Family temple blessing ceremony and healing

June 16^th, Father’s Day

It rained for the last couple of days here in Bali. I wish I could have sent the rain to New Mexico to help put out the four fires burning near Santa Fe.

Yesterday was a most interesting day, as is everyday. We were preparing to go to our Balinese dance class when we heard about a family temple ceremony. So, in the Balinese spirit of going with the flow, we changed our route mid stream which was no problem since the temple ceremony was for the family of our dance teacher’s sister. The various classes we have been taking have given us access, by way of our teachers, to all sorts of marvelous events and ceremonies where we are the only non locals present.

Priest coming in off the street to do his priestly duties

Priest in his high throne

 We dressed in our finest traditional Balinese clothes and had our driver take us to the large family compound where the ceremony was taking place. A student immediately spotted our gamelan teachers among the gamelan ensemble. We sat to the side, trying to get out of the way of all the people carrying out their various roles. We were graciously served snacks and drinks while we waited for the ceremony to get into full swing. Once the priest walked in and got into his high “throne” the events began. The priest was a tall, distinguished elderly man with a twinkle in his eyes and a grin on his face who looked like he could have been a yogi living in a cave in the Himalayas.

One of our gamelan teachers getting ready to join the gamelan ensemble

Ceremonial dancers

Resting after doing a warrior dance

 The gamelan band played while the male dancers dressed in their ceremonial warrior garb, did ritualized dancing made to look like they were fighting off the enemy. That was followed by the Balinese equivalent of clowns, big men dressed in unusual clothing with masks and wigs. One of these jesters had a mask with a white face and a long, blonde wig. The other jesters drove him away, rejoicing after his expulsion. An OG from our group commented that this gesture might have symbolized the expulsion of the Dutch colonists from their land.

Trying to get the cocks to fight each other

Cocks not too interested in fighting

Next came the cock fighting, banned in Bali except for ceremonial purposes. Apparently blood was needed to sanctify the grounds of the family temple. Two roosters were brought out by rooster handlers. The roosters had spurs that looked like daggers attached to where the leg meets the foot. The roosters were not interested in fighting each other. The handlers tried to provoke them into anger. It was painful for me to watch. Zinnia advised me to put a neutral look on my face so that I didn’t look judgmental. Eventually the handlers gave up trying to get the roosters to fight, but they still needed the blood. So the handler of one of the roosters grabbed the spur of his rooster and ran it into the heart of the other rooster. I kept my face looking down so no one would see the expression on my face.

A big hole was dug near the temple. Several items that I couldn’t identify were put into the hole, including the blood of the rooster and some dead chickens.

The extended family in prayer

The final part of the ceremony was when the entire extended family came and knelt down to pray and give offerings and burn incense while the priest presided over this sacred moment.

I skipped lunch to go with Nonick who had made arrangements for me to see a healer for my eyes. We drove a long ways into a rural area outside of Ubud to the healer’s family compound. Nonick asked me emphatically not to write about the experience on the blog because she said this woman is flooded with clients who come from far and wide to see her for healing. She is overwhelmed by the demand. But I am allowed to tell you that this was one of the most unusual forms of healing I have ever encountered. My vision actually improved a tiny, but noticeable amount. In fact, a few people said that my eyes look straighter. And objects look a bit less blurry.

As we were waiting to see the healer, Nonick talked to me about Balinese culture. She said the Bali people recognize and accept that there is good and bad in all of life. Without the good, there would be no bad. And without the bad, there would be no good. She said life is about finding a balance. The black and white checkered clothes that are draped around the stone gargoyle-like statues represent the balance between good and evil, creation and destruction. I remember my son Barrett saying to me when he was four years old that he was part good and part bad---but mostly good. I think he’s part Balinese.

Nonick talked about the importance of family and community in Bali culture, something that is quite apparent here, unlike in westernized countries where people seem more on their own….especially tough during some of life’s hardships, like sickness and ageing and death of loved ones, or raising a child alone. I asked her if it was a shock for her when she comes to the States and sees what huge importance Americans put on their work and their material life, less importance on their spiritual life, and how they tend to live in comparative isolation from each other. She said it was ok for her because Bali people accept what life brings. She said they don’t tend to judge and they try to find the positive in all of what life presents. But she did admit that it was hard for her to switch from Bali Time to being On Time in the States.

Nonick drove me back to our last shadow puppet-making class in the afternoon. I will take a picture of the dragon I made so you can see what I’ve been working on. The puppets are made of leather with lots of tiny holes cut out so that the light can shine through, then painted, a stick attached, and then they’re ready for a shadow puppet performance.

Today we have the day off to do what we want. I’m actually exhausted from our packed days of classes, dancing, walking several miles a day, ceremonies, and lots of sensory input. So I will just lay low, read, stroll, swim in the pool and sip the juice from a young coconut---and maybe get a massage. I think I might be able to handle doing nothing if I put my mind to it.

Tomorrow is our last day of classes. We finish our Balinese dance class in the morning and our painting class in the afternoon. After that, on Tuesday the OGs go to the beach for three days while the students are doing their home-stays. Each student will be placed with a family in a rural area that speaks not a word of English and only a little Indonesian. The students are anxious in anticipation. Yet, they’ve been reassured by students from past years on the program that the home-stays were one of the highlights of the trip.

I have to sign off and go do nothing to take advantage of our free day.

Happy Father’s Day to all of the fathers out there reading this blog…especially Barrett’s dad.