"Meugang" as a unique ramadhan culture in Aceh ( by: Zahrani B)

      Aceh has such a unique ramadhan culture or tradition which is did only once in year called "hari megang"; a day before ramadhan. The day before ramadhan comes we can find a unique phenomenon in traditional market, especially the biggest traditional market in Banda Aceh. We will see a bunch of people fulfill the butcher shop or bucther stand since early morning, and of course every body seems buying amount of beef. This kind of phenomenon not only can see in the traditional market but also in "tanah lapang" (some place seems like 'alun-alun in Java). Special for this day some of  field will be changed to such a butcher shop. Start from early morning about 05.00 a.m every butcher comes, butchering cow and lamb, and trade it there. Actually the butchering take place at 03.00 a.m. This phenomenon of course rising a question for the people who see it for first time.

        Aceh people almost not serve amount of meet or beef  when they eat. They tend to eat seafood or chicken sometimes since they have a mind set that meet is a luxurious and expensive food. They'd prefer to  buy outside when they want to eat than cooking it them seleves, or sometime they can eat it when they are presenting at such a party. Moreover, some of them only eat meet when the ramadhan comes.

        Since the ramadhan comes, as a religious person, Aceh peoples want to be focus on their religiousness ritual without bothering by thinking about daily food. Since meet is a kind of foodstuff which is full of energy, the day before ramadhan they buy some meet and cook it in slow cooking. Thus, it also could keep for long time. The cooking is saved in saparately small pack. When they want to eat they just take some pack as much as they need and heat it aminute. After preparing amount of meet, Aceh people almost not go to the market for 2 weeks to buy another foodstuff but they just go to a small shop to find some vegetables and fruits. They can stay at home be good at religious service a long ramadhan without feel hungry at all.

Social Networks in Korean Society ( Summarized by: Zahrani B.)

1. Theoretical approaches to "non-material" forms of capital: cultural, symbolic, social capital in socialogical theory.

Then term culturalcapital represents th collection f non-economic forces uch as family background, social clas, varying investmen in ommitments to education different resources, etc. whic influence acadmic success. Bordieu dstinguishes thee forms of cultural capital.

• The embodied state isdirectly link to and incorporated within the individual and represents what they know and can do. Embodied capital can be increased by investing time into self improvement in the form of learning. 
• The objecteified state of cultural capital is represented by cultral goods, material, objects such as books, paintings, instruments or machines. They can be appropriated both materially with economic capital and symbolically via embodies caital.
• 
  
  Institutionalized state provides academic credentials and qualifcations which create a 'certificateof cultural competence which confers on its holder a conventional, constant, legally uaranteed value with respect to power.'
  
  
  
  
  
  

Bordieu states that the ability and talent of an individual is primarily determined by the time and cultural capital invested in them by their parents. Similarly, he argues that the scholastic yield from educational action depends on the cultural capital previously invested by the family.

"Bordieu defines social capital as. 'the aggregate of the actual or potential recources which are linked to possession of a durable network of more or less institutionalized relationships of mutual acquaintance and recognition.'(248) An individual's social caital is detremined by the size or thei relationship network, the sum of its umuated recouces (both cultur and economic), a how successfully (qucky) the indiviual ca set them it inmotion. Bordieu recognizes that all types of cpital can be derved from economic capital through varying efforts of transformation."

Social capital-may be crucially important not only for achieving but also for maintaning existing social/economic status. Social capital works as a set of networks connections and reciprocal mutual obligations that, in many cases, are essential for individual's survival in  highly network-centered society.

2. Social networks in South Korean society

Yeonjul, based on person's ascribed status (parental status) and various forms of cultural capital, especially such institutionalised forms of cultural capital as academic credentials. The strongest forms of yeonjul are regional (usually belonging to a group of the natives of one and the same town/province) and high school/university ties. Basically yeonjul works in the same way as social network: serve as the surest way to find a job, dodge a draft etc. "SNU Republic" and TK mafia are example of  two the strongest yeonjul in Korea. SNU is the most prestigious university and the strongest alumni yeonjul group, and TK is Taegu-Kyeongsang Province and as a strong regional yeonjul group. From the viewpoint of South Korean progressives, various yeonjuls solidify on the informal level the social borders and barriers of the class society --due to the strength of leading privileged yeonjuls, prospects of social advancement for a person without right class background (economic capital) to enter a right yeonjul, are very poor. Yeonjuls are often analysed as a form of "class alienation".

Four facts about social networks in Korea.

First, social network functions as an important mode of social exchange. People with higher socio-economics status tend to focus more on instrumental advantage of large network size, thus minimizing transaction costs, and getting information quickly and cheaply.

Second, social network in Korea shows high homopily, or very homogenous association within the line of sex, age, and region.

Third, social network functions as a reference group so that it asserts an enormous influence on individual's value and attitude.

Fourth, those who have wider range of networks tend to have less authoritian attitude, but they are more cautious and have deep distrust on judicial justice.

about Ritual & Supestition (by: Ulvia Z.)

Ritual can be defined as a set of actions which contain values and usually prescribed by a religion or by the traditions of a community. A ritual may be performed by an individual or a community in private or public places. Rituals have purposes, it can be personal purposes or public purposes and sometimes ritual is held just for the pleasure. Rituals also have various kind, rituals include not only the various worship rites but also include coronations, club meetings, etc. There are some rituals that load the occultists or magic, for example the ritual which performed with sacrifice and murder or suicide.

The most simply rituals are hand-shaking and saying hello. In Islam communities, the greeting is by saying ‘Assalamu’alaikum’ and there’s an obligation to answer it by saying ‘Wa alaikum salam.’ In Korea, we can say ‘Annyeonghaseyo,’ these are the simply form of ritual actions. Rituals in religion include worship, pray, cult. Rituals in customs and traditions include marriages, funerals, birthdays, parties, parades, ceremonies, etc. For example, in Indonesia there is a ceremony which held to celebrate the Indonesia’s freedom. In Korea there is a ritual that held to celebrate a baby’s first birthday called ‘Dol janci’. In Indonesia there are some special rituals which combine the religion and customs such as Grebeg Mulud which is held to celebrate the birth of Prophet of Muhammad, this ritual combines the Islam doctrine and Javanese custom.

Superstition is a belief or notion which not based on reason or knowledge. Superstition is different from ritual, ritual is an action, but superstition is only a belief or notion. Although superstition isn’t based on knowledge, the purpose of superstition is good, and sometimes superstition is really happened. For example, in Javanese communities there is superstition that sitting on broom will suffocate having many children and for the girls sitting in the door will suffocate difficulties of having husband. Those superstitions didn’t base on reason but have good purpose that sitting on a broom can break the broom. In Korea, there is a superstition that leaving a fan on in a closed room will suffocate the occupants.