Redefining “Sacred” through the Indigenous Religion Paradigm: Case Study of Sunda Wiwitan Community in Kuningan
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
The definition of sacred in the World Religions paradigm is limited to the things that have to do with the symbolization of spirituality. Oftentimes, the sacred value which is not in accordance with the characteristics required by the World Religions paradigm is considered as something non-religious. In terms of preserving nature, based on the findings, many scholars have proven that indigenous people have their own value in interpreting the sacred. By attaching the sacred word to the realm where they live, it is not merely a matter of ownership or a place where they practice religious rituals. The Sunda Wiwitan community in Kuningan is one model that still carries out the tradition of ancestral heritage which they apply to the ecological aspect by the forest zoning and having a special place, namely Leuweung Leutik, a sacred little forest which for them is not only a place to perform rituals, but also as a means of preserving nature. Through the paradigm of Indigenous Religions, in which indigenous people have a strong connection with nature and recognize the subjectivity of nature as coequal living things, they are able to treat nature as they benefit from nature. This paper examines how the paradigm of Indigenous Religion is able to give new meaning to what is the sacred, which in this regard they apply to customary forest management. With a qualitative research approach using mixed data collections: secondary data and in-depth interviews, this paper explains new ideas obtained from the local knowledge of the Sunda Wiwitan community in Kuningan in order to protect their sacred place.
Downloads
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Licensing
© The Author(s). Published by Department of Religious Studies, Faculty of Ushuluddin and Philosophy, Sunan Ampel State Islamic University Surabaya, Indonesia.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0).
References
Adisaputri, Yunita D., and Indah Widiastuti. “Territorial Identification of Vernacular Settlement Cigugur through the Practice of Seren Taun Ritual in Kuningan, West Java.” Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, no. 184 (2015): 196–205.
Babbie, Earl R. The Practice of Social Research. Twelfth. Belmont: Wadsworth Cengange Learning, 2010.
Bakht, Natasha, and Lynda Collins. “‘The Earth Is Our Mother’: Freedom of Religion and the Preservation of Indigenous Sacred Sites in Canada.” McGill Law Journal/Revue de droit de McGill 62, no. 3 (2017): 777–812. https://id.erudit.org/iderudit/1042774ar.
Banton, Michael. Anthropological Approaches to the Study of Religion. Abingdon: Routledge, 1966.
Berkes, Fikret. Sacred Ecology. Second. Routledge, 2008.
Bryman, Alan. Social Research Methods. Second. New York: Oxford University Press Inc., 2004.
Cox, James L. From Primitive to Indigenous: The Academic Study of Indigenous Religions. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2007.
Durkheim, Emile. The Elementary Forms of Religious Life. New York: The Free Press, 1995.
Eliade, Mircea. The Sacred and the Profane: The Nature of Religion. New York: Harper Torchbooks, 1961.
Fatem, Sepus M., San A. Awang, Satyawan Pudyatmoko, Muhammad A. K. Sahide, Andita A. Pratama, and Ahmad Maryudi. “Camouflaging Economic Development Agendas with Forest Conservation Narratives: A Strategy of Lower Governments for Gaining Authority in the Recentralising Indonesia.” Land Use Policy, no. 78 (2018): 699–710.
Fisher, Micah R., Timothy Workman, Agus Mulyana, Balang Institute, Moira Moeliono, E. Linda Yuliani, Carol J. Pierce Colfer, and Urban El Fatih Bani Adam. “Striving for PAR Excellence in Land Use Planning: Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration on Customary Forest Recognition in Bulukumba, South Sulawesi.” Land Use Policy, no. 99 (2020): 1–7.
Galloway, Greta, Pat Wilkinson, and Gavin Bissel. “Empty Space or Sacred Place? Place and Belief in Social Work Training.” Journal of Practice Teaching & Learning 8, no. 3 (2012): 28–47.
Geertz, Clifford. The Interpretation of Cultures: Selected Essays. New York: Basic Books, 1973.
Holilah, Mina. “Kearifan Ekologis Budaya Lokal Masyarakat Adat Cigugur Sebagai Sumber Belajar IPS.” Jurnal Pendidikan Ilmu Sosial 24, no. 2 (2015): 163–178.
Indratno, I., I. H. Agustina, C. Chamid, A. M. Siddik, and S. H. Kuntoro. “The Persistence of Settlement Space of AKUR Customary Community in Cigugur, West Java, Indonesia.” IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 447, no. 1 (2020): 012053.
Jundiani. “Local Wisdom in the Environmental Protection and Management`.” IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 175 (2018): 012130.
von Kaufmann, K. H. “The Enemy of Nature: The End of Capitalism or The End of The World (Book Review).” Future, no. 36 (2004): 385–387.
Keller, Mary L. “Indigenous Studies and “the Sacred".” American Indian Quarterly 38, no. 1 (2014): 82–109.
Maarif, Samsul. “Dimensions of Religious Practice The Ammatoans of Sulawesi, Indonesia.” Arizona State University, 2012.
———. “Indigenous Religion Paradigm: Re-Interpreting Religious Practices of Indigenous People.” Studies in Philosophy 44 (2019): 103–121.
Mallarach, Joseph-Maria, and Thymio Papayannis, eds. Protected Areas and Spirituality (Proceedings of the First Workshop of The Delos Initiative). Montserrat: Publicacions de l’Abadia, 2007.
Murniputri, Margaretha S. “Implementasi Perlindungan Hukum Terhadap Leuweung Leutik Sebagai Hutan Adat Sunda Wiwitan Cigugur Oleh Pemerintahan Daerah Kabupaten Kuningan.” Universitas Katolik Parahyangan, 2018.
Muttaqien, Ahmad. “Spiritualitas Agama Lokal: Studi Ajaran Sunda Wiwitan Aliran Madrais Di Cigugur Kuningan Jawa Barat.” Al-Adyan: Jurnal Studi Lintas Agama 8, no. 1 (2013): 89–102.
Myers, Rodd, Dian Intarini, Martua Thomas Sirait, and Ahmad Maryudi. “Claiming the Forest: Inclusions and Exclusions under Indonesia’s ‘New’ Forest Policies on Customary Forests.” Land Use Policy, no. 66 (2017): 205–213.
Neuman, Lawrence W. Social Research Methods: Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches. Boston: Pearson, 2006.
Northcott, Michael S. Place, Ecology and The Sacred. London: Bloomsbury, 2015.
Pals, Daniel L. Eight Theories of Religion. New York: Oxford University Press Inc., 2006.
———. Seven Theories of Religion. New York: Oxford University Press Inc., 1996.
Santika, Truly, Erik Meijaard, Sugeng Budiharta, Elizabeth A. Law, Ahmad Kusworo, Joseph A. Hutabarat, Tito P. Indrawan, et al. “Community Forest Management in Indonesia: Avoided Deforestation in the Context of Anthropogenic and Climate Complexities.” Global Environmental Change, no. 46 (2017): 60–71.
Smith, Jonathan Z. Map Is Not Territory: Studies in the History of Religions. Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 1978.
Tuck-Po, Lye. “The Meanings of Trees: Forest and Identity for the Batek of Pahang, Malaysia.” The Asia Pacific Journal of Anthropology 6, no. 3 (2005): 249–261.
Interview
Dewi Kanti, October 2, 2021.