Bali Tourism News

Bali village celebrates the birth of Prophet

March 12th, 2009

Alit Kertarahardja and Wasti Atmodjo, The Jakarta Post, Buleleng, Denpasar

Bali may be known as an overwhelmingly Hindu island province, but in the northern regency of Buleleng, Islamic traditions have thrived in peaceful coexistence, as seen in a ceremony Tuesday to celebrate the birth of the Prophet Muhammad.   |  Wed, 03/11/2009 2:04 PM  |  The Archipelago

The ceremony took place in Pegayaman village in Sukasada district, where villagers of all ages took part in a sokok parade.

The village has a unique mix of Balinese culture influenced by the Buleleng kingdom, Bugis culture from the Bone kingdom, and Javanese culture inherited from the Mataram kingdom, local resident Wayan Hasyim told reporters at the sidelines of the parade.

Now elements of the Sasak culture (from Lombok Island in neighboring West Nusa Tenggara province) have also entered the village.

The procession starts on the Islamic date of 8 Rabiul Awal in the Hijrah calendar, with a dzikir ritual at local mosques. A similar ritual is also held on 12 Rabiul Awal of the year of the elephant, the Prophet’s birthday, followed by a recitation of the Al Barzanzi verse.

Hasyim said that a day after the birthday, there was a thanksgiving ceremony marked by the carrying of the sokok around the village.

The original sokok is a cube symbolizing the Ka’bah and the Prophet’s four sahabat (companions), he said.

It consists of 63 eggs symbolizing the Prophet’s age; the eggs were pierced by a staff resembling a tool for carrying the Koran; and fruits representing the ummah (Muslim congregation).

The villagers then decorate the sokok according to their own artistic preferences, but without forgetting sacred symbols.

Residents begin decorating it from before sunrise, as well as preparing the food. At about 8 a.m., three groups of Adrah dancers gather at the village’s main mosque before dancing their way around the village.

The male dancers sing praises to the Prophet, while villagers throw coins after them, causing children to scramble for the coins.

Most villagers in Pegayaman village are Muslims, making it a unique village. Their activities are no different from that of any other village in Bali.

Pegayaman villagers use high Balinese language and always take part in communal activities such as paying respect to the dead and visiting their relatives outside the village, according to local customs.

According to Babad Buleleng chronicles, Islam was introduced to the village in 1587, having spread from Banjar Jawa in Singaraja. As the number of Muslims grew, the Buleleng king granted them their own land - the current Pegayaman village.

The Muslims have blended well with the local culture by adopting, for instance, adopting Balinese names such as Wayan Hasyim, Nengah Panji Islam and Guru Nyoman Ali.

The celebrations to mark the Prophet Muhammad’s birthday are not complete without colorfully wrapped eggs at Kepaon village in Denpasar.

Dozens of teenage girls walk straight while carrying these eggs with an energetic percussion and dance number by the Rodat dancers (”soldier” dancers) accompanying them around Kepaon village, one of the oldest and better known Muslim hamlets in Denpasar.

Hundreds of villagers, young and old, follow them to the front yard of the Al Muhajirin Mosque.

This parade is called the Ta’aruf parade, and is an opening act to the series of celebrations for the day, says Syaifuddin, event committee chief and deputy head of the Al Muhajirin Foundation, which runs the mosque.

The celebrations continue in front of the mosque. Village elders and royal guests, including Ida Cokorda Pamecutan XI (a descendant of the royal lineage of Badung kings who granted the area that is now Kepaon to Muslim immigrants).

Besides Kepaon village, which is home to some 500 families, the Badung royal family granted two more areas to Muslim immigrants: the Bugis village in Serangan district and the Java village on Jl. Ahmad Yani, both in Denpasar.

The Rodat dancers stop at the front yard, while the girls put the eggs down in a line inside the mosque. The arrangement of eggs, fruit and food is known among locals as Bale Suji.

The parade concludes with a free mass circumcision, attended by 25 boys. Mothers drum on percussion instruments made of animal hide and throw coins into the air for a mob of revelers.

Source: The Jakarta Post

Entry Filed under: Bali Tourism News