KH. Muhammad Dahlan (2 June 1909 – 1 February 1977) was an Indonesian politician. He served as the Minister of Religious Affairs from 1967 to 1973.

Early life

He was born on June 2, 1909, in the village of Mandaran, Rejo,

Pasuruan Pasuruan () is a city in East Java Province of Java, Indonesia. It had a population of 186,262 at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. and 208,006 at the 2020 Census;Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021. the official estimate as at ...

East Java East Java (, , ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the easternmost third of Java island. It has a land border only with the province of Central Java to the west; the Java Sea and the Indian Ocean border its northern ...

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...

. The third son of five children, his father was Dahlan Abdul Hamid and his mother was Chamsiyah. Dahlan's village is located on the coast, approximately three kilometers from the town of Pasuruan. Together with his eldest brother, he followed the teachings around the courtyard of Masjid Al-Harram

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

. There he studied various religious sciences, and learnt about the wider world, which was later useful for his political career, especially when doing business with the

Nahdlatul Ulama Nahdlatul Ulama (, , NU) is an Islamic organization in Indonesia. Its membership numbered over 40 million in 2023, making it the largest Islamic organization in the world. NU is also a charitable body funding schools and hospitals as well as or ...

Career

Dahlan's appearance in the arena movement began in 1930. He pioneered the establishment of NU

Bangil Bangil (Javanese: "''Bangel''", Arabic: ''بانغيل'') is the name of a district and administrative centre of Pasuruan Regency, in the East Java province of Indonesia. Located 30 km from Surabaya, it lies on the southwest coast of the Ma ...

branch and become its chairman. Five years later he was elected chairman of the NU branch of Pasuruan. In government, he served as Minister of Religious Development in the

First Development Cabinet The First Development Cabinet () is the name of the cabinet of the Indonesian government led by President Suharto. This cabinet was announced on 6 June 1968 and served from 10 June 1968 until 27 March 1973. The composition of this cabinet is not ...

(1967-1971), in which he pioneered interfaith discussion on 30 November 1967. Dahlan led the meeting and put forward the plan for approval, to be carried out to deepen the understanding and practice of their respective religions.. KH. Ibrahim Hosen initiated the Musabaqah Tilawatil Qur'an (MTQ) national level for the first time held in

Ujung Pandang Makassar ( ), formerly Ujung Pandang ( ), is the capital of the Indonesian province of South Sulawesi. It is the largest city in the region of Eastern Indonesia and the country's fifth-largest urban center after Jakarta, Surabaya, Medan, and Ba ...

. In addition, with KH. Zaini Miftah, KH. Ali Masyhar and Prof. DR. HA Mukti Ali on January 23, 1970, form Ulumuddin Ihya Foundation, he pioneered the establishment of the College of the Quran (PTIQ), a college that specializes in teaching the art of reading and memorizing the Quran. In the field of science, Dahlan was prominent in ''

fiqh ''Fiqh'' (; ) is the term for Islamic jurisprudence.Fiqh
Encyclopædia Britannica ''Fiqh'' is of ...

'' disciplines. Dahlan caused moderation in view of the divergence among the Shafi'i imam. Dahlan's decision to leave Pasuruan to move to

Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

was influenced by reading the Dalail Khairat after Fajr until the Duha prayer before or after Maghrib until Isha prayers. He died on February 1, 1997. His body was buried in the Heroes' Cemetery Kalibata, as a form of government recognition of his services to build Indonesia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Muhammad Dahlan 1909 births 1977 deaths Government ministers of Indonesia People from Pasuruan Javanese people Politicians from East Java