“Seeking Allataala in Everyday Life”: Understanding Queer Spiritual Space of Bissu Community in Indonesia (original) (raw)
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Jurnal Paradigma, 2020
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Tropical Indigenous Queer as Guardians of Tradition: The Bissu of Bugis Society, Indonesia Authors
eTropic: electronic journal of studies in the Tropics, 2024
Bissu means neither a man nor a woman, but a holy person representing all genders. The Bissu are unique to the Bugis society of South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Traditional Bugis culture, as told in the ancient La Galigo epic, acknowledges five genders: uruwane (male), makkunrai (female), calabai (male who has female traits), calalai (female who has male traits), and Bissu (all genders). The Bissu have sacred roles in Bugis society. At the royal level, they bridge the relationship between God and king. They are the priestly protectors of the royal heirlooms, without which the kingBissu perform the mappalili ritual as part of rice cultivation. This shamanic ritual, performed during the tropical monsoon season, is to ensure a bountiful harvest. However, the Bissu, and their sacred roles, have faced challenges in modern Indonesia, especially during waves of conservative Islamism. In recent times, Bissu have also received condemnation under the label of LGBTQ. Such actions, although deadly serious, have not had a lasting impact at the local level where the Bissu continue to preserve Bugis culture and traditions. Thus, while LGBTQ groups across Indonesia fight for their rights for social acceptance through legal and political advocacy; the Bissu of Sulawesi, fight for their cultural role as guardians of Indigenous Bugis traditions, highlighting their identity a "the fifth gender". This cultural strategy contributes to practices of queering the tropics.
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The presence of Islam in the Bugis Bone tribe not only changes people's beliefs but also traditional activities such as wedding rituals, mappalili (traditional ceremonies before planting rice), guarding arajang (heirlooms). The positions of Bissu, who is an indigenous leader, are very influential in the Bugis Bone community, but nowadays, its existence is discredited by the presence of Islamic hegemony. This research focuses on the transformation of the perseverance of Bissu in the leadership of traditional rituals in the Bugis Bone Tribe, before and after interacting with Islamic religious values. This study uses a descriptive method that describes the social conditions in the life of Bissu, by observation and interview techniques to the Bissu, Muslim leaders, and cultural actor. This study found the fact that the existence of Islam had a dominant influence on the social status of Bissu, which resulted in their role as leaders of traditional rituals being less respected by the ...
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