Bali culture -
ancient traditions mixed with modern life
Bali culture is so different from any culture you
may have seen that
you quickly ask yourself: What kind of cultural explosion happened
here?
It’s everywhere, from the gamelan music in the
hotel
lobby, the beautiful decorated Balinese people on the streets, statues
of fierce looking guardians, the numerous colorful umbrellas to the
beautiful made offerings on cars, in front of shops and pavements.
Be careful not to step on them though...
“So what happened to Bali that didn’t
happen to the other Indonesian islands?”
The answer lies in an interesting event in Bali
history.
After the great Hindu Majapahit Kingdom on Java collapsed by the
influence of Islam in 1527, lots of intellectuals, noblemen, artists,
priests, dancers and actors were forced to flee to Bali.
They
brought with them their rituals and traditions and mixed these with
those of the local Balinese people making Bali life what it is
today...yes even when it happened 481 years ago.
Everything you
see the Balinese people do is connected with their beliefs in the gods
and goddesses, good spirits and bad spirits in the
Bali religion.
The
Balinese people believe the sun, the rice fields, a tree and even a
rock has a spirit. They organize their entire life to live in harmony
with the good and the bad spirits.
Somewhere on Bali there's
always a religious ceremony or colorful ritual taking place in one of
the many temples or just outside your hotel on the beach.
Just by driving around I've run into several cremation
ceremonies called ngaben
and women carrying towers of food on their heads to bring to the gods
in the temples such as on the national holiday of Galungan.
Bali culture and religion is famously expressed in
music
and dance.

For
one of the best venues to see and hear Bali music and dance you’ll have
to go to the cultural center of Bali, Ubud. Here you can see traditional
dances such as the masked dance of the Barong, Legong,
Pendet, Baris, Oleg Tambulilingan, Sanghyang and Kecak
dance.
The
Kecak or Monkey Chant is one of my favorites even though there’s no
gamelan or any other instrument involved. You’ll see a bare-chested
choir of men sitting in a circle making “chak-a-chak-a-chak” sounds on
the rhythm of the story. It tells the Ramayana story where Prince Rama
accompanied by the monkey army tries to rescue his wife Sita from the
hands of the evil Rawana, the King of Lanka.
Bali culture is also
expressed in handicrafts such as paintings, woodcarving, masks and
batik. Through time the role of painters has changed from suppliers to
temples and religious ceremonies to suppliers for a wider market.
Statues
of demons around temples and hotel entrances are also an important part
of the Bali culture. Nowadays they are even sold on the market. When
you drive around Bali you’ll notice the many shops with statues ranging
from big-bellied Buddha’s, dancing horses to dolphins in all shapes and
sizes and even life-sized Indians. Indians...?
On the road to
Besakih for example you might run into various craftsmen churning out
amazing pieces for various temples on the island or for the
international trade. This is one of the places to get a decent bargain
far away from the expensive shops.
The food on Bali has lots of
influences from the other
islands in the Indonesian archipelago. It’s hard to point out Balinese
specialties but there are a couple worth mentioning that are specific
for the Bali culture such as ‘Babi
Guling’, ‘Bebek Betutu, ‘Lawar’ and ‘Satay Lilit’.
Other famous dishes you’ll find but do not
originate from Bali culture are the Indonesian ‘Rijsttafel’
and ‘Nasi
goreng’. Nasi goreng can be found in almost every restaurant
and can be considered Indonesia’s national dish.
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