Sunan Bonang (1465 - 1525)

Sunan Bonang, whose real name was Raden Maulana Makdum Ibrahim, was born in Tuban, East Java in 1465 CE and died in 1525 CE at Pulau Bawean. He was one of the Wali Songo, along with his father Sunan Ampel and his brother Sunan Drajat. He was a descendant of Majapahit nobility in Tuban and a Chinese captain named Gan Eng Cu. After becoming a prominent ulama, he tried to make ordinary Javanese familiar with Islam. He achieved it through art. He changed traditional Javanese songs, which had been heavily influenced by Hindu philosophy, and incorporated Islamic thought. He also employed gamelan as medium of Islamic learning. One of his teachings is Tombo Ati, which literally mean 'Cures of the Heart.'