Apathy, indifference, confusion over values, and rivalry among cultural gurus about Indonesian identity, which mark the 83rd commemoration of the Youth Pledge and the 103rd anniversary of National Awakening, call for an insightful observation and a new perception that will create consciousness about the realities of our life as a nation.
If this doesn’t happen, confusion will manifest itself through various symptoms. First, disorientation in values about what is right, what is good and what is beautiful will take place.
This in turn will lead to a radical departure from both kinship and a community that internalizes values learned through folklore, bedtime stories, cheerful affectionate games and stories about model heroes, which are passed on by grandparents to their grandchildren, or by parents to their children in an intimate, warm and touching agrarian culture, or a courageous and independent maritime culture.
These positive values have been “evicted” by a second, anonymous tradition communicated by “presenters” via images that blur imagination and reality, as well as dreams and the real world. Consequently, the visual images that penetrate people’s minds in a continuous and overwhelming way will leave no room for a quiet moment for processing, reflection and internalization.
Second, orientation in life as a nation state with a fundamental cultural basis of humanity; social justice in interpersonal relationships; a belief in God that celebrates life; and mutual respect in striving for consensus and sovereignty of the people, now lacks role models and has been reduced to an empty discourse and slogans.
Worse, the culture that has its roots in the principle of statehood, as articulated in the fourth paragraph of the Constitution’s preamble, is often bypassed by clerics’ edicts (fatwa), or massive outcries that seek short-term political gains or image-building.
Third, once the products of human creativity and intrinsic-esthetic values become, or are treated as, “objects” for the sake of money, it will lead to what Gramsci referred to as the materialization of objects, or Marx’s concept about a fetishism of commodities and the suppression/reification or reduction of something that is authentically spiritual to something that is just nice to have and hard to dispose of.
It is in reaction to such a phenomenon that the pendulum of spiritualization, in a bid to avoid a crisis from occurring in an over-materialized world, swings toward puritan fundamentalism in an attempt to escape from the real world.
Fourth, the digital age and the culture of information, as well as electronic mass media, are gaining more power thanks to their increased role in determining the principles of society at an unprecedented level. Educators of values are shifting slowly from parents and schools to, gradually, experts of written and electronic information, and virtual entertainment.
Fifth, the space of imagination and foretaste is moving from narrative interpretation and history toward an anti-history and antinarrative sphere. In this case, “the past” is being confused with the present, dreams and reality are mingled with a tinge of irony and parody exhibiting an ongoing and extended blend of tastes for a pop exoticism of our times.
In order to provoke further curiosity and desire for anything that is new, programs are produced in a more aggressive way, eventually becoming spiced up with horror and sadistic masochism with the aim of creating the effect of suspense at the sight of gushing blood.
The result is an impact on a public that is unable to adopt a selective attitude toward values, overrun as they are by images that mix exoticism and sadism with the sole purpose of boosting ratings.
Sixth, economic and social life is centered on the consumption of symbols and a lifestyle that is beyond the creation of goods that were originally produced merely to meet people’s needs. “I consume, therefore I exist” has become the mantra of a lifestyle, which is driven by ancient instincts and incited by advertisements.
There is an enormous gap between rich and poor. It is hard to imagine what is going on in the mind of an ordinary person with modest means, who looks at luxury items neatly arranged on retail shelves, amid an ever-decreasing concern for sharing. What kind of character identification process is likely to occur?
Seventh, competition between producers of consumption commodities ranging from food and beverages to prestigious and lifestyle-related accessories on the one hand, and producers of the meaning and symbols of religion, education and culture on the other, will make it impossible to draw a distinction between the material and spiritual.
Eighth, the occurrence of the hybrid cultural classification, referred to as “indo”, or the “mestizo” of Brazil, where carnival festivities are a manifestation of catharsis, sensual and cultural ecstasy, but also an expression of mixed identities based on origin, descent, cultural heritage and skin color, at the same time.
There is the “indo” hybrid that idolizes anything white; a mixture between global and local in the form of glo-cal; between ancient and new; and between modern and traditional.
In addressing the symptoms, all elements of the nation need to take part and take responsibility for the continually changing, “in the making”, Indonesian identity. A three-way cultural orientation theory and implementation strategy has been formulated by order, namely: synthesis, transformation and osmosis. For that, we are indebted to cultural observers and Indonesianists, such as Umar Kayam, Zoetmulder, Driyarkara, Clifford Geertz and Denys Lombard.
Synthesis involves cultural actors and elements of traditional values and life wisdom as a thesis vis-à-vis the strong current of antithesis of new values. The antithesis challenges and disrupts the existing integration, while introducing new values that will provide strength for future survival.
The positive aspects of both the thesis as well as the antithesis are adopted to form a new synthesis in the context of the dialectics of perpetual change. The reference used is humanizing culture, which ultimately leads to the creation of civilization.
The process of becoming Indonesia is an issue which requires an in-depth study of the national character and moral mentality, taking note and observing how the process of “osmosis” of local values is manifested in the institutions and the process of learning to respect difference. This process went through political and cultural changes in 1908, 1928, 1945, 1966 and 1998, and continues up to the present time.
With a sincere attitude and a down-to-earth approach by all in the face of the eight symptoms, it is expected that there will be new cultural visionaries doing their work. We can expect cultural behavior in educational enclaves that pave the way for the process of sharing roles in the house of Indonesia, giving space to every generation to behave and develop the “habit” of viewing difference as being enriching rather than destroying.
There is a need to strengthen learning processes across religions, ethnicities and regions, and to engage in cross-cultural work. At the same time, the political models of exclusivity, SARA (racial and religious-based instigations), and discrimination against groups or individual citizens must be abandoned.
There is a need to create awareness and cultural behavior to ensure that Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity), does not end up as merely rhetoric or an empty promise, but rather stands as testament to a process of learning across traditions that make up the Indonesian character.
The writer is a cultural observer and professor at Driyarkara Institute of Philosophy, Jakarta.
