Rituals are not good enough

Recently the Wana Kretih ritual was held in Bali in an attempt to return the island to its natural balance and protect Bali from environmental disaster.

For 16 years I have been coming to the "Islands of the Gods". But how it has changed over such a short period of time! Air, water and soil pollution, caused by carelessness and greed for profit, have brought floods, landslides, erosion and an alarmingly decrease in the population of local marine fauna and flora.

Where have Ubud`s lush paddy fields gone? Where has the beautiful Candidasa beach disappeared to? What happened to the Southwestern coast? Where are the traditional salt-makers of Ahmed? Why can't you breathe in Denpasar without feeling sick? Where are the charming school-kids, running behind your motor- bike, asking for a pen instead of money?

It is not rituals, but action that is urgently needed to heal the deep wounds that have afflicted Bali's nature and soul. Stop taking precious land for new and bigger roads and golf courses! Stop cyanide and dynamite fishing! Stop building hotels, restaurants, shopping-malls -- there are already too many of them! Stop wasting precious freshwater resources. Remember: You cannot eat money.

They say that the gods of Bali reside in the dormant volcano of Gunung Agung, which brought death and disaster to Bali in March 1963. The Gods are angry. Do not awake them again.

MICHAEL BEER

Amlapura, Bali