Ibrahim Chiu - Fieldwork

Fieldwork

In the summer of 2026 I carried out research in Malaysia, moving from Kuala Lumpur to Kota Bharu in August for three weeks of fieldwork. The work centred on traditional educational institutions and sites of Islamic authority — pondok, among them the mosque where Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat once taught — and on interviews conducted around the PAS party offices. I also met constituency representatives and religious teachers, asking who in everyday life is held to carry religious authority.

Masjid Tok Guru in Pulau Melaka, Kota Bharu, its minaret rising beside the school block across the courtyard — Masjid Tok Guru, Pulau Melaka — where Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat taught, beside his house.

Masjid Kampung Laut, a timber mosque with a tiered pyramidal roof raised on posts, with no dome or minaret — Masjid Kampung Laut, among the oldest surviving mosques in Malaysia: timber, tiered roof, no dome and no minaret.

The PAS Kelantan liaison office on the upper floor of a shophouse block in central Kota Bharu — The PAS Kelantan liaison office, above a shophouse row in central Kota Bharu.

A painted street mural in Kota Bharu showing a family at sunset, Jawi lettering, and an anti-drug campaign panel — A street mural in Kota Bharu, Bandar Raya Islam: the national anti-drugs campaign framed as jihad, closed with a verse on repentance.

A bookshop wall in Kota Bharu where shelves labelled Al-Quran, translations and religious reference fill almost the whole wall — A Kota Bharu bookshop, where religious titles take nearly the whole wall.

The interior of Pasar Siti Khadijah in Kota Bharu, women traders at stalls beneath a tiered roof — Pasar Siti Khadijah, the central market, long run by women traders.

A framed sign giving the doa for entering the lavatory, mounted outside the washrooms at AEON Mall Kota Bharu — The doa for entering the lavatory, posted outside the washrooms at AEON Mall Kota Bharu.