Preparing for Conversion: Changes in Religious Behaviour

5.7.1 Preparing for Conversion: Changes in Religious Behaviour

Religious rituals have a central role in any religion as the carrying out of the rituals will signify an allegiance to the religion. Hence, Rambo necessitates the inclusion of the ritual component in the interaction stage as it “fosters the necessary orientation, the readiness of mind and soul to have a conversion experience ” (Rambo 1993: 114). The interview data of this study is generally in agreement with R ambo‟s argument where the execution of the Muslim rituals is evidently present in the conversion experience of the Dusun Muslim converts. Many informants agreed that the ritual experimentation helped them to prepare their psyche for the conversion. In fact, the preparation to break from the old religion became even more necessary for the older converts, who had been having doubt over their ability to carry out the religious duties. What seems to fear them most is their lack of competence in performing religious obligations which could implicate failure to become a true Muslim. Thus, the ritual experimentation during the interaction stage was used by many older converts to deliver the proof of their actual competency to become a follower of Islam.

For instance, doubting her ability to fulfil one of the Five Pillars of Islam, a 55-year- old schoolteacher who converted to Islam in 2008 with her family, started to observe the fasting during Ramadhan before her conversion:

[E43.Muslim Dusun.I26]

For the first few days, I fasted without the Niat, simply to see how far

I could go. It was definitely difficult but it felt like I achieved something when I managed to complete a day of fasting. So I carried on fasting until the Ramadhan ended... [Trans.]

A 44-year-old housewife also reported a similar experience before her conversion with her family in 2009:

[E44.Muslim Dusun.I34]

We were a month away from our conversion and it was Ramadhan. So we decided to fast and wanted to see how far we could stand. So my sister taught us how to recite the Niat and advised us on the restrictions we should observe before the fasting could be broken... [Trans.]

Similar doubt of ability is also reported in the interview data of a 78-year-old male convert:

[E45.Muslim Dusun.I9]

To utter the Syahadah, I think, was the easiest part of the conversion process. But what comes after worried me most. The Muslim prayer looked pretty complicated to me and to convert at this old age would definitely double the difficulty. Luckily my daughters were willing to teach me how the prayer is done... [Trans.]

What is more, the sceptical attitude of those within the personal network of the converts who questioned the latter‟s ability and knowledge to become a Muslim is also another reason why many converts carried out the ritual-testing before their conversion. For this particular case, the ritual experimentation acts as a means to remove the scepticism of those who doubted their ability, particularly those within the converts‟ family network. Moreover, to convert to Islam without the approval of

family is one thing, but as Islam strongly discourages religious shifting among its followers, to convert to the religion and only to find out the religion is rather family is one thing, but as Islam strongly discourages religious shifting among its followers, to convert to the religion and only to find out the religion is rather

For instance, a 39-year-old female convert admits that one of the reasons why she carried out the Muslim prayer before the conversion is to convince her brother who doubted her ability to be an observant Muslim:

[E46.Muslim Dusun.I35]

I already had this urge to convert to Islam at that time but my brother kept reminding me of our Muslim relatives who were less than observant. He was n‟t sure if I could carry out the Muslim duties. I felt there was no other way to convince him, and myself as well, other than to do the prayer... [Trans.]

Similar reason for carrying out fasting is experienced by a 47-year-old female convert:

[E47.Muslim Dusun.I12]

My family was generally against my intention to convert; my cousins and my uncles were all against it, and my dad completely ignored my explanation outright. Because the objections were everywhere, I felt I needed to make sure that converting to Islam was the right thing to do and so, I experimented with the prayer and fasting. I wanted to make sure they felt right, and they did... [Trans.]

Likewise, realising the need to convince the family in order to gain support for her conversion, a 56-year-old housewife also experimented with the Muslim prayer before her conversion:

[E48.Muslim Dusun.I46]

I could not think of any other way to convince my father. I remember thinking at that time, if he could see me doing the prayer, and if he could see how I never falter in carrying out the Muslim duty every day, five times a day, that probably could change his mind... [Trans.]

It is evident from the above discussion that, the ritual experimentation indicates the changes in religious behaviour which is the core part of the informants ‟ preparation to break from the Dusun religion. What can be learned from the above examples as well is that, the ritual experimentation has utilised the knowledge the informants have

„innocently‟ acquired before. This indicates a natural progression in religious knowledge where the converts now developed new perspectives about themselves as

such practical knowledge provides convincing evidence of their ability to be a proper Muslim. Thus, it is rather an educated decision made by the Dusun Muslim converts to break from their ethnic religion and to convert to Islam accordingly.

It is equally worthwhile to note the involvement of the Muslims close to the informants who offered the latter guidance and direction, and consequently supported the informants ‟ ritual experimentation, as can be seen from the selection of the interview excerpts above. Such guidance and control is perceived by this study as the component of context that is vital not only for the existence of the interaction stage but it also significantly defines characteristics of the stage, specific to the type of context within which the stage occurs. The following discussion will demonstrate how the direction

and control component of context in Brunei‟s majority-religion context define the unique characters of the interaction stage in the conversion process of the Dusun

Muslim converts.