GALUNGAN, HOLY CEREMONY IN BALI

Ayu visited us at the Center not long ago. She came to shared her great plan in welcoming the Galungan day here in Bali which will be on the 6th July this year according to the Balinese calendar. It will be on Rabu Kliwon (Rabu=Wednesday) wuku Dungulan. She told us that the Galungan day has long ceremony series to be done and she is looking forward to do the ceremony. The Galungan day is special for the Balinese Hindu people, so it is a special holiday. “That’s why I love Galungan very much because we will have great time in celebrating it!” said Ayu.
The first ceremony was held on July 11th, where she took part in the Tumpek Wariga ceremony. She shared her experience in doing the offering to the plants in expectation; the plants will thrive so that by the Galungan come, the crops could be used as the offering. She also told us that the Balinese Hindu really appreciate the nature as in their belief, they believe that the world is divided into three parts (bhur loka: the world where the plant, animal and the unseen world are in, bhvah loka: the human world, svah loka: the god and the goddess world) that should live together in harmony.
There are any other ceremony after the Tumpek Wariga like the Sugihan Jawa, Sugihan Bali also Panyekeban, Ayu told us that she will also follow the ceremony together with her family.
2 days before Galungan is the day that always she is waiting for. The day called Penyajaan Galungan. On the day, she will help her mother, together with her sister, making the Balinese traditional cake as the offering preparation in the Galungan day. She will spend her day in the kitchen and makes various kinds of Balinese traditional cake. She told us that from all Galungan ceremony series, she love the day and one day before Galungan very much because she will spend most of her time together with her mother and sister.
The day after is called the Penampahan Galungan. Here people especially the men slaughter animal and cook it to complete the offering while the housewife and the girls are busy in preparing the other offering (eg. offering from young coconut leaves and other). Ayu told us that she will enjoy help ing her mother in these preparations, because as a Balinese girl, she is educated to follow her tradition. In the afternoon the adult will do the Mabiyakala ceremony then they will also set the penjor (bamboo with young coconut leaves as the decoration) in front of their house.
The day after is the Galungan day. The Galungan day considered as the victory day when the kindness (Dharma) defeat the badness (Adharma). Ayu told that she will visit many holy places to offer her offerings and pray to God.
“I have another day that I like in the Galungan ceremony series,” Ayu told us. The day is the Pemaridan Guru day. Pemaridan Guru is the day when the people clean their soul by eat the rest of the “Yajna”/ offering calles Tumpeng Guru together with family.
The Galungan series will be ended on Budha Kliwon Pahang called as Budha Kliwon Pegat- Uwakan, Pegat means broke. By the day people are freed from the prohibition that valid during the Galungan ceremony series. “After that, we will have to wait 210 days again to celebrate the Galungan day and I will always look forward to celebrate it!” said Ayu close the conversation.

By Wiwiek Astawa - Manager of Balinese Cultural Creation (BC2) one of the main places in Bali for preserving the Balinese Art and Culture, where adults and kids can be one step closer to the Balinese Art and Culture through learning in fun ways in a gorgeous area of tropical garden (10.000 m2) in Denpasar. Phone: +62 8174729000 or +62 361 7472556. E-mail: balicraftcenter@indo.net.id. Website: www.balineseculturalcreation.com