Title: Learning by Doing: Ritual Pedagogy and the Transmission of Moral Values in Balinese Hindu Families
Authors: I Gusti Agung Istri Agung
Ni Komang Sudarningsih
I Made Suta
Volume: 10
Issue: 6
Pages: 77-85
Publication Date: 2026/06/28
Abstract:
This study examines the role of ritual participation as a form of ritual pedagogy in the transmission and internalization of moral values among children in Balinese Hindu families. While character education is commonly associated with formal educational institutions, this research argues that family-based religious rituals function as significant informal learning environments that contribute to children's moral development. Employing a qualitative ethnographic approach, data were collected through participant observation, in-depth interviews, and documentation of ritual practices within Balinese Hindu households. The study focuses on children's involvement in activities such as offering preparation (banten), daily worship, temple ceremonies, and ngayah (voluntary communal service). The findings reveal that ritual participation serves as an experiential learning process through which children acquire and internalize values of responsibility, discipline, respect, cooperation, sincerity, gratitude, spirituality, and environmental awareness. Moral internalization occurs through embodied practice, ritual repetition, social modeling, emotional engagement, symbolic meaning-making, and intergenerational interaction. The study further demonstrates that rituals function not merely as religious observances but as pedagogical mechanisms that integrate cognitive, affective, behavioral, and spiritual dimensions of learning. By introducing the concept of ritual pedagogy, this research contributes to the fields of character education, religious education, and cultural studies, highlighting the importance of indigenous traditions as effective frameworks for moral formation and cultural continuity in contemporary society.