Love it or hate it, the Dele Alli challenge is social media’s hottest trend right now (at least until next week, probably). But for some conspiracy-minded Indonesians, there are religious reasons to hate, or at least be wary of the disjointed-looking monocle hand salute.
For those who don’t keep up with latest social media trends or English Premier League soccer, the Dele Alli challenge was born on Aug. 11 when the Tottenham Hotspur player scored a goal and marked the occasion with arguably the most iconic celebration of the social media era (there have admittedly been many more iconic celebrations in the past).
https://www.instagram.com/p/BmWdpvqg_li/?hl=en&taken-by=dele
It looked like a simple enough hand gesture at first glance, but soon after, people all over the world tried their hand at the deceptively difficult challenge, leading to many awkward failed attempts and the inevitable tutorial videos by smartypants on the internet who managed to figure it out.
What does it have to do with religion?
An apocalyptic prophecy, apparently.
Numerous viral posts and Youtube videos have popped up alleging Dele Alli to be an agent of satanist propaganda perpetuating the symbol of Dajjal.
For the uninitiated, Dajjal is Islam’s version of the Antichrist, who, according to Islamic prophecy, will descend to earth and spread his false religion. He is an impostor of the Prophet Isa (Jesus Christ in Islam) with the main physical difference being that Dajjal has one punctured eye. It is said that Isa will one day return from the heavens and engage in an epic battle of good versus evil involving swords and spears. The prophet will then prevail, bringing about an age of peace and spiritual prosperity in the world before Judgment Day.
One of the signs of Dajjal’s arrival on earth is the rise of devil worshippers. Some Muslims in Indonesia subscribe to the conspiracy theory that Dele is one of them simply because his celebration involves covering one of his eyes — supposedly a form of salute to Dajjal — and he’s subliminally spreading his satanic propaganda to the world.
Here’s a gloriously over the top video outlining why Dele is a Dajjal worshipper (which also can’t seem to decide exactly what Dele is since they accuse him, as well as K-Pop stars, of being agents of the Illuminati as well):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qA6e7nISuE
Many have taken to social media to warn other Muslims not to do the Dele Alli Challenge for that reason, often blending the apocalyptic warning together with other conspiracy theories like the Illuminati, Freemasons, black magic, etc.:
https://twitter.com/MNuranida/status/1033182637240664064
Many have tried the Dele Alli style that’s viral, but what good does it bring? You unknowingly are following the Illuminati or Dajjal.
https://www.facebook.com/ummu.anuri/posts/651534295246389?__xts__[0]=68.ARCEk83WWGLElEA7BzMg9fmGMUY9AjJvrRHLiSSEZST13oTVQrGimqLjspR_Io451QxZfgjtBS9768Ktth4TxJPTOBJA-SY_GW36c-hnM2kCrlMWOVEs0ItGX0W_eaypuOjvPwY&__tn__=K-R
Dele Alli Challenge is viral. Beware, don’t let our kids take part.
By definition, conspiracy theories have no credible evidence to back them up, and that is also the case with the Dele Alli Challenge. But hey, we’re not going to argue with anyone’s beliefs (especially with stubborn tinfoil hatters) — we’re too busy doing finger flexibility exercises so we can do the Dele Alli Challenge 2.0.
Islamic conspiracy theories in Indonesia
Dr Greg Fealy is an associate professor at Australian National University (ANU) who’s currently writing an academic article on apocalypticism and Indonesian terrorism. He has been studying conspiracy theories in Indonesia for years (you can read his article, Tall Tales on the link between Islam, terrorism and conspiracy theories regarding the 2002 Bali bombing here). He has found that some Muslims in the country have become increasingly prone to spreading tall tales over social media age due to the proliferation of fake stories in their newsfeeds and increasingly easy ways to share them.
“In Islam, globally, there’s been a strong inclination to believe conspiracy theories. Indonesian Muslims, particularly those who consume material from the Middle East, websites in Arabic, they would be reading a lot of conspiracy theories. This has become more pronounced due to globalization and digital access to discourse in the Middle East. Indonesians are picking up what’s already swirling around in the Islamic global community,” Dr Fealy told Coconuts.
Those theories often frame Muslims as victims of a larger global conspiracy, orchestrated by powerful behind-the-scenes players, that is not shown by the mainstream media. Dr Fealy says conspiracy theorists who share those unfounded tall tales believe that they’re doing others a service, and that there’s a certain prestige in spreading the word.
“In this hari kiamat (Islamic apocalypse) element, there’s a lot of suffering in the Muslim world, people feeling powerless, so it feels comforting to them. They believe Muslims and Islam will triumph. The presence of Dajjal is a sign that the final stages of history are unfolding. Although in one way it’s bleak, in another way it’s a sign of hope that the suffering will end and salvation will come,” he said.
Dajjal is a particularly prevalent figure appearing in many conspiracy theories in Indonesia.
“There have been lots of Dajjal conspiracy theories over the past couple of years. Looking at the eye on the US dollar note, people are saying that the Antichrist is working through Jews to spread Zionist propaganda. And then there are stories about babies born with one eye that spread quickly on social media, with that baby purported to be dajjal,” Dr Fealy said.
Dr Fealy has also observed numerous conspiracy theories in Indonesia in the past, and found they’re not always necessarily unique to this country.
“There’s this conspiracy theory that a meteor is going to crash into the earth and destroy it. This quickly emerged among Christian groups in the US, but in Indonesia it got Islamized. The prophecy is that crops will fail, clouds will cover the skies for 14 days straight, people will die, wars will break out. And apparently NASA is covering up news about a potential meteor because they want to prevent Muslims from reaching their salvation during the apocalypse,” he said.
The Dele Alli Challenge and its Dajjal conspiracy theory may seem innocent — even comical — to the casual observer. However, Dr Fealy warns that there’s an element of harm to any conspiracy theory that perpetuates a victimhood mentality among certain groups — who believe, rightly or wrongly, that they are marginalized in society — as that can lead to them lashing out in potentially violent ways.
Coconuts has reached out to Dele Alli for comment.
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