When someone take a closer look on Balinese offering, he/she will readily conclude that most parts of the offering are woven palm leaves. Jejaitan, or woven coconut leaves is not just an indispensable part but also the major part of a Balinese offering.

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Most of jejaitan is made of coconut leaves. The young coconut leaves, busung, is used as material for jejaitan that is used immediately in a ceremony. The mature coconut leaves, slepan is used to make jejaitan that is stored for a quite long time waiting to be used in the approaching ceremony. some jejaitan that is stored for a really long time is usually made of dried palm leaves. There is also jejaitan that is made form sugar palm leaves, thorny pandanus leaves and endong leaves.

To make a jejaitan is not always an easy task. Some kind of jejaitan is simple and can be made easily but there are many kinds of intricate jejaitans that need weeks of learning and training in order to produce a good quality one, there is even a specialist to make most intricate jejaitan needed in grand religious ceremony.

Despite thousands different varieties of jejaitan exist in Balinese culture inventory, the process of making jejaitan can be summarized into three steps. First the coconut leaves are striped off of the central spine running in the middle of each leaf, then they are cut according to the desired pattern and finally, skewered together with short splinters of bamboo (semat), some kind of jejaitan need to be folded before skewered or vice versa.

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The making of jejaitan is women prerogative. Balinese girl in her early age is taught how to make jejaitan, simple one at first, with the passing of the year the level of intricacy is also increased. When she reaches marriageable age, at least she can make basic jejaitan for family temple ceremony. Failing to master basic kind of jejaitan is a source of disgrace for a woman in Balinese society.

Making of jejaitan, nowadays has become a source of income for some people. Busy Balinese, especially who live in big town, simply, have no time to make jejaitan. They prefer to buy it from the tukang banten (offering maker). A lamentable situation, since they will lose ability to make a jejaitan and forever dependent to the tukang banten, and in the future, the art of making jejaitan will slowly disappear, preserve only in the hand of few tukang banten.

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