I have witnessed a few occasions when two religious holidays occurred on the same day, and local congregations were able to compromise their practices so as not to clash with each other. Religious celebrations are reported on mainstream TV channels and printed media, often with a summary of messages from prominent religious (and sometimes political) leaders. In comparison to the Australian calendar, the Indonesian calendar is full of religious holidays of the six major religions (Islam, Catholicism, Protestantism, Hinduism, Buddhism and Confucianism) that are acknowledged as public holidays. How do Indonesians accommodate the traditions and holidays of other religions? ![]() Indonesia is a very multicultural country. This is called salim and reflects a special respect from the young to the old.įinally there are some specific traditional greetings that locals would love to teach you, such as the nose-touching greeting in Sumba. Younger people and/or students may take your extended hand and touch the back of your hand to their forehead. Some Indonesians would take their hand to their chest after a handshake, which reflects the sincerity of the greeting. Indonesians may not shake your hand as firmly as many Australians do, but this is not a reflection of lack of confidence or comfort – it’s just the way we do it. When in doubt, let the other party make the first move: if they initiate a handshake then go for it if they just put their hands together in front of their chest, you should follow suit. Similarly I found Acehnese men who initiated handshake with my female Australian co-researcher. Neither can we assume this based on areas of origin or local geography in my trips to Aceh where the Shariah Law is in place I keep finding women in jilbab, old and young alike, who initiate a handshake with me. Some Muslims wouldn’t touch people from the opposite gender except for family members, but we cannot always judge this from outward appearances, such as how they dress. A social cheek-to-cheek ( muah-muah) is popular among women, but never between men and women (except for close family members) or among men. Most Indonesians would not hug except for family members. ![]() In general, a handshake is the most common way. What is an appropriate way to greet someone in Indonesia? Brahm (left) in 1999 at Great Besakih Temple in Bali.
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