CIANJUR — Da’wah is synonymous with goodness, because in goodness da’wah becomes a closely attached element. Similarly, the da’wah journey was carried out by Ustazah Zahra and Ustaz Budiman. Their noble intention was realized by establishing a Islamic Boarding School for children around their residence, precisely in Handeeul Village, Sukamaju Village, Cibeber District, Cianjur Regency, West Java.
“All the students who stay overnight and recite are put together here (home). Then for male students in saung because it is full and the house does not fit,” said Ustazah Zahra when met by Dompet Dhuafa at Az-Zahra Islamic boarding school, January 2023.
The pair of preachers also initiated a taklim assembly for local residents who wanted to learn the Quran, but were not facilitated. Gradually, according to Ustazah Zahra, the surrounding community hopes that Islamic schools will be held.
“Finally, with the capital of confidence to broadcast Islam, in 2013 an Islamic school was equipped with tahfiz. From there, Az-Zahra Islamic Boarding School began to organize regular teaching and learning activities,” she said.
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Ustazah Zahra’s struggle in preaching was not easy. Unexpectedly, one of the villages in Cianjur had difficulty accessing clean water. Before the existence of waqf wells, students had to walk long distances to the river to get water. It is unimaginable that in modern times like this, many of our brothers and sisters still have difficulty getting access to clean water. The ease of water access in big cities is inversely proportional to villages in remote parts of Indonesia.
This situation prevents students from gaining knowledge. Their time is confiscated only to meet water needs to continue their survival.
“It may be caused by sand dug nearby. If sand is dug, the water becomes sucked and unevenly stored in the ground. Therefore, we need a well close to the Islamic Boarding School,” said Ustazah Zahra.
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2012 was a period of suffocating famine, residents of Handeeul Village also had time to buy water to meet their daily needs. Previously, water was sold for Rp. 5 thousand per gallon. But when drought hit, the price tripled to Rp15,000 per gallon.
“The average family needs 50 gallons to meet each day. So, usually, we spend around 750 thousand a day,” she said with emotion while recalling the famine period.
The efforts and prayers offered by Ustazah Zahra and Ustaz Budiman also bore fruit. Through Dompet Dhuafa, waqf wells are realized in their territory. Making it happen is not easy, it is full of challenges. Drilling the well failed because no water was found and only succeeded in the third drilling. In fact, new water can be found in that region at a depth of 45 meters.
Before the existence of waqf wells, the nearest water sources from Islamic Boarding School were in Cibumbulang and Cipaku. Residents also flocked to bring drums, buckets, or tubs to get water from there. Not only adults, children also take turns going to the water source with a distance of 1.5 Km.
“In the past, to meet water needs such as washing clothes and bathing, residents inevitably had to go there,” she explained.
Alhamdulillah, the waqf well offered by donors was inaugurated on Friday (10/3/2023). Dompet Dhuafa Waqf Manager, Sulistiqomah and the West Java Dompet Dhuafa Team attended the event. In addition, the students’ enthusiasm was also very obvious by dressing neatly and uniformly when attending the inauguration. The existence of waqf wells in Az-Zahra Islamic Boarding School, Cianjur is a form of kindness from donors realized by Dompet Dhuafa through the Well Waqf program. Hopefully the waqf well will continue to provide benefits and flow good rewards.
The waqf well from the kindness of donors has provided tremendous benefits, not only for the students but also for 150 families in Handeeul village.
“This waqf well can be taken advantage of for anyone who needs it. We don’t want local people to feel the difficulty of getting water like that,” She said, reminiscing and then grateful. (Dompet Dhuafa/Hafiz/Anndini)