Mystics in the Mountains: Bali
I was reading this fabulous article in the JP yesterday but the only problem was that the authors name did not appear on the article. I naturally assume it is Balinese writer Made Wijaya by the way the article is written and the content.
Entitled Mystics in the Mountains, the article explores the mysticism of the many peoples living in the mountains of Bali and in particular those of Danau Batur and the Bali Aga in an unusual manner.
The original inhabitants of Bali, the Bali Aga, live a reclusive life in the mountains to the east, the north and certain parts of central Bali.
It is believed there are several thousand Bali Aga people living in the mountainous regions and they speak their own dialect. The Bali Aga inhabited Bali well before the Majapahit invasion in 1343AD. The Balinese today are actually descendants of the Wong Majapahit who were 15thC migrants from East Java when finally the Majapahit empire fell. There is a distinct indifference between the two and the Bali Aga ensure it remains this way by their seclusion.
I have always found the Bali Aga to be a fascinating and beautiful people whenever I have visited the villages. Many travellers I have spoken to over the years have found them to be aggressive and indeed unwelcoming. If you ever visit Bali, I strongly suggest you take some time to visit one or two of the Bali Aga villages.
Here is the article from the Jakarta Post:
Mystics in the mountains
There is something about the mountain people of Indonesia — the Batak Karo, the Baduy, the Tenggerese and the Lake Batur Balinese. They are descendants of the first tribes of proto-Malays who came hopping down the Malay Peninsula from present day Yunan, South China, and eventually reached the Sunda archipelago.
These early tribes must have jumped from mountain lake to mountain lake with their pigs and dogs and wet-rice cultivation. Over hundreds of years they displaced the ancient Indonesians who were forced eastward, we are told, to Flores, Timor and Alor where they remain to this day.
The mountain folk of Bali have more purely Mongoloid features - like dollar signs visible on their eyeballs? - than their coastal cousins who have more hybrid features due to contact with Yemeni, Indian and ancient Malay traders, fishermen, merchants and priests.
Features aside the mountain Balinese and particularly in the lakeside villages of Songan, Terunyan and Kedisan are as “rough as nuts” (as anthropologist Margaret Mead politely put it) but unified with a mysticism that presents itself as an intensely spirit worshiping culture. They also possess a strong sense of tribal identity not really found in lowland areas.
They are strong and wilful, temperamental, but profound. They are the keepers of the ancient flames and guardians of the ancient deities - the gods of the mountains and all the important lakes.
Last Sunday I headed for the hills to make offerings at Pura Batur, Kintamani, a high temple perched on the caldera that overlooks Lake Batur and its attendant volcano, Mt. Batur. The god of Pura Batur is the patron saint of agriculture, horticulture and landscapers.
Like most Balinese offices our office also worships Dewi Saraswati, goddess of the arts and education and thus designers. Our holiday is both Saraswati Day and Tumpek Landep, the birthday for keris and knives and thus lawn-mowers.
Add comment June 22nd, 2006