This month, the people of Tenganan celebrated their new year with the sacred Usaba Kasa ceremony – Usaba Kasa is a series ceremony that celebrated the first month of Tenganan year). This year, the final day of Usaba Kasa ceremony was celebrated on 2/12/08 with sacred abuang dance of Tenganan’s boys and girls.

The sacred abuang dance began around 10 AM but the preparation of the ceremony that involved cooking and preparing the stage and musical instruments started around 7 AM. Around 9 AM, Tenganan children arrived in the venue of the ceremony with their finest geringsing cloths and beautiful gold jewelries. Around 10 AM the Tenganan’s girls arrived, their geringsing cloths and gold jewelries surpassed the beauty of their junior cloth and jewelries. After the girls took their place in the venue of the ceremony, the sacred Abuang dance was begun.

(more…)

In accordance with Usaba Sambah series of ceremony (a month-long series of ceremonies which is held in the fifth month of Tenganan calendar) that is held in the ancient village of Tenganan, a special ceremony for the youth known as Muran Teruna is held. This ceremony is held once every three years which includes several of activities conduct by the youths of three sub-villages in Tenganan.

The word “muran teruna” consists of the word “muran” which derived from the word “uran” means “participant of activity” and the word “teruna” which means “youth.” In the Muran Teruna ceremony, each sub-village sends its maidens to be chosen by its own bachelors as a partner to participate in the series of the ceremonies which will last until late at night.

(more…)

Makare-karean or war by using thorny pandanous leaves is an indigenous war dance of Tenganan Pagringsingan village. Tenganan Pegeringsingan is a traditional Bali Aga (Proto Bali) village is situated at Manggis district, regency of Karangasem approximately 65 km from Denpasar (the International Airport of Bali). It is near Candidasa and can be easily reached by public or private vehicles.

(more…)

The ground floor of Denpasar Building displays various pre-historical and historical collections of Bali consisting of relics and artifacts. Those collections are displayed in accordance with their periodization as follows:

1. The Pre-historical Period
This period is classified into four sub-periods, namely:

A. The hunting and early food gathering (Paleolithicum)
1,000,000 - 200,000 B.C.

The people in this period lived in wondering and always moved from one place to another to get a more fertile soil. Their equipments that were used for hunting or cutting things made from stone, still very simple in shape and coarse, called kapak genggam and kapak perimbas (hand axe). These collections have been found at Sembiran and Trunyan villages.

(more…)

This is an original pre-Hindu Balinese settlement, long a stronghold of native traditions, about halfway between Padangbai and Amlapura (67 km northeast of Denpasar). At the end of an asphalt country road up a narrow valley, Tenganan is far removed from the Javano-Balinese regions of Bali. Like Trunyan on Lake Batur to the northwest, this small village is inhabited by the Bali Aga, aboriginal Balinese who settled the island long before the influx of immigrants from the decaying 16^th- century Majapahit Empire. It might appear to be a stage managed tourist site but is actually a living, breathing village-the home of farmers, artists, and craftspeople.

The lowland people of Tenganan have preserved their culture and way life through the conviction they’re descended from gods. They practice a religion based on tenets dating from the kingdom of Bedulu, established before the Hindus arrived. Tenganan origins can be traced back to the holy text Usana Bali, which states they must tend their consecrated land to honor the royal descendants of their creator, Batara Indra. Though Tenganan is today Hindu, it is also unmistakably Polynesian.

(more…)

The two dance terms used for this dance have different meanings in different villages. Both dances have their own particular characteristics. In the traditional village of Asak in Karangasem, however, these two names are combined for a particular dance form the Pendet Rejang. This dance with its own function, role, attributes and costumes, is performed at the time of the Ngusabha Kasa Festival around June/July each year and is centred on the Great Hall in the village of Asak.

The Pendet Rejang dancers wear special costumes. Their head dress has a kind of crown with expensive jewels, and is decorated with gold flowers. No fresh flowers are used, but pure gold flowers called sasak flowers, with some golden cempaka flowers as a border for the headdress.

(more…)