English has Romeo and Juliet to be proud of as a spectacular literary work. Chinese has Sampik Ing-Tai that shows world community that they also have a great romantic story. And Balinese answer for a romantic story is none other than Jayaprana and Layonsari.

Once upon a time, many years ago, there was a family consisted parents and their 4 children. They lived in Kalianget village, North Bali. One day deadly disaster attacked the village. The members of that family dead except the third younger child, named Jayaprana.

He became a motherless and fatherless child. Nonetheless, the King took him to the palace and let him lived at there. Year after year he grew to be a handsome young man. The king forced him to get married soon. One or two force did not change Jayaprana’s mind to realize the king desire. But, after the King forced him so many times he could not avoid it again.

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In Bali the honeymoon usually precedes the wedding; the average boy in love with a girl makes his marriage arrangements directly with her, and outside his father, perhaps, and a few friends from he needs help, he keeps his intention secret until the day, previously agreed upon between the boy and the girl, when he will steal her. Shy couples simply run away together to the house of a friend, as a rule in another village, where they spent honeymoon in hiding.

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However, the Balinese love spectacular kidnappings. The girl arranges for her clothes to be taken secretly to their future hide out, and on the appointed day she is captured by somewhere on the road, in the fields, or in the river by the kidnapping party, led by her suitor. She is expected to kick and bite her abductors in sham of self-defense, and although there may be witnesses, no one would dream of interfering, unless they are the relatives of the girl, in which case they are supposed to put up a great fight
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In accordance with the celebration of Valentine day, today’s article will talk nothing but love and to ensure that this article will talk nothing but love, I will not write anything, instead, I invite you to enjoy the most popular love story in Bali, The story of Jayaprana and Layonsari.

Jayaprana dance by Lila Bhawa dance troupe on Bali Arts Festival 2006

A long time ago in the kingdom of Kalianget, a small village in North Bali, there lived a powerful king, whose name has long been forgotten. It happened that an epidemic struck the whole village, killing most of the villagers. One of the few survivors was a little boy called I Nyoman Jayaprana, the only person in his family to have been spared from the disease.

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‘All is fair in love’ a saying that is understood perfectly by the Balinese. When love from a man or woman seems impossible to achieve, it is time for magic to join the game. The magic on love in Bali has various forms. Range from spell to amulet, from charm to potion, which produce various effects to the victim.

Amulet
There are many kinds of amulet that are used to gain love from a man or woman, the most powerful of all is the Arjuna coin and Moon coin. Arjuna coins that are used by man have an image romantic hero Arjuna of Mahabharata epic, while those used by women are the moon coins. The moon-coin has an image of new moon on it. These coins are believed to have been made by the gods and not by humans; they are found lying around the temple at night if it is the wish of the gods to present one with a magic coin.

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