A Royal Pengabenan
Sadly, a member of the royal family of the Kingdom of Ubud died two weeks ago. His funeral procession and cremation were held Wednesday. Cremated with him were the remains of a lesser royal who died more than a year ago.
What a remarkable experience.
By noon the streets were crammed with people – Balinese and tourist. Children were every where, running, playing, darting in and out of the crowd, laughing. Death rituals in Bali are not acts of grief but of celebration. Their sense is that the body is but a temporary shell containing the soul and anchoring it to earth. A microcosm of the universe, it is made up of the same five elements: 
air, earth, fire, water, and space. The series of ceremonies called pengabenan returns the body to the larger whole.
The procession was led by dozens of percussionists with gongs, symbols, and drums. The reverberations penetrate one’s body. Two life-sized bull sarcophagi, each ridden by a family member and carried on bamboo pallets by dozens of men, follow. They are tossed, dived, turned amid shrieks of glee from the children. The purpose is to confuse the spirits so that they can’t find their way home and haunt the family! There are sprints and sudden stops, water fights and more tossing and turning. It is a wild ride for the bulls, their riders, and, more importantly, the spirits of the deceased!
The bodies, in white cloth covered wooden caskets, are carried more respectfully in large, ornately decorated towers. The nine roofs of each tower indicate the exalted position of the senior royal.
The Royal Temple is several kilometers down the road. Once we arrive there the bulls are moved to a large, raised platform. The backs are lifted off and the bodies, removed from the caskets, are lifted roughly into the bulls. A long parade of offerings are received by the priest and placed in the sarcophagi with copious amounts of holy water. The backs are replaced, green banana tree trunks are put in place to contain the fire, and kerosene-soaked faggots are piled under. With a burning torch the priests sets them alight.
They burn fiercely,
but it still takes some time to reduce all to ash. I am told that the ashes will be carefully gathered up and scattered in the river to be carried to the sea where the spirit’s impurities will fall as sediment.
The cycle of physical life is now complete. The five elements of the body have been returned to the larger whole from which they came.
What a remarkable experience.
By noon the streets were crammed with people – Balinese and tourist. Children were every where, running, playing, darting in and out of the crowd, laughing. Death rituals in Bali are not acts of grief but of celebration. Their sense is that the body is but a temporary shell containing the soul and anchoring it to earth. A microcosm of the universe, it is made up of the same five elements: 
air, earth, fire, water, and space. The series of ceremonies called pengabenan returns the body to the larger whole.The procession was led by dozens of percussionists with gongs, symbols, and drums. The reverberations penetrate one’s body. Two life-sized bull sarcophagi, each ridden by a family member and carried on bamboo pallets by dozens of men, follow. They are tossed, dived, turned amid shrieks of glee from the children. The purpose is to confuse the spirits so that they can’t find their way home and haunt the family! There are sprints and sudden stops, water fights and more tossing and turning. It is a wild ride for the bulls, their riders, and, more importantly, the spirits of the deceased!
The bodies, in white cloth covered wooden caskets, are carried more respectfully in large, ornately decorated towers. The nine roofs of each tower indicate the exalted position of the senior royal.
The Royal Temple is several kilometers down the road. Once we arrive there the bulls are moved to a large, raised platform. The backs are lifted off and the bodies, removed from the caskets, are lifted roughly into the bulls. A long parade of offerings are received by the priest and placed in the sarcophagi with copious amounts of holy water. The backs are replaced, green banana tree trunks are put in place to contain the fire, and kerosene-soaked faggots are piled under. With a burning torch the priests sets them alight.
They burn fiercely,
but it still takes some time to reduce all to ash. I am told that the ashes will be carefully gathered up and scattered in the river to be carried to the sea where the spirit’s impurities will fall as sediment.The cycle of physical life is now complete. The five elements of the body have been returned to the larger whole from which they came.
posted by He's Not Home (again) at 8:58 am
2 Comments:
thanks for the news. all your stoies are very interesting, I am sure you are a are blessing those you meet. Stay well. you are always in our prayers,
g
Your pictures and stories are intriguing. What a great way to experience all that God has to given us, on this earth and with God’s children. Keep the images coming. You’ve taken some very artistic photo there.
Post a Comment
<< Home