Nusantara：An International Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences/NIJHSS
Center for Multi-cultural Studies, National Cheng Kung University & Ainosco Press,停刊
選擇卷期
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At around the beginning of the Common Era, ancient Indian culture and religions began to spread to the regions of Southeast Asia. Due to the introduce of Islam in later times, only in some of these regions the cultural and religious characteristics from the former Indian influence have survived into the present. Bali is notably one of these regions. On this island, many customs relevant to Hindu thought are still extensively followed today. The Hinduism in Bali owes much to the Javanese influence in history, especially after the Majapahit conquest in the 14th century. In such a context, is it possible to find the Indian influence on Balinese architecture? Or in other words, has the so-called Vastu-Shastra, or the Indian theories of architecture, which is closely related to Hindu thought, ever been assimilated into Balinese architectural tradition? As we can see, the nine-square plan, on which a typical Balinese house compound is usually based, is quite similar to the grid-pattern mandalas used in Vastu-Shastra practice. Other Vastu-Shastra ideas, such as the proportion of the site, the reverence for the northeast direction, the clockwise order, etc., also have their Balinese versions. Conversely, some Balinese architectural ideas of orientation and layout seemingly can only be understood and explained according to the local topographic features of Bali, for example, mountains and the sea. The most significant idea is the spatial scheme of the so-called kaja-kelod and kangin-kaud. Kaja and kelod mean ＂toward the mountains＂ and ＂toward the sea＂ respectively; while kangin and kaud denote east and west respectively. This spatial scheme is undoubtedly the most crucial and fundamental determinant of architectural orientation and layout in Bali, which is applied to villages, houses, and other types of buildings. Such a spatial scheme appears to have nothing or little to do with the Indian Vastu-Shastra theories. Does it represent a local idea which had already been existing in Bali before the spreading of Hinduism into this island? Regarding the various Balinese architectural ideas of orientation and layout, do they represent a fusion of the already existing local ideas and the introduced ideas derived from Vastu-Shastra? Can we differentiated between the two kinds of ideas that might have been coexisting for centuries? This paper attempts to discuss and answer these questions mentioned above by comparing the architectural ideas followed in the Hindu Balinese tradition with those in the non-Hindu Bali Aga tradition as well as those in the Indian Vastu-Shastra tradition.
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Sri Lanka has been in the limelight for quite a long time due to the civil war of 1983. This forced many Sri Lankan Tamils to flee and seek refuge in different parts of their country as well as in several South-East Asian countries particularly in Singapore and Malaysia. With the end of the war in 2009, some internally displaced persons (IDP) decided to return to their homes in Jaffna. However, some that those migrated abroad, decided to integrate at their displaced locations. Although desire to return was related to high expectations, in many cases, this desire was replaced by a deep sense of disappointment due to the sociopolitical and economic changes in their hometown. Nevertheless, a few returnees experienced their new lives in their old hometown as a life-changing and enriching experience. This provided them with new opportunities and a scope for personal fulfillment. This article is based on the analysis of empirical data stemming from narrative interviews and observations with Sri Lankan Tamil women, both in Sri Lanka and Singapore. Based on this and additional material collected during fieldwork in 2013 and 2018, this paper analyzes the different cases in relation to the diverse experiences of return and integration; the various challenges, aspirations and the strategies to cope in two different countries of Sri Lanka and Singapore. The article argues that migration has brought several discernible changes to their lives in transforming their sense of belonging and cultivating a new kind of attachment towards home. It also elucidates how notions of home have changed. With an emphasis on a gendered perspective, the author aims to compare and contrast the female population have managed to find their place in a male-dominated (Sri Lankan and Singaporean) society and how their engagement with society creates new potential for social, cultural, and possibly also political change.
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This study reports how we developed and implemented both the Indonesian massive open online course (MOOC), based on the theories of cognitive linguistics and language documentation, and a general education course integrating digital technology with teaching Indonesian as a second language (ISL) in Taiwan. In addition to sharing this newly developed digital resources, we also aim to provide a preliminary evaluation of our process of curriculum development to shed some light on future directions in Indonesian L2 education in the digital age.
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Social responsibility has been a concern for Indonesian researchers and practitioners. There has been a significant amount of research on the issue among large companies, in comparison to information is found for the small medium enterprises (SMEs). This case study investigates the social responsibility of SMEs from a local-rural community perspective by exploring the traceability system along the food supply chain in the SMEs in Indonesia. The local-rural community awareness of the implementation of the traceability system recalls the echoes from the increasing level of foodborne diseases in Indonesia. The sample utilized in this study is the local emping producers in the rural area in Indonesia. Emping is the name of a local food product made in Pandeglang, Indonesia. This rural emping producer community faces several challenging factors, including operating their products in the rural community and dealing with the food safety and transparency. These are some reasons why the study of the traceability system in SMEs among the local-rural community is necessary. The conclusion of this study suggests that SMEs should implement a traceability system in terms of food safety and transparency as an ethical social responsibility.
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This article is the result of a research on radicalism in Indonesia. Radicalism is an extreme act carried out by certain people or groups. Radical movements use the potential of human resources to mobilize members, create networks, coordinate activities, and motivate people to create conflict and confrontation. The radicalism movement can be manifested in active fighting for ideals by developing and intensifying issues about politics counter-discourse or counter-domination of the state and society. Radicalism studies are needed as a first step to model responses, whether carried out by the government or community institutions. This article uses a virtual ethnographic methodology. The process is by tracing the digital footprint of religious organizations' views on radicalism, in this case, specifically the views of Nahdlatul Ulama, Muhammadiyah, and Persatuan Islam (PERSIS). The analytical approach uses rational-emotive counseling diagnosis. The results of this study are expected to contribute to the parties concerned about the model of prevention of radicalism in the counseling analysis approach.
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This paper deals with problems of Buddhism mixed with Hinduism in pre-modern Indonesia. It starts with an overview of early phase of Indian religious culture in Indonesian archipelago. Then, it explores coexistent situation of Hinduism and Buddhism in Southeast Asia. Subsequently, it goes back to India exploring the earlier phase of religious development there. It argues that the genesis of the Mahayana and Vajrayana in Buddhism cannot be separated from the rejuvenation of Brahmanical orthodoxy as Buddhism has to come to terms with growing sway of Hinduism. Tantric Buddhism has to appropriate Hindu Tantra for a following in India. With this historical background as the premise, this paper also discusses the co-ordination of Vajrayana and Śaiva for royal patronage during the Singhasari and Majapahit periods.