COSMOLOGICAL REPRESENTATION OF BUNDO KANDUANG'S FIGURE IN THE CHARACTER OF RUMAH GADANG SPACE IN SUNGAI PUAR REGION WITHIN GENDER RELATIONS CONTEX

• Main Author: Wiemar, Rosalinda
• Format: Dissertations
• Language: Indonesia
• Online Access: https://digilib.itb.ac.id/gdl/view/80236
• Institution: Institut Teknologi Bandung

Minangkabau tribal society is a matrilineal society in West Sumatra, its people highly respect and appreciate mothers, so that mothers or women have privileges in their functions and positions. The representative of women in a tribe is called Bundo Kanduang. The existence of Bundo Kanduang is depicted through the figure of a wise woman with a broad understanding of religion, science, and customs. In carrying out its role, there are tangible and intangible roles that are invisible to the eye. For this reason, it needs to be studied more deeply so that it can benefit its people and society in general. In general, the cosmology of the universe in Minangkabau society is contained in traditional advice, which is the basis of the philosophy of life and actions of the Minangkabau people and the role of Bundo Kanduang in the rumah gadang. The facilities in the rumah gadang are a representation of the meaning and philosophy of Minangkabau customs, and the spatial structure formed is an identification of Minangkabau cosmological ideas. Gender as a social concept applies the concepts of feminine and masculine differently. In Minangkabau customs, gender is applied to the function and position of Bundo Kanduang, side by side with men who are leaders in the rumah gadang. This research uses qualitative methodology and ethnographic research methods with descriptive analysis. Sampling through informants with the purposive sampling method. The analysis mostly describes the facts as they are, especially on the object of research, which is limited to rumah gadangs in the Sungai Puar area, an area that still maintains and carries out Minangkabau customs well, is actively used, and carries out the role of Bundo Kanduang. The buildings have a unique shape influenced by colonial culture and the direction of the entrance to the rumah gadang at the back. The majority of the tribes in this area hold the democratic lareh Bodi Caniago ideology, which gives a large and dynamic opportunity to the role of Bundo Kanduang; thus, the representation of Bundo Kanduang can be more visible. n the mapping of previous research, there have been studies related to: cosmology, representation, Minangkabau ethnicity, rumah gadang, Bundo Kanduang, and other relevant topics, but there has been no research related to the representation of the cosmology of the figure of Bundo Kanduang in the interior of rumah gadang 4in the context of gender relations. It is hoped that this research will find a new formulation regarding the character of the interior space of rumah gadang, which represents the cosmology of the figure of Bundo Kanduang in the context of gender relations. The benefits of the research are expected to contribute to the development of the interior design of the rumah gadang or the communal system in the rumah gadang environment by paying attention to the essence of the basic values of Minangkabau culture. The importance of the function and position of Bundo Kanduang greatly influences the community of the people; therefore, the findings obtained are expected to provide better changes for the people and Minangkabau society in general. The results of this research found an understanding of the function and position of Bundo Kanduang as well as its characteristics in the interior of the Rumah Gadang, both tangible and intangible. The representation of the function and position of Bundo Kanduang contains a contradiction in Bundo Kanduang cosmology: that the character and spatial facilities in the rumah gadang, if correlated with power, are not always directly proportional. Meanwhile, the cosmological representation of the function and position of Bundo Kanduang in gender relations with traditional leaders, each of whom is dominant in one respect but marginal in other respects through a distributive distribution of power. Bundo Kanduang is a microcosm of Minangkabau cosmology and a macrocosm for its people, represented in its interior character, which is functional, existential, and substantial. The differences in entities between men and women in adat reflect the unique equality and power of the Minangkabau tribe, which adheres to a matrilineal system with male tribal leaders but does not fully implement a patriarchal system.