Here is another good articles on climate change by Balinese high priest Sri Bhagawan Dwija Warsa Nawa Sandi from Buleleng regency who has great concern on environment and climate change without further ado here is the words of Bhagawan Dwija.

TRIHITAKARANA for UNFCCC

The relevancy to the world climate change anticipation
By : Bhagawan Dwija

Introduction
Mpu Kuturan who came to Bali at 11 AD by request of King Udayana and Gunapriadharmapatni, not only succeed to unite various existing Hinduism sects at that time under Trimurti belief system, but also have placed social religious life foundation in the form of Desa Pakraman. Desa Pakraman as Hindu-Bali community, is developed with Trimurti belief where God with his manifestation as Brahma, Siwa, and Wisnu are placed at Pura Desa for Brahma, Pura Dalem for Siwa, and Pura Segara or Pura Puseh for Wisnu. These three Puras, known as Trikahyangan. Based on that, concept of Trihitakarana also developed, with human as central or determinant for kindliness and prosperity. Trihitakarana means three things needed to make kindliness and prosperity happen, i.e Parhyangan (well-balanced and harmonious relation between human with God); Pawongan (well-balanced and harmonious relation between human with each others); and Palemahan (well-balanced and harmonious relation between human with environment).

(more…)

In the paradise island of Bali, when it comes to offering (banten) for the ceremony the Balinese women holds the sway. Balinese women prepare all the offerings (banten) that is needed for the ceremony. If you look at glance you can see that the stuffs called banten consists of various parts and hard to remember all in a few minutes. Each stuff has its own role and function. Sometimes if banten is not complete then traditional ceremony can not be held. There is a stuff named tumpeng which is need in several ceremonies.

Tumpeng is made from rice. Balinese women usually form the rice with their hands and with help of shaper. This shaper is usually created by their hands using coconut leaves. Its shape like cone then obviously rice which is put into it will have the same form and Balinese call it tumpeng. In order to produce tight and firm tumpeng Balinese women should press the rice to the cone using their thumb. Their thumb will be tired when they have to make 100 until 300 tumpeng in each Galungan and Kuningan day.

(more…)

Today, Redite Pon Julungwangi, Balinese celebrates Siwaratri, here is the interesting article on last year edition:

Tomorrow, on the dark moon of the seventh month based on the Balinese lunar calendar system, Balinese will celebrate the Siwaratri or the Night of Siwa. This holy day is devoted to God Siwa, the destroyer. Balinese believes that on this day, God Siwa, the destroyer meditate for the welfare of the world, and the God Siwa will bestow a pardon for all sin to someone if he accompany the God Siwa in his meditation by observing some self restriction and meditate on the night of Siwaratri.

flickr.com/photos/balu/

The Brata (self-restriction) of Siwaratri includes Jagra (staying awake all night long), Upawasa (fasting), and Monabrata (silence). There are three major level of self- restriction, Balinese can choose a level of self-restriction according to his capability. The Kakawin (old poetry prayer) of Siwaratrikalpa explains the three major level of self- restriction that should take place on the Siwaratri night as follow Utama (top self-restriction) includes Brata (self-restriction) like Monabrata (silence), Upawasa (fasting) and Jagra (staying awake all night long). Madya (middle self-restriction) includes Upawasa (fasting) and Jagra (staying awake all night long). Nista (lowest self-restriction) includes only Jagra (staying awake all night long). The Brata (self-restriction) is held over a period of 36 hours, starting with the sunrise on January 17 until the sunset of ‘Tilem Kepitu’ on January 18, 2007.

(more…)

Siwa and his wife Dewi Sri were walking once in the mountain walaraoe. And moved by the lonely beauty of place Siwa wanted to enjoy his wife. But she would not, because it seemed to her too solemn and godlike a place for such a thing. And while he strove with her two drops of sperma fell into a hollow of the mountain. Siwa was vexed with is wife because she had caused them to be wasted, and he said mantras over them, and they became twins, a boy and girl. Then he went away with Dewi Sri and left the children alone. And in heaven he heard them crying for food; and he went down to them and told them who their father was, and gave them names: kalawenara and kalekek, and told them to find their food in the graveyard. Kalekek was to eat, but after midday only, the offerings for the dead; Kalawenara was to live beside the magic spring, on the titi-gonggan and serve the god of the spring, whose name was Sanghyang Putrajaya. And his food was to be the coins which accompany the offerings, and one of the cremation offerings.

Meanwhile, Dewi Sri, who was rather out of favor, began to wander whether she too might be able to make a child without the help of her husband. So he began to haunt the temple of death. And at the full moon of Kajeng Kliwon (a magically powerful day) she went to bathe with her servant in the water spout in the middle of the graveyard. And by chance she laid her clothes on the grave of a woman who had died pregnant. When the night came she went again to the spot as Durga and said spells over the corpse, and a girl- child was born. And the after-birth she made into a boy. And she called the girl Bhuta Seliwer and the boy Cuildaki, and appointed both to be the guardians of the graveyard. But Buta Seliwer complained that her magic was not strong enough, so her name was changed to Seliwarmaya, and she was given the kepuh tree to live in. and Cuildaki was told to mingle with souls of uncremated people and cause trouble in the houses of their relations. And for their food she gave them, as Siwa had done to their children, the offering to the dead.

(more…)

Yesterday I found an interesting writing on Balinese culture, religion and people which is entitled “From Royal House to Nation” by Scott Johnsen. Here is a piece of his insight on Balinese religion:

Bali, with its thousands of temples, has long been known in tourist literature as “The Island of the Gods.” Now one can find a new slogan alongside the old: “Bali: The Island of God.” It would be incorrect to say that Bali has only recently acquired ideas of an ultimate divine form: the god Siwa has long had something like a “highest of the high” conception, and there were a variety of other concepts of ultimate divinity known primarily to Brahmana priests, including that of Sang Hyang Widhi. Nonetheless, when Christian missionaries chose this latter divinity as the Balinese “one god” (Covarrubias 1994 [1937]:263, Bakker 1993) – the most notable missionary achievement in an otherwise rather bleak record of failure (Hanna 2004 [1976]) – this began a popularization of this deity that grew after the second world war (Swellengrebel 1960:71-3) and became the centerpiece of Balinese efforts to gain formal state recognition for their religion.

(more…)

In an uncontrolled fit of temper Giriputri the mountain goddess and wife of Bhatara Siwa, had so mistreated her child Sanghyang Kumara that Siwa banished her to the middle world. There she was to remain, ugly, with large, flaccid breasts and demonic canine teeth, and rule the death temple and the burial and cremation grounds. From this moment on, humanity in the realm of Medan Kumulan was afflicted by pestilence and death.

Much later the god Siwa felt an urge to visit Giriputri, whom he had cursed and who was now known as Bhatari Durga. After transforming himself into the demonic Sang Hyang Kala Rudra, he met Durga at a crossroads, copulated with her and thus begot the three demons, Bhuta Bang (The red Demon), Bhuta Sweta (The White Demon) and Bhuta Ireng (The Black Demon). Together with the spirits of disease Bhuta Brelaga, they now caused terror and disaster throughout the country.

In great concern over the future of humanity, Bhatara Brahma, eldest son of the divine couple Siwa and Giriputri, summoned his two younger brothers Wisnu and Iswara to a conference. After Bhatara Wisnu had thought the problem over carefully, he suggested that all there brother should appear in the middle world as priests to arrange for various necessary measures to be taken against their parents’ demonic emanations.

(more…)