ABSTRACT
This paper aims to study the cultural practices and beliefs of the Toba Batak people as revealed in their relationships with their environment. The research questions are: first, what is the core concept of the Toba Batak in building and maintaining relationships with their environment and how do they apply it in practice? Second, what role if any do their indigenous religious practices play in preserving their environment? By using participant observation method, I argue that the Toba Batak’s perception should be understood from an indigenous religion’s paradigm. They have an ecological relationship with their environment. They relate to their environment based on tondi, the power of life, received from Debata Mula Jadi Na Bolon (the Batak name for God). This study contributes to religious and ecological studies because it focuses on environmental sustainability by analyzing the harbune ni eme ritual.
Keywords: Indigenous religion, tondi, ecology, inter-subjective, Toba Batak.