“Sahala Harajaon”: The Management of Sustainable Tourism in

Batak Toba Community

Mhd Pujiono

, Budi Agustono

, Farid Aulia

Faculty of Humanities, Universitas Sumatera Utara, Medan 20155, North Sumatra, Indonesia

Faculty of Law, Universitas Al-Azhar, Medan, Indonesia

Keywords: Cultural Values, Sahala Harajaon, Tourism Management, Sustainability

Abstract: The position of Sahala Harajaon was a representation of spirit (tondi) that was believed by Batak

community as something that stick physically at someone has “Sahala Harajaon”. The people politeness and

believeness of grandfather (opung) and spirit (tondi) make the leader that has “Sahala” was still something

important until nowadays. The research result showed that the local wisdom in the culture values of “Sahala

Harajaon” in managing tourism area of Toba Lake could be replied as a part of social act of “Dalihan

Natolu” that substitute each other. Each acting has a social action. Somba Marhula-hula (politeness to the

family’s wife), Elek Marboru (protecting women), Manat Mardongan Tubu (be careful of the family of

same tribe). If we related with it, the King must has “service manner”. The pesimistic of reformation slowly

will be change to responsive of sustainable tourism management. This study used qualitative method to

identify and to analyze the position of Sahal Harajaon at the culture area management.

1 INTRODUCTION

Sahala Harajaon was an esteem that shining from a

leader. The leader that has Sahala Harajaon must be

smart in polite thinking and justice in decision

making. That manner made the leader that has this

behavior was very important in their community.

The position of Sahala Harajaon was a

representative from tondi (spirit) that was believed

by Bataknese people as something that naturally

sticky to someone that has Sahala Harajaon. The

politeness and the believeness of people to “opung”

(grandfather) and “tondi” (spirit) made the leader

that has Sahala was still be something important

until now. In culture frame, Bataknese made the

guest as “Raja Ni Hula-hula” and themselves as

“Raja Ni Boru”. The “Dalihan Natolu”concept must

be existing in the Toba’s community mind set. To

serve a king, “Raja Ni Boru” was still be a king. Not

a servant, even the job at the day was to serve “Raja

Ni Hula Hula”. “Raja Ni Boru” dan “Raja Ni hula

Hula” were only the act, that someday could be

changed up to the situation and condition.

The Danau Toba area was be threatened the

sustainable of its function because of the

development pressure that no friendly to the social

cultural values. One of the problem in Danau Toba

area management because of the placement of

Sahala Harajaon not in “serving” context but

“served” context. The management of Danau Toba

tourism area must be a part of local community

development that stay around Danau Toba area that

was the main element in sustainable development.

This thing pushed the researcher to do the

development study in managing the tourism area of

Danau Toba through the digging of the cultural

values of Sahala Harajaon of Batak Toba

community, so it needed efforts to push the Sahala

Harajaon as cultural values could be in public policy

decision to the sustainably management. The second

years of this research was to reanalysis the place of

Sahala Harajaon concept at nowadays context, in

cultural and increasing public services to the tourist

that come to Samosir Regency in order to travel.

Based on the introduction, the research problems

are: Is the “Sahala Harajaon” still done by Tobanese

People at Samosir Regency in cultural living and

ublic services at nowadays context to the people

who come to SamosirRegency?

Pujiono, M., Agustono, B. and Aulia, F.

“Sahala Harajaon”: The Management of Sustainable Tourism in Batak Toba Community.

DOI: 10.5220/0009901200002480

In Proceedings of the International Conference on Natural Resources and Sustainable Development (ICNRSD 2018), pages 267-269

ISBN: 978-989-758-543-2

267

2 MATERIAL AND METHODS

The research model that used in this research is

qualitative approach. The qualitative approach has

concentrate to process, so that the tracers of datas

and information would do to know and

understanding completely about “sahala harajaon”

through the sustainable tourism area management.

To emphasize the essence of the qualitative method

in community view (emic view), so that the datas

was truly true (Moleong,2000).

The datas that would be collected came from two

sources: primary datas and secondary datas. The

primary datas get from depth interview and

participant observation that aim to get information

about “sahala harajaon”, and be sharped by focus

group discussion. The FGD used for getting a

strategy to revitalize the values of “sahala harajaon”

in Batak Toba community that more applicative to

develop in community empowerment widely. It can

do with local condition. Another instruments are

camera and tape recorder that useful to avoid the

missing data and to document the situation at Danau

Toba area community. The researcher has developed

rapport. It could decrease the distance and the

suspicious that could disturb the interview (Bungin,

2007).

The location of research was at Samosir

Regency. It has the Batak Toba tribe. So, the “sahala

harajaon” still urgent for the people that live at Toba

Samosir Regency. The location of research was

made purposively: Samosir community that has so

many potentials of “Sahala Harajaon”.

3 RESULT AND DISCUSSION

3.1 Sahala Harajaon and the Growth

In the Batak Toba history tradition, the “sahala”

concept was be a sacred part of the communal living

of Batak Toba people. The information that was

collected from various source showed that the

achievement of “Sahala Harajaon” to someone was a

manifest from the existing and the power of king in

traditional Batak Toba’s Kingdom. First, the

traditional Batak Toba community as a cosmos

religion society trusted that a king as a

representation of god, so the place and the power of

king was so holy and sacred. (Silalahi, 2012)

Based on the cosmo-religion, The Traditional

Batak Toba community were so polite to the king to

get the luckiness. So, the place of the king as a

representation of god, it was not formed the patron-

client relation between the king and people. Beside

that, The Batak Toba traditional community has

believed to the right of god in the name of power,

where the sound of king was the manifestation of

god. The king has the power of god to arrange the

community living. The power was sorced from the

power traditionally and charismatic that pointed by

the ownership that giving to “Sahala Harajaon” (the

leader esteem) that came from god (Silalahi, 2012).

In nowadays life, the “Sahala Harajaon”

manifestation not only happened in god rights, but

also in supranatural dimension and factual

dimension. In supranatural dimension, an individu

that has “sahala” was believed has a power of spirit

that sticky in someone that physically has potention

as a figure to see “tondi” (the invisible thing). In

Batak Toba language, tondi was translated as

“spirit”. Tondi accompany people for a lifetime in

the world. If someone got sick, tondi leaves him

until recovery. According to Simaremare (2008)

when people died, tondi will leave him forever, and

became “tondi ni na mate” (the spirit of died

people).

The talent esteem that came from the grand, was

the “Tondi” that was agreed by god. If we talk about

religion,the leader esteem came from tondi from his

grandfather. And at past, a king must have the

esteem to the grandson.As time flies, the esteem

disappeared and start rarely.Only the choosen people

that was given the esteem leader. As the Nasrani

came at Batak Land, the cosmology of Batak people

was acculturated with their trust to god. But,their

trust to the power of tondi (spirit) that stick on

someone was became a must in their lives.

Batak Toba peoples still believe the sahala in the

leader was an indicator that the leadet has esteem

leader or not. The shine of sahala esteem was only

proved from how big the people was influenced by

the leader and followed him. The factual dimension

of sahala terminology was the peoples that have

smart thinking and have the good views, esteem and

has ability to solve the problems that have

relationship with social problems and cultural

problems. But, in the implementation of values in

Batak’s life always barrier with the service culture in

Batak that has relationship with the sustainable

tourism management. It was be the publicsecret that

the torism management was very identic with prime

services to pull the tourists to the area.

ICNRSD 2018 - International Conference on Natural Resources and Sustainable Development

268

3.2 The Actand the Place of Sahala

Harajaon to the Batak Toba

Community at Samosir Regency to

the Cultural Life and Public

Services Nowadays

The power of leader in arrange the peoples life was

the important aspect of social life. The city’s life that

continuously showed the far away village’s life,

made them has the strict rules that arranged and

done by country’s law. While, the village’s people

that was very sticky with cultural values, choosing to

trust the cultural leader in arranged the society life.

The people believed that, they have the Sahala

Harajaon was the leader that could be believed.

Because the Sahala was something that got

physically, people believed that they are the replic.

The replic that accompanied by “tondi” and was

something sacred. Through “tondi”, the leader

esteem shined. The ability of “sahala” was trusted

could be the catalisator to solve some life problems,

especially related with culture and services.

In cultural life of sahala peoples, as a part of

natural selection to the behavior of someone that

must be polited. Someone who has sahala did not

see from education level, economic status and

position. But, an individu must have ability to

understand the culture of the Batak Toba Culture. In

wider context, the ability of sahala was a part of

local wisdom manifestation from cultural values,

religion that were compilated by the introducer

process of general knowledge that were sourced

from various souces out of Batak Toba Community.

The same local wisdom was happened in the

coastal community at Deli Serdang Regency and

Serdang Bedagai Regency. The research of Aulia

(2017) emphasized that the local wisdom in

managing mangrove ecosystem was a part

compilation of introducing some local values and

modern knowledge that getting from some trainings

that were done by some non government

organization that concerned to mangrove

conservation. The ability of the someone’s sahala

was being a part of his ability to join the knowledge

about culture, spiritual ability and general

knowledge.

In service context, sahala harajaon has got the

additional strength basic from cultural services

values of Batak Toba’s Tribe. When the guests

came, Batak’s peoples always serviced them. They

prepared some clean pillows, clean blankets that

never used by the owner, the fat chicken, the

beautiful carpets, and cleaned house. A month

before the guests came, everything were prepared.

Their services to the guests were the part of the

esteem and the politeness, as Batak Toba’s people

that polited to “Dalihan Natolu” concept.

4 CONCLUSIONS

1. The place and the acts of Sahala Harajaon of

Batak Toba’s social life at Samosir Regency

now, were a part of manifestation compilation

cultural life, religion and general knowledge that

were introduced.

2. The values of Sahala Harajaon to manage the

tourism could be revitalized with the culture of

serviced the guests in Batak Toba Culture. The

act of servicing in “Dalihan Natolu”has the acts

and functions and the social tasks. “Somba

Marhula-hula” (to polite the wife’s family),

“Elek Marboru” (to protect women), “Manat

Mardongan Tubu” (be careful to the friend from

the same dynasty).

3. Sahala harajaon was became the base to solve

some problems in managing tourism problems

that needed the maximum services.

4. The culture of Sahala Harajaon was a part of

reproduction process and culture modification

that being introduced trough the creating of

social pranata that adaptive with the environment

condition.

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