HIDUP UNTUK MEWAHNYA KEMATIAN: HEGEMONI RITUAL RAMBU SOLO DI TORAJA

RIVI HANDAYANI, Prof. Dr. Heddy Shri Ahimsa-Putra; Dr. Christian Budiman

2021 | Disertasi | DOKTOR KAJIAN BUDAYA DAN MEDIA

Ritual Rambu Solo merupakan ritual pemakaman yang wajib diselenggarakan oleh orang Toraja. Meskipun mayoritas orang Toraja memeluk agama Kristen, namun ritual Rambu Solo yang bersumber dari agama Aluk todolo ini tetap diselenggarakan secara sukarela tanpa pertanyaan. Keseluruhan aturan dan mekanisme ritual dikendalilan oleh elite aristokrat melalui Lembaga Adat yang pada dasarnya telah kehilangan kekuasaannya akibat perubahan politik, sosial dan agama yang terus-menerus terjadi di Toraja. Melihat dedikasi orang Toraja terhadap ritual Rambu Solo, penelitian ini mengasumsikan bahwa ritual Rambu Solo adalah sebuah ritual yang hegemonik. Disamping itu, otoritas elite aristokrat dan meleburnya ritual bernuansa pagan ini ke dalam Kekristenan menunjukkan adanya perjuangan sadar dan terencana dalam mengorganisir praktik ritual Rambu Solo. Penelitian ini menggunakan teori hegemoni Antonio Gramsci untuk menunjukkan hubungan antara budaya, politik, dan perlawanan. Selain itu, teori mediatisasi juga digunakan untuk menjelaskan tentang kelanjutan hegemoni ritual Rambu Solo yang dipraktikkan oleh generasi baru Toraja dalam ruang digital. Secara spesifik, penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengeksplorasi tentang; bagaimana proses hegemoni ritual Rambu Solo dan konteks sejarah yang melatarbelakangi terbentuknya ideologi ritual Rambu Solo yang hegemonik; bagaimana implikasi hegemoni terhadap ritual Rambu Solo dan kehidupan orang Toraja; dan bagaimana bentuk-bentuk hegemoni tanding orang Toraja dalam melawan ideologi ritual Rambu Solo yang hegemonik. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode etnografi sebagai upaya mengungkap fakta-fakta praktik ritual Rambu Solo di Toraja. Data diperoleh melalui observasi, wawancara dan studi pustaka. Observasi tidak hanya dilakukan dengan mengamati tetapi juga turut terlibat dalam proses pelaksanaan ritual Rambu Solo. Wawancara dilakukan untuk mendapatkan data primer dan dilakukan secara terstruktur dan tidak terstruktur sehingga informan berkesempatan mengungkapkan pikiran, pandangan, dan perasaan secara natural. Sedangkan studi pustaka dilakukan untuk mempelajari sumber-sumber yang relevan dengan penelitian ini. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan antara lain; pertama, hegemoni ritual Rambu Solo diorganisir oleh kelompok-kelompok dominan di Toraja yang terdiri dari elite aristokrat, elite modern dan institusi Gereja Toraja yang berperan sebagai agen hegemoni dalam aliansi kepentingan yang sama. Kedua, praktik ritual Rambu Solo berimplikasi pada kemunculan kontestasi antar-kelas untuk mempertahankan status sosial dan prestise. Lebih jauh, generasi baru Toraja mengambil-alih penyebaran ideologi ritual Rambu Solo dalam ruang digital sebagai upaya untuk menarasikan ulang makna-makna ideologis ritual ini. Ketiga, ketika elite aristokrat dan sekutunya telah memenangkan konsensus kolektif orang Toraja, Gereja Pantekosta bertindak sebagai hegemoni tanding melalui reformasi intelektual dan moral dari kalangan bangsawan dengan menjadikan mereka sebagai pendeta seraya melihat bahwa ritual Rambu Solo merupakan kekerasan budaya dan pemiskinan terstruktur serta merupakan bentuk penistaan pada ajaran dan nilai-nilai Kristiani. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode etnografi sebagai upaya mengungkap fakta-fakta praktik ritual Rambu Solo di Toraja. Data diperoleh melalui observasi, wawancara dan studi pustaka. Observasi tidak hanya dilakukan dengan mengamati tetapi juga turut terlibat dalam proses pelaksanaan ritual Rambu Solo. Wawancara dilakukan untuk mendapatkan data primer dan dilakukan secara terstruktur dan tidak terstruktur sehingga informan berkesempatan mengungkapkan pikiran, pandangan, dan perasaan secara natural. Sedangkan studi pustaka dilakukan untuk mempelajari sumber-sumber yang relevan dengan penelitian ini. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan antara lain; pertama, hegemoni ritual Rambu Solo diorganisir oleh kelompok-kelompok dominan di Toraja yang terdiri dari elite aristokrat, elite modern dan institusi Gereja Toraja yang berperan sebagai agen hegemoni dalam aliansi kepentingan yang sama. Kedua, praktik ritual Rambu Solo berimplikasi pada kemunculan kontestasi antar-kelas untuk mempertahankan status sosial dan prestise. Lebih jauh, generasi baru Toraja mengambil-alih penyebaran ideologi ritual Rambu Solo dalam ruang digital sebagai upaya untuk menarasikan ulang makna-makna ideologis ritual ini. Ketiga, ketika elite aristokrat dan sekutunya telah memenangkan konsensus kolektif orang Toraja, Gereja Pantekosta bertindak sebagai hegemoni tanding melalui reformasi intelektual dan moral dari kalangan bangsawan dengan menjadikan mereka sebagai pendeta seraya melihat bahwa ritual Rambu Solo merupakan kekerasan budaya dan pemiskinan terstruktur serta merupakan bentuk penistaan pada ajaran dan nilai-nilai Kristiani.

Rambu Solo is a funeral ritual that must be conducted by the Torajanese. Although the majority of Torajanese are Christian, the Rambu Solo ritual, which is rooted in the Aluk todolo religion, is still conducted voluntarily without question. The whole rules and ritual mechanisms are controlled by the aristocratic elites through the Customary Institution, which has basically lost its power due to the political, social, and religious changes that are constantly occurring in Toraja. The extraordinary dedication of the Torajanese to the Rambu Solo ritual leads to the assumption that the Rambu Solo ritual is hegemonic. Besides, the authority of the aristocratic elites and the incorporation of this pagan ritual into Christianity indicates a conscious and planned struggle in organizing the ritual practice of Rambu Solo. This study uses hegemony theory of Antonio Gramsci to show the relationship between culture, politics, and resistance. Also, the theory of mediatization is used to explain the continuation of the hegemony of the Rambu Solo ritual that is carried out by the new generation of Torajanese in the digital space. This study aims to explore about; how is the hegemonic process of the Rambu Solo ritual and the historical context behind the formation of the ideology of Rambu Solo ritual that is hegemonic; what are the implications of hegemony on the Rambu Solo ritual and the life of the Torajanese; and how the forms of counter-hegemony the Torajanese against the ideology of Rambu Solo ritual that is hegemonic. This study uses ethnographic methods as an effort to reveal the facts in the Rambu Solo ritual in Toraja. Data were collected through observation, interviews, and literature study. Observation is not only done by observing but also being involved in the process of the Rambu Solo ritual. Interviews were conducted to obtain primary data and were conducted in both structured and unstructured manner so that informants had the opportunity to naturally express their thoughts, views, and feelings. Meanwhile, a literature study is carried out to deepen understanding through relevant sources. The results of this study reveal several important things, among others; firstly, the Rambu Solo ritual hegemony is organized by dominant groups in Toraja consisting of the aristocratic elites, the modern elite, and the Toraja Church institutions which act as hegemonic agents in an alliance with common interests. Second, the practice of the Rambu Solo ritual has implied the emergence of class contestation to maintain social status and prestige. Furthermore, the new Torajan generation has taken over the spread of the ideology of Rambu Solo ritual in the digital space as a narrative of the ideological meanings of the ritual. Third, when the aristocratic elites and their allies gained the collective consensus of the Torajanese, the Pentecostal Church acted as a counter-hegemony through intellectual and moral reforms of the noble by making them priests while assumed that the Rambu Solo ritual as cultural violence and structured impoverishment and was an insult to Christian teachings and values. This study aims to explore about; how is the hegemonic process of the Rambu Solo ritual and the historical context behind the formation of the ideology of Rambu Solo ritual that is hegemonic; what are the implications of hegemony on the Rambu Solo ritual and the life of the Torajanese; and how the forms of counter-hegemony the Torajanese against the ideology of Rambu Solo ritual that is hegemonic. This study uses ethnographic methods as an effort to reveal the facts in the Rambu Solo ritual in Toraja. Data were collected through observation, interviews, and literature study. Observation is not only done by observing but also being involved in the process of the Rambu Solo ritual. Interviews were conducted to obtain primary data and were conducted in both structured and unstructured manner so that informants had the opportunity to naturally express their thoughts, views, and feelings. Meanwhile, a literature study is carried out to deepen understanding through relevant sources. The results of this study reveal several important things, among others; firstly, the Rambu Solo ritual hegemony is organized by dominant groups in Toraja consisting of the aristocratic elites, the modern elite, and the Toraja Church institutions which act as hegemonic agents in an alliance with common interests. Second, the practice of the Rambu Solo ritual has implied the emergence of class contestation to maintain social status and prestige. Furthermore, the new Torajan generation has taken over the spread of the ideology of Rambu Solo ritual in the digital space as a narrative of the ideological meanings of the ritual. Third, when the aristocratic elites and their allies gained the collective consensus of the Torajanese, the Pentecostal Church acted as a counter-hegemony through intellectual and moral reforms of the noble by making them priests while assumed that the Rambu Solo ritual as cultural violence and structured impoverishment and was an insult to Christian teachings and values This study aims to explore about; how is the hegemonic process of the Rambu Solo ritual and the historical context behind the formation of the ideology of Rambu Solo ritual that is hegemonic; what are the implications of hegemony on the Rambu Solo ritual and the life of the Torajanese; and how the forms of counter-hegemony the Torajanese against the ideology of Rambu Solo ritual that is hegemonic. This study uses ethnographic methods as an effort to reveal the facts in the Rambu Solo ritual in Toraja. Data were collected through observation, interviews, and literature study. Observation is not only done by observing but also being involved in the process of the Rambu Solo ritual. Interviews were conducted to obtain primary data and were conducted in both structured and unstructured manner so that informants had the opportunity to naturally express their thoughts, views, and feelings. Meanwhile, a literature study is carried out to deepen understanding through relevant sources. The results of this study reveal several important things, among others; firstly, the Rambu Solo ritual hegemony is organized by dominant groups in Toraja consisting of the aristocratic elites, the modern elite, and the Toraja Church institutions which act as hegemonic agents in an alliance with common interests. Second, the practice of the Rambu Solo ritual has implied the emergence of class contestation to maintain social status and prestige. Furthermore, the new Torajan generation has taken over the spread of the ideology of Rambu Solo ritual in the digital space as a narrative of the ideological meanings of the ritual. Third, when the aristocratic elites and their allies gained the collective consensus of the Torajanese, the Pentecostal Church acted as a counter-hegemony through intellectual and moral reforms of the noble by making them priests while assumed that the Rambu Solo ritual as cultural violence and structured impoverishment and was an insult to Christian teachings and values.

Kata Kunci : Aluk todolo, Rambu Solo, Toraja, hegemoni, mediatisasi