Balinese prepare for 'Galungan'

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.