Bali History

The Balinese believe in the eternal cycle of reincarnation and view their life on Earth as just one stage in their continued existence. As part of this belief, a person’s life is marked by rites of passages that are celebrated by the whole family. The first important ritual is performed sixth months during pregnancy (magedong gedongan ceremony). However the first noted ritual is done at birth when the baby’s placenta is buried in coconut shell near the entrance to the family house. Babies are regarded as being the reincarnation of the ancestors. They are therefore thought of as being holy and are treated with reverence. At puberty the tooth-filing ceremony takes place, although this expensive custom is often delayed until marriage to save money. Marriage rituals in Bali are unique and often involve the entire families of the bride and groom in elaborate mock drama. The final and most important cycle of life is the cremation. Cremation rituals are seen as joyous occasions as they release the soul from the Earth so it may start its journey to heaven before being reborn. The mukur ceremony is done 40 days after a cremation to mark the entry of the person into heaven. A Three day odalan festival takes place in a village every 210 days on the anniversary of the village temple’s dedication. During the island-wide festival of Galungan, ancestors are thought to descend from the heaven and enter the world. On the 10th day, Kuningan, the spirits ascend back to Heaven. Nyepi, the new year of the Caka calendar is celebrated in March.