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.