Sacred Ecology and Sustainable Financial Behavior: An Ethnographic of Hindu Rituals in Bali

I Nyoman Bontot (Universitas Hindu Negeri I Gusti Bagus Sugriwa Denpasar)
Martino Wibowo (Universitas Terbuka)

Jurnal Ilmu Sosial dan Humaniora
Vol 15 No 2 (2026)

The significance of indigenous knowledge and cultural institutions in tackling today's environmental issues is becoming more widely acknowledged in sustainability study. However, prior research on Balinese Hindu ecological rituals has mostly focused on their symbolic, religious, and conservation roles, offering little insight into the sociocultural processes by which ritual participation concurrently influences household financial behavior and the environment. In order to close this gap, this study looks at how ecological rituals serve as culturally ingrained institutions that integrate financial behavior, environmental behavior, and ecological ethics to promote sustainability. The study was carried out in a few customary villages in Bali's Tabanan Regency between February 2024 and March 2025 using an interpretive ethnographic method. Participant observation, semi-structured interviews with twenty-five key informants, and document analysis were used to gather data. Iterative thematic analysis based on Sacred Ecology, Practice Theory, and Economic Sociology was used for analysis. The results show that rather than being purely ceremonial religious activities, ecological rituals such as Tumpek Wariga, Mapag Toya, Ngusaba Nini, and Tumpek Uye serve as behavioral governing institutions. Ecological ethics are internalized through repeated ritual participation, which promotes ecologically conscious behavior while also influencing household financial practices through long-term financial planning, prudent resource allocation, saving, reciprocal exchange, and community contributions. These interrelated processes promote culturally grounded sustainability and increase community resilience. The study suggests a framework for culturally embedded sustainability, showing how ritual participation, ecological ethics, environmental behavior, and embedded financial behavior interact dynamically to produce sustainability. In order to explain how indigenous ritual institutions concurrently organize ecological governance and household economic practices, this study expands on previous sustainability scholarship beyond environmental conservation by integrating Sacred Ecology, Practice Theory, and Economic Sociology within an ethnographic perspective. It also offers useful insights for policymakers looking to strengthen customary institutions and culturally grounded sustainability strategies.