SPIRITUALITY IN THE “BATTLE” OF TWO IDEOLOGIES IN THE PERFORMANCE OF SALAWAIK DULANG IN MINANGKABAU

Abstract

The goal of this article is to reveal the spirituality in the “battle” of two ideologies in the performance of salawaik dulang in Minangkabau. Spirituality means living with the awareness that God is always close to us. This awareness motivates all human actions, including in the world of performing arts and specifically in the case of salawaik dulang, which is an aesthetical representation of the “battle” or contest between two ideologies. Ideologies founded on religious values and popular music are both present in the same space and time. The name salawaik dulang is made up of two words, namely salawaik and dulang. The word salawaik (Indonesian – salawat) comes from the Arabic language and is the plural form of the word salat, which means prayers or praises to the prophet Muhammad s.a.w. Salawat is a form of in vocation of religious (Islamic) verses that are presented through song. Dulang is a kind of tray, made from brass, and is used as a musical instrument which is struck to produce a sound to accompany the singing. Musically, the dulang is the medium which regulates the tempo and rhythm, and at the same time provides the music. The singing of religious verses with the accompaniment of the dulang is performed by two salawaik dulang groups which compete with one another aesthetically in the salawaik dulang performance. As a musical genre, salawaik dulang cannot be separated from a number of concepts, a concept being a source of knowledge that is sourced from a world of ideas – “being” and “becoming”. The qualitative method used in this research is based on participant observation for the collection of research data through observation, interviews, documentation, and data analysis. The results show that the performance of salawaik dulang is a representation of the battle between two ideologies, namely: the ideology of Islam and the ideology of popular culture.

Keywords: spirituality, battle of two ideologies, salawaik dulang, Minangkabau