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This study addresses an underexplored aspect of religious authority by examining a netnographic case study of an Instagram discussion centered on the Aswaja-oriented account @id.cyberaswaja and its responses to Salafi-oriented narratives. It shows how hadith-based discourse is employed to negotiate religious authority and contest differing interpretations of public demonstrations. By analyzing these discursive strategies, the study offers insights into how ideological differences and religious authority are negotiated within a specific digital interaction, with implications for scholars, policymakers, and communities concerned with religious polarization in digital spaces.
Introduction
In the contemporary digital landscape, religious authority, hadith tradition, and the dynamics of demonstrations constitute complex arena of contestation within Islamic discourse, particularly in Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim-majority country. Hadith, as a foundational pillar of Islamic teachings alongside the Qur’an, has shaped the notion of political obedience through the principle of ūlī al-amr, which rejects tyranny while emphasizing deliberation and the authoritative role of religious scholars (Bakour, 2025). The expansion of social media has enabled hadith to function not only as a normative religious source but also as a resource for public critique and digital mobilization, manifested in both online and offline demonstrations, challenging traditional religious authority. This transformation produces a fundamental contradiction: while hadith embodies democratic values such as deliberation and cooperation (Zoelva, 2022), Salafi-oriented interpretations in digital spaces may emphasize religious boundaries and political obedience, contributing to contestation over religious identity and authority (Sunarwoto, 2021). In Indonesia, these dynamics are further complicated by participatory propaganda practices that utilize digital platforms to influence public sentiment, thereby generating tensions between freedom of expression and the risks of defamation and social polarization (Abdullah et al., 2024; Lutfi & Fuad, 2025).
With the internet and social media among Muslims, the hadith-based contestation of religious authority has become increasingly recognized (Farahdiba, 2024). Interpretations of hadith in political and protest-related contexts have undergone significant transformations, shaping patterns of religious discourse. Initially, interpretations were largely confined to traditional religious settings; however, they have migrated to digital spaces and are now articulated by a wide range of actors, spanning conservative to moderate orientations (Basri, 2018).
Digital platforms facilitate the dissemination of hadith interpretations without geographical constraints. These platforms encourage creative modes of religious communication through diverse formats, including text, images, and video, which are often perceived as more responsive to the needs of contemporary society(Munawara et al., 2020). Nevertheless, the incorporation of digital technologies into the contestation of religious authority also introduces challenges, notably concerns regarding interpretive authenticity, misinformation, and disparities in digital literacy among religious leaders and communities (Ismail et al., 2018).
In a global context, the contestation of religious authority through hadith and demonstrations assumes an important role not only in Muslim-majority countries but also in contexts where Muslims constitute minority communities. The internet and social media enable religious discourse to reach Muslim populations across regions that previously experienced limited access to traditional religious sources (Mubarak et al., 2022). In the globalization era, this form of digital discourse has the potential to facilitate cross-cultural and interfaith dialogue, enhance mutual understanding, and strengthen global Muslim solidarity. Furthermore, by modernizing interpretive methods and making use of digital technologies, online platforms can also serve as mechanisms for countering extremism and reinforcing democratic values (Latf Rahmatulloh & Ngazizah, 2022).
In Indonesia, one example of this contestation can be observed in the discourse between NU and Salafi groups. NU, as a religious organization characterized by a moderate and inclusive orientation, employs hadith to frame demonstrations as expressions of moral agency and struggles for social justice. By contrast, Salafi groups tend to oppose demonstrations through strict, literal interpretations of hadiths, emphasizing unconditional obedience to established authorities. This pattern indicates that the contestation of religious authority in digital spaces mirrors broader dynamics of religious authority in other domains, including identity politics and social activism, wherein digital discourse plays a role in shaping both synergies and tensions in the pursuit of social stability in the digital era (Majid et al., 2023).
Previous studies have examined the contestation of religious authority across various contexts, including discussions of political hadith (Rohmah et al., 2025), digital Salafism, and the relationship between religion, the state, and democracy in Indonesia. Nevertheless, these studies have not paid attention to the negotiation of hadith-based religious authority in the context of demonstrations within digital spaces through interactions involving Aswaja- and Salafi-oriented positions. Rather than examining broad NU-Salafi contestation across Indonesian Islamic Instagram, this study adopts a netnographic case study focusing on a single Instagram discussion surrounding a post published by @id.cyberaswaja and its associated comment section, while treating the Salafi-oriented narrative represented by @shahihfiqih as the broader discursive context. This case enables an in-depth examination of how competing interpretations of hadith are negotiated through digital interaction. Accordingly, the study aims to analyze how hadith-based discursive strategies negotiate religious authority in relation to public demonstrations, while also examining how differing understandings of amr ma‘rūf nahy munkar and political obedience are communicated through Instagram’s digital affordances.
Literature Review
In recent decades, scholarly attention to religious authority has increased, as digital media has shaped Islamic discourse. Although debates over religious authority are not new within Islamic studies, the emergence of social media has transformed how authority is produced, maintained, and contested in the public sphere. Digital platforms broaden access to religious knowledge and create new arenas for contesting interpretation, legitimacy, and influence among religious actors.
In classical scholarship, Fazlurrahman (2024) examines political hadith within the frameworks of monarchy, theocracy, and democracy, emphasizing justice, religious freedom, and moral responsibility as principles of Islamic political ethics. This approach situates hadith as a normative source interpreted contextually rather than textually. However, this study does not explain how hadith functions as a discursive instrument in contemporary negotiations of religious authority within digital environments.
In Indonesian, scholarly interest in Salafism and the dynamics of religious authority in online spaces has grown. Rahmatulloh and Ngazizah (2022) demonstrate that Salafi interpretations in digital media rely on the doctrine of al-walā’ wa al-barā’ as the ideological foundation, which stands in contrast to NU’s emphasis on Islam rahmatan lil ‘ālamīn. This argument is reinforced by Bin Ali (2016), who traces the roots of Salafi extremism to the concept of al-walā’ wa al-barā’, highlighting its role in constructing boundaries of religious identity and loyalty. Nevertheless, these studies emphasize ideological and theological dimensions and do not address how such concepts are negotiated through hadith in digital interactions.
As social media expands, several studies have highlighted shifts in religious authority within social and political dynamics. Aidulsyah (2023) shows that the rise of urban Salafism challenges the authority of mainstream Islamic organizations. Arifianto (2020) examines the resurgence of Islamism and struggles over religious authority in post-Reformasi Indonesia, while Musonnif et al. (2024) examine the state’s role in these contestations. Schäfer (2019) argues that the decline in democratic quality in Indonesia is linked to the involvement of religious actors. While these studies provide structural insights, they do not explicitly integrate hadith, demonstrations, and digital communication within a unified framework.
Other scholarship addresses protest practices and religious-political communication in digital spaces. Bräuchler (2019) analyzes protest culture in Indonesia, while Salma (2025) examines participatory propaganda on digital platforms. Basid et al. (2024) explore NU’s religious diplomacy in promoting Islam rahmatan lil ‘ālamīn. However, these studies treat demonstrations, digital media, and religious authority as separate domains, thereby overlooking how hadith-based authority is negotiated in online interactions.
Synthesizing this body of literature reveals a gap in understanding how religious authority is negotiated through hadith and demonstrations in digital spaces, particularly between NU and Salafi actors. Existing scholarship positions hadith as a normative or ideological source, rather than examining its role as a discursive tool within digital contests of authority.
Accordingly, this study addresses this gap through a netnographic analysis of a single Instagram discussion, focusing on how the @id.cyberaswaja account mobilizes hadith in an online discussion concerning demonstrations, while the Salafi-oriented narrative represented by @shahihfiqih provides discursive context. Theoretically, the study integrates a netnographic approach with Heidi Campbell’s Religious-Social Shaping of Technology (RSST) framework and her concept of Religious Authority. This framework explains digital technology as non-neutral, shaped by religious values and traditions, and as a space where religious authority is constructed, maintained, and contested. This literature review situates the study within the broader scholarly landscape and establishes the theoretical foundation underpinning its methodology and analysis.
Materials and Methods
Research Method
This study presents a netnographic case study examining how religious authority and the legitimacy of demonstrations were negotiated within a specific Instagram discussion. The analysis focuses on one post published by the @id.cyberaswaja account and its comment section, while considering the Salafi-oriented narrative represented by @shahihfiqih. A netnographic approach, as developed by Robert V. Kozinets, is employed to analyze digital interactions and understand identity formation, ideological positioning, and cultural meanings as manifested through textual, visual, and user-interaction data on social media (R. V. Kozinets, 2015). Kozinets defines netnography as “a form of qualitative research that seeks to understand cultural experiences as they are encoded and reflected in traces, practices, networks, and systems generated through online activities.” Such online traces include text, graphics, photographs, audiovisual materials, and other digital expressions, constituting the core elements of netnographic inquiry: investigation, interaction, immersion, and integration (Eriyanto, 2021). The empirical material consists of one Instagram discussion surrounding a post by @id.cyberaswaja in September 2025, while a post from @shahihfiqih serves as contextual background for the competing Salafi-oriented narrative. The analysis integrates Heidi A. Campbell’s Religious-Social Shaping of Technology (RSST) framework, which examines how religious ideologies and community values are negotiated, constructed, and contested on digital platforms (Campbell, 2010). The combination of Kozinets’ netnography and Campbell’s framework provides a foundation for analyzing religious authority and digital discourse within the Instagram discussion.
Although this study employed a non-participant observational design, reflexivity was maintained throughout the interaction and immersion phases through analytical memos, consistent with Kozinets’s (2015) view that the level of researcher involvement in netnography may vary. During immersion, the researcher recorded interpretive notes on recurring linguistic patterns, emotional cues, and contextual ambiguities, such as distinguishing satirical from sincere religious expressions and identifying shifts in argumentative stance within individual comments. These memos informed the coding process and served as an audit trail, thereby preserving interpretive depth despite no direct interaction with participants (R. V. Kozinets, 2015).
For the analysis, the procedure followed the four stages of Kozinets’ netnography, as illustrated in Figure 1:
During the investigation stage, the @id.cyberaswaja post (September 2, 2025) was selected as the unit of analysis because it generated public interaction concerning the legitimacy of demonstrations. The @shahihfiqih post (August 31, 2025) was incorporated as contextual material providing interpretive context for the main @id.cyberaswaja discussion. The selection was based on the explicit use of the hadith amar ma‘rūf nahy munkar in the analyzed material, and references to religious and political authority in the contextual Salafi-oriented material, as well as the hashtags #aswaja, #shahihfiqih, and #Demo. This stage followed Campbell’s History and Tradition of Media Use to map virtual networks, reconstruct account history, and identify patterns of community engagement with digital technology.
The interaction stage examined posted content, user comments, and engagement metrics, including views, likes, and shares. Campbell’s dimension of Core Religious Beliefs and Values analyzed how religious authority was contested through competing hadith-based interpretations. During the immersion stage, recurring themes were identified through thematic coding. These included the legitimation of peaceful demonstrations through the concept of amar ma‘rūf nahī munkar and contrasting positions on obedience to political authority expressed in the analyzed materials. The Negotiation Process dimension captured how collective meaning-making and authority negotiation unfolded in digital interactions.
Selection was not based on engagement. Nineteen of the 22 selected comments and replies had no visible likes or replies at the time of data collection. No additional comments beyond the 22 selected were systematically reviewed as a separate low-engagement check. Thus, the selected comments are treated as purposively selected analytical instances rather than representative of all 247 comments and replies and may underrepresent less visible viewpoints.
The integration stage synthesized the findings from the investigation, interaction, and immersion stages using Campbell’s communal framing and the RSST framework’s discourse dimension. Data from these stages were analyzed comparatively to identify discursive framing and the negotiation of religious authority within the discussion. The analysis examined how Instagram’s platform features shaped the production, circulation, and reception of hadith-based narratives and users’ visual and affective responses.
Research Corpus and Data Selection
In netnography, online field sites are selected based on their relevance, interactivity, and data richness rather than statistical representativeness (R. V. Kozinets, 2010). Accordingly, this study focuses on a single Instagram discussion that provides a rich context for examining the negotiation of religious authority through competing interpretations of hadith concerning public demonstrations.
The primary corpus is a discussion surrounding a post by @id.cyberaswaja, published on 2 September 2025. Data collection and corpus documentation (see Table 1) were conducted on 11 September 2025, when the post recorded 862 likes, 247 comments, and 159 shares. The 247 comments include both comments and replies, with none unavailable or removed at the time of data collection. A post by @shahihfiqih, published on 31 August 2025, was consulted solely to establish the broader discursive context. It emphasized obedience to political leaders through hadith and recorded 10.2 thousand likes, 165 comments, and 979 shares. It was not included in the primary corpus or subjected to the same coding procedures.
From the 247 comments and replies, 22 were selected for detailed analysis based on four criteria: (1) relevance to hadith, demonstrations, or political obedience; (2) variation in expressed positions and discursively observable orientations; (3) interactional exchange relevant to religious meaning negotiation; and (4) relevance to the research focus. These criteria guided purposive selection, not coding. Selected comments were then coded independently across five analytical dimensions. Selection was not based on engagement: 19 of the 22 selected comments had no visible likes or replies, and no additional comments were systematically reviewed as a separate low-engagement check. Thus, the 22 comments are treated as purposively selected analytical instances, not as representative of all 247 comments and replies.
Table 1
Research Corpus and Data Selection
| Account | Date & Theme | URL | Comments | Corpus status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| @id.cyberaswaja | 2 Sept 2025 – Hadith and demonstrations | https://www.instagram.com/p/DOGR0aXjxZy/ | 247 (22 analyzed) | Primary research corpus |
| @shahihfiqih | 31 Aug 2025 – Obedience to political leaders | https://www.instagram.com/p/DOAhADXk0VR/ | 165 (not analyzed) | Contextual reference |
The 22 comments were manually coded iteratively across five analytically independent dimensions: demonstration stance, expressed group orientation, reasoning style, affective-rhetorical expression, and cited authority. Codes in one dimension did not determine another, allowing mixed or ambiguous combinations to be retained. Table 2 presents the operational codebook, including definitions, inclusion/exclusion rules, ambiguous cases, and examples.
Table 2
Operational Coding Framework
Coding decisions were reviewed through repeated reading, cross-case comparison, and analytic memos documenting ambiguous or non-aligned cases. For example, a memo on User C recorded that his hadith citation supported textual reasoning but did not establish Salafi or Aswaja orientation. Group orientation was therefore treated as a researcher-interpreted discursive position rather than verified affiliation. Counter-cases, including User F’s political-responsibility argument and User I’s constitutional reasoning, were retained to prevent stance, orientation, and reasoning from being collapsed into predetermined combinations. Selected pseudonymized examples from the 22 coded comments and relevant reply sequences are presented in the Interaction Stage.
Ethical Considerations
This study followed ethical principles in observational netnography when analyzing publicly accessible social media content (R. V. Kozinets, 2010). The dataset consisted of publicly available Instagram comments and did not access to private accounts, restricted content, or direct interaction with users. Because the study relied on naturally occurring computer-mediated communication (CMC), participants were not contacted, and no intervention was implemented during data collection.
Although the analyzed content was publicly accessible, participant privacy remained an ethical consideration. As Kozinets (2010) notes, publicly available online content may pose ethical risks because verbatim quotations can be reverse-searched online. To minimize risk, original Instagram usernames were replaced with pseudonyms (e.g., User A, User B) before coding and publication, and screenshots of Instagram comments are omitted. Original archived materials were accessible only to the researcher for verification, and the pseudonym mapping was kept separately from the analytical dataset. Representative excerpts were translated from Indonesian; wording modified to reduce searchability is presented as paraphrase while preserving analytical meaning.
Because the research analyzed public digital content without recruiting, contacting, or intervening with participants, informed consent was not sought. Formal approval from an Institutional Review Board (IRB) was not sought because the study involved non-interventional observation of public online interactions and was assessed as posing minimal risk to participants (Markham & Buchanan, 2012). This decision was made by the researcher based on the non-interventional nature of the study and the principles of Internet Research Ethics (IRE), particularly minimizing potential harm, respecting participant privacy, and ensuring responsible representation of online communities (R. V. Kozinets, 2010).
Profile and Posts of the @id.cyberaswaja Account
The Instagram account @id.cyberaswaja presents an Aswaja-oriented identity. This positioning is indicated by its profile biography (see Figure 2), which describes the account as an “Aswaja learning center” and the “headquarters of the Indonesia-Malaysian Aswaja.” While this supports its ideological proximity to Aswaja, the available profile evidence does not establish a formal organizational affiliation with NU.
Figure 2
View of the profile page for the @id.cyberaswaja account (Instagram, 2022).
@id.cyberaswaja
Based on the observation, the account has been active since 2022, with 6,579 followers and 427 posts. Its profile biography states “Education research center, people power 101, Aswaja learning center, headquarters of the Indonesia-Malaysian Aswaja,” indicating its orientation toward Aswaja-related religious education and discourse. Indonesian is the primary language used in its content, with the account addressing Muslim audiences in Indonesia and Malaysia. The account also demonstrates selective content production through posts addressing theological and socio-religious issues, including responses to Salafi-oriented narratives.
Figure 3
Example of a short video upload accompanied by a narrative refuting Salafi lectures and meme videos on the @id.cyberaswaja account (Instagram, 2025).
@id.cyberaswaja
The content published by @id.cyberaswaja is responsive to competing religious narratives, particularly those associated with Salafi-oriented accounts. Some posts, such as the one shown in Figure 3, feature short videos of Salafi sermons accompanied by commentary that challenges their arguments, while others present sermons from Aswaja-oriented religious figures. The account also employs satire through meme-based content to respond to particular religious positions. These posts show how the account combines conventional religious exposition with visual and audiovisual forms of communication characteristic of Instagram.
Figure 4
Example of a screenshot uploaded from a Salafi account post along with a rebuttal on the @id.cyberaswaja account (Instagram, 2025).
@id.cyberaswaja
Another recurring form of content, as shown in Figure 4, consists of screenshots from Salafi or Wahhabi accounts that the account considers doctrinally problematic. These screenshots are often marked with a cross or strikethrough and followed by rebuttals based on the Qur’an, hadith, ijmā‘, qiyās, tafsīr, and the opinions of classical scholars. Through this format, @id.cyberaswaja presents itself not only as a medium of da‘wah but also as a space for theological clarification and contestation. Its posts also address socio-political issues, including demonstrations, religious ethics, and leadership, through an Aswaja-oriented perspective. Hashtags such as #aswaja, #sunni, #wahhabi, #salafi, #ahlissunnah, and #demodpr further connect its theological content with contemporary socio-political discussions and broaden the circulation of its posts beyond a narrowly defined religious topic.
The religious content of @id.cyberaswaja places the hadith concerning amr ma‘rūf nahy munkar (see Figure 4) among the references used to discuss demonstrations and social criticism. In this context, @shahihfiqih is considered as contextual material because its post on demonstrations provides a contrasting Salafi-oriented interpretation, rather than constituting a second case analyzed through the same coding procedure. The @shahihfiqih post emphasizes obedience to ūlī al-amr and rejects demonstrations on the basis of a textual-literal understanding of religious obedience (Instagram, 2025). The contrast between the two accounts therefore serves to contextualize the discussion examined in the primary @id.cyberaswaja post.
The complete text of the relevant hadith, as recorded in Sunan Ibn Mājah (no. 4011) and narrated by Abū Sa‘īd al-Khudrī, is as follows:
حَدَّثَنَا الْقَاسِمُ بْنُ زَكَرِيَّا بْنِ دِينَارٍ قَالَ: حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ مُصْعَبٍ، ح وَحَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عُبَادَةَ الْوَاسِطِيُّ قَالَ: حَدَّثَنَا يَزِيدُ بْنُ هَارُونَ، قَالَا: حَدَّثَنَا إِسْرَائِيلُ قَالَ: أَنْبَأَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ جُحَادَةَ، عَنْ عَطِيَّةَ الْعَوْفِيِّ، عَنْ أَبِي سَعِيدٍ الْخُدْرِيِّ، قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: «أَفْضَلُ الْجِهَادِ كَلِمَةُ عَدْلٍ عِنْدَ سُلْطَانٍ جَائِرٍ»
The Prophet Muhammad is reported to have said: “ The most virtuous form of jihad is speaking a word of truth in the presence of an unjust ruler.” (Muhammad ibn Yazid Ibnu Majah al-Qazwini, 2007).
This hadith provides a theological foundation for the account’s discussion of criticism, social injustice, and demonstrations. Within the content examined, the hadith is recontextualized as a form of intellectual and moral jihad, with peaceful demonstrations oriented toward justice presented as an expression of amr ma‘rūf nahy munkar. This interpretation contrasts with the Salafi-oriented textual reading presented in the contextual @shahihfiqih post, which emphasizes obedience to political authority. The use of the hadith thus enables @id.cyberaswaja to articulate an alternative interpretation of religious responsibility and to position social criticism within its Aswaja-oriented discourse.
Overall, the @id.cyberaswaja account functions as a medium of digital da‘wah and a space for religious discourse, particularly through its engagement with competing interpretations of Islamic teachings. Its use of hadith, scholarly references, rebuttals, memes, and hashtags demonstrates how religious messages are adapted to Instagram’s communicative environment. Within the case examined, these practices also show how the account articulates religious authority through its interpretation of demonstrations, social criticism, and amr ma‘rūf nahy munkar. The @shahihfiqih material serves to situate this discussion within a broader Salafi-oriented discourse, while the primary analytical focus remains the @id.cyberaswaja post and its selected comment interaction.
Results
Netnographic Analysis of the Legitimation and Delegitimation of Demonstrations through Hadith on Instagram
A netnographic analysis of the phenomenon of legitimizing and delegitimizing demonstrations through the use of hadith in Instagram’s digital space follows the four stages of netnography described by Eriyanto (2021) based on Kozinets’ framework (Eriyanto, 2021). This study applies these netnographic stages to identify and examine the primary account, @id.cyberaswaja, as an arena of digital religious discourse in Indonesia. The account was selected for its consistent production of content that connects hadith to contemporary public issues, particularly debates over the religious legitimacy of demonstrations against unjust or tyrannical rulers.
A. Investigation Stage
The investigation phase aims to map the dynamics of religious discourse on Instagram, a digital platform for the production and circulation of religious ideology. In this study, the @id.cyberaswaja account was selected due to its Aswaja-oriented identity and its engagement with religious discourse on demonstrations. Emerging around 2022, the account features content responding to textualist religious narratives disseminated by Salafi-oriented accounts such as @shahihfiqih. Moreover, @id.cyberaswaja functions as a counter-narrative to Salafi discourse, in debates surrounding the religious legitimacy of demonstrations as articulated through hadith.
This investigation stage consists of five integrated sub-processes (Eriyanto, 2021). First, during the simplifying stage, researchers conduct data operations to map and reduce the complexity of the observed digital phenomena. This step involves identifying relevant keywords and hashtags to narrow the scope of the study to religious discourse linking hadith to the issue of demonstrations in Indonesia. The keywords employed include “hadith demonstrations” and “legitimacy of demonstrations,” while hashtags such as #demo are selected to ensure that the investigation remains focused on pertinent digital da‘wah phenomena. This stage serves as a filtering mechanism, providing analytical direction and preventing data complexity.
Second, during the searching stage, researchers identified the Instagram account @id.cyberaswaja as the primary object of the study, due to its presentation of religious content grounded in hadiths that address contemporary social and political issues, particularly the legal status of demonstrations against the authorities. This account presents an Aswaja-oriented perspective, which interprets demonstrations as a manifestation of the principle of amr ma‘rūf nahy munkar.
Third, during the scouting stage, researchers identified a key post dated September 2, 2025, titled “Demonstrations are Haram According to Ijma’?” The post received 862 likes, 247 comments, and was shared 159 times. It integrates Qur’anic verses, hadith, and quotations from the fatwa of Sheikh Ibn Taymiyyah (Majmu’ Fatawa, 16/226) and is presented using a visual design characteristic of Instagram, featuring contrasting colored text overlays to reinforce an argumentative stance opposing the Salafi narrative. The inclusion of hashtags such as #demodpr, #aswaja, #sunni, #wahhabi, #salafi, #sesat, #manhajsalaf, #ahlissunnah, #kajiansunnah, #dakwahislam, #ngertiagama, #mujassimah, and #wahhabiyyah reflects the construction of the account’s Aswaja-oriented ideological identity and illustrates a theological framing strategy intended to broaden the reach of the da’wah message to audiences across schools of thought.
Fourth, in the selection stage, researchers identified 22 comments and replies from the 247 comments posted in response to the selected post for detailed analysis. Selection was based on relevance to the research questions, variation in expressed positions and group orientations, interactional exchange relevant to the negotiation of religious meaning, and relevance to the research focus. Notably, 19 of the 22 selected comments and replies had no visible likes or replies at the time of data collection. No additional comments beyond the 22 selected were systematically reviewed as a separate low-engagement check. Thus, selection was not based on engagement alone, and the 22 comments and replies are treated as analytically relevant instances rather than representative of all 247 comments and replies. This strategy may underrepresent less visible viewpoints and less clearly articulated positions. Accordingly, this potential limitation is acknowledged, and the selected comments may underrepresent less clearly articulated viewpoints.
Fifth, during the saving stage, publicly accessible Instagram data, including screenshots, comments, reply structures, and engagement metrics, were manually archived for further analysis (Eriyanto, 2021). No scraping or automated data extraction tools were used, ensuring the ethical use of public data while preserving data integrity and methodological transparency.
Through these five investigation sub-processes, the investigation establishes a structured basis for examining how hadith interpretation and religious authority were negotiated within the analyzed Instagram discussion. Although the selected comments and replies do not represent all perspectives expressed in the discussion, they provide analytically relevant instances of how different positions toward demonstrations and religious authority were articulated and negotiated within the selected comment interaction.
B. Interaction Stage
At the interaction stage, researchers focused on site data, the processes of searching, sorting, and selecting conversational data from Instagram, including comments and posts relevant to the research topic. The objective at this stage was to identify interactions aligned with the research aims, specifically how religious discourse and the legitimacy of demonstrations were constructed, and negotiated. Consistent with Kozinets’ (2015), this study adopted a non-participant observational approach while using analytic memos to record observations and support the interpretation of interactional patterns (R. V. Kozinets, 2015)
The interaction stage examined the selected comments and replies from the @id.cyberaswaja post. Responses comprised supportive, rejecting, and qualified positions toward demonstrations. These positions were analyzed separately from expressed religious orientation and reasoning style, following the independent coding dimensions established in the Research Methods. The observed patterns are summarized in Table 3.
Table 3
Patterns of Interaction and Negotiation in the Analyzed Comments
The cases in Table 3 complicate any direct correspondence between demonstration stance, religious orientation, and reasoning style. User C supports demonstrations through a hadith citation, but this alone does not establish Salafi orientation. User F explicitly defends Salafi clerics, yet his argument centers on political responsibility and selective criticism rather than simply textual reasoning. User I accepts demonstrations on constitutional grounds, but this does not establish Aswaja orientation. These cases show that the analytical dimensions intersect unevenly rather than forming predetermined combination.
The comment–reply exchanges further demonstrate how these positions were negotiated. Following the initial question about whether rejecting demonstrations was compatible with obedience to ūlī al-amr elected through democratic mechanisms, User N argued that ūlī al-amr remained entitled to obedience regardless of whether the leader emerged through democracy, direct appointment, or a coup. User P then distinguished obligatory obedience from the obligation to criticize a ruler when he is wrong. Other participants reinforced obedience through Sahīh Muslim 1846 and Qur’an 4:59, while User Q challenged it by invoking Caliph Umar’s acceptance of public advice. The exchange thus revealed, through the coding of stance and reasoning, competing claims about the sources and precedents guiding obedience and legitimate criticism.
A further exchange illustrates this qualification. User N stated that demonstrations were haram under Islamic law and invoked Qur’an 4:59 concerning obedience to ūlī al-amr. User A distinguished forms of demonstration, accepting advice and public expression while rejecting violence, destruction of public facilities, and looting. The exchange therefore shows that participants negotiated permissible political action according to its form and consequences rather than treating demonstrations as simply “halal” or “haram.”
Religious orientation was interpreted from discursive positioning rather than verified identity, with interpretations checked through repeated reading, comparison across comments and replies, and analytic memos. All participant references in the analysis use pseudonyms to reduce identifiability, as described in the Ethical Considerations section. Ambiguous cases were retained where evidence was insufficient, limiting claims about fixed group alignments. The counter-cases were therefore treated as part of the coding interpretation rather than forced into predetermined combinations. Thus, demonstration stance, religious orientation, and reasoning style emerged as analytically distinct but interacting dimensions of the discussion.
C. Immersion Stage
The immersion stage involves interpreting the social and cultural meanings underlying these digital interactions. At this stage, researchers move beyond descriptive observation by interpreting the communicative rhythms, interactional styles, symbolic expressions, and technological practices that characterize religious engagement on Instagram. Immersion is conducted through in-depth observation, including the identification of ideological jargon, linguistic patterns, and the use of emojis, memes, and other digital symbols that function as markers of discursive positioning (R. Kozinets, 2019).
The observational findings reveal forms of expression, including the use of theological terminology, satire, and emojis such as fire, laughter, and thumbs up to convey affective and rhetorical meanings within the interaction. Through the construction and circulation of these digital signs, researchers identified three response patterns, namely affirmation of solidarity among pro-Aswaja participants, doctrinal resistance among pro-Salafi participants, and reflective dialogue among neutral participants. These patterns demonstrate that religious discourse on Instagram is shaped not only by theological argumentation but also by symbolic expression, humor, and affective communication within the analyzed discussion.
Based on the linguistic patterns, emotional cues, and contextual ambiguities identified through analytical memos, the immersion analysis examined how participants negotiated Instagram as a digital religious medium within the selected interaction. The analysis identified different uses of Instagram’s affordances in the main post and subsequent comment interaction. The @id.cyberaswaja account used visual and interactive affordances, including text overlays, carousel presentation, hashtags, and comment engagement, while pro-Salafi participants primarily responded through textual discussion, scriptural quotations, and comment or reply functions. Neutral participants used the comment interaction for respectful dialogue and information exchange. Within the analyzed interaction, this negotiation was reflected in the different uses of visual and interactive features in the main post and comment responses (see Table 4).
Table 4
Visualization of pthe Immersion Classification Table
Overall, the immersion stage shows that the Instagram discussion functioned as a socio-technical environment in which religious authority was negotiated through Instagram’s affordances. Within the analyzed interaction, this negotiation was reflected in the different uses of visual and interactive features in the main post and comment responses (see Table 4). Through the RSST framework, this negotiation can be understood through the interaction of religious values, forms of authority, communicative practices, and Instagram’s technological affordances, while the immersion stage itself remains a netnographic procedure rather than an interchangeable RSST analytical stage.
D. Integration Stage
The integration stage synthesizes findings from the investigation, interaction, and immersion stages to develop a holistic interpretation of the digital interaction (Eriyanto, 2021). At this stage, researchers engage in a process of meaning construction by consolidating data, identifying social patterns, mapping inter-role relationships among pro, contra, and neutral actors, and elaborating the broader digital cultural context. Integration enables researchers to describe observed phenomena, situate them within wider discursive structures and power relations, and thereby generate analysis and meaningful academic contributions. Table 5 outlines the integration stages and their application in this study.
Table 5
Table of Integration Stages and Results
Within this case study, Instagram functioned not merely as a medium for disseminating religious discourse but as a digital religious environment in which religious authority and identity were negotiated through interaction surrounding the analyzed post. The interaction between the @id.cyberaswaja account and responding participants suggests that religious legitimacy was articulated through religious traditions, communicative practices, and the observable affordances of Instagram within the discussion. Accordingly, the findings illustrate how the analyzed interaction reflects Digital Religion, in which technological affordances and religious practices are intertwined in the production and negotiation of religious meaning. Viewed through the RSST framework, these findings further indicate that such negotiation can be interpreted through the interaction of religious values, authority, communicative practices, and Instagram’s technological affordances.
These interpretations are limited to the analyzed case. Because the empirical material consists of one Instagram post and a selected sample of comments, the findings provide an illustration of how religious authority may be negotiated within a digital interaction rather than representing all NU–Salafi exchanges or Indonesian Islamic Instagram communities. Future studies using multiple accounts, longer observation periods, and larger datasets may assess the wider applicability of these patterns.
Integration of Netnography and the Religious–Social Shaping of Technology Framework in Digital Religious Analysis
After the netnography integration stage is outlined, the analysis is strengthened through Heidi A. Campbell’s Digital Religion theory, particularly the Religious Social Shaping of Technology framework, which offers an analytical lens for interpreting religious dynamics in digital spaces. While the four netnographic stages structure the research process, RSST informs the interpretation of how religious values, authority, and practices interact with technological affordances. Thus, the two frameworks are complementary rather than parallel or interchangeable. The relationship between them is presented in Table 6 (Campbell, 2010).
Table 6
Relationship between RSST Dimensions, Netnography Stages, and Specific Findings
Overall, this case study suggests that Instagram can be understood as a digital religious environment in which religious beliefs, technological practices, and social interaction intersect within the analyzed interaction. Interpreted through the RSST framework, the analyzed interaction demonstrates how the account and responding participants used Instagram’s affordances in ways associated with their expressed religious positions and communicative practices. Accordingly, the findings reflect characteristics of Digital Religion, in which technology and religious practice interact in the production and negotiation of religious meaning within a specific online interaction.
Discussion
Negotiating Religious Authority through Hadith Interpretation and Digital Activism
This case study examines how competing interpretations of hadith were negotiated within an Instagram discussion surrounding a post published by the @id.cyberaswaja account during the “Dissolve the DPR” demonstrations (August 25-September 9, 2025), while situating the Salafi-oriented narrative represented by @shahihfiqih as the discursive context. As outlined in the methodology section, the findings are limited to this interaction and do not represent broader patterns of engagement between Aswaja-oriented and Salafi communities on Instagram. Rather than centering on criticism of the government, the discussion primarily revolved around competing textual and contextual interpretations of hadith concerning the religious legitimacy of public demonstrations.
The @shahihfiqih account discourages participation in public demonstrations by citing the following hadith:
اسْمَعُوا وَأَطِيعُوا فَإِنَّمَا عَلَيْهِمْ مَا حُمِّلُوا وَعَلَيْكُمْ مَا حُمِّلْتُمْ.
“Listen and obey your leaders. They will bear their burden of sin, and you will bear yours” (HR. Muslim No. 1846) (Al-Naysābūrī, 1955, Vol. 3, p. 1475). In the analyzed post, this hadith is presented as a textual basis for emphasizing obedience to rulers and is accompanied by references to Salafi scholars. The hadith, the cited scholarly authorities, and the account’s application of these sources to demonstrations are distinguished analytically as textual evidence, supporting authority, and account-level interpretation, respectively. The post presents the hadith in Indonesian translation with a black-and-white infographic and references to Salafi scholars such as Ibn Baz, without discussion of the classical tradition of sharh (hadith commentary). The @shahihfiqih post is treated as discursive context rather than as a second case.
This interpretation is generally consistent with classical hadith commentaries. In Fath al-Bārī, Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalani explains that obedience to rulers is obligatory as long as they do not command acts of disobedience (ma’siyah) and their actions are intended to preserve the unity of the Muslim community (jamā‘ah) (al-‘Asqalānī, 1379, Vol. 13, p.112). Likewise, in Sharh Sahih Muslim, al-Nawawi emphasizes that obedience is obligatory only in matters that do not involve sin (al-Nawawī, 1392, Vol. 6, p. 222). Thus, absolute formulations found in some comments are treated as participants’ positions rather than as unconditional doctrinal claims.
Conversely, @id.cyberaswaja advances a contextual interpretation that views peaceful public criticism as a legitimate form of amr ma‘rūf nahy munkar. Drawing on Qur’anic verses and the hadith stating that “the greatest form of jihad is to speak the truth in the presence of an unjust ruler” (HR. Ibn Mājah No. 4011), the account interprets this hadith within Indonesia’s sociopolitical context. The hadith is cited from the edition published by Maktabat al-Maʿārif li-al-Nashr wa-al-Tawzīʿ (Ibn Mājah, 1417, Vol. 1, p. 663), and was graded ṣahīh by Muḥammad Nāṣir al-Dīn al-Albānī. Al-Sindī explains the hadith in terms of the risk involved in speaking truth to an oppressive ruler (al-Sind, n.d. Vol. 2, p. 486). The connection from this principle to the legitimacy of peaceful demonstrations, however, is the interpretation advanced by @id.cyberaswaja rather than an explicit ruling in the hadith or commentary.
From the perspective of religious authority, the interaction analyzed indicates that the legitimacy of interpretations of sacred texts is increasingly negotiated through public engagement, content visibility, and the resonance of narratives on Instagram, rather than relying on formally recognized religious scholars (Campbell, 2007). In this case, comments, likes, replies, and shares provided visible forms of participation around the analyzed post, enabling the @id.cyberaswaja account to articulate an alternative religious narrative grounded in social context, while the account and participants articulated competing arguments grounded in social context, textual readings, obedience to authority, and ittibā‘. These visible forms of participation do not necessarily indicate religious authority; authority is examined through the religious sources and arguments invoked, accepted, or contested in the discussion. The findings remain limited to this interaction.
Digital activism provides an analytical lens for understanding how online platforms facilitate communication, public criticism, collective identity formation, and mobilization (Joyce, 2010). In the interactions analyzed, Salafi-oriented participants relied on religious texts that emphasized obedience to political authorities and framed criticism of the government as a potential threat to social stability, reflecting a form of digital counter-activism (Lim, 2013). In contrast, the @id.cyberaswaja account articulates a form of discursive activism by presenting a contextual interpretation of hadith that emphasize justice, the public good, and the integration of religious values with sociopolitical realities. The account combines visual content, scholarly references, institutional religious references, and audience interaction to encourage public engagement while maintaining a space for discussion without directly confronting state authorities (Rahmawan et al., 2020).
Heidi A. Campbell’s four-layer framework of religious authority, hierarchy, structure, ideology, and texts provides a useful analytical lens for interpreting how religious legitimacy is negotiated in the interactions analyzed (Campbell, 2007). At the hierarchy layer, Salafi-oriented participants refer to recognized Salafi scholars whose authority is grounded in the Qur’an, authentic hadith, and the manhaj al-salaf al-sālih (Wiktorowicz, 2006). In contrast, the @id.cyberaswaja account draws on classical scholars, Qur’anic evidence and exegesis, institutional religious references, and perspectives on Indonesian law. These function as competing sources of authority within the analyzed interaction rather than as a universally recognized hierarchy. This pattern indicates that, within the analyzed interaction, the hierarchy of religious authority is no longer singular or static but is instead negotiated through competing sources of authority rather than through a single authoritative source.
At the structure layer, authority is shaped not only by established religious organizations but also by Instagram’s affordances (Campbell, 2007). These include follower visibility, likes, replies, comment-section interactions, and the strategic use of hashtags such as #demodpr and #aswaja. These affordances provided spaces for participants to present, challenge, and circulate religious arguments, but did not themselves establish their legitimacy. Instagram provided an additional communicative setting in which participation and public responses formed part of the negotiation of religious authority.
At the ideological layer, the interactions analyzed reveal differences in the religious values underlying hadith interpretation as well as in the communication strategies adopted by the positions expressed in the discussion (Campbell, 2007). The Salafi-oriented position expressed in the analyzed comments emphasizes obedience to ūlī al-amr and draws on hadith, Qur’an, and the manhaj Salaf as normative references for rejecting public demonstrations. In contrast, the @id.cyberaswaja account argues that peaceful public demonstrations constitute a form of amr ma‘rūf nahy munkar drawing on Qur’anic evidence, scholarly opinions, and institutional religious references presented in the post to connect the hadith with concerns of justice and maslahah in the Indonesian context. These differences are therefore treated as competing interpretive positions expressed through the analyzed materials, rather than comprehensive doctrinal representations of either community.
The text layer examines how sacred texts are interpreted and communicated in digital environments (Campbell, 2007). In the interactions analyzed, the positions expressed relied on authentic hadiths but drew on different interpretive traditions. Salafi-oriented participants interpreted the hadith in Sahih Muslim concerning obedience to rulers through a textual approach. In contrast, the @id.cyberaswaja account interpreted the hadith in Sunan Ibn Majah concerning speaking the truth in the presence of an unjust ruler through a contextual framework that integrates Qur’anic evidence and exegesis, the public interest, scholarly fatwas, and Indonesian law. Thus, the contestation centers on differences in interpretive methodology rather than on the authenticity of the hadith itself.
Viewed through Campbell’s framework and the concept of digital activism, the analyzed interaction shows how religious authority on Instagram is articulated through theological arguments, scholarly references, and observable platform affordances. Within this case, participation through posts, comments, replies, and other visible features provided a setting for negotiating competing religious interpretations. Taken together, the evidence indicates that this contestation concerns not simply the religious texts themselves, but how recognized sources are selected, contextualized, and connected to contemporary political action. From the perspective of digital religion, Instagram therefore functions as a digital religious environment in which religious traditions, textual interpretation, and platform-based participation intersect in the negotiation of religious authority, identity, and meaning within the analyzed interaction.
Conclusion
A netnographic analysis of the @id.cyberaswaja Instagram discussion reveals how demonstrations are legitimized and delegitimized through hadith interpretations. The investigation, interaction, immersion, and integration stages collectively demonstrate that religious authority is negotiated through the interaction of hadith interpretation, digital participation, and platform affordances. Interpreted through Heidi A. Campbell’s Religious-Social Shaping of Technology (RSST) framework, these findings further show how media history, core religious values, negotiation processes, and communal framing inform religious engagement with Instagram within the analyzed case.
The analyzed interaction illustrates two approaches to negotiating religious authority in this case. The Aswaja-oriented account (@id.cyberaswaja) uses Instagram’s visual and interactive affordances to present hadith-based preaching and contextual interpretations in the analyzed post, whereas opposing participants primarily employ scriptural argumentation in their responses. These contrasting strategies suggest that, within the analyzed interaction, religious authority emerged through the interplay of religious traditions, technological affordances, and participatory online practices rather than relying solely on institutional hierarchy. Consequently, this study contributes to the understanding of Digital Religion by showing that Instagram functions as a digital religious space in which religious meanings, identities, and authority are negotiated through the interaction of religious practices and platform affordances within the analyzed case.
Author Contributions
The first author, Indina Ulin, was responsible for the entire research process, including manuscript writing, field research, data collection, data analysis, and all aspects of the study. The second and third authors, Mukhammad Zamzami and Muhammad Lutfi, served as supervisors who provided technical and theoretical guidance throughout the research process and manuscript preparation, including critical revisions to enhance the manuscript’s quality and clarity. The final author, Muktafi, served as the research supervisor, overseeing and reviewing the overall research process.
Ethics Statement
Formal ethical approval was not sought because this study involved non-interventional observation of publicly accessible Instagram content and was assessed by the researcher as posing minimal risk to participants.
Declaration of Generative AI
Using DeepL at the initial stage, followed by personal editing at the subsequent stage.
Acknowledgments
The author expresses sincere appreciation to all individuals who contributed to this study. Special thanks are extended to the academic supervisors of the Reference Management and Digital Literacy Study Program for their guidance and support. The author also thanks colleagues for providing valuable input and constructive suggestions throughout the research process, as well as family and friends for their prayers, patience, and continued support during the research and writing stages.
