Balinese prepare for 'Galungan'

I Wayan Juniartha, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, Bali

Hindus in Bali on Tuesday were busy adorning the temples, family shrines and erecting their tall, decorated bamboo poles in front of their houses in final preparation for the locally popular Galungan celebration, on Wednesday Nov. 20.

Galungan is the celebration of Dharma's victory over Adharma (evil), whose mythology told about an ancient Balinese King Mayadanawa who refused to acknowledge the existence of Gods, destroyed temples and prohibited his people from praying or partaking in religious rituals.

Heaven sent a huge army of spiritual warriors led by Indra, god of the thunder and destroyer of the fort, to punish Mayadanawa. Eventually, Mayadanawa's troops were defeated, and eventually the king himself perished by Indra's hand. The day the king died was later celebrated as Galungan.

"The unique feature of Galungan is that Hindus are asked to erect the Penjor, a tall bamboo pole that is decorated with coconut leaves, fruits, flowers and cakes. Penjor are a symbol of both gratitude and joy of the Balinese for Dharma's victory," a culture expert Ayuning Hati explained.

The Penjor is to be put up on the right side of a house's front gate on Penampahan day, or Galungan eve. On Penampahan day Hindus also adorn the religious shrines with beautiful traditional garments.

"On this day they also slaughter animals, generally a pig, and prepare traditional delicacies with it. The slaughter is to symbolize the killing of our animalistic instinct and behavior," Ayuning Hati said.