Struggling to cope with last month's barbaric bombings in Bali

Struggling to cope with last month's barbaric bombings in Bali
and hoping to release the souls of the dead, thousands of
Balinese Hindus, joined by Cabinet ministers, ambassadors and
victims' relatives, performed an elaborate "purification"
ceremony on Friday. The occasion was solemn and lively with
onlookers climbing atop charred vehicles, cracked cement slabs
and piles of rubble to watch men chant prayers, children dance
and women prepare offerings of food, flowers and sacrificed
animals, such as cows, goats, pigs and geese.

A. Thousands of Balinese Hindus (left) repeat Tirta Sandya
prayers to release the souls of the dead from the Legian bomb
site, Kuta. Children (above) perform the Rejang Dewa dance during
the Tawur Agung ceremony. A foreign woman (right) prays solemnly
during the rituals.

B. Balinese aboard a motorized boat (above) release a sacrificial
buffalo into the ocean during the cleansing ceremony. Guests and
victims' relatives (right) join in prayers. Participants (below)
gather on the beach to witness the drowning of sacrificial
animals as part of the ritual.