؁‬ al-wātiq bi llāh hāḏā pengīran temenggung {a} Hāšīm ṣāhibu l-Baḥr ibn as-Sulṭān ʿUmar ʿAlī Sayfu d-dīn l-marḥūm bi barakäti Maʿrūf al-Karḫī tārīḫ sanät 1272 ‘He who trusts in God, this is Pengiran Temenggung Hāšīm, Lord of the Sea, son of the late Sulṭān ʿUmar ʿAlī Sayfu d-Dīn, by the grace of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī, dated the year 1272’ (AD 1869/70). CUL Or.847(3). #23, Gallop 2002: 3.408. 179 said that in doing so he had driven away the local spririts, the pontianak, ater whom the new centre was named. In ah 1192 (ad 1778/9) Šarīf ʿAbdu r-Raḥmān was installed as Sultan of Pontianak by his wife’s cousin Raja Haji, the Bugis Viceroy of Riau (Matheson–Andaya 1982, pp. 151, 361, 373). Although it bears no date, from the inscription Pangiran Šarīf ʿAbdu r-Raḥmān’s seal can probably be dated to around early 1772, ater the founding of the setlement at the mouth of the Landak river but before it became generally known as Pontianak, and before he took the title of sulṭān in 1778/9. he inscription on the seal reads: ‫ب � ب ي ا� ؤ ب ب شش ب ش ب‬ ‫� ّ� ا ب ب‬ ��‫��لي��ع�� ا�م�و�م���ي� ���ع�ي� ار � ��م �ري�ك� �عب��د ا �رح�م� � اب‬ ‫� �ؤ ب‬ ‫ب �� � � ي‬ ‫ح����� ب � ي‬ ‫��ل‬ � ���‫ح�ي‬ � � ‫ي� ا � �كع�د ��ي� ��ي� �� او �ل �ل ب��د ا �� د ا � ا �ل� �م�ا‬ ‫ا ب ب‬ � ‫ب‬ ‫ب‬ ‫¶ � � �و �� ا �ل ك �� �ي� �ي� ا ب� د �و� �ي� ا‬ ‫ج‬ ‫ج‬ ‫مع‬ �� ‫� � �ب ب �� � � �ب � ب‬ ‫ب‬ � � ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ا‬ � � �‫�مج� �� � ي� ج � ط ي� ج � ي� ط ي‬ � ‫ب‬ .‫ا ك ا �� �ي� �ي� ا � � �ي� ��ط‬ ‫مج‬ ‘he caliph of the faithful, Pangiran Šarīf ʿAbdu r-Raḥmān, son of Ḥabīb Ḥusayn al-Kadri, of Kuala Landak, abode of safety ¶ Maʿrūf al-Karḫī! O Budūḥ! O Presence! O Guardian! O All Preserving One! O Suicient One! O Comprehending One!’20 he border inscription is writen completely in disconnected leters in a continuous circle, with no clear beginning or end, and in this context its amuletic intent is clear. As can be seen, Maʿrūf al-Karḫī and Budūḥ are conjoined with ive other exhortations, including some of the al20 #44, Gallop 2002, 3.421. 180 annabel t. gallop Fig. 12. Seal dated 1994/5 inscribed: � �� � ‫ىب �و ��د�و‬ ‫��م��ع � � ب �ل‬ 1302 ¶ ‫ح‬ ‫رو � ا �كر �� ب‬ Maʿrūf al-Karḫī wa Budūḥ 1302, found on the body of Teungku Ulee Tutue of Aceh. Du Croo 1943:ater p.152, VI. #571, Gallop 2002: 2.86. asmāʾ al-ḥusnà, the ‘most Beautiful Names of God’.21 All subsequent great seals of the rulers of Pontianak appear to have adhered to this template, with the same distinctive octagonal diamond shape. hus the same border inscription with the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī is found on the seal of Pangiran Šarīf ʿAbdu r-Raḥmān’s son and successor, Sulṭān Šarīf Qāsim22 (r. 1808-1819), on two seals of his other son Sulṭān Šarīf ʿUṯmān23 (r. 1819-1855), and on the seal of his grandson Sulṭān Šarīf Yūsuf (r.1872-1895).24 Fig. 13. Envelope from a leter from Sulṭān Aḥmad Zaynu d-Dīn of Jambi, Sumatra, to Pangiran Jaya Ningrat in Muara Sekamis, dated 1888, with the amulets Maʿrūf al-Karḫī and Qiṭmīr and 2468. Museum Volkenkunde, Leyden 03-243(7) 21 Only ḥāiẓ occurs in the most commonly accepted list of the Beautiful Names (Gardet 1960), but kāfī is also generally regarded as one, and is found in many talismans (Canaan 1938, p. 107). 22 #59, Gallop 2002, 3.423. 23 #60, ibidem 3.424; #65, ibidem 2002: 3.427. 24 #1022, ibidem 2002: 3.426. the amuletic cult of maʿrūf al-karḫī 181 Fig. 14. Envelope of an ‘undeliverable’ leter sent by Salehah in Teluk Sailong, Banjar, south Kalimantan, to an address in Singapore, postmarked Batavia 5.4.1872, with the amulets Maʿrūf al-Karḫī, Qiṭmīr and 2468. UBL Cod.Or.3388.E.13. It is in another Borneo sultanate – Brunei – that we encounter an even more prominent and enduring use of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī’s name on seals. From 1826 to 1917 it appeared on no fewer than 12 seals, including those of Sulṭān ʿUmar ʿAlī Sayfu d-Dīn ii (r. 1827-1852) and Sulṭān ʿAbdu l-Muʾmin (r. 1852-1885). With one exception, it is always writen in disconnected leters, usually by it- Fig. 15. Basmalä used as a leter self but sometimes in the phrase heading, containing the Maʿrūf al-Karḫī amulet: ‫��ال�ي ��م��ع �ب �� ��ب‬ � ‫ ب� � �و � ا ل��كر‬, ‘with the blessing ‫ى‬  ‫ ا ك‬� ‫بر ر‬ � � ‫مع ر و � ل ر‬ of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī’ (ig. 11). Finally, from a leter writen by a a seal matrix from Aceh dated 1888 Javanese prince from Surakarta is engraved (in connected leters) ‫ب‬ in exile in Sri Lanka, 1806. UBL � ‫ب‬ � � � � � � ‫م‬ � �� ‫ع �و �� ا ل��كر‬ with the words ‫ى �و ب��د �و ح‬ Cod.Or.2241.I.24. ‫ر‬ 1302 (ig. 12), without a personal name. he seal itself was probably designed to function as an amulet, for it was found on the body of Teungku Ulee Tutue, killed during the war against the Duth (DuCroo 1943, ater p. 152 vi). 182 annabel t. gallop Fig. 16. Belt bukle with a range of talismanic formulae, including Yā Maʿrūf, 2468 and Yā Budūḥ:  ‫د‬ ‫� ¶ ا‬ ‫ق�ا �م‬ � ‫� و‬ �‫�ر و � ق‬ Museum Negeri Lombok. Ater Taylor 1991:299. Testifying to its perceived powers as an epistolary amulet, in addition to its use on seals the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī is also found writen at the close of leters and on envelopes from a wide variety of places during this same period.25 Examples have been documented from Selangor (1785), Melaka (1785), Banjar (1799), Ternate (1802), Johor-Riau (1797, 1799, 1802, 1811 and 1820), Kelantan (1839), Brunei (1840s-1890s), Sulawesi (1850s), Siak (1860), Jambi (1888, 1894) (ig. 13) and Aceh (1849-1850, 1867, 1876, 1909). Especially poignant in view of its purpose is the presence of this amulet on envelopes from a collection of ‘undeliverable’ leters obtained from the Netherlands Indies postal service in the early 1870s,26 including two leters from Martapura in south Kalimantan addressed to Singapore (ig. 14). In short, from the late 18th century onwards, the Maʿrūf al-Karḫī amulet can be seen in use in almost every corner of the Malay arhipelago, and at all social levels. It is even found further aield, albeit still only in use by the ‘Jawi’ community of Southeast Asians. It can be discerned nestling within a heading in the form of the basmalä of a leter from Raden Tumenggung Wirakusuma of Surakarta, writen in 1806 while in exile in Colombo, Ceylon, to the Governor-General in Batavia (ig. 15), and, 25 A hronological listing of all known occurrences of the Maʿrūf al-Karḫī amulet in Malay sources is given in ibidem 1.239-242. 26 On this collection of undeliverable leters see Putten 2003; Wieringa 2007, p. 388. the amuletic cult of maʿrūf al-karḫī 183 signiicantly, at the end of a leter in Malay writen from Mecca by Muḥammad Yūnus bin ʿAbdu r-Raḥmān of Batu Bahara, ḫalifä of the ḫalidiyyä-Naqšbandiyyä brotherhood in Mecca to Sulṭān Muḥammad Šāh of Asahan in 1864.27 he name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī in disconnected leters was also writen at the close of a leter in Arabic sent by Sulṭān Mansur Šāh of Aceh to the Otoman emperor Sulṭān ʿAbd al-Maǧīd i in 1850, requesting help against the Duth, although this amulet would almost certainly have met with incomprehension on its arrival in Istanbul.28 In a more general protective context, it is also found on a brass belt bukle (ig. 16), probably dating from the 18th or 19th century, now in the Museum Negeri Nusa Tenggara Barat in Lombok, whih bears a range of amuletic formulae: 2 4 6 8, Yā Budūḥ, pentagrams, the names of the four arhangels, and the word Maʿrūf writen in disconnected leters (Taylor 1991, p. 299). Fig. 17. Pages from a Malay guide to leter-writing (kitab terasul), with instructions on the use of the Maʿrūf al-Karḫī and Qiṭmīr amulets. Cambridge University Library, Add.3790, pp.1-2. 27 Arsip Nasional Republik Indonesia, Riouw 119; on Muḥammad Yūnus see Bruinessen 1998, p. 68 n8. 28 Cf. Kadı, Gallop & Peacock 2009, p. 36; with thanks to Andrew Peacok for conirming that the Otomans were unlikely to have recognized this amulet. 184 annabel t. gallop A description – even if not explanation – of the mode of use of the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī in Malay leters is found in two kitab terasul manuscripts, whih contain guidelines for the proper composition of leters. he irst, now held in Cambridge University Library, probably originates from Brunei or Sarawak in the second half of the 19th century, and was compiled by a scribe named M. ʿAbdul Nasir. he irst section, described on the contents list as surat dekat alamat (‘Formulae to be placed by the address’), comprises two pages quoted here in full (words writen in disconnected leters in the manuscript are indicated here in italics; ig. 17): [p.1] his is a guide to leter-writing. hese are the formulae placed along the diagonal sides of the address of the leter, as follows: Firstly: Qiṭmīr Alternatively: Maʿrūf al-Karḫī A second alternative: thus endeth these words And here is another hoice for [letters to] very important people or those of royal blood or people of good standing or of similar status: Qiṭmīr [p.1] Bab ini terasul. Sebagailagi ini surat dibubuh pada tiap2 siring penjuru alamat surat, inilah macamnya. Pertama macamnya: Qiṭmīr Pertama sebagailagi: Maʿrūf al-Karḫī Kedua sebagailagi: intahà l-kalām Sebagailagi juga ini macamnya jika akan kepada orang besar2 atau raja2 atau orang baik2 atau sama taranya: Qiṭmīr [p.2] And this is another one for [letters to] important people or those of royal blood or people of good standing or of similar status: Maʿrūf al-Karḫī And here is an alternative for people of similar status: if people of good standing like us are just writing to our friends, then simply use thus endeth these words or just these words. his is what I, M. ʿAbdul Nasir, have set out as an aide-memoire. [p.2] Sebagailagi juga ini macamnya akan kepada orang besar2 atau raja2 atau orang baik2 atau sama taranya: Maʿrūf al-Karḫī Sebagailagi juga ini macamnya akan kepada orang sama taranya: jika kita orang baik2 berkirim kepada sama sahabat saja itulah gunanya intahà l-kalām atau al-kalām saja. Sebagailagi yang diaturkan oleh saya M. ʿAbdu n-Nasir akan peringatan saja adanya (CUL Add. 3790, pp.1-2). hus in this terasul manuscript, Maʿrūf al-Karḫī and Qiṭmīr are treated as auspicious phrases of a higher order than intahà l-kalām or al-kalām, words traditionally used to mark the completion of a piece the amuletic cult of maʿrūf al-karḫī 185 of writing. Maʿrūf al-Karḫī is also mentioned in another 19th-century terasul possibly from Johor-Riau, whih links Maʿrūf al-Karḫī, Qiṭmīr and the numerical form of Budūḥ: Inilah azimat yang dibubuh atas alamat surat 8642 delapan ribu enam ratus empat puluh dua adanya. Dan lagi suatu azimat dibubuh pada penjuru kertas ¶ Šayḫ Maʿrūf al-Karḫī al-Qiṭmīr (UBL Kl.61a, f. 1v-2r). ‘his is an amulet to be writen by the address of a leter: 8642, eight thousand six hundred and forty two. And another amulet to be writen in the corner of the paper is Šayḫ Maʿrūf al-Karḫī al-Qiṭmīr’ A leter in Arabic from Aceh dated 1874/5 conforms to these prescriptions.29 At the head of the leter, alongside the orthodox heading Qawluhu l-Ḥaqq are also writen Maʿrūf al-Karḫī and Qiṭmīr. Not only are these two phrases writen in disconnected leters; furthermore, all of the leters are writen without any diacritical dots. his form of writing without dots, in emulation of the antique Kuic or angular script, was believed to enhance further the amuletic power of words (Canaan 1937, p. 96). As a result of suh esoteric practices, it is quite common to ind errors creeping in when obscure formulae are reproduced over and over again, as is apparently the case in two seals from Brunei. hus in the seal of Pengiran Temenggung Hašim, Maʿrūf is spelt m ‘ r f w (the dot of the fāʾ being misplaced to the wāw),30 and in that of Pengiran Pemanca Muḥammad ṣāliḥ we ind the formula m ‘ r w l k r ḫ y, with the fāʾ of Maʿrūf and the alif of the article missing.31 Despite the intentional amuletic veil drawn over the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī by the use of disconnected leters, the original point of reference of the formula was still clearly recognised in the Malay world by contemporary observers in the 19th century, and not only at the place of origin. A formal leter from Sulṭān ʿUmar ʿAlī Sayfu d-Dīn ii of Brunei to ueen Victoria dated 22nd August 1846 bore the sultan’s great seal whih reads:32 29 30 31 32 UBL Cod.Or. 8163.b.1. #23, Gallop 2002, 3.408. #21, Ibidem 3.405. #37, Gallop 2002, 3.391. annabel t. gallop 186 � ‫ب‬ ‫� �و �� ا �ل ك‬ � � � � ّ‫ب � � ّ ب ب � ّ � ا ب ��م‬ � ّ � ‫ّٰ ٰ ب‬ � �‫�م�� �ل ا �ل�ع�ا ا‬ � ����‫ا ���وا�ش��ي� �ب�ا لل� �ع�د ا ا �ل�����ل�����ا ب� �ع�مر�ع‬ ‫�س��� ا �ل�دي�� با�� ا �ل�����ل���� � ح�م�د‬ � ‫ب‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ي‬ ‫م مع‬ 1242 ‫���هق‬��‫ �قی ��س‬ ‫ر‬ � An oicial translation of the leter prepared in Singapore, certiied by J. Churh, Resident Councillor, gave the inscription on the seal as: “Trusting in God, Sultan Umar Ali Saifudin, the son of Sultan Mohamat Jammalil Alam. By this name of the saint Almaaruf Alkarki 1242.” 33 Yet just over a century later, the signiicance of this formula appears to have completely vanished from the collective contemporary consciousness in Brunei, the scene of its most proliic use during the 19th century. he name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī, writen as usual in disconnected leters, occurs at the close of a leter of agreement (in Jawi) between Pengiran Muda Hāšim and James Brooke, dated 2 Šaʿbān 1257 (September 19th 1841): � ‫�ب‬ ‫� � ا ��بل � � ��ا ي‬ ‫ب� آ ب ش ّ ؤ ب‬ ‫بي‬ �‫�ه� ا �� ك‬ �‫ل��ل� �م �ب� ��ي�ر � او �ل����ل� �م �ب�ب�رك�� � �مع � �و � ا �ل �ك �ج �ي� ا �م��ي� ��م ا �م��ي‬ � � ‫ؤا �ل‬ (Mohd. Jamil 1983, p. 99) ‘thus endeth these words, in goodwill and peace, with the blessing of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī, amen, and again, amen’. In a recent publication, these Arabic phrases were translated into Malay by the most prominant Brunei historian34 as: telah selesailah perkataan-perkataan dengan baik dan selamat dengan   berkat huruf-huruf ‫ ��س ر و �� ا ل ك ر� �قی‬Amin dan sekali lagi Amin �‫م‬ (Mohd. Jamil 1983, p. 99) ‘thus endeth these words, in goodwill and peace, with the blessing of  the leters ‫ �قی‬ ‫ ��س ر و �� ا ل ك ر‬, amen, and again, amen’ � �‫م‬ where the slightly mis-formed ʿayn of Maʿrūf has been read as a sīnḥāʾ ligature, implying that the name Maʿrūf al-Karḫī itself was not recognized.35 33 PRO F.O.12/4, f.358r & 359r. 34 Pehin Orang Kaya Amar Diraja Dato Seri Utama Haji Awang Mohd. Jamil as-Sufri, the Director of the Brunei History Centre. 35 On two occasions in the 1990s when assistance in reading the inscriptions on Brunei seals was sought from oicials from the Brunei History Centre and the Brunei the amuletic cult of maʿrūf al-karḫī 187 A similar slip reveals that the meaning of these disconnected leters also escaped the British sholar R. J. Wilkinson. For his seminal study of Malay leter-writing published in 1907, Wilkinson drew heavily on the kitab terasul manuscript of M. ʿAbdu n-Nāṣir mentioned above, whih was in his personal collection. He thus wrote: “In the lower corner of a leter addressed to a man of rank, groups of leters of the alphabet are occasionally writen, to wit:   ‫ق‬ ‫ � ط م �قی ر‬/‫( ”مع ر و �� ا ل �ى ر� �قی‬Wilkinson 1907, p. 39), misreading the kāf of Karḫī for yāʾ, and rendering unintelligible an already obscure form. he reason for Wilkinson’s lapse in reading is due to yet another esoteric practice of writing certain leters in special ways in Islamic talismans to increase their magic powers, especially when the text is writen with disconnected leters. In particular, kāf is written not with the more usual two strokes, but in the elongated antique shape of a horizontally-exaggerated ‘s’ (Canaan 1937, p. 103). In this form it can look similar to yāʾ, and Wilkinson evidently took it as suh. One of the few modern sholars to recognize the historical igure behind this amulet was Cyril Skinner, and he interpreted its use on letters from Tuan Besar Muḥammad , Chief Minister of Kelantan, to the Raja of Saiburi in 1839 as a sign “from one Sūfī to another” (Skinner 1965, pp. 28-29). While not addressing the formulaic nature of the use of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī’s name in this fashion, it does raise the question of whether its origin may be rooted in Malay Sūfī practice in the late 18th century or earlier. In view of the important role of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī in the history of Suism, it is natural to consider whether Sūfī tarekat might have been the conduit for the particular form of his veneration in Southeast Asia, even though the amuletic use of his name has not been encountered outside the Malay world. Certainly, there is litle diiculty in ascertaining the presence of mystical orders in most of the Malay states where the use of the Maʿrūf al-Karḫī amulet has been recorded,36 yet on further investigation, Maʿrūf al-Karḫī is not known to have occupied a special position in Malay mysticism and his name is hardly Museum, the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī writen in disconnected leters was read aloud as “bi barakāti mīm ʿayn, etc.”, i.e. reproducing the individual leters inscribed on the seal, with no apparent recognition of the name spelt by these leters. 36 For a description of mystical practices in Brunei in the early 19th century, see the accounts by G. Tradescant Lay (1837, 1839) and J. T. Dickenson (1838) of their visit in May 1837. 188 annabel t. gallop mentioned in Malay works.37 Furthermore, although Maʿrūf al-Karḫī is cited in the spiritual genealogies of the Qādiriyyä order,38 most suh occurrences of his name in the Malay world are in silsilä of the composite Qādiriyyä wa Naqšbandiyyä order, founded in Mecca by Aḥmad ḫatib of Sambas (d. ca. 1875) in the middle of the 19th century (Bruinessen 2000) and thus post-dating our period of enquiry.39 hus two key puzzles remain unresolved. Firstly, despite the very visible homage paid to the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī on royal seals in the kingdoms of Brunei and Pontianak, there is no indication of any special veneration or cult of Maʿrūf in any religious order in the Malay arhipelago. Secondly, although Maʿrūf al-Karḫī would obviously have been an excellent hoice as an interceder on behalf of a supplicant,40 there is nothing in any of the known stories of his life whih ascribe to him a particularly eicacious role in an epistolary context, and nor is there any explanation of the unorthodox and amuletic treatment of his name. In the closest suh anecdote,41 Maʿrūf al-Karḫī wrote on a piece of paper a prayer taught to him by the Eighth Šīʿī Imām, ʿAlī r-Riḍā,42 and gave it to a tradesman, who carried it on board a ship. A storm broke out at sea, but when the tradesman took out the piece of paper, the waves became tranquil and the ship and its passengers were saved. 37 He is cited in an-Nafhätu as-Sailaniyyäh by Šayḫ Yūsuf of Makassar (Abu Hamid 1994, pp. 292, 365), and appears briely, in the company of Ibrahim ibn Adham,  ��‫ح‬ � ّ‫ر�ه�ا ر وا �كر‬ ‫ �ق���ا � ��د ق���ق���هق الا‬by Ahmad al-Fatani � in an anecdote by Sarī as-Saqaṭī in �‫ق‬  ‫ق‬ (Jones 1995, pp. 41-42). 38 “Maʿrūf al-Karkhī does not occur in Sūfī silsiläs in general but only in Qādirī silsiläs and those of orders derived from the Qādiriyyä” (M. van Bruinessen, pers. comm., 5.2.2002). His name occurs, for example, in the Qādiriyyä silsilä of Šayḫ Yūsuf (1626-1699) of Makassar (Abu Hamid 1994, pp. 223, 361), and thenceforth the silsilä of the Khalwatiyya-Yūsuf and Khalwatiyya-Samman (i.e. Sammaniyyä) orders in south Sulawesi (Ibidem pp. 223-224). 39 For example, Maʿrūf al-Karḫī is cited in two Qādiriyyä silsilä manuscripts from Brunei - that of Pehin Dato Imam Haji Mokti bin Haji Nasar (1864-1946), reproduced in Tokoh (1992, p. 39), and that of his pupil Khatib Saʿad bin Juru Apong, dated 1944, reproduced in Pameran (1979, p. [34]) – and in two recent Qādiriyyä silsilä from Johor (al-Attas 1963, pp. 54, 57), all of whih trace their lineage through Ahmad ḫatib Sambas. 40 One day Maʿrūf said to his pupil Sarī as-Saqaṭī, “When you desire anything of God, swear to Him by me” (Nicholson 1904, p. 307). ‫ق‬  ���� ‫ح�ا �ل�� ا لم ؤ�م‬ ‫م‬ � ‫كا‬ 41 uoted from the �‫ق‬ ‫� � و‬  �� of Nūr Allāh at-Tustarī (Buyukkara 1998, pp. 209, 215 n16; I am grateful to M. I. Waley for drawing my atention to this reference). 42 It has now been shown that Maʿrūf al-Karḫī and ar-Riḍā could not have met, and the story is probably without substance (Buyukkara 1998, p. 210). the amuletic cult of maʿrūf al-karḫī 189 But even in this anecdote, the protective power hanelled through the person of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī derived from the prayer taught by ʿAlī r-Riḍā and not from the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī himself, distancing it from the way that the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī is used as a Malay amulet. the sulawesi connection To summarise, the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī is oten linked with the amulets Qiṭmīr and Budūḥ, and is itself rendered esoteric through being consistently writen in disconnected leters. Yet despite a wealth of evidence of its usage as an epistolary amulet from all over the Malay world, no Malay sources are known whih can throw light on this phenomenon; nor are there are no known occurrences of the use of the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī in this form in other parts of the Islamic world. he only light whih can be shed on the origins of this amulet in Southeast Asia emerges from sources compiled in south Sulawesi by B. F. Mathes. here is an entry for Maʿrūf al-Karḫī in Mathes’s Makassarese-Duth dictionary irst published in 1859: ْ َ ْ‫َ ْ ُ ٱ‬ � �‫� ا �ل ك‬�‫�م�عُرو‬, naam van een Imām, ̂ ̂ ook geMaäroepolo-Karâh ̂ َ i, ’t Arab. ‫�ر�ی‬  ̂ ‫{ �ص��ی‬een vermaard Mysticus, wien men zelfs het vernoemd: Imām َ mogen toeshreef om wonderen te doen}.43 Volgens de legende was hij een Europeaan van akomst, en werd hij als zoodanig herkend door den koning van Mekka, die onverwahts een kalén ̃gkeré in zijn bokaal liet gooijen, waardoor hij shrikte, en in zijne ontsteltenis de Hollandshe akomst verried, uitroepende: Donderslag! — Daarna verdween hij, en werd nooit meer gezien, tot spijt van een ieder. De Inlander verbeeldt ̂ nog steeds een goede geleider der brieven is, en zet zih, dat de Imām daarom dikwijls zijn' naam onder op het addres, of ook wel in den brief zelven. (Tar. 44) (Matthes 1859, pp. 263-264) ‘Maäroepolo-Karâh i,̂ in Arabic Maʿrūf al-Karḫī, the name of an Imām, ̂ also called Imām ṣafī [the sincere leader], {a renowned mystic, to whom the ability to perform miracles was atributed}. According to legend he 43 he phrases enclosed by {} are only found in the 2nd edition of the dictionary of 1885 (Matthes 1885, p. 350). 44 According to the Introduction to the 2nd edition of the dictionary, Tar. refers to HSS NB no 73, described in Matthes 1875, p. 22 (Ibid. 1885: v). In this ms, the reference to Maʿrūf al-Karḫī is on p. 4. 190 annabel t. gallop was of European origin; and when he was recognized as suh by the king of Mecca, he [i.e. the king] unexpectedly threw an eel into his [i.e. Maʿrūf al-Karḫī’s] cup, whereupon he started, and in his consternation betrayed his Duth origins by exclaiming: Good Heavens! [lit. hunderbolt! ]45. With that he vanished and was never seen again, to everyone’s regret. he native believes that the Imām is still a good conveyor of leters, and hence his name is oten writen under the address, or also even in the leter itself. (Tar. )’ his entry is important not only as a record of the epistolary usage of the amulet in Makassarese leters, but also for the extraordinary anecdote of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī’s Duth origins,46 whih at the very least suggests a considerable degree of localisation of the igure of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī within Makassarese tradition. Even more signiicant is Mathes’s mention of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī in his Makassaarshe hrestomathie, published the following year in 1860. Here, Mathes discusses the writing of the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī in disconnected leters on epistles and envelopes, oten accompanied by 8642, the numerical form of Budūḥ, and other formulae: Soms vindt men bovendien nog aan de beide bovenste hoeken op ‫ ق‬ ‫ق‬ ̂ dezelfde wijze geshreven: ‫ � � ط �قی ر �قی‬, d.i. ‫� ���ط��م��قر�قی‬ �‫( �م‬min Qitmir̂ ijin), ‫م‬ ‫م‬ ‫ق‬ ̂ waarbij men waarshijnlijk te denken heet aan ‫( ���ط��م��قر‬Qitmiru), den hond van de Christelijke legende der zeven Ephesishe jongelingen, … Om de vervolging onder Keizer Decius te ontkomen, zouden deze jongelingen in een grot gevlugt, en daar in een zeventigjarigen slaap … vervallen zijn; terwijl zij bij het ontwaken hun’ hond nog aan den in‫ق‬ gang der grot zouden aangetrofen hebben. De woorden ‫� ���ط��م��قر�قی‬ �‫( �م‬min ̂ Qitmir̂ ijin) geven dus zooveel te kennen als: de brief behoore tot iets wat door Qitmir̂ bewaakt wordt. (Matthes 1860, p. 483). 45 Cense’s more recent dictionary entry adds litle to local knowledge save for the hint that Mathes had obviously deemed it necessary to ‘sanitise’ the original expletive of the Makassarese legend: maʿarupulo-karahi, (Ar. Maʿrūf al-Karḫī), known to have been a hermit and mystic in the second century of Islam (d. 815/6), regarded as a saint and his grave, across the Tigris in Baghdad, is an object of pilgrimage, especially for those pleading for rain. Mathes mentions a somewhat diferent story, for according to Makassarese tradition he was a learned Duthman, who was uncovered as suh when, on inding an eel in his drinking-cup, he exclaimed paradomeng (i.e. verdomme), ‘damn!’. To assure a swit delivery of leters, the name of this early saint is placed on the address or in the leter (Cense 1979, p. 430). 46 his suggestion may have derived from the fact that Maʿrūf al-Karḫī’s parents were Christians (Nicholson 1991, p. 613). the amuletic cult of maʿrūf al-karḫī 191 Fig. 18. Envelope addressed in Bugis with the Maʿrūf al-Karḫī and Qiṭmīr and Budūḥ amulets. UBL NBG Boeg 118. ‘Sometimes we even ind writen additionally at both topmost corners ‫ ق‬ ‫ق‬ of [the name of] this same sage: ‫ � � ط �قی ر �قی‬, i.e. ‫� ���ط��م��قر�قی‬ �‫( �م‬min ‫م‬ ‫م‬ Qiṭmīrī), by whih is probably meant Qiṭmīru, the dog in the Christian legend of the seven youths of Ephesus … In order to escape from persecution by the Emperor Decius, (the story goes that) the youths led into a cave and fell into a seventy-year sleep … on awakening they found their dog at the entrance to the cave. he words min Qiṭmīrī therefore convey the following meaning: the leter belongs to someone who is guarded by Qiṭmīr.’ he vital key – and, to date, the only known explanation of the link between the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī and the well-known epistolary amulet Qiṭmīr, and hence Budūḥ – is found in the following lines: Deze legende der Ephesishe slapers is aan de meeste Makassaarshe shritgeleerden, zoo niet aan alle, geheel onbekend. Sommigen shijnen  � ‫ ا‬� � �‫ م�عرو� ل ك‬zih er wel eens van gehoord te hebben. Ten minste laten zij ‫�ر��قی‬ na een’ vermoeijende reis, in een hol te slapen leggen, en pas na vijf‫ق‬ ̄ honderd jaar ontwaken, als wanneer hij nog zijn’ hond ‫( ���ط��م��قر‬Qiṭmir) aan den ingang van het hol wakende, en zijn lastdier in de nabijheid grazende aantrof. Van daar dan ook, dat men soms vlak onder het bes‫ث‬ proken teeken 2 of 8٦42, behalve de namen van den ���‫ ��س����ق‬en den hond, ins gelijks nog geshreven vindt ‫را د‬ ‫��ع�ل ا �ك‬, let.: den muilezel van den leetogt, d.i.: den muilezel voor het dragen van den leetogt (Matthes 1860:483). ‘his legend of the sleepers of Ephesus is, to most Makassarese scribes, though not all, completely unknown. Some of them seem to have heard of it. At least, they have Maʿrūf al-Karḫī, ater a tiring journey, lying down to sleep in a cave, only to wake up ive hundred years later, when he inds his dog Qiṭmīr still keeping guard at the entrance, and his beast of burden grazing in the vicinity. It is thus that we sometimes ind im- 192 annabel t. gallop mediately under the above-mentioned sign 2 or 8642, and apart from the name of the Šayḫ and his dog, in a similar fashion is writen baġl az-zād,47 literally: the mule of the victuals, i.e. the mule for carrying the victuals.’48 hus in Makassarese and Bugis sources, Maʿrūf al-Karḫī takes the place of the aṣḥāb al-kahf, thereby inheriting their mantle of protective powers and the companionship of Qiṭmīr. Although the Maʿrūf al-Karḫī amulet is not found on any seals from Sulawesi, there are many envelopes of 19th-century leters in Bugis and Makassarese from Mathes’s own collection in the Leyden University Library whih do indeed bear the amulets Maʿrūf al-Karḫī, min Qiṭmīr and Budūḥ, exactly in the form described by Mathes above (ig. 18). With the suggestion of a Sulawesi connection, it is possible to tease out Bugis/Makassar links to many of the sources of the Maʿrūf al-Karḫī amulet discussed above. hus Pangiran Šarīf ʿAbdu r-Raḥmān of Pontianak – whose seal bears the earliest known example of the amulet – was in fact married to Utin Candera Miti, the daughter of Opu Daeng Menambun, one of the ive famous Bugis brothers and kingmakers who setled in Johor-Riau in the 18th century. he next earliest example known, pre-dating 1784, is a mystical diagram whih shows the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī in four corners, alongside those of the four orthodox caliphs and the four arhangels (ig. 19). his document forms part of a collection of some thirty manuscripts seized from the house of a ‘Muslim high priest’ in Selangor during the VOC atak by Admiral J. P. van Braam in 1784 and now held in the Athenaeumbibliotheek in Deventer.49 Although most of the manuscripts are in Arabic and Malay, there are many notes, documents and comments in Bugis interspersed in this collection, relecting the Bugis origins of the sultanate of Selangor. Other early known citations of the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī are also from Selangor, in Malay leters addressed to Francis Light in the 1780s. he ruling dynasty in Aceh from the early 18th century onwards was said to be of Bugis descent, and many of the other places with whih the amulet is most strongly associated, 47 his later amulet, referring to the mule, has not yet been documented on Malay leters. 48 Similar explanations of the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī are given in Mathes’s Bugis-Duth dictionary (Matthes 1874, p. 268) and in the notes to his Boegineshe Chrestomathie (ibid. 1872, p. 122). 49 On this collection see Gallop 2002a. the amuletic cult of maʿrūf al-karḫī 193 Fig. 19. Mystical diagram consisting of a square formed by writing Budūḥ four times with elongated bāʾ, with Maʿrūf al-Karḫī writen in disconnected leters in eah corner; from a collection of manuscripts captured in Selangor in 1784. Deventer, Athenaeumbibliotheek, 10.O.8, no.5 194 annabel t. gallop including Johor-Riau and Banjar, are sites of intense Bugis inluence. here is a suggestion that the Bugis played a considerable role in Brunei in the late 18th century during a period of civil strife,50 and in fact there are few states in the Malay world not subject to Bugis/Makassar inluence to some extent. In the light of Mathes’s information, and in the absence of any other evidence to the contrary, it is suggested that the usage of the name of Maʿrūf al-Karḫī as an epistolary amulet may have originated in south Sulawesi, from where it spread to other parts of the Malay world. 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Nicholl, Robert 1989: Some problems of Brunei hronology. Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, 20(2): 175-195. Nicholson, R. A. 1906: A historical enquiry concerning the origin and development of Suism. Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 303-348. — 1991: art. ‘Maʿruf al-Karkhi’. Encyclopaedia of Islam 2nd ed. Leyden, v.6, pp. 613-614. Noorduyn, J. 1991: A critical survey of studies on the languages of Sulawesi. Leyden. [Bibliographical Series, 18]. Pameran 1979: Pameran sejarah perkembangan Islam di Brunei. Brunei. Paret, R. 1960: art. ‘Ashab al-kahf’. Encyclopaedia of Islam 2nd ed. Leyden, v.1, p. 691. Porter, Venetia 1998: Islamic seals: magical or practical?, in: Alan Tove (ed.), University Lectures in Islamic Studies 2, pp. 135-139. Putten, Jan van der 2003: Dead leters: undeliverable Malay messages from the early 1870s. Indonesia and the Malay world, 31(91): 381-389. Reinaud, M. 1828: Description des monuments Musulmans du cabinet de M. le Duc de Blacas. Paris. [2 vols.] Ronkel, M. Ph. S. van 1912: Une amulete Arabo-Malaise. Journal Asiatique, 119(2): 299-309. Savage-Smith, Emilie et al. 1997: Science, tools & magic. Part One. Body and spirit, mapping the universe. Part Two. Mundane worlds. London. [2 vols.; he Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art, 12] Schimmel, Annemarie 1982: Islam in India and Pakistan. Leyden. Seligmann, S. 1914: Das Siebenshläfer-Amulet. Der Islam, 5: 370-388. Skinner, C. 1965: he civil war in Kelantan in 1839. Kuala Lumpur. [Monographs of the Malaysian Branh of the Royal Asiatic Society, 2] Snouck Hurgronje, C. 1906: he Ahehnese. Transl. by A. Sullivan. Leyden. [2 vols.] Taylor, Paul Mihael and Lorraine V. Aragon 1991: Beyond the Java Sea: Art of Indonesia’s Outer Islands. Washington–New York. Tokoh 1992: Tokoh-tokoh agama di Brunei Darussalam. Susunan Simat bin Angas, Suhaili bin Haji Hassan, Haji Ismail bin Ibrahim. Brunei. Uzunçarsili, Ismail Hakkı 1959: Topkapi Sarayi Müzesi mühürler sesiyonu rehberi. Guide book of the seals section of Topkapi Saray Museum. Istanbul. Wieringa, E. P. 2007: Catalogue of Malay and Minangkabau manuscripts in the Library of Leiden University and other collections in the Netherlands. Vol. 2. Comprising the H.N. van der Tuuk bequest acquired by Leiden University Library in 1896. Leyden. Wilkinson, R. J. 1907: Papers on Malay subjects. Malay literature. Part iii. Leterwriting. Kuala Lumpur.