Dukun

A dukun is an Indonesian-Malay term for shaman. In Malaysia, they are often referred to as bomoh. Their societal role is that of a traditional healer, spirit medium, custom and tradition experts and on occasion sorcerers and masters of black magic. In common usage the dukun is often confused with another type of shaman, the pawang. It is often mistranslated into English as "witch doctor" or "medicine man".

The dukun is the very epitome of the kejawen or kebatinan belief system indigenous to Java. Beneath the thin superficial practice of Islam, very strong and ancient beliefs of animism, ancestor worship and shamanism run through the people of the Nusantara. While modern medicine along with revivalist Islam and Christianity have undermined the dukun's prominence, they remain highly respected and somewhat feared figures in Indo-Malay society, even in the most orthodox Muslim-dominant areas. In the pre-colonial past, dukun were exempt from paying taxes, as with Hindu priests and Buddhist monks.

Many highly prominent and highly educated Indonesians, Malaysians and Singaporeans, even those with Western doctorate and masters levels degrees will still consult dukun or soothsayers. Indonesians who are known to have employed dukun include former President Sukarno, former president Suharto, former president Megawati Sukarnoputri, Sultan Hamengkubuwana IX and Sultan Hamengkubuwana X and many more.

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