Lessons of the Ancestors

297 Pages·2008·5.41 MB·English

by  Enoch Root

Lessons of the Ancestors
Ritual, Education and the Ecology of Mind in an
Indonesian Community

David J. Butterworth

Submitted in total fulfilment of the requiregree of Doctor of Philosophy
Submitted in total fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of
Philosophy

April 2008

Faculty of Arts

The University of Melbourne
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Abstract

This thesis is an ethnography of the indigenous religion, education system and social
organization of the community living in the central mountains of Sikka Regency on the
island of Flores in Indonesia. The question that has motivated my research is ‘how are the
ideas and practices of this community’s indigenous cosmology taught and learned so to
persist with continuity through generations?’ In answer I explore the ways in which
cosmological ideas and practices are taught to be valued as truth as they are embodied
during the practical activity of ritual. This study advances a performative theory of ritual
education through a combination of Gregory Bateson’s theory of the ecology of mind and
Roy Rappaport’s theory of ritual and sanctification.
I begin with a critical examination of the representations of the community in question
that have been made by scholars and neighboring populations. I argue that these
representations wrongly imply a static and bounded community. Instead, I contend that the
community is constituted by dynamic village and clan relationships anchored on
sentimental and structural forms of individual belonging to particular villages and clans.
This belonging is principally developed through individuals’ adherence to the indigenous
cosmology, locally called Adat. I continue by discussing the educational methods by
which this cosmology is perpetuated. Ritual language lessons concerning education insist
that from an early age community members participate fully in daily religious life
(particularly in the practice of ritual) under the guidance of close family. I then describe
the learning environments found in childhood, marriage and mortuary rites. Following
Bateson, I argue that during ritual contexts participants ‘deutero-learn’ embodied skills
that are patterned by previous experiences, and generate the future conditions, of these
same ritual contexts.
In addition to traditional educational settings, the Adat cosmology is now taught in
Indonesian primary and high schools in ‘local content curriculum’ classes. I compare
Adat education based on participation in ritual with that of modern schools, and I argue
that in the classroom the indigenous cosmology is abstracted from its performative
underpinnings. Adat is embodied differently in ritual and school contexts, and the tensions
caused by these differences lead to transformations in Adat knowledge. I end this thesis by
contextualizing my findings with national discourses of indigeneity and intercultural
education.

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Declaration

This is to certify that

(i) the thesis comprises only my original work towards the PhD,
(ii) due acknowledgement has been made in the text to all other material used,
(iii) the thesis is less than 100, 000 words in length, exclusive of tables, maps,
bibliographies and appendices.

David J. Butterworth

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Acknowledgements

First, I thank the people of the central mountains of Sikka Regency on the island of Flores,
particularly those from desa Rubit, Baomekot and Wolomotong. They gave me their
hospitality, kindness and patience during my fieldwork. Those individuals who were of
primary assistance to my research are mentioned in the main text of the thesis. Any
inaccuracies in description and inadequacies in the translation of ritual language are my
responsibility.
I owe special thanks to the people of Romanduru, with whom I shared a village, and to
whom I will always be grateful. Extra-special thanks go to the family who welcomed me
into their home, sheltered, fed and kept watch over me with care and wisdom. They are;
Mo’an Nikolaus Roja, Du’a Teresia Tupat, Mo’an Firminius Lawe and Du’a Berna
Borong, Mo’an Fernandes Don Dalo and Du’a Maria Marice Sidok (and their children
Marlina, Paskalis, and Edwin), and the wonderful sisters Siska, Henderika, Bergita, Maria
Mathilde and Apolonia. Epan gawan golo!
My principal supervisor, E. Douglas Lewis, and my co-supervisor, Andrew
McWilliam, have been exemplary in their professional and personal support. I offer
special thanks to Peter Dwyer for his generous assistance. I also thank James Fox,
Chandra Jayasuriya, Thomas Reuter and Michael Vischer for their contributions.
I thank Mimi from Yogyakarta for her gracious insights into the history of education
on Flores. I also thank Rinto from Romanduru for his enthusiastic help with some
translation work. My former ANU colleagues Gregorius Neonbasu, Lintje Pellu, Wahidah
Siregar and Philipus Tule were the first to introduce me to the best of Indonesia. Ubed
Abdillah, Michelle Carnegie, Dom and Beth Elsom, Julian Lee, Stephan Lorenzen and
family, Cassandra Mertono, Bernard Ouellet, Michael Schmidt, Hersumpana
Siswasudarma, and Stephen and Bridget Walson are my friends and colleagues who were
involved in various ways in the completion of this project.
My stay in Sikka was sponsored by Candraditya Research Centre for the Study of
Religion and Culture. I deeply appreciate the support of all the staff, particularly that given
by Eman Embu and John Prior. I also acknowledge the Indonesian Institute of Sciences
(LIPI).

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I started this project at the Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies (ANU) and
finished it at the School of Social and Environmental Enquiry (UM). I thank the staff at
both universities for their assistance. I have benefited financially at various times from an
Australian Postgraduate Award, an Australian National University PhD Scholarship, a
Melbourne University SAGES fieldwork grant, and the Australian Research Council
Discovery Project ‘Oral Tradition, Literacy and Education in Two Eastern Indonesian
Societies.’
Finally, I thank my family for always giving me their unconditional support.

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Contents

Title Page i
Abstract iii
Declaration v
Acknowledgements vii
List of Illustrations xi
Chapter 1 A Lost Tradition? 1
1. Introduction 1
2. Theoretical Orientation 4
3. Benefits and Limits of the Study 12
4. Location and Methodology 17
5. Summary of Chapters 21
Chapter 2 The Adat Community 25
1. Introduction 25
2. Place and People 27
3. The Invented Community 30
4. The Lived Community 35
5. Networks of Alliance 41
6. Conclusion 52
Chapter 3 Participation, Family and Adat Education 57
1. Introduction 57
2. Indigenous Religious Education in Eastern Indonesia 59
3. Words of the Ancestors 62
4. Language and Action 66
5. Adat Pedagogy and Family Responsibility 69
6. Expert Practice 74
7. Conclusion 79
Chapter 4 True Messages in Childhood Rituals 83
1. Introduction 83
2. Sanctified Contexts and Information in Religious Ritual 84
3. Adat Ritual and Ultimate Sacred Postulates 91
4. Growing up with Adat 97
5. Lessons about Childhood Development in Two Rituals 100
6. Conclusion 105

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Chapter 5 Gifts of Blood and Ivory 109
1. Introduction 109
2. Learning Experiences During Ritual 111
3. Marriage and its Meaning in the Adat Community 116
4. The Value of Exchange Goods 122
5. Moments of Exchange 131
6. Conclusion 138
Chapter 6 Who Learns What From Mortuary Rituals? 141
1. Introduction 141
2. The Continuation of Life after Death 143
3. Ritual Roles 150
4. Ritual Boundaries 160
5. Conclusion 167
Chapter 7 Mastery of Ritual Language and Procedure 169
1. Introduction 169
2. Elaboration and Innovation in Ritual Language Learning 171
3. Uncertainty, Novelty and Discussion in Ritual Procedure Learning 182
4. Conclusion 188
Chapter 8 Landscape, Creation and the Obligation to Sacrifice 191
1. Introduction 191
2. The Deity and Universe 194
3. The Sanctified Landscape 201
4. Conclusion 209
Chapter 9 Sacred Classrooms 213
1. Introduction 213
2. Local Content Curriculum 215
3. Catholicism, Nationalism, and Schools in Sikka Regency 219
4. Bringing Adat into the Classroom 225
5. Conclusion 233
Chapter 10 Adat and Intercultural Education Throughout Indonesia 237
1. Reflections on the Ecology of Mind of the Adat Community 237
2. Indigenous Customs and State Religions 241
3. National Representation and Intercultural Education 245
4. Conclusion 250

References 253
Appendix 277

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