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Ngaben,
the joyful release of
the eternal soul...
The Ngaben is
the last and most important ceremony of every Balinese life. It's the
Balinese word for the
cremation of the dead, in which the soul is released entirely from the
body to ascend to heaven and to be reincarnated.
 The
cremation is a big happening in Bali, especially a royal cremation such
as in Ubud last July 2008.
But before a cremation can actually take
place, there are many complicated ceremonies and preparations
before and after the cremation.
The three major events
which take place before the soul of the deceased is fully released are:
Before
the influence of the Majapahit, which spread the
Hindu religion throughout Bali, the Balinese guided the soul of the
deceased in a more simple way.
The deceased was taken into the
forest where the high humidity and the animals would break the body
down
quickly. Through this way the soul would be released from the
body.
Today this burial method only takes place in the Bali Aga
villages, such as Tenganan and Trunyan who have never been influenced
by the Majapahit before.
The
Funeral
In
Bali a funeral takes place shortly after a person dies, unlike the
Hindu in India where the deceased is
cremated immediately. The deceased is buried at the Pura Dalem,
the temple complex facing the sea. The Pura Dalem is also often
referred to as 'the temple the dead'.
The length of the period between the funeral and the ngaben depends
entirely on the financial position of the family,
sometimes it even takes years. Only the rich are cremated soon after
they have died.
The pura
dalem in Kalibukbuk, North Bali
Priests, who always belong to the highest
caste, are never buried. They are kept in their own house until the
family has gathered sufficient money for the ngaben.
Before the funeral the
body of the deceased is purified according to several ceremonies and
then buried. The family can place daily
food
offerings on a small shrine that is built next to the
grave.
At
the head and the feet of the grave the Balinese always place small
coconut-leaves. This enables the demon of the deceased to find its way
back after wandering at night. If there are no leaves at the
grave, then the demon will wander for ever which the Balinese believe
will have a
negative impact on the village and family.
The
whole period before the actual ngaben is experienced as a very sad
time as the Balinese believe that during this period the soul is not
able the reach heaven yet.
Only
when there is enough funding, all the preparations have been made and
the appropriate date has been determined by the priests, will the soul
of the deceased
be released through the Ngaben.
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The
Cremation -- Ngaben
Every
Balinese family has the responsibilty to ensure that a
proper ngaben takes place if a family member dies. If this does not
happen this will have severe consequences for the deceased and his/her
family.
Families
who can't afford a cremation often await the ngaben of a important or royal
person.
The preperations for these people are always the best one can have, as
the best priest is called upon, the holiest water is used and the most
appropriate date is chosen for the cremation.
With
everything perfectly planned and set for the big cremation,
other
bodies will be cremated
too so they can profit from the ideal setting in which the cremation
will take place. The families of the deceased will then know for sure
that the soul will be guided
to heaven under the best circumstances.
The
ceremonies before a mass cremation in Ubud
It is not uncommon to have a mass cremation of 100 people on the
same day as the ultimate royal cremation when money does not
play an
issue...
Unlike
the funeral, the ngaben is a
joyful occasion as the soul of the
deceased is now ready to continue its journey to heaven followed by
reincarnation.
Before the ngaben takes place, numerous
preparations need to be organised. The body will be taken out of its
temporary grave at the Pura Dalem and carried to its former house three
days before the cremation. During the whole process complicated rituals
follow a specific order.
The offerings
are carried to the pura dalem
A
day before the cremation one final ceremony is held at the Pura Dalem.
This is when everybody is beautifully
dressed in traditional Balinese clothing and when the
colourful offerings are carried to the temple.
On
the day of the ngaben the body is transported to the Pura Dalem in a
funeral tower. The tower is made out of wood and bamboo. The village
carpenter and carvers create an amazing structure full with bright
decorations.
The funeral tower can be a couple to 10 metres high.
In the past it was common to see really high towers, however today this
is hardly possible since there are to many telephone and electricity
cables hanging over the streets...
The body of
the deceased is
transported
in this tower
The
tower consists of three levels, of which the platform is the highest.
Here the body is placed while the priests stands next to it and escorts
it to the Pura Dalem.
The base of the tower is built on
bamboo poles which is then placed on the shoulders of a group of men
who will carry the tower to the temple. In order to ensure that the
soul of the deceased doesn't find his/her way back home the men confuse
it by twisting, twirling
and making full circles with the tower.
All
the men in the village are delighted to take part in this un-organised
spectacle. As an spectator you are just surprised that the tower is
still standing in the end...
In
front of the procession another
group of men are carrying the sarcophagus, often in the form of a black
bull. It is a impressive structure and the decorations are often very
grand as a lot of gold is used in the decorations.
The bull in
which the body will be placed
just before the cremation
The sarcophagus always arrives first at the
temple, and waits here for the funeral tower to arrive. There
is a opening on the back of the bull in which the body will be
placed.
The final rituals are conducted by the priest who
sprinkles holy water on the bull and offerings are placed. Then the
sarcophagus is set on fire in order to purify the deceased.
Once
everything is burnt to ashes, is the
soul able to
leave this world
In
the past the widow would be cremated together with her deceased
husband as it was her duty to assist him in finding the right
way.
But fortunately, when the Dutch ruled over Bali they forbade these
practices...
The initial purification
of the deceased is a fact only when the whole sarcophagus is turned
into ashes. The white ashes of the bones are separated from
the others and then places with flowers into yellow and white cloth.
Only
then is the soul of the deceased ready for the final ceremony, in
which the soul of deceased is awaken by the priest one final time.
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The
Final Purification
The final ceremony after the ngaben is usually 12 days after the
cremation. But because it is another expensive
happening, it can take
longer before this ceremony actually takes place.
During this ceremony the remaining
ashes that was placed in white and yellow cloth is transported on a
beautiful construction to the sea. If the sea is too far, then the
ashes will be taken to a river which will eventually carry it to sea.
The ashes
will be placed at sea so
the soul is
fully released
During the ngaben the soul of the deceased
has been purified by fire and resides in heaven where
life is just as in Bali but without diseases and problems.
However, during the last ceremony in which the ashes are
placed in the water the soul is released to a higher level. From here
the soul can follow the final stage of reincarnation.
The
Balinese people believe that the soul will return back as a
reincarnation
of a new family member, such as the first baby born
after this
final ritual.
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Royal
Cremation (Palabon) in Ubud
Pelabon is another word for Ngaben, however this cremation is for the
higher caste only.
On
the 15th of July
the biggest Palabon since 3 decades had taken place
in Ubud. It was a great happening, of which preperations had begun
months before.
 A total of 250.000 people gathered in Ubud to see
this huge spectacle
and there was a big media attention from all over the world.
The
streets of Ubud was full with colourfully dressed
people waiting for
the procession to pass.
During this cremation the souls of two royal elders from Ubud were
released: Tjokorda Gede
Agung Suyasa and Tjokorda Gede Raka.
Parallel
to the royal cremation, there was a mass cremation of another 68 people
who where members of the community around Ubud and had died in the last
4 years.
Here are a couple of pictures of the events before and during the
cremation.
For
more than three months the best carpenters of Ubud have been building
two towers (bade) for the royal cremation. Vast amount of preperations
took place in front of the royal palace in Ubud in order to have
everything
finished on time.
The body of the royal Tjokorda Gede Agung Suyasa was placed in this
tower and transported to the Pura Dalem in Ubud. It was so unbelievably
high and wide that the electricity cables had to be taken down and
trees had to
be cut so the tower could reach its final destination. It was
approximately 20m high,
one of the highest ever built...
The
crowd watched with full
amazement at the moving tower. If you take a closer look,
you
will see the priest in white who is in the tower together with the
body. On the base of the tower a large group of men are carrying the
heavy structure on their shoulders. About 7000 men were involved in
carrying the two royal towers, two bulls and the dragen...
The
impressive
bull (lembu) decorated with golden ornaments was at the
temple just before the arrival of the tower.
The body was carried from the tower and placed into the bull, in which
it was cremated.
The dragen (naga banda)
is rarely seen in a cremation, even one of royalty. However it was used
during the cremation because of the important role of the deceased
Tjokorda Gede Agung Suyasa in the Ubud and palace
community.
Once everything was in place and the high priest (penanda) made the final blessings
before the souls of the two deceased could be released. Then the two
bulls were set on fire. In the past they would use wood to feed the
fire, however today modern technology has made the process quicker.
Nevertheless, the fire was still burning till late at night...
It was an unforgettable experience and the sense of excitement and joy
pictured the day. We felt lucky that we were able to see such a great
happening, that even made the newspapers throughout the world...Not
surprisingly considering the impressive and unique event.
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