Abstract
The research project entitled “‘Nabee Ta Ma-kae Pi-nae’ (Muhammad does not eat Betel Nuts):
Malay Muslims in Thailand’s Southern Border Province” is aimed to examine ways of life, local
rituals and beliefs, and the everyday practices of Islam of Malay Muslims of Gue-Meng village
amidst the Islamization in southernmost Thailand over the past three decades. The research finds
that in the past Gue-Meng people did not practice Islam in a pious manner as they do at present.
They embraced “local Islam” which is imbued with local beliefs as well as Brahmanism and
Hinduism. They were also involved with a variety of sinful activities. However, after the returns of
those studying Islam inMuslim countries who practiced and introducedwhat they have learnt in the
village, coupled with the advents of Islamic movements such as Dakwah and the “New School,”
Gue-Meng people began to give importance to religious observances. Sinful activities gradually
disappeared andmany local rituals andbeliefs were abolished.
However, amidst religious piety, many Gue-Meng people still live parts of their lives and
perform certain kinds of ritual which, if strictly interpreted, are not in accordance with Islamic
teachings. These include life-cycle rituals, curing diseases, changing bad fortunes, finding lost or
stolen items, etc., which in turn leads to a large number of “Bor-mor” who specialize in each area.
Some “Bor-mor” werebornwith supernatural gift whereas others are able tocure a specific illness.
Such ways of life and rituals were criticized by those engaged in Islamization in the village,
although not in public or in a confrontationmanner. This is partly because these critics did not want
to have conflicts with their relatives and friends. This is also partly because Gue-Meng people in
general and “Bor-Mor” in particular employed certain techniques to render their practices
acceptable to such critics. Gue-Meng people who engaged in sinful activities employed the
negotiation with Allah and the reinterpretation of Islamic teachings to support their practices. “Bor-
Mor” employed a variety of techniques to adjust the rituals they performed to be in line with and to
be under Islam. Taken together, Malay ways of life, rituals, and beliefs are still lively inGue-Meng, a
socio-cultural locationwhich has experienced Ialmization over thepast threedecades.
