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Vol. 32 No. 1 (2026): Jurnal Al Qalam

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Nov 22, 2025
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Jun 18, 2026

Copyright (c) 2026 Zulfikarni Bakri, Muhammad Takbir, Reskiyanti Nurdin

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THE AMMATOAN WOMEN’S AGENCY THROUGH EARTH-SPIRITUALITY RELATIONS

https://doi.org/10.31969/alq.v32i1.1812
Zulfikarni Bakri
Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia
Muhammad Takbir
Universitas Islam Negeri Alauddin Makassar, Indonesia
Reskiyanti Nurdin
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Malaysia

Corresponding Author(s) : Zulfikarni Bakri

zulfikarnibakri@mail.ugm.ac.id

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.


 

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Author Biography

Muhammad Takbir, Universitas Islam Negeri Alauddin Makassar

Department of Philosophy and Ushuluddin,

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