Wira, our president of the Lagu Damai Bali Foundation, held a very important celebration and ceremony in his compound. Being the eldest son in the family, he inherits all what comes with this. The responsibility to take care of the property, the parents and the family temple. In this particular ritual he was handed the rights to hold ceremonies in the house temple from his father and was blessed by a very high Brahman priest.
Penjor_2
For this years Galungan Celebration our head gardener Ketut built together with two of our volunteers the panjor which is erected at the entrance gate to Jiwa Damai.
A huge Bamboo is cut and then decorate with all details along the stem and the top. A little alter is created to give offerings to the gods. The panjor remains put for 3 weeks and looks very wonderful.
Penjor
Tradition demands, that each house in the village places one in front of their entrance.
Penor_3
Balinese people are very religious and they regularly hold ceremonies and parades in their communities. They bring offerings to the Gods in order to ask for their good will and to appease them. Wira, the general manager at Jiwa Damai, invited us to join his familiy in one of the bigger ceremonies held in his village.
We, the foreigners, got dressed up in traditional Balinses clothes. Everyone is wearing a sarong. This is really the essential piece of clothing you need during your stay on Bali!
The festivities started with a ceremony in the local temple.
Balinese ceremony
Afterwards all the people of the village set out to march to the next village, to the next temple to hold the religious ceremony there.
Ceremony walk
The whole march took about 6 hours in the hot Balinese midday sun! The group stopped at 4 different temples to hold ceremonies. It was quite a challenge to walk in the boiling heat for that many hours and for so many kilometers. But it was a very special and rewarding experience at the same time. We, the foreigners, or the "bule" (how the Balinese people call foreigners) were the attraction of the group. Everyone eyed us carefully & curiously... but they welcomed us in the group with warm feelings.
The Balinese women were all dressed in their most beautiful clothes, carrying basket with offerings on their heads.
Balinese women
And the little kids were absolutely adorable !
Balinese kids
All in all this day was a great experience!
At Jiwa Damai we offer our guests the opportunity to get in close contact with the Balinese people and to take part in ceremonies and local festivities.
To inquire about upcoming festivities and the possibility to join, write us an email> info@jiwadamai.net.
Jiwa Damai is a hands-on, socially responsible organic garden and retreat center.
We are located amidst lush tropical vegetation in the heart of Bali (20 mins from Ubud).
