| dc.description.abstract | Diseases pose big challenges to human beings. In Indonesia the development of
modern medical systems was parallel with the growing presence of western colonialism. Under
the independence state of Indonesia, modern medical system continued to grow. Until today, the
improved modern health facilities, however, are not yet accessible for all people and across the
country. And even worse, the available modern medical system has often increasingly become
unaffordable. Only the rich and urban dwellers basically have the privileges to enjoy. Meanwhile,
having no other choices, many commoners particularly those who live in rural areas have to rely
largely on indigenous medical systems. Despite their importance for the commoners, the role
of indigenous medical systems has not been sufficiently understood. The practices have often
been overlooked and considered superstitious, irrational, and less valuable from modern, official
health standards. Even though the extent to which the indigenous methods of diseases control
were effective is problematic, the fact that their use was sustained through generations gives an
indication that in some cases, the indigenous medical traditions had rational values for their user.
Drawing upon documents and interview materials, the paper seeks to explore indigenous medical
tradition in the Eastern Salient of Java. The area used to serve a frontier region, which had long
been contested by the Hindu kingdoms of Bali and Islam kingdoms of Java. The major objectives
of the paper are: (1) to examine the indigenous conceptions about diseases and their causes
among the people in the region; (2) to elaborate the ways in which the problems of diseases are
contained and various elements involved in the disease control; and (3) to investigate the origins
of healing profession of the traditional healers. The paper employs a combination of historical
and anthropological approaches. This combination will enable to demonstrate how the indigenous
medical systems and their elements might have changed and sustained through generations. | en_US |
