National Geographic: Bali - Masterpiece of the Gods Page #4

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water and prayer

They walked in a circle three times

Deni balances a market basket

Wayan carries food to suggest

how he will provide

The moment when Deni breaks the string

signals the end of their lives

as individuals

their entrance to a new world as a couple

Age-old gestures insure fertility

In the Kantors' family shrine

Deni

takes leave of her ancestral gods

From this day forward she embraces

those of her husband

All over the island villagers gather

at their banjars

to prepare for a momentous event

A fine cremation is the life long

ambition of very Balinese

But a grand send-off requires the work

of many hands

and much money

Mass cremations

for which the entire village shares

expenses

are the answer

Teams of artisans fashion sarcophagi

for the great celebrations

In the Kantors' village the rhythm

of the kulkul announces

that cremation ceremonies will soon begin

The people have spent years saving

for this day

In the graveyard villagers...

...custom

they may be buried for 25 years

or even longer,

before the all-important cremation

Mr. Kantor reflects

As we dig up our ancestors' remains

we remember how they helped is and

gave is a good life

Now we are without them

We are very saddened

Mr. Kantor's mother in law died

six years ago

Now her bones are carefully

arranged in a white cloth

Village men and boys assemble

to carry the bodies

a symbol of their loyalty to the deceased

The families carry wood

for the cremation pyres

Strict caste rules dictate the shape

of the sarcophagus

Because Mrs. Kantor's mother was

a member of the Sudra caste

her sarcophagus is shaped like a

mythical elephant, fish

The raucous, joyful journey to the

cremation grounds begins

The sarcophagus are turned in

all directions

to confuse the souls of the departed

and ensure that that will not wander

back to their homes

Carrying holy water and offerings

they have spent weeks preparing

the Kantor join the other families

at the cremation grounds

Again, the remains are purified

Offerings also serve as fuel

Only when the body is destroyed

is the soul free to be reunited

with the Supreme Being

This act is the most sacred duty of

every Balinese

Our greatest happiness occurs

whenever we are successful

in carrying out a good cremation

and freeing our ancestors

from the connection to earth

This type of ceremony does not cause

us sadness

but creates a moment of happiness

Cremations are a ceremony to free the

souls of our ancestors

a way of ending a long life and

at the same time

beginning a new one

The ashes are taken to the sea

the final act in the cremation

that marks the passage from this life

to the next

And between incarnations the soul

resides in a place just like Bali

but devoid of all trouble and illness

In the endless round of life

by carefully discharging their

sacred duties

the Balinese have kept their world

in balance for centuries

The effects of modernization on

contemporary Bali

are profound Paradoxically

tourists help preserve

and renew the arts

while propelling the Balinese

toward a share of the wealth

that all developing communities require

Ever since they first arrived on these

shores

admiring outsiders have feared

that foreign ideas might swamp this

finely tuned society

But while the 20th century

has given the Balinese new ways of

looking at their world

it has also renewed their determination

to preserve their ancient heritage

As long as they remain bound together

by ties of community, economics

religious rituals, and ancestral loyalty

Bali will remain an oasis of beauty

and belief-

the masterpiece of the gods

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