Ngaben or cremation ceremony is arguably the most documented Balinese ceremony among hundreds of Balinse religious ceremonies. And of course the prima ballerina of Balinese cremation is the cremation tower or well known as Bade or Wadah. Bade or wadah is a tower which is used to carry the body of the deceased to the cremation ground.

Bade or Wadah is a pagoda-like structure with multi-tiered roof, constructed by a group of special craftsmen known as sangging with specific material such as bamboo, paper mace and cotton. The size, proportion and the structure of the bade is strictly governed by the ancient rules of bade construction. The height of the Bade could reach up to 25 meters and the weight around 10 ton. It is required a few hundreds of man to carry it.

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Hierarchy in a society exists in some areas in the world and Bali is one of them. This island of gods has a special society order. Balinese adopted their society order from India. This order was developed between 2000 until 1000 BC in India by the Aryas (an ethnic group which lived in India at that time).

Indians, between 2000-1000 BC, had divided their society based on the divisions of labor into four parts.
1. Brahmana. This group was fulfilled by the people who have abilities in leading and managing the traditional ceremony (Pendeta).
2. Ksatriya. People of noble birth belong to this group, included the King and his family.
3. Waisya. Farmers and traders belong to this group.
4. Sudra. This group is the lowest and its members are the slaves and bondsmen.
Actually there are two possibilities to explain how caste system was spread to Indonesia, but a theory which stated that trading was the medium of spreading the caste system seems more acceptable. The trade made the adoption easier. The caste system was brought from Java to Bali and Balinese then applied it into their society.

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In Bali, becoming blacksmiths is not a matter of skill. Although you can learn how to make a steel implement, you cannot be called a blacksmith. The only way to become a blacksmiths is to be born in a Pande family.

The smiths in Bali are called, generally, pande, the most influential among them being blacksmiths: pande wesi, or pande besi. The historical importance of their craft, particularly in the shaping of the magically charged and (unfortunately) very practical kris daggers, gave this group of low caste artisans a status that seemed to fall outside the usual dictates of caste. The Pande is a small, but very tightly knit clan group in Bali. Although the Pande clan did not exist, even in the earliest days the pande has considerable political power, including the right to seat representatives on the governing bodies of the desa (village). To maintain their position of prestige, the smiths kept their techniques secret and saw it in that marriage would take place only within their own professional group. And today, this clan is still fiercely proud, the most conservative in its ranks refusing the religious authority of the Brahmana priest - some, claiming ancestry preceding Hinduism, even creating a sort of hybrid religion of their own.

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April 1, 2006

Here’s the run down on Agung Rai’s wedding marathon.

The invitation showed up days in advance…way earlier than the prescribed three days. Agung Rai and his father delivered it resplendent in Balinese costumes. The invitation was very simple and all pink and white with hearts…very valentine’s dayish. The bride is marrying ‘up’. She is Sudra (lowest caste, as I am) and of course the groom is an Agung, from the royal caste and second highest of the four castes, so she will be called jero after marriage. Her family lives in Karangasem, not very far from Tirta Ganga, the gorgeous water palace we visited, so it’s one heck of a distance away from Selat in Payangan.

Normally the bride is brought to the groom’s house before the religious ceremony, but because of the distance between the two homes and the extra costs of transportation, the families negotiated to bring her early and change much of the routine. Thank heavens for that! Two trips to Karangasem would be more than I could handle.

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As a community, the people of Bali are tied to the social and cultural aspects of life by what they call the Tri Hita Karana, which proclaims one’s duty to live a spiritual life as atma (spirit), the duty to look after one’s habitat and habitual areas as angga (body), and the duty of carrying out one’s living as a member of an interconnected community, as khaya (labor).

To this day, the people, society and culture of Bali are characterized by their history and by the ancient influences of Majapahit. The Hindu philosophy of life, the three elements atma, angga, and khaya, has made the life of the population unique and flexible in its response to the changing times. Cultural development and the conduct of the Balinese from ancient times to the modem day can be explained as a flexible process, where economical development, knowledge, and technology have been blended with the colors of local culture. The culture of Bali is constantly developing and changing, without losing the uniqueness of its own culture.

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