Pemali tradition: an expression of local wisdom at East Kalimantan

Abstract

The problem of communication among different cultures is an emerging thing nowadays. Pemali tradition as local wisdom is one of the communication ways to communicate culture in society. This article qualitatively describes local wisdom expressed in the pemali (taboo) tradition of Indonesian people by observing three qualitative variables of pemali namely objectives, function, and domain of use of pemali. The data of the research were the pemali texts containing a set of prohibition-and-consequence statement collected from the research informants representing twelve different ethnic groups living in East Kalimantan Province of Indonesia. The data were collected by using ethnographic interview and observation method and were further analyzed by applying hermeneutic method. Results of data analysis indicated that the local wisdom expressed in pemali, representing indigenous culture of the archipelago people, was identifiable within the objectives, function, and domain of use of pemali. With regard to objectives, the local wisdom was expressed in the four objectives of pemali i.e. safety, health, prosperity, and marriage mate. In terms of function, the local wisdom was expressed in two functions of pemali i.e. education including the teachings of values, character building, moral, and ethics on the one hand; and norm/conventions including social norms, and code of conduct on the other hand. With regard to domain of use of pemali, local wisdom was expressed in three domains of use each of which represented the three-dimensional-relation in human life that can guarantee the life balance and happiness i.e. relation between human and human, human and nature, and human and God, the creator of life and nature.