Eksistensi Balian Bawo dan Tindakan Sosial Keagamaan Masyarakat Hindu Kaharingan di Kabupaten Barito Timur

Abstract

The religious ritual practices of the Kaharingan Hindu community are inseparable from the role of Balian Bawo as spiritual religious practitioners. However, the continuity of Balian Bawo currently faces significant challenges due to the limited interest among younger generations in learning and assuming this role. This study aims to analyze the existence of Balian Bawo and the social actions of the Kaharingan Hindu community in maintaining religious rituals in Dusun Tengah District, East Barito Regency. Previous studies on Balian Bawo have primarily examined regeneration, traditional healing, or artistic aspects separately, whereas the present study focuses on the perspectives of existence and social action to understand the sustainability of Balian Bawo within community life. This study employed a descriptive qualitative approach, with data collected through observation, in-depth interviews, and documentation. The collected data were analyzed using the interactive model of Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña, which consists of data condensation, data display, and conclusion drawing and verification. The findings indicate that the existence of Balian Bawo is determined not only by the continuity of ritual practices but also by the process of becoming a Balian, community social actions, and intergenerational knowledge transmission. At the individual level, a Balian Bawo is formed through stages of learning, ritual experience, spiritual responsibility, and social recognition. At the community level, their existence is sustained through actions oriented toward values, goals, traditions, and emotional attachment to ritual practices. The primary challenge to the sustainability of Balian Bawo lies not in the disappearance of ritual practices but in the regeneration and transmission of knowledge, which requires direct experience, mentorship from Balian Tuha, and community legitimacy. Efforts to ensure the continuity of Balian Bawo therefore require a collaborative approach through synergy among Balian Tuha, Pasraman, the Kaharingan Hindu Council, Kedamangan, families, and the broader community as spaces for transmitting values, knowledge, and ritual practices.