Intellectual and Epistemic Foundations of the Two Axes of Muslim Power in Indonesia (Muhammadiyah and Nahdlatul Ulama)

There are many intellectual and epistemic foundations for Indonesian Muslims. They are politically influenced by overseas cultures. With respect to their different tendencies in the intellectual and social discussions, and their interactions with the Middle East, especially by attending the Hajj and familiarity with the propaganda of Wahhabism, they have turned to different streams and various cultural orientations. Two axes of power called Muhammadiyah and Nahdlatul Ulama with more than thirty million followers have a great role among Indonesian Muslims. Using both the historical research method and the analysis of the leaders' words, the intellectual and epistemic foundations of each are alluded in this essay. The central question of the research is to know the differences and commonalities of the intellectual and epistemic foundations of both Muhammadiyah movement and Nahdlatul Ulama movement. The new achievements of the research include formulation of these two intellectual axes, identification of their commonalities with other Islamic denominations, as well as explanation of their historical context.