MEMAHAMI PERTAUTAN AGAMA DAN BUDAYA STUDI TERHADAP TRADISI MARPEGE-PEGE DI BATAK ANGKOLA

This thesis proves that the acculturation between Islam and Batak Angkola tradition in Padangsidimpuan shows that Islam and local tradition can be united and synergized in the community life within the philosophy of dalihan natolu. The reciprocal relation between Islam and culture put the religion and local rites in the contestation arena, such as seen in the practice of marpege-pege. Both traditions are ancestral heritage which had been widely practiced among Angkola Batak people long before the advent of Islam in the region. The advent of Islam influenced the traditional values; it shifted the practice of local belief toward religious values without altering the traditional system. The struggle between Islamic law and local culture was a productive and creative reciprocal process, which in turn integrated tradition with the belief, knowledge, experience, and spiritual condition of the community.