Enthusiasm in Building House of Worship Post-Earthquake in Lombok

The laying of the first stone of the construction of the Vihara Suta Dhamma became a historic day and a very happy day for the residents of Dusun Lenek, also for Bhikku Bhadrapradipta.

The sun still shyly emerged from the horizon. But residents of Dusun Lenek in North Lombok have worked together for the special day they have waited, Laying the First Stone for the Construction of their temple, Suta Damma Temple, Friday, June 14, 2019.

Vihara Suta Dhamma which was built in 1986 had an important role in creating harmony among the people in Lenek. In Lenek the majority of people are Buddhist, but lives harmoniously with Muslims and Hindus.

Suta Damma Temple previously collapsed due to the earthquake that struck Lombok in July - August 2018. On March 20, 2019, the Indonesian Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation and North Lombok District Government signed a Cooperation Agreement  to build one school and five places of worship, one of them is Vihara Suta Dhamma.

The atmosphere of Laying the First Stone of the Construction of Suta Damma Temple went solemn and full of hope. North Lombok Regent Najmul Akhyar thanked Tzu Chi Indonesia for its active efforts to realize the rebuilding of houses of worship after the Lombok earthquake.

On behalf of the regional government, North Lombok Regent Najmul Akhyar expressed his appreciation to the Buddha Tzu Chi Foundation and all those who supported the rebuilding of the Suta Dhamma Temple.

Bhikkhu Bhadrapradipa (far right) invited Hong Tjhin, Tzu Chi volunteer (far left) to take part in laying the first stone.

"I was very moved when I came to a place, I invited the community to gather. When it was heavy rain, water had entered their temporary shelter. I ask all ladies and gentlemen, what do you think should be done first by me as a regent? My image is they will say 'our house', it turns out that almost all of them said first repair our place of worship, "he said.

For the North Lombok Regent, this is a positive character from the people of North Lombok that even in conditions of needing a house, North Lombok residents prioritize to build places of worship. At this moment, worshipers of the Suta Damma Temple, which amounts to 165 families or around 600 people,  use a temporary multi-purpose building for worshipping. Not only at this time the Damma Suta Temple was shaken by an earthquake. The temple underwent two renovations due to the earthquake in 2005 and 2014. Now the construction of the temple starts from scratch again due to the latest earthquake on August 5, 2018.

As for the temple that is going to be built, said the Head of the Dhamma Suta Temple, Endi Puspandi was 15 x 25 meters in size for the main building, plus two metre left and right bridgeways, and a joglo of 5 meters.

Religious leaders and stakeholders who took turns placing the first stone of the Suta Dhamma Temple.

"We did not forget to thank the Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation, which helped us build this Suta Damma Lenek Temple. "Hopefully the deeds will be rewarded with health, welfare, longevity and success," he said.

Bhikkhu Bhadrapradipa, Secretary of the Indonesian Supreme Sangha Region of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) advised the temple worshipers to work together to help in building the temple. And after the construction is complete, so that it is always maintained, and kept clean.

"Do not let it be built, magnificent, good, but not maintained well. So funds from donors seem to be useless. We take care and make the best use of it, "he instructed.

Hong Tjhin, Tzu Chi Indonesia volunteers also felt the happiness that was seen from the faces of the Lenek religious and community leaders for the construction of this temple.

Suta Dhamma Vihara's youths sing "Satu Keluarga" song.

"We hope that the construction of the worship facilities can provide peace of mind, inner calm, and restore people's lives," said Hong Tjhin who is also the CEO of DAAI TV Indonesia.

Hong Tjhin can also feel the beauty of the values of mutual cooperation in Dusun Lenek. According to him, mutual cooperation and togetherness should always be maintained even extended so that resilience to disasters can be further improved considering Lenek has experienced several earthquakes.

"So how to prepare so that the impacts of the disaster are more mitigated and in the future can help the community around here," he said. (Mitigation is an effort to reduce casualties and losses due to disasters by way of pre-disaster preparation - red)

Mosque is also on Construction
Meanwhile, the other two places of worship which were first laid down and now in the process of development are the Al-Hakim Mosque and Tarbiatul Quro Mosque. Al-Hakim Mosque is in Dusun Karang Jurang, Gangga District. While the Tarbiatul Qura Mosque, in Dusun Orong Kopang, Tanjung District, North Lombok.

The laying of the first stone Suta Dhamma takes place solemn and full of hope.

Sadness had struck the administrators and worshipers of the Al-Hakim Mosque because of the damage to the mosque building. Moreover, the mosque is the center of religious activities and also a place for citizens to discuss. Lombok people say not having a mosque seems like they don't have a village.

Until the good news came that Tzu Chi Indonesia would help rebuild the Al-Hakim Mosque. The Al-Hakim Mosque that is being built is 18 x 16 square meters and is targeted to be completed in the next five months.

"Alhamdulillah, we are grateful, we thank you. It's amazing. If it's not there, maybe we need decades more. Maybe we are still dreaming, "said Abdul Manan (59), the head of the mosque.

While the Tarbiatul Quro Mosque, in Dusun Orong Kopang, Medana Village, Tanjung Subdistrict, when this article was written, it was only built around 15 days. Development had been constrained by the limited number of builders and also coincided with the month of Ramadan (fasting). The Tarbiatul Quro Mosque administrators are targeting the construction of the mosque to be completed in August.

Al-Hakim Mosque which is under construction. When the earthquake occurred in August 2018, actually Al-Hakim Mosque was also in the process of development, which reached 75 percent and was built five years ago.

Initially, the laying of the first stone of the mosque was carried out in 2012. When the pillars had been established, it was rocked by the earthquake in 2013 and had been on hold for one year. In 2014, it began to be rebuilt little by little until in 2016 the mosque could finally be used. Like the Al-Hakim Mosque, Tarbiatul Quro Mosque also has a very important function and is very central to the citizens.

"Indeed, in us, we must have a mosque because all the activities are from there. Alhamdulillah, after there is a definite donor (Tzu Chi), we feel relieved. Especially now that the piles are already there. We are very relieved, the people are now not too sad to think about this, "said Lukman, Head of the Committee for the construction of the Tarbiatul Quro Mosque.

The spirit of accelerating the construction of houses of worship in North Lombok was highly recognized by the Regent Najmul Akhyar.

Tarbiatul Quro Mosque also began to be built. Lukman, Head of the Tarbiatul Quro Mosque construction committee explained that since it was confirmed that the mosque would be built by Tzu Chi residents were relieved that there was certainty. 

"I am very grateful for almost every week and even twice and sometimes three times a week we get invitations for the inauguration or laying of the first stone of the house of worship, whether it's a mosque, a pura or a temple. This means that our enthusiasm for building houses of worship is very high, "he said.

Therefore he was very grateful for the support of the Buddhist Tzu Chi Indonesia Foundation that supports the spirit of the people of North Lombok.