DAYAK LAWANGAN BALIAN BAWO
IN CENTRAL DUSUN, EAST BARITO, CENTRAL KALIMANTAN

Ervanta Restulita Liber Sigai
Anak Agung Ngurah Anom Kumbara

I Wayan Cika

I Gusti Ketut Gde Arsana
State Institute of Hindu Tampung Penyang, Palangkaraya

email: restulita@gmail.com
ABSTRACT

Globalization with all its implications has affected the life of Dayak Lawangan living in Central Dusun. Modernization has caused balian bawo to be getting scarce. The number of the speakers of balian bawo is decreasing, and it seems that no young generation is interested in it, although its existence still functions in various aspects of the Dayak Lawangan community’s life. In addition, the young generation is less interested in becoming balian bawo. This will affect the process of the regeneration of balian bawo.

The result of the present study shows that the practice of balian waho is obtained through the myth and process of becoming balian bawo. This causes balian bawo to be the central position in the practice of balian bawo ritual. Balian waho plays an important role in the healing and purifying processes. It functions to prevent both manifest and latent misfortunes. It is the socio-cultural supporting life regulation for Dayak Lawangan. It is made up of religiosity, culture conservation, social life, and aesthetics. The formal education, the discontinuity of the internationalization process in families, the low income earned by those who work as balian bawo, their risky responsibility, the spiritual and physical abilities they need, and their religious and psychological ideologies have caused those who are interested in becoming balian bawo to decrease. The impacts are that the dimensions of time and magic formula as part of the ritual practice will change. In addition, the ideological struggle for the ritual practice of balian bawo, and the change in the population of balian waho will also result from the scarcity of the population of balian waho. As well, the social and solidarity ties will be getting weaker and the funds needed for the ritual will be high enough.
Keywords: balian bawo, Dayak Lawangan ethnic group, and balian bawo ritual.
INTRODUCTION


According to Giddens (2003: 67), globalization carries the principle of modern culture which is responsible for the social problems in the human life. This threats the local culture; even it will damage the local culture and cause it to become extinct (Strey in Alkausar, 2011: 54).

At the moment less and less young people who are interested in becoming the speakers of balian bawo. Based on the information which was obtained through an interview, from 1980 to 1990 there were twelve balian bawos; from 1991 to 2008 there were eight balian bawos; from 2009 to 2010 there were five and from 2011 to now there are five, two of whom are old and physically weak; the other three are still healthy. 


Malinowski (1939: 938) stated that every cultural element was functional to life, and that if it was not functional, such a culture would become extinct. However, the fact shows that the reality of balian waho in Central Dusun is slightly different. The number of people who are interested in becoming balian waho is decreasing, although it still functions in every aspect of life in the Dayak Lawangan community. On the other hand, as far as the young people of the Dayak Lawangan community in Central Dusun are concerned, they are permissive to what has been inherited from their ancestors; even they are less interested in becoming balian bawo. 

The oral tradition, as the point of departure in this present study, is an attempt made to revitalize, develop, and make use of it. Balian waho, as a form of culture, needs to be avoided from becoming extinct for the sake of the sustainability of the tradition of the Dayak Lawangan ethnical community. 

RESEARCH METHOD


This present study is a qualitative study with the paradigm of cultural studies. The data were collected through observation, interview, and documentary study. The data were analyzed through data reduction, data presentation, and conclusion drawing (Huberman and Miles, 2009: 592).

DISCUSSION


The practice of balian bawo is a whole institution of the Dayak Lawangan community. It contains religious value, cultural value, and social value which are used by those who support it, and guidance to taking actions, behaving and strengthening their self identity. The practice of balian waho is performed when the Dayak Lawangan community will undergo a life crisis. 

As legitimacy, the practice of balian bawo is based on the myths of Kilip and Nalau. The learning process of becoming balian bawo includes what are referred to as ngawit nginte, sampan mayang, and jong banawa. The learning process needs from five to 10 years. Learning from the balian tuha is the learning method.  The knowledge of practice is also stated in the physical symbols. The physical characteristics constitute the symbols which clarify the meaning of “kewahyuan” (the extraordinary strength and talented ability). Such physical symbols can be found on the chest, hands, feet, and mouth. A degree is provided to a balian bawo which strengthens his ability as the mediator between the microcosmos and macrocosmos. 

The practice of balian baho keeps the Dayak Lawangan community’s life and the universe and Jo’us Tuha Allah Tala balanced. He has the authority to connect the macrocosmos and microcosmos. The rituals which are performed by the healing balian waho are balian palas bidan, balian ngasih ngado pengantin, balian nyapu ipar, balian ngansak, and balian mantan low.

The balian bawo is the central agent in the ritual practice performed by the Dayak Lawangan community. Therefore, he inspires the Dayak Lawangan community to be faithful to and believe in the meaning he produces. Such symbolic strength is not attained as he likes; instead, it is formed from the authority he has which is attained through the personal capacity. It is this which is referred to as the symbolic capital. The symbolic power as the “magical strength” is used to make the Dayak Lawangan community to be faithful through the mobilization of how things are symbolized (Fashri, 2014: 122-123). 

In practice, balian bawo plays a very important and dominant role in the Dayak Lawangan community especially in the healing and purification aspects; he functions to ward off the manifest misfortune, and avoid the latent misfortune. From the socio-cultural aspect, he also functions to maintain religiosity, conserve the socio-culture and aesthetics. 

The Dayak Lawangan community is dependent on balian bawo in regard to the performance of their binding obligations in the system of the life cycle of the Dayak Lawangan ethnic people. Furthermore, Rigoli stated that “power is an actor’s ability to induce or influence actor to carry out his directives or any other norms that he supports” (1974: 158). 


The balian bawo ritual is a cultural product which was constructed in the past. Such a construction was derived from individual positions which had the power over the knowledge of balian waho. However, the change in era affects the continuity of a tradition. The practice of balian bawo ritual will still exist if it is supported by the cultural transmission and the people who support it. Balian bawo is absolutely needed to be inherited as a repetition, reproduction, or the continuity of the past to the present (Pudentia 1998). The scarcity of balian baho has affected the dimensions of the ideological superstructure, the social structure, and the material infrastructure. In addition, it has also affected the dimension of time, magic formula as well as the population of balian bawo. Many agree and the others disagree with the practice of balian bawo; the globalized ideology is accepted, the social and solidarity ties are becoming weaker, and the ritual is getting more costly. 

The regeneration process is a dialectical process among balian bawo, the young generation, and the Dayak Lawangan community. It is recognized that the impact of the globalization current is strong in a high tension. There is no effective communication between the young generation and the old generation, causing the traditional ties to be getting weaker and the socio culture to be uncontrolled. The formal education give the knowledge of intellectuality and rationality, causing the young people not to recognize that they are the heirs of the tradition. In addition, there has been a discontinuity of the internationalization process in families. The material and consumptive world has affected the young people; balian bawo has not been an interesting profession any longer as it does not promise anything for a better life; the income earned is low; working as a balian bawo means having a lot of responsibilities; he should have a high commitment; he should be ready to receive the traditional sanction possibly imposed on him; he may not do what he likes; he is required to have both spiritual and physical ability; religious and psychological conversions, as a minority,  cannot be avoided in the religious pluralism. They are the factors which have been responsible for the scarcity of balian bawo.

The practice of balian bawo contains the hidden resistance (hidden transcript) to globalization and the change in era. It reflects the traditional resistance to the power of globalization. The theological ideology is the encounter of balian bawo to resist globalization. 
CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION


It can be concluded that the ritual practice of balian bawo is the guidance which is oriented towards the Dayak Lawangan community’s life. It has been inherited from generation to generation and has been a cultural reconstruction of the faith which the Dayak Lawangan people adhere to. The practice of balian bawo has taken place through the mythological process, causing it to have the central position. In practice, the generative power of balian baho is highly important and dominant to the Dayak Lawangan community in the healing and purification (memelas) aspects, functioning to ward off both manifest and latent misfortunes. Such roles give legitimacy, authority, and power of knowledge over the Dayak Lawangan community. The implication that the population of balian bawo is getting scarce cannot be avoided by the Dayak Lawangan community. Such an implication has touched the ideological superstructure dimension, the social structure, and the material infrastructure, meaning that such an implication has also changed the dimensions of time and magic formula, the population of balian bawo, the ideological struggle for the ritual practice of balian bawo; the social and solidarity ties are getting weaker, and the ritual is getting more costly. 

It is suggested that (1) the traditional leaders, the community leaders, the balian bawo, and the intellectuals that they should sit together to formulate the inheriting strategies which will be implemented to conserve balian bawo, (2) the local government should actively make attempts to conserve and support balian bawo through regional regulations, (3) the Dayak Lawangan community should conserve and transmit the tradition of balian bawo intensively in families, (4) the academicians should further conduct comprehensive research.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

In this opportunity, the writer would like to thank Prof. AA Ngurah Anom Kumbara, M.A. as the supervisor, Prof. Dr. I Wayan Cika, M.S. as co-supervisor I, and Dr. I Gusti Ketut Gde Arsana, M.Si. as co-supervisor II for their supervisions, directions, and suggestions during the completion of this study. Thanks are also expressed to the e-journal of cultural studies, Doctorate Program of Cultural Studies of Udayana University for the space and opportunity prepared to publish this article. A word of appreciation should also go to all the parties for the assistance provided to the writer during the completion of the study. 
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Rigoli, Robert Michael. 1974. “The Conception of Power: Reconsidered”, Kansas Journal of Sociology, Volume 10, No. 2. p. 157-169.
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