The Thudong Bhikkhu Pilgrimage
A Reflection of Relational Harmony in Indonesia’s Interreligious Dialogue Discourse
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33550/sd.v11i1.415Keywords:
relational harmony, interreligious relation, Buddhist pilgrimage, thudong tradition, Theravada BuddhismAbstract
Thousands of kilometres travelled by 32 thudong monks from Thailand to Indonesia was not only a spiritual moment for the participants but also a historical event in Indonesian interfaith relations. Given the abundance of enthusiasm, this article aims to explain the purity of interfaith harmony created by local communities and Thai monks, who also contributed to promoting interfaith dialogue discourse among grassroots communities. By delving into the internet, a netnography approach is used to get a deeper and broader understanding of the events by comparing one digital document with another. In the interfaith encounters along the pilgrimage highway, both parties exhibited reciprocal behaviours of shared feelings and kindness that encouraged them to complete the ritual mission together. They were able to dismantle the religious barriers that frequently impede harmonious interfaith relations as a result of warm acceptance, hospitable interactions, and engaging dialogue onsite and via social media.
Downloads
References
BBC News Indonesia. “Thudong, Jalan Kaki Para Biksu Dari Thailand Ke Borobudur, Membawa Nilai Toleransi - BBC Indonesia.” Video, 8:03, Youtube, 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HwDqufhmCo&ab_channel=BBCNewsIndonesia.
Berita Bhagavant: Berita Buddhis Mingguan. “Rangkaian Dhamma Yatra 32 Bhikkhu Thudong Sambut Vesak 2567.” May 20, 2023. https://berita.bhagavant.com/2023/05/20/rangkaian-dhamma-yatra-32-bhikkhu-thudong-sambut-vesak-2567.html.
Budi Utomo Ditthisampanno, Mujiyanto, Suherman, Suharno, Sukodoyo, Waluyo, and Ngadat. “Dharmayatra: Pilgrimage and Spiritual Journey Sacred Sites in Buddhist Pilgrims in Indonesia.” ASEAN Journal of Religious and Cultural Research 5, no. 2 (2022): 11–16. https://so02.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/ajrcr/article/view/255928.
Cooney, Gabriel, and Louise Nugent. “Encountering the Sacred.” Archaeology Ireland 33, no. 2 (2019): 14–16. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26844462.
Devinda. “The 13 Ascetic Practices.” dhammadana.org (blog), 2007. https://en.dhammadana.org/sangha/dhutanga.htm.
Goodrick, Delwyn, and Patricia J. Rogers. “Qualitative Data Analysis.” In Handbook of Practical Program Evaluation, edited by Kathryn E. Newcomer, Harry P. Hatry, and Joseph S. Wholey, 561–95. Hoboken, NJ, USA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2015. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119171386.ch22.
Harahap, Syahrin. “The Image of Indonesia in the World: An Interreligious Perspective.” The IUP Journal of International Relations X, no. 2 (April 2016): 30–44. https://ssrn.com/abstract=2840619.
Jayanti, Candra Dvi. “Previous Research Data on ‘Puja Waisak Lintas Negeri: Tradisi Thudong, Waisak, Dan Umat Buddha Indonesia.’” Unpublished, 2023. Research Data.
―――. “Puja Waisak Lintas Negeri: Tradisi Thudong, Waisak, Dan Umat Buddha Indonesia.” CRCS UGM (blog), June 4, 2023. https://crcs.ugm.ac.id/puja-waisak-lintas-negeri-tradisi-thudong-waisak-dan-umat-buddha-indonesia/.
Khantipalo, Bhikkhu. With Robes and Bowl: Glimpses of the Thudong Bhikkhu Life. Sri Lanka: The Wheel Publication, 1986.
Knitter, Paul F. One Earth, Many Religions: Multifaith Dialogue and Global Responsibility. Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1995.
Kreinath, Jens. “Interrituality as a New Approach for Studying Interreligious Relations and Ritual Dynamics at Shared Pilgrimage Sites in Hatay, Turkey.” Interreligious Studies and Intercultural Theology 1, no. 2 (September 21, 2017): 257–84. https://doi.org/10.1558/isit.33618.
Lambert, Vickie, and Clinton Lambert. “Qualitative Descriptive Research: An Acceptable Design.” Pacific Rim International Journal of Nursing Research 16, no. 4 (2012): 255–56. https://he02.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/PRIJNR/article/view/5805/5064.
Lattu, Izak Y. M. “Ante-Sacred-Space and the Interreligious Sphere in a Covid-19 ICU Room.” In Interconnectivity, Subversion, and Healing in World Christianity: Essays in Honor of Joel Carpenter, edited by Afe Adogame & Aminta Arrington, 161-72. London: Bloomsbury Academic Publishing, 2023. https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/interconnectivity-subversion-and-healing-in-world-christianity-9781350333406/.
Margry, Peter Jan. “Secular Pilgrimage: A Contradiction in Terms?” In Shrines and Pilgrimage in the Modern World, edited by Peter Jan Margry, 13–46. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Amsterdam University Press, 2008. https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt46mwt8.
Qolbi, Insan Khoirul. “LHS Dan Moderasi Beragama.” Kementerian Agama Republik Indonesia (blog). September 5, 2019. https://kemenag.go.id/opini/lhs-dan-moderasi-beragama-lf0fyj.
Ricklefs, M. C. Mengislamkan Jawa: Sejarah Islamisasi di Jawa dan Penentangnya dari 1930 Sampai Sekarang. Translated by F. X. Dono Sunardi and Satrio Wahono. Cetakan 1. Jakarta: PT Serambi Ilmu Semesta, 2013.
Rizaty, Monavia Ayu. “Data Sebaran Penduduk Beragama Buddha Di Indonesia Pada 2023.” DataIndonesia.Id (blog), n.d. 13 March 2024.
Rukmorini, Regina. “Pertukaran Kebaikan Sepanjang Jalan Menuju Candi Borobudur.” kompas.id, June 3, 2023, Nusantara edition. https://www.kompas.id/baca/nusantara/2023/06/02/pertukaran-kebaikan-sepanjang-jalan-menuju-candi-borobudur.
―――. “Tiba di Candi Borobudur, Biksu Thudong Ingin Selalu Kembali ke Indonesia.” kompas.id, June 1, 2023, Nusantara edition. https://www.kompas.id/baca/nusantara/2023/06/01/biksu-thudong-melakukan-meditasi-dan-pradaksina-di-candi-borobudur.
Sasha, Roseneil, and Kaisa. “Relational Persons and Relational Processes: Developing the Notion of Relationality for the Sociology of Personal Life.” Sociology 50, no. 1 (2016): 143–59. https://doi.org/10.1177/0038038514561295.
Setiawan, Tery, Edwin BP De Jong, Peer LH Scheepers, and Carl JA Sterkens. “The Relation between Religiosity Dimensions and Support for Interreligious Conflict in Indonesia.” Archive for the Psychology of Religion 42, no. 2 (2020): 244–61. https://doi.org/10.1177/0084672419878824.
Swidler, Leonard J., and Paul Mojzes. The Study of Religion in an Age of Global Dialogue. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2000.
Tim Penyusun Kementerian Agama RI. Tanya Jawab Moderasi Beragama. Jakarta Pusat: Badan Litbang dan Diklat Kementerian Agama RI, 2019.
Vasquez, Camilla, and Derya Kulavuzonal. Review of Reviewed Work: Netnography: Doing Ethnographic Research Online by Robert V. Kozinets, by Robert V. Kozinets. The Modern Language Journal 96, no. 1 (2012): 147–48.
Yatno, Tri. “Candi Borobudur sebagai Fenomena Sakral Profan: Agama dan Pariwisata Perspektif Strukturalisme Levi Strauss.” Sabbhata Yatra: Jurnal Pariwisata dan Budaya 1, no. 1 (2020): 1–14. https://doi.org/10.53565/sabbhatayatra.v1i1.152.
Yulianti. “The Making of Buddhism in Modern Indonesia: South and Southeast Asian Networks and Agencies, 1900-1959.” PhD diss., Universiteit Leiden, 2020. https://hdl.handle.net/1887/138130.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Reformed Center for Religion and Society
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
