Indonesian rain shaman at MotoGP is latest lightning rod for religious pluralism debate as critics slam ‘heathen outrage’ of ritual
- Ritual performed by woman of the Kejawen faith was described as a moral crisis for the country, while others called it a victory for Indonesian heritage
- Controversy highlights age old tensions between orthodox Muslims and minority faiths of indigenous beliefs in Indonesia
Wulandari, a practitioner of Kejawen, an indigenous Javanese belief system with roots predating Islam, told the Indonesian newspaper, Kompas, that she started her practice as a rain shaman or pawang hujan at the age of nine.
Her new-found celebrity, however, sparked a lightning rod of controversy in the world’s most populous Muslim nation.
Abu Fatihul Islam, representing the ultraorthodox Islamic Geographic Institute, lambasted her presence as a “state-sanctioned heathen outrage”.
“The use of shamans, offerings and other idolatrous practices [at an international event like the Grand Prix] is proof that we as a country are experiencing a moral and intellectual crisis,” he alleged.
Amid rising religiosity across the nation, many pious Indonesians, both Muslim and Christian, have also vented their disapproval online. But Wulandari found herself quite a few defenders, too, especially among Indonesians who champion diversity and pluralism, and have been calling for Indonesia’s numerous indigenous faiths to be protected.