Swastika sign can be seen in Bali, especially in Balinese Hindu temple. I must say almost all the Hindu Balinese are familiar to this symbol. Besides temple, one can also see it in houses, or community building. Even the 'Swastika' word is used as a person name, for example, Ketut Swastika. But why and what does Swastika mean? It simply means balance in relationship. The Balinese Hindu see the life is ideal when they live a balanced life indicated by three good relationship. The first is good relationship between human and the Almighty God. All the festivals, offering in temples, praying activity that you witness in Bali are examples that the Balinese really long for a great relationship with Sang Hyang Widhi Wasa, The Almighty God. Next, the harmonious relationship among the human race. The Balinese values good relationship between themselves. Many activities in villages in Bali involve community of villagers . When one family in a certain village hold a ceremony such as cr...
"When is the best time to visit Bali?" I often got this question asked to me. Not just once, but a lot of time. When you ask this question, I know what you mean is more than this simple question. You want to know when to visit Bali so you can have great times in Bali without any disturbance, for instance, rain or peak season. Rain seems to be the main concern for the visitors. I can understand that because rain can "ruin" your holiday. It is hard to enjoy Bali when rain pour from one morning to the next morning. Let's talk about rain first. We have two seasons in Bali, the dry season and the wet season. The dry season is "scheduled" from April to October, while wet season starts from October to April. So, if you don't fancy rain in your holiday, best time to come is between April to October when the dry season is "on". The wet season, however, is not really really that wet. If you think rain is pouring down on our island for six months ev...
"Sorry, I can't go to the temple this full moon. I have my period," that's what Made, a friend of mine, once said to me when we talked about going to a temple. In Bali, women talk openly about their menstruation especially when it is related to temple activities. There is nothing embarrassing about that. But instead of saying in period, they merely say that they have their "monthly guest" coming. When you visit a temple in Bali, you must not be in your period when entering temple complex. Why is that? People, especially the lady tourists, ask with inquisitive and accusing look at me that we don't treat our Balinese women fairly. Okay, let me tell you, that is not the case. There some reasons why people are not allowed to enter the temple, this is called cuntaka (pronounced chun ta ka). If there is a mourning because of there is a death in one family, they can not go to the temple. Because it will cause the temple "leteh" or dirty. The woman wh...