`Galungan': A day to ponder good and evil

I Wayan Juniartha, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, Bali

Hindus (also called Bhakta) gathered for prayers at family shrines and temples to celebrate Galungan, a religious festival celebrating the victory of Dharma (good) over Adharma (evil).

Thousands flocked to Denpasar's main temple of Jagatnatha early in the morning. Believers also placed offerings and chanted prayers at clan-temples across the city.

Celebrated twice a year on the day of Buda Kliwon Dunggulan in the Balinese calendar, Galungan originated in the ancient mythology of King Mayadanawa.

The mythology goes that Mayadanawa refused to acknowledge the existence of Gods. He went on the rampage, destroying temples, and prohibiting his subjects from praying and conducting religious rituals.

Heaven sent a huge army of spiritual warriors led by God Indra, god of thunder and destroyer of the fort, to punish Mayadanawa. The battle between the two armies is said to have taken place in Tampaksiring, a town 30 kilometers east of Denpasar.

It is believed that Tampaksiring's famous Tirta Empul sacred springs, a favorite pilgrimage and tourism spot, was created by God Indra in an effort to cure his troops from deadly poison released by Mayadanawa into the rivers.

Eventually, Mayadanawa's troops were defeated, and the king perished in Indra's hands. The day the king died was later celebrated as Galungan.

"Maya means illusion and danawa ogre, so basically the Mayadanawa is a symbol of the ogre of illusion which is clouding our mind and heart. So the battle between dharma and adharma actually takes place within ourselves, and Galungan serves to remind us that we good should prevail over evil," says Ayuning Hati, a Balinese cultural expert.

An ancient text of King Jayakesunu warned the Balinese that the failure to celebrate Galungan would result in the island and it's people being engulfed by terrible catastrophe.