The Art of Planting Rice as a Meditative Practice: Sensemaking and Equanimity about Societal Disruption through Performance Art
Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: The impact of COVID-19 on Bali, Indonesia, decimated a significant part of the economy, resulting in unemployment and underemployment, which increased economic difficulties and related anxiety. Many people returned to small-holder farming to sustain their families. Away from farming, meditation is widely recognized as a means for equanimity and coping better with anxiety. In solidarity with the return to farming in Bali, the lead author of this paper created a performance art experience involving the planting of rice as a meditative practice. This paper summarizes the process and what was learned during the experience, using elements of qualitative research. The analysis affirms the role of artistic expression in supporting people’s sensemaking about societal disruption, with implications for social learning and mental well-being.
Authors: I Made Jodog, Jem Bendell
Institutions: Institut Seni Indonesia Denpasar, University of Cumbria
Language: English
Subfield: Conservation
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4402050455