Beyond Ritual Compliance: Disciplinary Power, Student Agency, and Contested Habitus in Living Qur'an Praxis
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.62730/syaikhuna.v17i2.7891Keywords:
Living Qur'an, contested habitus, disciplinary power, micro-resistance, pesantren, character formationAbstract
This qualitative case study critically examines the daily short surah recitation programme at an Indonesian pesantren through the lens of Bourdieu's habitus, Foucault's disciplinary power, and the ethical subject debates of Asad and Mahmood. Drawing on interviews, non-participant observation, and documentation across thirty-five informants—including students, teachers, alumni, and parents—the study moves beyond descriptive accounts of Living Qur'an praxis to interrogate the mechanisms and limits of ritualised character formation. The findings confirm that the programme successfully institutionalises ritual time and bodily discipline, producing synchronised, durable behavioural regularities across cohorts. However, the data also reveal a structural fragility in this disciplinary apparatus: teacher absenteeism occurred in seventeen percent of observed sessions, authority was redistributed to senior students, and micro-resistance—performative reading, covert whispering, and physical fatigue—appeared systematically rather than exceptionally. Compliance and ethical internalisation therefore diverge, and the programme operates as a contested social field rather than a monolithic success. The study advances Living Qur'an scholarship by proposing the concept of contested habitus, which reframes ritual habituation as a negotiated, cohort-specific, and continuously reproduced dispositional field rather than an automatic pathway to moral transformation. It offers a critically grounded framework for understanding what ritualised pedagogy can and cannot accomplish in contemporary pesantren education.
Downloads
References
Ahmad, K. A., Jalil, A. A., Darpen, M. H., Ismail, F. H., & Osman, M. N. A. (2026). Living Qur’an and Hadith in Contemporary Muslim Scholarship: A Systematic Literature Review of Takhrij Practices and Ahkam Hadith Analysis. International Journal of Drug Delivery Technology, 16(9s), 68–84. https://doi.org/10.25258/ijddt.16.9s.8
Ahmed, Y. (2026). Developing Tadabbur (Qur’anic Contemplation): A Philosophy of Spiritual and Moral Pedagogy. In Handbook of Islamic Philosophy: With 4 Figures and 10 Tables (pp. 735–766). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-95-4666-4_33
Alam, A. (2012). Controlling Minds, Disciplining Bodies: Life Inside a Madrasa. In Sociology of Education in India: Changing Contours and Emerging Concerns. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198082866.003.0011
Alvermann, D. E., Young, J. P., Green, C., & Wisenbaker, J. M. (1999). Adolescents’ perceptions and negotiations of literacy practices in after-school read and talk clubs. American Educational Research Journal, 36(2), 221–264. https://doi.org/10.3102/00028312036002221
Amalia, E. R., Yuliansyah, M., Agustyarini, Y., Sunnah, M. L., Nasucha, J. A., & Ria Kusrini, N. A. (2025). Habitus and Change: Phenomenological Insights into Curriculum Adaptation in Indonesian Islamic Schools. Nazhruna: Jurnal Pendidikan Islam, 8(2), 363–381. https://doi.org/10.31538/nzh.v8i2.134
Amran, N. N., Daud, B. C., & Hussin, H. (2025). Transformation of Al-Quran and Al-Sunnah Education: Needs and Challenges Towards Dynamic and Impactful Learning. Global Journal Al-Thaqafah, 256–275. https://doi.org/10.7187/GJATSI122025-17
Arjmand, R. (2022). Embodiment in education in the Islamic world. In The Palgrave Handbook of Embodiment and Learning (pp. 519–540). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-93001-1_31
Basri, H., Miswar, A., Amiruddin, M. M., Arsyad, A., & Lahmuddin, F. (2025). Mappanre Adek and Strengthening Social Bonds in Bulukumba Community, South Sulawesi: Living Qur’an and Anthropology Perspective. El-Usrah, 8(1), 190–212. https://doi.org/10.22373/54mkwr51
Batum, D., & Jansen, W. (2013). Migrant Living Spaces: Religiosity and Gender in a Disciplinary Institution. Journal of Intercultural Studies, 34(4), 321–339. https://doi.org/10.1080/07256868.2013.807226
Bin Zakaria, A. R., Setiyawan, A., & Ferdi Hasan, M. (2025). Integration of critical pedagogy in Islamic education: a case study of pre-service teacher training. British Journal of Religious Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2025.2560905
Birgün, M. (2026). Integrating AI into Qur’an learning: Technical advances and pedagogical gaps. Social Sciences and Humanities Open, 13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2026.102499
Chaniago, F., Farwati, S., Fitriani, S., & Takriyanti, R. (2026). Strategic Islamic Value-Based Conflict Management in Pesantren: A Model for Strengthening Dormitory Culture and Multicultural Character. Munaddhomah, 7(2), 354–370. https://doi.org/10.31538/munaddhomah.v7i2.2589
Cohen, E. (2026). Caught Between Faith and Faithfulness in a Knowledge Building Community: Constructing Religious Identity in a Technologically Enhanced Learning Environment. Religious Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/00344087.2026.2707027
Crossouard, B., Dunne, M., & Durrani, N. (2020). Understanding agency differently: female youth’s Muslim identities. Social Identities, 26(3), 361–375. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504630.2020.1765764
Dang, M. T. (2025). Mediating factors for student agency: perspectives of school leaders and students. Frontiers in Education, 10. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2025.1643768
Darwanto, A., Prahmana, R. C. I., Susanti, A., & Khalil, I. A. (2024). Transformation of boarding school management models in enhancing student accessibility and educational quality. Jurnal Pendidikan Agama Islam, 21(1), 145–164. https://doi.org/10.14421/jpai.v21i1.8632
Dweirj, L. (2023). The Qur’an: An Oral Transmitted Tradition Forming Muslims Habitus. Religions, 14(12). https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14121531
Fotaki, M., Prasad, A., & Shymko, Y. (2026). Reimagining agency: Subjectivity as a radical lens on institutional work. Human Relations. https://doi.org/10.1177/00187267261449074
Genç, H., & Yilmaz, A. (2025). The Teaching of the Quran in the Digital Age: The Role of Technology and Social Media in Quran Education. Mutefekkir, 12(23), 239–267. https://doi.org/10.30523/mutefekkir.1733231
Gipari, A. F. A., & Muhyi, A. A. (2025). Pembacaan surat Yasin, Al-Waqi’ah dan Al-Mulk (Resepsi jama’ah dan santri pada program suluk di Pondok Pesantren Salafiyah Madinatussalam, Desa Jatiroke, Kecamatan Jatinangor). JUTEQ: Jurnal Teologi & Tafsir, 2(6), 1145–1157.
Halem, N. Van, & Kok, B. L. De. (2026). Agency accommoderen in het voortgezet onderwijs: een reviewstudie naar normatieve perspectieven op leerling-agency.
Hang, Y., & Guo, J. (2025). Light and shadow: Students’ first-year transition through the complexities of higher education. International Journal of Educational Research, 129. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2024.102499
Hayadin, Niam, K., Munawiroh, & Lukens-Bull, R. (2025). Contemporary Changes in Islamic Higher Education in Indonesia: Dynamic Encounter between Modernisation and Tradition Hayadin, * Khoirun Niam, ** Munawiroh *** & Ronald Lukens-Bull ****. Journal of Al-Tamaddun, 20(3), 189–200.
Hohl, A. G. (2025). Embodying The Qu’ran: An Interview with Dr. Rahina Muazu. In Embodied Pedagogies in the Study of Religion: Transforming the Classroom (pp. 94–104). https://doi.org/10.4324/9781032685304-10
Inayatul Mahfudloh, R., Asror, M., & Kholis, N. (2026). Beyond memorization: cultivating holistic excellence through a multidisciplinary tahfiz curriculum in Indonesian pesantren. British Journal of Religious Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2026.2688408
Irham, I. (2026). Negotiating Emotional Entanglements: The Role of Religion and Identity in English and Arabic Medium Instruction. International Journal of Applied Linguistics (United Kingdom), 36(2), 1876–1885. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijal.70045
Kitchin, P. J., Telford, R. M. J., & Howe, P. D. (2022). An empirical use of organizational habitus and ethnography to explore how sport cultures are negotiated. Sport in Society, 25(9), 1643–1660. https://doi.org/10.1080/17430437.2020.1846526
Lopes Cardozo, M. T. A., & Srimulyani, E. (2021). Analysing the spectrum of female education leaders’ agency in Islamic boarding schools in post-conflict Aceh, Indonesia. Gender and Education, 33(7), 847–863. https://doi.org/10.1080/09540253.2018.1544361
Mahmood, S. (2005). Politics of piety: The Islamic revival and the feminist subject. Princeton University Press.
Mameli, C., Grazia, V., & Molinari, L. (2023). Student agency: Theoretical elaborations and implications for research and practice. International Journal of Educational Research, 122. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2023.102258
Mellor, P. A., & Shilling, C. (2014). Re-conceptualising the religious habitus: Reflexivity and embodied subjectivity in global modernity. Culture and Religion, 15(3), 275–297. https://doi.org/10.1080/14755610.2014.942328
Mohammed Nur, B. (2018). Technologies of the Intellect: Mnemonic Techniques as Significant Pedagogical Methods of Islamic Education in Western Sudan. Zeitschrift Fur Ethnologie, 143, 221–236. https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85130706868&partnerID=40&md5=f33576f2c260b283bd828c00bdf1fe8a
Mujahidin, A., Abdullah, I., & Choirul Rofiq, A. (2025). Students’ critical awareness of the internet and social media use as resources for Islamic learning in Indonesian public senior high schools. British Journal of Religious Education, 47(2), 140–155. https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2024.2368888
Palupi, N. W. I., Ummah, S. R., & Larasati, P. (2025). Konsep dan praktik metode kualitatif untuk penelitian sosial. RISOMA: Jurnal Riset Sosial Humaniora Dan Pendidikan, 3(4), 188–198. https://doi.org/10.62383/risoma.v3i4.860
Pelgreffi, I. (2020). Habitus and Learning Notes on Repetition, Body and Change. Sguardo, 2(31), 167–191. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5018570
Putri, W. D. (2023). Kajian living Qur’an: Pembacaan ayat-ayat pilihan sebagai thematic actual curriculum di Pondok Pesantren Al-Wafa Cibiru Bandung. Madinah: Jurnal Studi Islam. https://ejournal.iai-tabah.ac.id/madinah/id/article/view/1881
Ratnawulan, T., Hidayati, A., Badrudin, B., Ahmad, A. C., Syam, R. Z. A., & Achmad, W. (2026). Integrating Islamic Values and Individual Characteristics to Overcome Learning Difficulties in Islamic boarding schools. Munaddhomah, 7(2), 308–321. https://doi.org/10.31538/munaddhomah.v7i2.3084
Rozaq, M. F., Anam, S., & Nashrullah. (2026). Analisis data penelitian kualitatif. Jurnal Pendidikan Sosial Dan Humaniora, 5(2), 1566–1577.
Sabki, A., & Hardaker, G. (2019). Memorisation and learning in Sufi British madrasahs. Journal for Multicultural Education, 13(4), 302–319. https://doi.org/10.1108/JME-06-2019-0048
Sayan, Y. E. (2026). The Pedagogical Potential of Iʿtikāf: A Phenomenological Study of Metaphorical Perceptions among Female Secondary School Students. Ankara Universitesi Ilahiyat Fakultesi Dergisi, 67(1), 363–382. https://doi.org/10.33227/auifd.1720480
Scott, J. C. (1990). Domination and the arts of resistance: Hidden transcripts. Yale University Press.
Supriyadi, T., Julia, J., Sobana, A., Rahminawati, N., & Taja, N. (2020). Digital technology era and al-quran understanding problem: Critical reflection of al-quran learning through action research. Journal of Advanced Research in Dynamical and Control Systems, 12(6), 2384–2401. https://doi.org/10.5373/JARDCS/V12I6/S20201198
Taj, A. (2026). Technological Integration in Qur’anic Education: Interface Design, Linguistic Accessibility, and User Behaviour. ICECI 2026 - 2nd International Conference on Emerging Computational Intelligence: Bridging Research, Industry and Innovation in Computational Intelligence. https://doi.org/10.1109/ICECI69159.2026.11519384
Tenny, S., Brannan, J. M., & Brannan, G. D. (2026). Qualitative study. StatPearls. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK470395/
Ubaidillah, U., & Faiz, M. F. (2025). Beyond the sacred walls: Reimagining pesantren’s architecture of Islamic moderation. Ulumuna, 29(1), 32–70. https://doi.org/10.20414/ujis.v29i1.1362
Waruwu, M. (2024). Pendekatan penelitian kualitatif: Konsep, prosedur, kelebihan dan peran di bidang pendidikan. Afeksi: Jurnal Penelitian Dan Evaluasi Pendidikan, 5(2), 198–211. https://doi.org/10.59698/afeksi.v5i2.236
Zainiyati, H. S., & Niam, K. (2026). Living under the gaze: an ethnographic study of authority, embodied learning, and social reproduction in Indonesian pesantren educational practices. Ethnography and Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/17457823.2026.2614516
Zulhannan, & Musyarrofah, U. (2024). Education system and network of Quran memorization Islamic boarding schools in Kudus, Surakarta, and Bogor. Millah: Journal of Religious Studies, 23(1), 301–330. https://doi.org/10.20885/millah.vol23.iss1.art10
Agustin, A. N., Andhini, D. T., Panjaitan, H. T., Apriyani, L., Maidila, N., Hujimaki, S. K., Rinjani, N., Indriyani, H. P., & Dewi, R. (2026). Implementation of the habit of reciting the Qur'an before learning in forming students' religious character. Global Education Journal, 4(1), 445–454. https://doi.org/10.59525/gej.1455
Fadlilah, Chaniago, F., Farwati, S., Fitriani, S., & Takriyanti, R. (2026). Strategic Islamic value-based conflict management in pesantren: A model for strengthening dormitory culture and multicultural character. Munaddhomah, 7(2), 354–370. https://doi.org/10.31538/munaddhomah.v7i2.2589
Ju’subaidi, Mujahidin, A., Abdullah, I., & Choirul Rofiq, A. (2025). Students’ critical awareness of the internet and social media use as resources for Islamic learning in Indonesian public senior high schools. British Journal of Religious Education, 47(2), 140–155. https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2024.2368888
Karwadi, Bin Zakaria, A. R., Setiyawan, A., & Ferdi Hasan, M. (2025). Integration of critical pedagogy in Islamic education: A case study of pre-service teacher training. British Journal of Religious Education. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2025.2560905
van Halem, N., de Kok, B. L., & Geijsel, F. P. (2026). Accommodating agency in secondary education: A review study of normative perspectives on student agency. Pedagogische Studiën, 103(1), 1–36. https://doi.org/10.59302/tyn5yn05
Zakariyah, Muhid, A., & Arifin, M. (2025). Transformation of Al-Qur’an memorization learning in the digital age through the blended learning flipped classroom approach. Nazhruna: Jurnal Pendidikan Islam, 8(3), 594–606. https://doi.org/10.31538/nzh.v8i3.193
Amirah, F., Halimatussa'diyah, Zulfikar, E., & Fadhil, M. (2025). Living Qur'an approach in the tradition of zikir wirdul lathif in Raudhatuzzahro Madras Palembang: Dynamics, meanings, and receptions in contemporary Islamic contexts. Al-Karim: International Journal of Quranic and Islamic Studies, 3(1), 15–34. https://doi.org/10.33367/al-karim.v3i1.6541
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
Faisal, R., & Nasrulloh, N. (2024). Implications of the tradition of reciting Surah Al-Waqi'ah at Al Falah Ploso Kediri Islamic boarding school: A living Qur'an study. Nuansa: Jurnal Studi Islam dan Kemasyarakatan, 17(2), 127–137. https://doi.org/10.29300/nuansa.v17i2.6590
Faizah, L. (2024). Habitus keagamaan masyarakat Madura dan implikasinya terhadap pendidikan Islam. Journal of Innovative and Creativity (Joecy), 4(3), 216–224. https://doi.org/10.31004/joecy.v4i3.7601
Jamil, M. (2024). Exploring the Qur'anic literacy tradition: A review of traditional and modern pesantren in Tuban, Indonesia. Fikri: Jurnal Kajian Agama, Sosial dan Budaya, 9(1), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.25217/jf.v9i1.4670
Kahar, A., Zarkasyi, A. Z., & Rakib, A. (2025). Kearifan budaya lokal dan relevansinya dengan nilai-nilai pendidikan Islam di era digital: Analisis tafsir Al-Qur'an dengan pendekatan tematik. El-Furqania: Jurnal Ushuluddin dan Ilmu-Ilmu Keislaman, 11(01). https://doi.org/10.54625/elfurqania.v11i01.7945
Khodijah, S., & Monang, S. (2025). Phenomenological study of living Qur'an in the tradition of death and reinterpretation of the younger generation on the practice of khataman al-Qur'an at Bireuen Cemetery, Aceh. QiST: Journal of Quran and Tafseer Studies, 4(1), 351–366. https://doi.org/10.23917/qist.v4i1.10614
Ma'arif, M. A., & Arif, M. (2026). Sustaining character education in pesantren: A holistic and culturally embedded learning ecosystem. Cakrawala Pendidikan, 45(2), 402–418. https://doi.org/10.21831/cp.v45i2.94968
Muhajir, M., Rahman, M. S. B. A., Purwanto, N. J., Iqbal, M., Thonthowi, & Misdayanti, A. (2025). Improvement of religious values through the ability to read Arabic al-Qur'an with the Qiroati method at Muhammadiyah Senior School PCM Pakem Sleman. Proceeding International Conference of Community Service, 3(2). https://doi.org/10.18196/iccs.v3i2.1337
Rofiqi, Zainiyati, H. S., Niam, K., & Kusaeri. (2026). Living under the gaze: An ethnographic study of authority, embodied learning, and social reproduction in Indonesian pesantren educational practices: ethnography and Education. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/17457823.2026.2614516
Romayyizah, Rosi, M., & Muttakin, I. (2026). Peran Bu Nyai Pesantren dalam pelestarian bahasa Madura sebagai kearifan lokal: Sebuah analisis fenomenologis. Kartika: Jurnal Studi Keislaman, 6(1), 699–708. https://doi.org/10.59240/kjsk.v6i1.469
Susanto, P. C., Soehaditama, J. P., Soekirman, A., Suhendra, A., Valentin, A. D., & Sismiati, S. (2025). Konsep penelitian kualitatif: tinjauan pustaka, studi kasus, pendekatan etnografi, informan, in-depth interview, dan focus group discussion. Jurnal Inovasi Manajemen, Kewirausahaan, Bisnis dan Digital, 2(2), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.61132/jimakebidi.v2i2.485
Zaini, M. H., Mutamimah, D. H., & Maulana, M. F. (2025). Morning habituation program to improve Qur'anic reading ability at SMPN 3 Donorojo. Taqorrub: Journal Bimbingan Konseling dan Dakwah, 6(01), 85–98. https://doi.org/10.55380/taqorrub.v6i01.1106
Zakiyah, L. H., & Nurhidin, E. (2026). Strengthening Islamic religious literacy in building religious character and culture in elementary schools. Tawazun: Jurnal Pendidikan Islam, 19(1), 89–106. https://doi.org/10.32832/tawazun.v19i1.22738
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Ibnatul Maghfiroh, Shohebul Hajad; Shakila Kausar
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
