Presentation Schedule
Ritual Foodways and Ecological Spirituality: Culinary Ethics, Hydrological Cosmology, and Sustainability in Javanese Mountain Communities (107361)
Session Chair: Brian Robert Sinclair
Tuesday, 12 May 2026 12:15
Session: Session 2
Room: Room G407 (4F)
Presentation Type: Oral Presentation
This research explores local wisdom and ritual traditions of the community in the Mount Arjuno area, East Java, Indonesia, with a special focus on culinary dimensions and diets as a manifestation of the harmonization of humans, nature, and spirituality. Using an ethnographic approach, data was collected through participant observation, in-depth interviews with key informants, and analysis of ritual documentation. This study examines four main rituals: Kirim Dungo once a week, Bekti Danyang done once a month, Ruwatan Sumber once a year, and Earth Alms once every two years. The findings suggest that the food in these rituals serves not only as biological nutrition, but also as a spiritual medium, marker of collective identity, symbolic language, and expression of ecological ethics. The use of sacred sego, plantains, cumin flowers, three types of fish (sea, brackish, fresh), and tumpeng reflect a deep understanding of the unity of the hydrological system and the agrarian cycle. The "makeshift principle" in kirim dungo shows egalitarian ethics, while feasting strengthens social solidarity through the practice of sharing food. Islamic syncretism and local Javanese traditions are seen in the use of the concept of "alms" which is expanded to include reciprocity with nature. In the context of the challenges of food security, environmental degradation, and erosion of social cohesion, the traditional culinary wisdom of the Javanese mountainous people offers an alternative model that is holistic, sustainable, and communal.
Authors:
Achmad Anwar Abidin, Universitas Terbuka, Indonesia
About the Presenter(s)
Dr Achmad Anwar Abidin, is a lecturer and researcher in Universitas Terbuka, Indonesia
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