Religious Travel To Sunan Papak’s Sacred Tomb, Garut , West Java, Indonesia

Authors

Yunus Winoto, Padjadjaran UniversityFollow
Ninis Agustini Damayani, Padjadjaran UniversityFollow
Teguh Husodo, Padjadjaran UniversityFollow
Ute Lies Siti Khadijah, Padjadjaran UniversityFollow
Shamila Mohamed Shuhidan, Faculty Of Information Management UiTM MalaysiaFollow
Falih Ijlal Septian, Sunan Gunung Jati State Islamic University, Bandung, IndonesiaFollow

Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2203-4423; https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2540-3290; https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0430-439X; https://orcid.org/0009-0003-7807-5598

Abstract

The sacred grave of Raden Wangsa Muhammad, or ‘Sunan Papak’, is an important holy grave in Garut, Indonesia, attracting many visitors as religious tourists. The study aimed to find out the spiritual elements in a series of pilgrimage activities, the views of pilgrims on sacred objects and sacred water, and the motivations of pilgrims who come to Sunan Papak’s holy tomb. This study uses a quantitative approach via survey research. Data were collected using questionnaires, observations, expert interviews and documentation studies. Based on the results of the study, it was revealed that in carrying out this pilgrimage, various religious elements were undertaken in a series of ceremonies by the pilgrims, such as praying at sacred tombs, making dhikr, carrying out ceremonies for cleaning heirlooms and ritual bathing in holy water. Regarding the people’s view of the heirlooms left by Sunan Papak and the seven showers, many pilgrims still believe in the supernatural powers of the heirlooms and the miracle of the sacred waters of the seven showers. The motivations that encourage pilgrims to come to Sunan Papak’s are various, such as religious and traditional motives, specifically to pray for the dead, to get closer to the Almighty Creator, and family traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation; Family motives include the likes of seeking family integrity, asking for offspring; as well as the motive of earning a future work position or health, asking for the smooth running of a business or asking for healing from illness.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

Recommended Citation

Winoto, Yunus; Damayani, Ninis Agustini; Husodo, Teguh; Khadijah, Ute Lies Siti; Shuhidan, Shamila Mohamed; and Septian, Falih Ijlal (2026) "Religious Travel To Sunan Papak’s Sacred Tomb, Garut , West Java, Indonesia," International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage: Vol. 13: Iss. 4, Article 2.
Available at: https://arrow.tudublin.ie/ijrtp/vol13/iss4/2