Balinese hold prayer for bomb victims
Balinese hold prayer for bomb victims
I Wayan Juniartha, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, Bali
About 2,000 Hindus, Muslims, Christians and Buddhists attended
an interfaith service here on Monday to pray for the victims of the
Bali bombings.
The service was marked by a speech from Bali Governor Dewa
Made Beratha, who urged the Balinese to begin rebuilding the
shattered island.
"The tragedy has inflicted sorrow and pain upon all of us. But
we must not let ourselves be carried away by these emotions.
"More importantly, we must arise and awake from this prolonged
grief. We shall make this tragedy a starting point for reaching a
better future," he said during the gathering at Puputan Margarana
Square.
The governor then assured the participants that the tourist
industry, the backbone of the island's economy, would bounce back
within months.
The ceremony was held in conjunction with the Purnama Kapat
ritual, held during the full moon of the fourth month in the
Balinese calendar, one of the most sacred days for Balinese
Hindus.
The service, conducted in front of the Bajra Sandhi monument,
was officiated over by high priest Ida Pedanda Gde Putra Bajing
of Sumerta village.
It was also attended by Minister of Religious Affairs Said
Agil Al-Munawar.
The participants, including several foreign consuls, performed
a prayer after lighting candles and placing them in a mound of
sand in the center of the square.
Hindus in Greater Jakarta conducted a similar service on
Monday to pray for the victims of the Bali bombings.
Monday's ceremony followed a similar interfaith service on
Sunday evening at Kuta beach in Bali.
The service on Sunday, called Mahashanti Puja (Prayer for
Peace), was participated in by hundreds of Hindus, Muslims,
Christians and Buddhists, who prayed for the souls of the nearly
200 victims of the Bali attack.
"We ask God to embrace these souls with his infinite
compassion and love, so their journey to the next realm will not
be hampered by the violent nature of their death," the event's
organizer, Agus Indra Udayana of Gandhi Puri Ashram, said.
The Mahashanti Puja was held just some 500 meters from the
site of the bombings.
After the service, participants took part in a Pada Yatra, or
peace walk, during which they walked some 400 meters along the
beach carrying a 60-meter-long white cloth stretched above their
heads.
After the Pada Yatra, members of the different religious
groups prayed for the bombing victims.