Pura Luhur Batukaru, a unique sacred mountain sanctuary and royal temple of Tabanan dynasty, situated on the foot of mount Batukaru, 23 km north of Tabanan, built to venerate deities of mountains and lake.

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Based on the scripture, the temple was founded in 11^th century by Empu Kuturan, a great Hindu sage who established six main temple of Bali. At that time, this temple was a sanctuary for hermits. In 1604, the temple was attacked and partially destroyed by the king of Buleleng, Anglurah Panji Sakti, but his troops were beaten back by millions of bees unleashed by the protective spirit of the temple. Pura Luhur Batukaru was not rebuilt until 1959, even though pilgrims had continued to worship in rubble.

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On Wednesday, Balinese celebrated Galungan Holyday, a holyday to commemorate the victory of Dharma (virtue) over Adharma (evil). This holyday is considered the pinnacle of Balinese struggle to subdue the negative force of evil, and what is called evil here is the sad ripu (six internal enemies), they are kama (lust), loba (greed), krodha (anger), mada (drunkeness), moha (confusion) and matsarya (envy). It is an inward struggle, a struggle to free our mind from the influence of negative force that at the end leads us to do various bad deeds.

Though this struggle is carried out everyday but the ultimate battle occur during three-day period before Galungan, when three personifications of negative force come to the world successively, they are known as Kala-tiganing Galungan – which are Bhuta Galungan, Bhuta Dunggulan and Bhuta Amangkurat.

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Sukarare
This is a village of traditional weavers south of Cakranegara, Lombok known for its brightly patterned songket cloth. The techniques, patterns and motifs have been handed down through the generations

Here are some shots made recent visit to this village :

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Penampahan Galungan, is a day before Galungan (a Christmas for Balinese). The word “Penampahan Galungan” derives from the word “tampah” which means “to slaughter” and “galungan” which means victory. So Penampahan Galungan is a day for Balinese to slay their Sad Ripu (six internal enemies, they are: kama (lust), loba (greed), krodha (anger), mada (drunkeness), moha (confusion) in order to achieve victory.

For six months Balinese engage with the battle of Dharma (Virtue) versus Adharma (Evil), and Penampahan Galungan is the last day of this great battle. On this day, Bhuta Amangkurat (King of negative force) comes to the world to temp Balinese. Amangkurat derives from the word “Mangku” which means “king”, “lord” or “master”. Bhuta Amangkurat temps human with the lust for power over others. If we were not in alert and weak, it would succeed in tempting us. On this day Bhuta Yadnya (offering for demon or other negative force) is held in Catuspata, (the houseyard), offering is distributed based on urip (special number for five direction, 4 for north, 5 for east, 7 for south, 9 for west and 8 for center) and direction, dedicated to Sang Tiga Bhuta Galungan (Three Evil force of Galungan which are Bhuta Galungan, Bhuta Dunggulan and Bhuta Amangkurat) in order to placate them so they will not disturb the human life.

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What will you see when you visit Bali during Galungan and Kuningan period? I believe your answer will be Penjor (eight-meter-high bamboo poles festooned with bamboo decorations which are put over roadways or pathways during Galungan or Kuniangan). Penjor will dominate your view wherever you take a look at. It is so beautiful view. But have you ever heard about the actual meaning of it?

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Here is an interesting excerpt about Balinese and Balinese community in Netherlands taken from an article written by Ana Dragojlovic entitled Performing Balinese Femininity in Migration. Without further ado here is the excerpt

Banjar is the civic organisation central to the social organisation of village life in Bali. According to previous scholarship, ideally a banjar in Bali is a residential association within the encompassing ‘customary village,’ the desa adat. The banjar is responsible for organising and maintaining local public facilities and it may request the labour of its members for this or any other communal goal. Tight solidarity and strong social ties within the banjar make it the centre of most village social and economic activities. Banjar organisations in Bali have been undergoing a series of changes, on the one hand influenced by the Indonesian state and on the other by local dynamics within villages. Because of increasing migration from the 1970s to locations outside Bali and Indonesia, some Balinese started organising themselves into networks in their adopted countries. Those networks, while often bearing the name of banjar, are characterised by numerous differences and adaptations appropriate to the circumstances in the new country. In the Netherlands, banjar adherents gather twice a year to celebrate Kuningan/Galungan.

Continue reading ‘The Banjar Suka Duka in the Netherlands’