Menafsir ulang adab santri dan kiai perspektif Q.S Al-Mujadilah ayat 11 dalam menyikapi tuduhan feodalisme pesantren

Abstract

This article reinterprets the relationship between kiai (Islamic teacher) and santri (student) within the pesantren tradition by employing Qur’an 58:11 (Al-Mujādilah) as a theological foundation to refute accusations of feudalism. The long-standing critique that students’ reverence toward their teachers reflects hierarchical submission is revisited through a hermeneutical approach combining classical and contemporary tafsir with sociological insights into pesantren ethics. The study reveals that this relationship is rooted in ta‘zhīm al-‘ilm (veneration of knowledge) rather than power relations. Qur’an 58:11 highlights two key principles: inclusivity within the learning circle and the exaltation of the learned based on faith and knowledge, not social rank. Contextually, pesantren embody a moral community that nurtures humility, intellectual discipline, and spiritual equality. Thus, respect toward the kiai symbolizes ethical consciousness and devotion to knowledge rather than feudal obedience. The pesantren system emerges as a model of Islamic education that harmonizes reverence and equality, reaffirming its essence as a liberating and dignified learning institution.