INTERSUBJECTIVE SOCIAL SCIENCE AND DIVINE FOUNDATIONS IN INDONESIA: A CIVILISATIONAL READING OF IBN KHALDŪN AND KUNTOWIJOYO

Abstract

Muslim civilisational consciousness has historically evolved through three interrelated phases: the theological (Islamic), the political (Islamdom), and the socio-historical (Islamicate). These phases represent distinct yet interconnected modes of reasoning through which Muslims have understood religion, power, and historical experience. From sociological and historical perspectives, these cycles of civilisational reason were critically examined by Ibn Khaldūn (1332–1406) and, in the Indonesian context, by Kuntowijoyo (1943–2005). This study addresses two central questions: how do Ibn Khaldūn’s and Kuntowijoyo’s conceptions of civilisational cycles compare, and what implications do their ideas hold for contemporary Indonesian society? Employing a qualitative document-based methodology, the study analyses primary texts—al-Muqaddimah by Ibn Khaldūn and Kuntowijoyo’s writings on the historical periodisation of Indonesian Muslims—using a comparative–evolutive analytical framework. Comparative analysis identifies convergences and divergences in their civilisational reasoning, while evolutive analysis traces the transformation of historical consciousness within Indonesian Muslim society. The study advances the concept of intersubjective social science with a divine foundation, a framework that integrates spiritual consciousness, ethical self-reflection grounded in prophetic ethics, and divine guidance as constitutive elements of social analysis. This approach challenges positivist and secular paradigms in the social sciences by repositioning revelation, morality, and inner ethical awareness as legitimate epistemic sources. By synthesising Ibn Khaldūn’s theory of social cohesion and civilisational decline with Kuntowijoyo’s prophetic social science, the paper contributes to the development of a civilisationally grounded social science relevant to Indonesia’s intellectual and socio-religious context.