New guardian of Balinese sacred arts

New guardian of Balinese sacred arts

I Wayan Juniartha, The Jakarta Post, Bangli

A thin layer of mist had begun to shroud the magnificent village
temple, producing a coolness that forced hundreds of people, who
had crowded into the temple courtyard, to huddle together.

Their gaze fixed on the spacious courtyard, where the soft
light of the full moon gently caressed three separate rows of
traditional Balinese instruments.

A moment later, dozens of children marched in silence into the
courtyard and took their designated positions behind the
instruments. Their bashful eyes glowed with restless
anticipation.

After a brief ritual in which a Hindu high priest consecrated
the stage, the children started the performance.

The haunting melodies of the selonding soon filled the air.
These ancient and sacred instruments, which were believed to be
the gift of the Divine to the people of Bali, possessed a
mystical quality that engulfed the listeners with a sense of
melancholic serenity.

Several children entered the stage and assumed various yoga
positions in the opening scene of Utpati Krama Rite of Art.

At first glance, the rite appeared to be an aesthetic homage
to Wiswakarma, the Cosmic Architect and the guiding deity of the
Balinese undagi (traditional architect) and sangging (sculptor
and the maker of ritual paraphernalia).

Further examination, however, revealed the rite to be a
glowing, living testament of the purest form of Balinese
traditional arts. It was the form born out of Balinese artists'
devotional longing for the divine.

"Balinese traditional arts, performance or otherwise, were
created and sustained to serve one single, noble cause: to serve
the Lord in the most beautiful ways possible," rite choreographer
Ida Wayan Oka Granoka said.

"In this sense, art is an integral part of spirituality, a way
to embrace the loving kindness of the Divine and to nurture it in
our own nature," he said.

A versatile artist known for his deep commitment to Balinese
traditional arts and spiritual teachings, Granoka has for years
trained a small group of children, including his own, in this
path of aesthetic spirituality.

Over the years, his "teaching" gradually gained acceptance
among Balinese, particularly those who had been sickened by the
way modern materialism and capitalism had turned the island's
traditional arts into a tourism commodity.

The rite performance on Monday marked the symbolic union
between Granoka and the local community of Selat village, which
had been pursuing a similar goal for a year.

Assisted by several intellectuals and businessmen, the village
established Pesraman Pradesa Bangli, a community-based
educational institution aimed at preserving local traditional
heritage and educating the village children to become the
guardians of that heritage.

Taking its model from the ancient forest hermitage of
Pesraman, pilot institutions were established at three separate
villages: Peninjoan, Sulahan and Kikian. The teachers were
recruited from the ranks of senior artists and performers from
the respective villages.

"They know the historical and spiritual context behind the
heritage. Naturally, they are the best choices we have," the
chairman of the Pesraman, I Dewa Gede Palguna, said.

"The Pesraman are still at an early stage. Currently, we are
reconstructing sacred arts endemic to the locality and training
village children to perform them," he said.

In Peninjoan and Sulahan the Pesraman resuscitated the sacred
Wayang Wong mask dance, while in Kikian it brought to life the
sacred dance, Bapangan Barong. The three villages now have dozens
of children who have mastered these sacred arts.

In the future, the Pesraman plans to establish similar
institutions in all villages in Bangli while simultaneously
expanding its curriculum to include traditional literature,
medicine, architecture and philosophy.

"Hopefully, by that time the institutions will be managed and
run by the respective villages," Palguna said.

The results of the Pesraman one-year reconstruction program
were showcased at a three-day religious arts festival, which was
opened with Granoka's Utpati Krama Rite of Arts.

Children artists, musicians and dancers from the three
villages proudly displayed their aesthetic skills before their
peers, mothers and fathers, and, most importantly, before the
divine host of gods and deities at the Bale Agung temple.

"Granoka and we share the same belief, that we should preserve
the sacred form and function of Balinese arts, and that we can
achieve that goal by educating and training our children to love
and cherish those arts," Palguna stressed.

The full-moon hovered above the temple's towering split gate
when the children musicians brought their gambang instruments to
a vivacious crescendo. On stage, two beautiful children swayed
rhythmically to the flowing movements of the sacred Telek Pranwa
Wayu dance.

"They are the new guardians of our ancient culture," Palguna
said.