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THE AMMATOAN WOMEN’S AGENCY THROUGH EARTH-SPIRITUALITY RELATIONS
Corresponding Author(s) : Zulfikarni Bakri
Al-Qalam,
Vol. 32 No. 1 (2026): Jurnal Al Qalam
Abstract
Indigenous women's environmental knowledge often operates outside formal governance structures,
raising questions about alternative forms of ecological stewardship. This ethnographic study examines how
the Ammatoan women in Kajang, South Sulawesi, exercise environmental authority through the Andingingi
ritual despite political marginalization. This study used a qualitative descriptive approach, utilizing
ethnographic data collected during the preparation and conduct of the Andingingi ritual. The data were
collected at the research site through ethnographic fieldwork conducted between December 2024 and
February 2025. This research analyzed women's spiritual practices as environmental governance
mechanisms. Women assume central authority as ritual coordinators who manage environmental
protection through spiritual mediation with ancestral, natural, and Tu Riek Akrakna entities. Their roles
demonstrate environmental governance through "cooling the earth" practices that prevent ecological
disasters while maintaining cultural continuity. These spiritual authorities operate independently from
formal political exclusion, creating parallel systems of environmental management. The study reveals how
indigenous women's ritual practices constitute environmental governance systems that transcend
conventional formal-informal power distinctions, contributing to scholarship on indigenous feminism and
environmental stewardship.
- Agus, & Mustafa, A. 2020. Ritual Andingingi di Desa Tanah Towa Kecamatan Kajang Kabupaten Bulukumba Perspektif Hukum Islam. Shautuna, 1(2), 81–92.
- Arumningtyas, R., Unde, A. A., & Fatimah, J. M. 2023. Komunikasi Simbolik Ritual Andingingi: Pesan Masyarakat Adat Ammatoa Kajang Tentang Pentingnya Menjaga Hutan. Perspektif Komunikasi: Jurnal Ilmu Komunikasi Politik Dan Komunikasi Bisnis, 7(1), 19. https://doi.org/10.24853/pk.7.1.19-32
- Avishai, O. 2008. “Doing religion” in a secular world: Women in conservative religions and the question of agency. Gender and Society, 22(4), 409–433. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243208321019
- Bakri, J. 2025. Komunikasi Interpersonal Gender dalam Perceraian Masyarakat Adat Ammatoa di Kajang Kabupaten Bulukumba. Universitas Hasanuddin.
- Bakri, Z. 2024. Indigenous Feminism: Ammatoan Women’s Roles In Adat Structure Of Kajang, South Sulawesi. UGM.
- Becker, G. S. 1993. Nobel Lecture: The Economic Way of Looking at Behavior [Conferencia Nobel: La forma económica de ver el comportamiento]. Journal of Political Economy, 101(3), 385–409.
- Bird-david, N. 1999. ‘“ Animism ”’ Revisited Personhood, Environment, and Relational Epistemology. Curre, 40(February), 67–92.
- Burke, K. 2012. Women’s Agency in Gender-Traditional Religions. Sociology Compass, 6(2), 122–133.
- Castillo, R. A. H. 2010a. Comparative Perspectives Symposium: Indigenous Feminisms: The Emergence of Indigenous Feminism in Latin America. The University of Chicago Press, 35(3), 539–545.
- Castillo, R. A. H. 2010b. The Emergence of Indigenous Feminism in Latin America Author. JSTOR, 35(3), 539–545.
- Connell, R. 2009. Gender In World Perspective (2nd Ed). Polity Press.
- Daniel, S. 2021. Fertility of women and Mother Earth: An Ethiopian theological perspective. In HTS Religion & Society Series (Vol. 10). https://doi.org/10.52779/9781991201317
- Das, B., & Hossain, S. M. D. 2023. Ecofeminist Concerns and Subaltern Perspectives on ‘Third World’ Indigenous Women: A Study of Selected Works of Mahasweta Devi. Journal of International Women’s Studies, 25(2), 1–13.
- Dhillon, C. M. 2020. Indigenous Feminisms: Disturbing Colonialism in Environmental Science Partnerships. Sociology of Race and Ethnicity, 6(4), 483–500. https://doi.org/10.1177/2332649220908608
- Elsa. 2023. Konflik Sumber Daya Alam dan Tata Ruang Ancaman Terhadap Petani, Wujudkan Perspektif HAM Perempuan Dalam Program Pembangunan Nasional. Komnasperempuan.
- Fauziah, L., Mashudi, Lestari, H., Yuniningsih, T., & An Nisa, H. N. 2022. Women’s Role: Between Opportunities And Challenges in Business in The Era of The Industrial Revolution 4.0. JKMP (Jurnal Kebijakan Dan Manajemen Publik), 10(1), 16–22. https://doi.org/10.21070/jkmp.v10i1.1680
- Gabriel, A. G., De Vera, M., & Marc, M. A. 2020. Roles of Indigenous Women in Forest Conservation: A Cmparative Analysis of Two Indigenous Communities in the Philippines. Cogent Social Sciences, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2020.1720564
- Green, J. 007). Making space for indigenous feminism - Green (2nd Editio). Fernwood Publishing.
- Green, J. 2009. The Complexity of Indigenous Identity Formation and Politics in Canada. International Journal of Critical Indigenous Studies, 2(2), 36–46. https://doi.org/10.5204/ijcis.v2i2.29
- Green, J. 011). Don’t Tell Us Who We Are (Not): Reflections on Métis Identity. Aboriginal Policy Studies, 1(2). https://doi.org/10.5663/aps.v1i2.11687
- Juniati, N., Raharja, I. G. M., Muka, I. K., & Pebryani, N. D. 2022. The Function and Meaning of Tope’ le’leng in the Death Ritual of The Kajang Tribe, South Sulawesi. Kawistara: The Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 12(3), 330. https://doi.org/10.22146/kawistara.72740
- Kaltsum, A. U. 2022. Identitas Politik Perempuan dalam Masyarakat Adat Kajang. In Unhas. Universitas Hasanuddin.
- Kuokkanen, R. 2011. Indigenous Economies, Theories of Subsistence, and Women: Exploring the Social Economy Model for Indigenous Governance. American Indian Quarterly, 35(C), 215–240.
- Leal Filho, W., Matandirotya, N. R., Lütz, J. M., Alemu, E. A., Brearley, F. Q., Baidoo, A. A., Kateka, A., Ogendi, G. M., Adane, G. B., Emiru, N., & Mbih, R. A. 2021. Impacts of climate change to African indigenous communities and examples of adaptation responses. Nature Communications, 12(1), 13–16. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-26540-0
- Maarif, S. 2019. Indigenous Religion Paradigm : Re-interpreting Religious Practices of Indigenous People. Studies in Philosphy, 44, 1–20.
- Mahmood, S. 2005. Politics of Piety. In Political and Legal Anthropology Review (Vol. 31, Issue 2). Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1555-2934.2008.00027_2.x
- Malliongi, M. T., Septiwiharti, D., & Nurbaety, A. 2023. Negotiation Between Patuntung and Islam in Kajang, South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Jurnal Theologia, 34(2), 25–50. https://doi.org/http://dx.doi.org/10.21580/teo.2023.34.2.17961 Negotiation
- Masoga, M. A., & Shokane, A. L. 019). Viewpoint: Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Environmental Social Work Education: Towards Environmental Sustainability. Southern African Journal of Environmental Education, 35(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.4314/sajee.v35i1.14
- Mohanty, C. T. 2002. “Under Western Eyes” Revisited: Feminist Solidarity through Anticapitalist Struggles. Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, 28(2).
- Moura-Kocoglu, M. 2017. Decolonizing Gender Roles in Pacific Women’s Writing: Indigenous Feminist Theories and The Reconceptualization of Women’s Authority. Contemporary Women’s Writing, 11(2), 239–258. https://doi.org/10.1093/cwwrit/vpx015
- Nickel, S. A. 2017. “I Am Not a Women’s Libber Although Sometimes I Sound Like One”: Indigenous Feminism and Politicized Motherhood. American Indian Quarterly, 41(4), 299. https://doi.org/10.5250/amerindiquar.41.4.0299
- Nurfadillah, Radjab, M., Nuvida, R. A. F., & Sabiq., M. 2023. Construction of women’s roles in the Andingingi Ritual in the Ammatoa Customary Area, Tana Toa Village, Kajang District, Bulukumba Regency. Agrikan: Jurnal Agribisnis Perikanan, 16(1), 21–39.
- Nurjayanti. 2023. Kedudukan Dan Peran Penting Perempuan Sebagai Anrongta DalamMasyarakat Adat Kajang kabupaten Bulukumba. Universitas Hasaduddin.
- O’Brien, K. J. 2013. Rightful resistance revisited. Journal of Peasant Studies, 40(6), 1051–1062. https://doi.org/10.1080/03066150.2013.821466
- O’Faircheallaigh, C. 2013. Women’s absence, women’s power: Indigenous women and negotiations with mining companies in Australia and Canada. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 36(11), 1789–1807. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2012.655752
- Sarkar, R. 2021. Religious Agency in Latin America’s Hinterland. Feminist Review, 129(1), 69–87. https://doi.org/10.1177/01417789211041600
- Shield, R. W. 2009. Identifying and Understanding Indigenous Cultural and Spiritual Strengths in the Higher Education Experiences of Indigenous Women. Wicazo Sa Review, 24(1), 47–63.
- Snyder, E. 2015. Indigenous Feminist Legal Theory. Canadian Journal of Women and the Law, 26(2), 365–401. https://doi.org/10.3138/cjwl.26.2.07
- Sukarsih, S. E., Makkarennu, M., & Soma, A. S. 023). Traditional Knowledge of Women from the Ammatoa Kajang Custom for COVID-19 Mitigation in Bulukumba Regency, South Sulawesi. Proceedings of the International Symposium Southeast Asia Vegetable 2021 (SEAVEG 2021), 1, 582–590. https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6463-028-2
- Takbir, M. 2022 Kekerasan Epistemik Terhadap Pengetahuan Lokal masyarakat Adat Ammatoa Kajang di Sulawesi Selatan. UGM.
- Van Wyk, T. 2022. Stuck Between Mother Earth and A Mother’s Womb? On Women, Population Policy and Ecological Sustainable Development. HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies, 78(4), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v78i4.7792
- Zaiful, Roslinawati, Muhammad, H., & Cinu, S. 2020. Perlawanan Perempuan Adat Wana Posangke dalam Mempertahankan Identitas Kultural. HUMANISMA: Journal of Gender Studies, 04(01), 33–45.
References
Agus, & Mustafa, A. 2020. Ritual Andingingi di Desa Tanah Towa Kecamatan Kajang Kabupaten Bulukumba Perspektif Hukum Islam. Shautuna, 1(2), 81–92.
Arumningtyas, R., Unde, A. A., & Fatimah, J. M. 2023. Komunikasi Simbolik Ritual Andingingi: Pesan Masyarakat Adat Ammatoa Kajang Tentang Pentingnya Menjaga Hutan. Perspektif Komunikasi: Jurnal Ilmu Komunikasi Politik Dan Komunikasi Bisnis, 7(1), 19. https://doi.org/10.24853/pk.7.1.19-32
Avishai, O. 2008. “Doing religion” in a secular world: Women in conservative religions and the question of agency. Gender and Society, 22(4), 409–433. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243208321019
Bakri, J. 2025. Komunikasi Interpersonal Gender dalam Perceraian Masyarakat Adat Ammatoa di Kajang Kabupaten Bulukumba. Universitas Hasanuddin.
Bakri, Z. 2024. Indigenous Feminism: Ammatoan Women’s Roles In Adat Structure Of Kajang, South Sulawesi. UGM.
Becker, G. S. 1993. Nobel Lecture: The Economic Way of Looking at Behavior [Conferencia Nobel: La forma económica de ver el comportamiento]. Journal of Political Economy, 101(3), 385–409.
Bird-david, N. 1999. ‘“ Animism ”’ Revisited Personhood, Environment, and Relational Epistemology. Curre, 40(February), 67–92.
Burke, K. 2012. Women’s Agency in Gender-Traditional Religions. Sociology Compass, 6(2), 122–133.
Castillo, R. A. H. 2010a. Comparative Perspectives Symposium: Indigenous Feminisms: The Emergence of Indigenous Feminism in Latin America. The University of Chicago Press, 35(3), 539–545.
Castillo, R. A. H. 2010b. The Emergence of Indigenous Feminism in Latin America Author. JSTOR, 35(3), 539–545.
Connell, R. 2009. Gender In World Perspective (2nd Ed). Polity Press.
Daniel, S. 2021. Fertility of women and Mother Earth: An Ethiopian theological perspective. In HTS Religion & Society Series (Vol. 10). https://doi.org/10.52779/9781991201317
Das, B., & Hossain, S. M. D. 2023. Ecofeminist Concerns and Subaltern Perspectives on ‘Third World’ Indigenous Women: A Study of Selected Works of Mahasweta Devi. Journal of International Women’s Studies, 25(2), 1–13.
Dhillon, C. M. 2020. Indigenous Feminisms: Disturbing Colonialism in Environmental Science Partnerships. Sociology of Race and Ethnicity, 6(4), 483–500. https://doi.org/10.1177/2332649220908608
Elsa. 2023. Konflik Sumber Daya Alam dan Tata Ruang Ancaman Terhadap Petani, Wujudkan Perspektif HAM Perempuan Dalam Program Pembangunan Nasional. Komnasperempuan.
Fauziah, L., Mashudi, Lestari, H., Yuniningsih, T., & An Nisa, H. N. 2022. Women’s Role: Between Opportunities And Challenges in Business in The Era of The Industrial Revolution 4.0. JKMP (Jurnal Kebijakan Dan Manajemen Publik), 10(1), 16–22. https://doi.org/10.21070/jkmp.v10i1.1680
Gabriel, A. G., De Vera, M., & Marc, M. A. 2020. Roles of Indigenous Women in Forest Conservation: A Cmparative Analysis of Two Indigenous Communities in the Philippines. Cogent Social Sciences, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2020.1720564
Green, J. 007). Making space for indigenous feminism - Green (2nd Editio). Fernwood Publishing.
Green, J. 2009. The Complexity of Indigenous Identity Formation and Politics in Canada. International Journal of Critical Indigenous Studies, 2(2), 36–46. https://doi.org/10.5204/ijcis.v2i2.29
Green, J. 011). Don’t Tell Us Who We Are (Not): Reflections on Métis Identity. Aboriginal Policy Studies, 1(2). https://doi.org/10.5663/aps.v1i2.11687
Juniati, N., Raharja, I. G. M., Muka, I. K., & Pebryani, N. D. 2022. The Function and Meaning of Tope’ le’leng in the Death Ritual of The Kajang Tribe, South Sulawesi. Kawistara: The Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 12(3), 330. https://doi.org/10.22146/kawistara.72740
Kaltsum, A. U. 2022. Identitas Politik Perempuan dalam Masyarakat Adat Kajang. In Unhas. Universitas Hasanuddin.
Kuokkanen, R. 2011. Indigenous Economies, Theories of Subsistence, and Women: Exploring the Social Economy Model for Indigenous Governance. American Indian Quarterly, 35(C), 215–240.
Leal Filho, W., Matandirotya, N. R., Lütz, J. M., Alemu, E. A., Brearley, F. Q., Baidoo, A. A., Kateka, A., Ogendi, G. M., Adane, G. B., Emiru, N., & Mbih, R. A. 2021. Impacts of climate change to African indigenous communities and examples of adaptation responses. Nature Communications, 12(1), 13–16. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-26540-0
Maarif, S. 2019. Indigenous Religion Paradigm : Re-interpreting Religious Practices of Indigenous People. Studies in Philosphy, 44, 1–20.
Mahmood, S. 2005. Politics of Piety. In Political and Legal Anthropology Review (Vol. 31, Issue 2). Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1555-2934.2008.00027_2.x
Malliongi, M. T., Septiwiharti, D., & Nurbaety, A. 2023. Negotiation Between Patuntung and Islam in Kajang, South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Jurnal Theologia, 34(2), 25–50. https://doi.org/http://dx.doi.org/10.21580/teo.2023.34.2.17961 Negotiation
Masoga, M. A., & Shokane, A. L. 019). Viewpoint: Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Environmental Social Work Education: Towards Environmental Sustainability. Southern African Journal of Environmental Education, 35(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.4314/sajee.v35i1.14
Mohanty, C. T. 2002. “Under Western Eyes” Revisited: Feminist Solidarity through Anticapitalist Struggles. Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, 28(2).
Moura-Kocoglu, M. 2017. Decolonizing Gender Roles in Pacific Women’s Writing: Indigenous Feminist Theories and The Reconceptualization of Women’s Authority. Contemporary Women’s Writing, 11(2), 239–258. https://doi.org/10.1093/cwwrit/vpx015
Nickel, S. A. 2017. “I Am Not a Women’s Libber Although Sometimes I Sound Like One”: Indigenous Feminism and Politicized Motherhood. American Indian Quarterly, 41(4), 299. https://doi.org/10.5250/amerindiquar.41.4.0299
Nurfadillah, Radjab, M., Nuvida, R. A. F., & Sabiq., M. 2023. Construction of women’s roles in the Andingingi Ritual in the Ammatoa Customary Area, Tana Toa Village, Kajang District, Bulukumba Regency. Agrikan: Jurnal Agribisnis Perikanan, 16(1), 21–39.
Nurjayanti. 2023. Kedudukan Dan Peran Penting Perempuan Sebagai Anrongta DalamMasyarakat Adat Kajang kabupaten Bulukumba. Universitas Hasaduddin.
O’Brien, K. J. 2013. Rightful resistance revisited. Journal of Peasant Studies, 40(6), 1051–1062. https://doi.org/10.1080/03066150.2013.821466
O’Faircheallaigh, C. 2013. Women’s absence, women’s power: Indigenous women and negotiations with mining companies in Australia and Canada. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 36(11), 1789–1807. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2012.655752
Sarkar, R. 2021. Religious Agency in Latin America’s Hinterland. Feminist Review, 129(1), 69–87. https://doi.org/10.1177/01417789211041600
Shield, R. W. 2009. Identifying and Understanding Indigenous Cultural and Spiritual Strengths in the Higher Education Experiences of Indigenous Women. Wicazo Sa Review, 24(1), 47–63.
Snyder, E. 2015. Indigenous Feminist Legal Theory. Canadian Journal of Women and the Law, 26(2), 365–401. https://doi.org/10.3138/cjwl.26.2.07
Sukarsih, S. E., Makkarennu, M., & Soma, A. S. 023). Traditional Knowledge of Women from the Ammatoa Kajang Custom for COVID-19 Mitigation in Bulukumba Regency, South Sulawesi. Proceedings of the International Symposium Southeast Asia Vegetable 2021 (SEAVEG 2021), 1, 582–590. https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6463-028-2
Takbir, M. 2022 Kekerasan Epistemik Terhadap Pengetahuan Lokal masyarakat Adat Ammatoa Kajang di Sulawesi Selatan. UGM.
Van Wyk, T. 2022. Stuck Between Mother Earth and A Mother’s Womb? On Women, Population Policy and Ecological Sustainable Development. HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies, 78(4), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v78i4.7792
Zaiful, Roslinawati, Muhammad, H., & Cinu, S. 2020. Perlawanan Perempuan Adat Wana Posangke dalam Mempertahankan Identitas Kultural. HUMANISMA: Journal of Gender Studies, 04(01), 33–45.