When Tradition Is Seen as Outdated and Rigid: Who Really Needs to Change?

JurnalPost.com Amidst the increasingly rapid pace of modern life, tradition often finds itself in a difficult position. On one hand, society is expected to uphold cultural heritage passed down through generations. On the other, changes in technology, lifestyle, and mindsets lead some to believe that certain traditions are no longer relevant to modern life.

This issue is not new. The differing perspectives between the younger and older generations have long been a challenge in cultural preservation. The younger generation strives to find ways to learn, practice, and develop traditions so they remain compatible with their lives. Meanwhile, the older generation faces the challenge of maintaining ancestral values while building connections with a generation growing up in a different social environment.

This debate occurs not only between generations but also between groups that tend to uphold tradition and those more open to modernization.

Traditionalist groups are often seen as too rigid in facing change. Conversely, modern groups are frequently viewed as disregarding cultural values. In reality, both groups have interests that can actually be reconciled.

So, must cultural preservation always be carried out by keeping everything exactly as it is? Or does society need to change its perspective on tradition so it can coexist with the progress of the times?

Generational Differences in Viewing Culture

Technological advancement and information openness provide opportunities for the younger generation to learn about various cultures from around the world. Through the internet and social media, they can study languages, arts, lifestyles, and the habits of people from different countries.

This condition certainly brings benefits to the development of knowledge and insight. However, the overwhelming influence of foreign culture also presents its own challenges for the sustainability of local culture.

When popular culture from abroad is introduced and consumed more frequently, some of the younger generation risk losing their connection to the traditions growing in their own environment. As a result, local culture is slowly perceived as foreign, even by the very people who are its heirs.

This issue is related to the phenomenon of cultural homogenization, which is the tendency for diversity to decrease due to the increasing dominance of certain cultural influences.

In research conducted by Zulkarnain and his colleagues in 2025 regarding the Suran tradition in Cirendeu Village, the issue of cultural homogenization was a point of concern because it relates to the weakening attachment of the younger generation to their local cultural identity.

A lack of knowledge regarding the history, values, and meaning of a tradition can make it difficult for the younger generation to build an emotional connection with their ancestral heritage. When a tradition is understood only as an old habit without knowing the reasons behind its practice, the interest in preserving it may diminish.

Meanwhile, the older generation faces different concerns. The rapid development of technology is often viewed as a threat to the sustainability of the cultural values that have been guarded for so long.

Not everyone has the same opportunity or ability to utilize digital technology. Such limitations can create hesitation toward using modern media as a means of cultural preservation.

Yet, technology does not always have to be positioned as something that contradicts tradition.

Through education and guidance, the older generation can be introduced to the use of technology to document and introduce local culture. Conversely, the younger generation can gain direct knowledge from elders regarding the history, philosophy, and values contained within traditions.

This exchange of knowledge can serve as a bridge connecting intergenerational experiences.

Social media, for example, can be used to introduce regional arts, local languages, folklore, and various cultural practices to a wider audience. However, the dissemination of such information must still pay attention to cultural context so that the meaning and values contained within are not altered just to follow trends.

Thus, modernization does not have to end in the loss of cultural identity. Technology can actually be a tool that strengthens the existence of tradition as long as it is used with understanding and responsibility.

Coexistence and Acculturation between Modern and Traditional Groups

The relationship between traditional and modern society does not always run without obstacles. Differences in values, experiences, and interests often cause issues when the two groups interact.

One illustration of the importance of respecting local values can be found in the experience of Vincentius Tatebburuk, a resident of Mentawai, West Sumatra, who has a close connection with the natural environment around him.

In a story he once shared, Vincentius accompanied a family of tourists from France to observe primates living in the area.

While observing, they found a group of monkeys consisting of three adults and one infant. The presence of humans caused the adult monkeys to move away, while the infant was left behind.

The tourist family wanted to see the animals from a closer distance. However, Vincentius advised them to remain quiet and wait until the adult monkey group returned.

Not long after, the monkeys did indeed return.

This simple event shows that the desire to know something does not always mean one can approach it without boundaries. There is knowledge, experience, and unwritten rules that need to be respected when interacting with nature or the lives of local communities.

The same principle can be applied in efforts to understand and preserve tradition.

Indigenous communities or groups that own a tradition often have certain boundaries regarding things that may be learned, documented, or introduced to outsiders. These boundaries do not always arise because of a rejection of change, but can relate to historical values, beliefs, and experiences passed down by ancestors.

On the other hand, modern groups wanting to learn a culture may have a desire to gain the widest possible access. They may see the openness of information as an important part of education, research, or cultural preservation.

It is this difference in interests that has the potential to cause misunderstandings.

Those who want to learn a tradition may view a restriction as a form of closed-mindedness. Meanwhile, the community that owns the tradition may feel that excessive openness has the potential to strip away the meaning or sacred value of their cultural heritage.

To overcome this issue, a mutual attitude of respect is needed.

Those who want to learn a culture need to understand that not all aspects of a tradition can be accessed or disseminated freely. Respect for the rules and boundaries of the local community is part of the preservation effort itself.

Conversely, the group that owns the tradition can also consider the good intentions of outsiders who want to learn. Communicating boundaries openly and wisely can help build understanding without having to sacrifice the principles that have been guarded all this time.

Through good communication, both groups have the opportunity to find a form of cooperation that is mutually beneficial.

In this context, coexistence means the ability of communities with different views to live side-by-side without having to lose their respective identities. Meanwhile, acculturation can occur when different cultural elements interact and produce new forms of adjustment without completely eliminating the characteristics of the original culture.

Both can be part of efforts to maintain the sustainability of tradition amidst social change.

So, Who Actually Needs to Give In?

When tradition and modernization are brought together, the question that often arises is who should adjust.

Must the younger generation fully follow the way of life of the previous generation? Or must traditional society accept all the changes brought by the progress of the times?

That question does not actually have to be answered by determining who wins or loses.

Cultural preservation is not a competition between traditional and modern groups. Both have important roles in maintaining the sustainability of cultural heritage while ensuring that those values can still be understood by the next generation.

The younger generation needs knowledge and experience from their predecessors to understand the roots of their identity. Conversely, the older generation also needs openness to change so that traditions can continue to be known and passed down in a developing social environment.

Therefore, dialogue and negotiation need to be part of the relationship between community groups. Differences in views should not immediately be considered a threat, but can be an opportunity to find approaches that are more in line with common needs.

Tradition should not always be viewed as a symbol of backwardness. Likewise, modernization does not have to be interpreted as an effort to abandon or destroy ancestral heritage.

Both can walk side-by-side as long as society is able to distinguish between cultural values that need to be maintained and the way they are presented, which may be adjusted to the progress of the times.

In the end, the main issue is not who has to give in, but how each party is willing to understand different points of view.

What needs to be changed is not the entire way of life of the community or the cultural identity they possess, but the perspective that has made tradition and modernization seem as if they must be in conflict.

Because tradition does not have to be abandoned for society to become modern. Conversely, being modern also does not mean one must lose their connection to their cultural roots.