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Sacred rocks inside sanctuary of Cepuri
rooms for ‘plus’ services.¹⁸ Besides the link between sex workers, pimps
and karaoke owners, others benefited from this connection indirectly.
On the ritual days, bus drivers saw an increase in earnings due to an
increase in passengers, including pilgrims, sex workers, visitors and
traders.
During Ramadan, Cepuri remains open. Parangkusumo does become
quieter however, as the religious atmosphere does still prevail. The Darus
Salam mosque, inside the complex of Cepuri, holds a dailyiftar(breaking
of the fast). A religious gathering (pengajian) targeting a larger audience
is carried out weekly. All villagers, including the owners of brothels, are
expected to donate food fortakjil(fast-breaking meal, commonly called
iftar). Mothers, teenagers and children gather to wait for the coming of
the Maghrib prayer. During that time, guided by the imam, they recite
Islamic chanting (dhikr) and the prayer commonly recited for the dead.
Rituals within the mosque represent the traditional teachings of Islam,
which is institutionally affiliated with the biggest Muslim organisation,
Nahdlatul Ulama.¹⁹ Prostitution is not strongly evident during Ramadan
evenings.
Interview with Budi, the owner of Hesty Karaoke in Parangkusumo, July
2011.
Interview with Ahmad, the imam of the Darus Salam mosque on 11 August 2011.
He has been an imam for 17 years. He admitted that his dakwah activity in the