Bali Local Customs

In Asia, the desire to have
a pearly white complexion
has evolved into a profitable industry.

Forget cultivating the sport, tanned look.
In this part of the world,
that is considered to be ‘dirty’.

So, Asian cosmetic shelves in the stores,
offer an endless array of choices of
facial masks, scrubs, body and face creams
all promising to whiten skin.

With no strict rules for product labeling
and no regulations required to manufactures
to prove that their cosmetics are effective or safe,
be warned that their have been some isolated findings
of products using mercury, chromium and neodymium.

Mercury blocks an enzyme that is
required for the formation of melanin,
the dark pigment of our skin.
But constant and heavy exposure
to mercury is dangerous.
It attacks the central nervous system
and can result in brain or kidney damage.

Chromium is carcinogenic and can cause eczema,
while neodymium, which is used in magnets,
can cause eye and skin irritations.

Which ever way the results are,
if regulations do ever come into place,
women in Asia, may just find themselves
having to turn to an age old home remedy
to temporarily whitening skin, and that’s yoghurt.

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As you drive around Bali,
you will see very old trees dressed
with a black & white checkered skirt.

Usually, these trees are very sacred
and a place of worship
will be set up at the base of the trunk.

The black and white checkered poleng cloth
symbolizes good and evil forces in balance.

In many kingdoms
the king was encouraged to sire
numerous offspring with his multiple concubines
as proof of his continuity virility.

Most kings enthusiastically fulfilled this noble duty;
many Balinese claim descent from royalty
and rumors flourish of concubines
impregnated by the palace guards
of an elderly impotent king.

Most Balinese bearing the honorifics
Anak Agung or Agung Dewi are well respected

A visit to the temples in Bali requires a decent dressing. Sleeveless shirts/blouse and short pants are a no-no.
However, you can always rent 'sarongs' at the entrance to each temple. You must negotiate the price.
A small donation is required for smaller temples - except Besakih temple. Refer to my 'Warnings' section.

When you visit a temple you can`t enter with a shorts. So bring a serong with you if you think its too hot to wear a long paints. Some of the temples has serongs that you can use but just incase they don`t please be prepared as you don`t want to miss out on some Balinese attractions.

DEWA SRAYA CEREMONY AT PURA TULUK BIYU, KINTAMANI

The more time you spend
engulfed in the Balinese traditions,
the more you will become aware of
how these people are very spiritual.

Bali has been blessed with
the smiling faces, the passive attitudes,
a close society, etc.

With all the prayers and ceremonies
that are held in honor of the deities,
it seems that a mystical aura surrounds them.

One very special ceremony that
is held every 5 years,
takes place in Kintamani, Bali
sometime in the fall.

This cosmic ceremony
(called Dewa Sraya) which,
is done to restore spiritual balance
and to create a better future for themselves,
for Bali , and for the entire world.

These people are doing this for us!
For all of us no matter where we live in the world.
By getting involved in any and
all aspects of this ceremony
has a deep meaning and impact on all of us.
One Love … One World

By participating in this ceremony,
on any level, with is a wonderful opportunity
to gain a greater understanding of
Balinese ceremonies and day-to-day life,
along with a broader appreciation of
the truly unique and systematic way the
Balinese religion has evolved over many centuries.

These ceremonies extend over 11 days
and take place in several locations:
Mount Abang, locations down in the Kintamani crater,
and in the Tuluk Biyu Temple

As the name translates;
Dewa Sraya means,
Get closer to God,
Remember the way of God,
Stay on the path that God has created for us.

For those who would like to
be involved with this event in some way,
please feel free to send an email at: terje_hn@yahoo.com

Before Kuta, Legian and Seminyak,
where three villages that is what is
known as the Kuta tourist areas.

These breezy villages were once separated by coconut groves,
pastures, and thick patches of vegetation.

Now the villages stream seamlessly into each other
like a miniature metropolis.

New streets were pushed along the shore or
simply bulldozed through residential areas
to cater to tourism.

The population doubled,
then doubled again as
migrants from Java
and elsewhere flocked to this booming resort
in search of an economic opportunity.

Today, when high season comes rolling around,
Kuta becomes very Aussiefied as they are
happy to stay in cheap accommodations,
which leaves them plenty of money for booze.

If you have never encountered
being amongst Aussies,
this may not be the best place
to base a first opinion,
about their culture.

Kuta caters to the Australian school break crowd
at these seasons of the year.

The surf crowd grows and Kuta begins
to resemble Fort Lauderdale, Florida at spring break.

If you're looking for paradise, Kuta is definitely not it.
By early evening you will have been asked
one hundred times or more to buy something.

Beach hawkers peddle ‘Rolex Watches’,
ladies in wool bennies offer manicures and pedicures,
and the list goes on.

As night falls the items sold on the streets get darker, too.
All forms of addictions are available in Kuta,
the most subtle
is a legal one,
from beer to the local, fiery Arak
converting a vacation in Kuta
like living a week in a liquor commercial.

Bars like the Sari Club pump fuel
for that obnoxious, Aussie Rage,
that keeps going till the wee hours in the morning,
till they drop like flies, rest,
to start all over again.

While the raging, Aussie flies are in coma,
during the day, the older, middle class and usually,
overweight crowd comes back out to look for those bargains
at the already over priced stores in the Kuta area.

Not quite the Bali that some would expect.

Balinese people will sometimes lie
to avoid an unpleasant situation
or to avoid loosing face.

Telling the truth is desirable in Bali,
but just not as important as
protecting the face if those whom Bali feel respect.
Many Balinese clearly believe
there is such a thing as a noble lie.

They will simply not tell the full truth.
If someone answers your question with
a noncommittal response ‘maybe’, ‘sometimes’,
or even a straight forward ‘yes’
it usually means the correct answer is one
that you do not want to hear.

Money may be the root of all evil,
but ‘face’ is the root of much of the negative
or confusing behavior displayed by many Balinese people.

To ‘loose face’ means a loss of respect,
being shamed or looked down on by others
while ‘gaining face’ means gaining prestige
or status in the eyes of others .

On occasions it is the reason behind any lies or passive aggression.

Remember that many Balinese believe
answering a question by saying, “I don’t know’,
when they could be reasonably be expected to know the answer,
means the other person may think that they are less intelligent
and result in them loosing face.

To avoid this, they will sometimes give an answer-any answer-even
if it is just a guess and totally inaccurate.

By the time your find out the information was wrong,
such as directions to place you need to go to,
it is too late.