Dance

Almost all Balinese are able to bend their fingers backward from the base and also at the joint between first and second phalanges. Balinese children, especially little Balinese girls, spend a great deal of time playing with the joints of their fingers, experimenting with bending them back until the finger lies almost parallel with the back of the hand. The more coordinated and disciplined the motion of the body becomes, the smaller the muscle groups with which a Balinese operates. Where an American will involve almost every muscle in his body to pick up a pin, the Balinese merely uses the muscles immediately relevant to the act, leaving the rest of the body undisturbed (Bateson & Mead, 1942: 99).

This flexibility finds its most beautiful expression in the hand-postures of dancers, most of which are derived from Indian mudras, although they do not have the symbolic and narrative meanings as in the Indian context, but purely ornamental functions.

Male baris dancers

Legong dancer

Balinese Grasp

A common feature of Balinese manual culture is the occurrence of complex grasping postures of the hand that would be exceedingly difficultfor ordinary members of industrialized societies. The participation of thousands of Balinese in activities such as woodcarving and painting, as well as dance and theater, require grasping postures that are rarely used in industrialized societies.

Hand-configurations that are formed to take or hold an object--specialists call them prehensile postures--usually involve the opposition between two “virtual fingers” or "jaws": the thumb and one other finger or group of fingers. In Balinese woodcarving and painting (and Western surgery), hand-postures often consist of three “viitual fingers”, as the hand of this painter who uses his pinkie as a “tripod”, to give support to the hand.

Woodworkers

Tying

One of the most difficult manual tasks in Bali--left to specialists because life and death depend on it--is the tying of spurs to the feet of fighting cocks. This is done with yards and yards of yarn. Intricate hand-postures are adopted in the process.

Handedness

In Bali (as also in Muslim societies), the left hand is considered unclean, and one may not use it in handing objects to or receiving them from others. However, the left hand is not (and could not be) barred from other practical actions. Rather, it appears that it becomes specialized for tactile, sensory functions—the fingertips are used for light surface contact and active touch, whereas the right hand is used for grasping and handling tools.

Bateson and Mead have made the same observations, and they describe the kinesthetic learning process in which the child (no matter whether right- or left-handed) is trained to refrain from taking and giving things with the left hand.

The Balinese mother or nurse carries a child, either in or out of a sling, on her left hip, thus leaving her own right hand free. In this position, the baby's left arm is free, while the right is frequently pinioned in against the breast, or at best extended behind the mother's back. Naturally, when a baby is offered a flower or a bit of cake, it reaches for it with the free left hand, and the mother or the child nurse invariably pulls the left hand back, extricates the baby's right hand - usually limp and motiveless under this interference with the free gesture - and extends the right hand to receive the gift. This training is begun long before the child is able to learn the distinction, begun in fact as soon as the child is able to grasp at a proffered object, and discontinued usually when the child is off the hip. A three-year-old may often err and receive a casual present in his left hand, with no more punishment than to have some older child or nearby adult shout "Noenas!" ("Ask!") which means "Cup the right hand in the left," but the baby of four months is permitted no such leeway. Over and over again, the first spontaneous gesture is clipped off, and a passive, plastic gesture is substituted.

When the left hand is used to support the right, for example by stabilizing the object that the right is working on, this support is often carried out in a characteristically “sensitive” manner, i.e. the left hand touches the object with the fingertips, almost as if caressing it. Bateson and Mead write:

The emphasis on the separateness of the fingers and on the sensory function of their tips is very evident in the hand postures of artists at work. Remarkably, where Occidental artists accentuate the sensory function in the right or active hand, it appears from the photographs that the Balinese artist accentuates this in the left hand (Bateson & Mead, 1942: 100).

A Balinese artist at work; notice the position of the fingers of the left hand (photographs by Gregory Bateson)

Handedness in food preparation (shredding coconut meat): the right holds the knife, the left cradles the pile.	A man feels the neck muscles of his fighting cock	Caressing a love object

Kinesthetic Learning

A question that presents itself when we think about cultural differences in movement style and bodily experience is how these are transmitted from generation to generation. By imitation alone? Bateson and Mead have described a process that they called kinesthetic learning. They wrote:

An individual's character structure, his attitudes toward himself and his interpretations of experience are conditioned not only by what he learns, but also by the methods of his learning. If he is brought up in habits of rote learning, his character will be profoundly different from what would result from habits of learning by insight. Among the Balinese, learning is very rarely dependent upon verbal teaching. Instead, the methods of learning are visual and kinaesthetic. The pupil either watches some other individual perform the act or he is made to perform the act by the teacher who holds his limbs and moves them correctly. During this process the pupil is entirely limp and appears to exhibit no resistant muscular tensions. A Balinese hand, if you hold it and manipulate the fingers, is perfectly limp like the hand of a monkey or of a corpse. Before the Balinese child can walk, he will be taught simple hand dance gestures, first by manual manipulation, and later he will learn to follow visual cues, as the parent hums the familiar music and gestures before the baby's eyes with his own hand. This situation, the child dancing in the sustaining arm of the parent and that arm vibrating rhythmically to the music, becomes the prototype of Balinese learning in which as he grows older he will learn with his eyes and with his muscles. But the learning with the eyes is never separated from a sort of physical identification with the model. The baby girl climbs down off her mother's hip to lift a bit of an offering to her head, when her mother or elder sister does the same. Learning to walk, learning the first appropriate gestures of playing musical instruments, learning to eat, and to dance are all accomplished with the teacher behind the pupil, conveying directly by pressure, and almost always with a minimum of words, the gesture to be performed. Under such a system of learning, one can only learn if one is completely relaxed and if will and consciousness as we understand those terms are almost in abeyance (Bateson & Mead, 1942: 84).

Kinesthetic learning in Bajoeng Gedé (photographs by Gregory Bateson)

The American composer Colin McPhee who, along with his wife Jane Belo and the German painter Walter Spies, introduced Bateson and Mead to Balinese culture, has described kinesthetic learning in the process of dance instruction.

Before the first lesson is given, a week or more may be spent in daily massage and exercise to "soften" the body. Only when the teacher has decided the child is sufficiently limp and passive does the real work actually begin. There is no preliminary verbal explanation. It is taken for granted the pupil already has some idea of the dance—he has seen it performed so many times! Instead, the teacher walks behind him and, lightly holding his wrists in either band, draws out his arms in the opening pose. Humming the music of the dance, he propels the small body forward, inclining it this way or that like a puppet. For days the teacher continues to lead his charge as though be were playing a fish, but the time finally comes when, with a sudden release of the hands, he launches the dancer off into space. Now at last criticism can begin, and gesture and posture be rectified through patient correction. Over and over the teacher steps out to lower an arm, straighten a shoulder, bend a hand at a sharper angle or mold the body into a more sculptural unity. From the beginning, the dancer learns movement and music together. These are inseparable, the expression of a single impulse. The dancer is the music made visible; he bears the same relation to the melody as the words to a song. At the first lessons, the melody for the dance the pupil is learning is hummed in his ear by the teacher, while the important gong and drum accents are verbally expressed as his body is suddenly jerked into different poses. But after a few days two or three musicians of the gamelan are called in (McPhee, 1970 (1954): 308-10).

Of course, in Bali as everywhere else children also learn by imitation: by practicing and rehearsing, often in a playful manner, the embodied performances of the adult.

Boys imitating the hand movements of a baris dancer during the temple fest in Bajoeng Gedé.

religious atmosphere in Bali

When you step your feet in Bali (Balinese people call it Gumi Bali) you feel religious atmosphere very much which is closely related with situation of Bali. It is hard to express the feeling in Bali, except by involving ourselves in it. The feeling flows strongly from the holy spring of Balinese with its estuary of Hindu Religion, as most of Balinese people adheres Hindu Religion.

Since beginning, Bali Island was created as an Island of God, the throne of Gods. Many people called God as Ida Bhatara. However, the essence known and inspired as the term NYA is Ida Sang Hyang Widhi Wasa. If there is any term of Dewa or Bhatara, it is the manifestation of the greatness of God or Atman in Hindu perspective.

In conducting the essence of life, Balinese adhere Hindu Religion are supported with three basic concepts, namely: tattwa, susila, and upacara.

Tattwa

Tattwa includes Panca Sraddha, the five belief adhered by Hindu religion, such as :

1. Widhi Tattwa, the ceremony to Sang Hyang Widhi with all His dimensions.
   
2. Atma Tattwa, the belief with the existence of Atma, the soul providing life all human being.
   
3. Karmaphala, the belief of the existence of causal law of the behaviors. It means that every behavior has causal dimension to the behavior itself.
   
4. Punarbawa, the belief of reincarnation.
   
5. Moksa, the belief of the eternal life of the end of human journey where atman unites with Sang Hyang Widhi (paramatman).

In Hindu perspective, God is known as a term of Ida Sang Hyang Widhi Wasa, which means God, Almighty. The God is only one, though He has various names. From the various names of God, there are three which are well known by the adherers of Hindu in Bali, namely, Brahma, Visnu and Siva, which are called as Tri Murti.
Brahma is the Dimension of Sang Hyang Widhi Wasa as the creator (utpatti), Visnu is the manifestation of Sang Hyang Widhi Wasa as the caretaker (sthiti) and Siwa is the manifestation of Sang Hyang Widhi Wasa as the destroyer (praline). That's why Balinese believe that all the creation of Sang Hyang Widhi Wasa will face the cycle of birth, life and death.
The essence of power of Sang Hyang Widhi Wasa is expressed by every family of Hindu in Bali in Pemrajan, Sangah or the place of worshipping in every house, dadya, village as well as Jagad Bali.

Susila

Susila is the aspect of Hindu religion implementation organizing good and right behavior. The basic of Susila learning is Tattwam Asi. By applying the good and right instruction will produce harmonious and suitable interaction among the people. Even, in Hindu it is not only known the interaction among the people but also interaction between mankind and God and between mankind and nature as understood in the concept of Tri Hita Karana.

Tattwam Asi is meant as I is You, You is I. Thus, if we hurt other people, it means we also hurt ourselves. As in the Tattwam Asi concept, every human being is the same, as it is derived from the only paramatman.

The operational concept of susila with Tattwam Asi philosophy is expressed in Tri Kaya Parisuddha, or three good and right behavior, such as :
1. Manacika Parisuddha
2. Wacika Parisuddha
3. Kayika Parisuddha

Manacika is having a holy and right thinking. Wacika is having a good and right word. Kayika is having a good and right behavior. Thus, the concept of Tri kaya Parisuddha is having the right thinking, words and behavior.

Upacara

Upacara (Ceremony) in Hindu perspective is a kind yadnya (sacrifice) expressed in Panca Yadnya which consists of:

1. Dewa Yadnya is a holy sacrifice to Sang Hyang Widhi held in the form of ceremony in jagad, sad kahyangan and village temples.
2. Rsi Yadnya is a holy sacrifice to priests or holy persons by learning the holy books of Hindu and disseminates it.
3. Manusia Yadnya is a ceremony for people since their birth to adult. Visually, the implementation of manusia yadnya ceremony is also expressed by conducting myadnya for poor people, isfortune people and so forth.
4. Pitra Ydnya is a holy sacrifice for ancestors from funeral ceremony, cremation to the ceremony of ngasti and so forth.
5. Bhuta Yadnya is a holy sacrifice for evil spirit called bhuta. This ceremony is often expressed to somya the evil spirit immaterially. Materially, Bhuta Yadnya ceremony is also for the animals and plants by taking care of them.

The Balinese calendar system

The Balinese has their own calendar system. Two, in fact, running in parallel.

• Sasih
  The Sasih cycle is a 12 lunar month calendar system. Each month begins on the day after a new moon (tilem). The middle of each month is the full moon (purnama).
• Pawukon
  The Pawukon calendar system is believed to be indigenous to the Balinese, possibly rooted in the thousand-year-old rice-growing cycle of the island. There are six months to a Pawukon year, and 35 days to a Pawukon month. So a Pawukon year is 210 days. Each Pawukon month is divided into many shorter cycles (weeks) that run concurrently. The most important weeks are the 3, 5, and 7 day weeks

Certain days of the Sasih are considered important, namely tilem and purnama. Temple anniversaries and festivals usually occur on a purnama. Days prior to a Sasih new year, the whole island participates in celebrations and presenting offerings and performing ritual temple cleansing. The climax is the day of the new year: Nyepi. On this day, the entire island goes into reflection and meditation, shutting down everything, including electricity. So, don't be surprised if your hotel manager asks you to close your curtain on a Nyepi day.

On the Pawukon cycle, certain conjunction of the different week cycles are considered significant. On these days, ceremonies and sacred dances are performed in the temples, or people immerse themselves in prayers and meditation.

wedding ceremony in Bali

Getting married with a legal wedding ceremony in Bali or choosing one of the various non legal ceremonies in celebration of your special occasion is one of the most precious events or recommitments that will ever take place in a couples life together, with the couple making a deep and meaningful pledge to one another by declaring their everlasting love & devotion, caring & support for each other, creating that flame that will burn for eternity making the couple not two but one.

Bali is a wonderful and popular choice for the celebration of a ceremony with many couples, whether it be for those couples getting married with a legal wedding ceremony with the exchange of personal vows and rings, or one of the various non legal ceremonies such as a Commitment Ceremony declaring your love and commitment to each other, the more spiritual Balinese Blessing Ceremony providing a spiritual uniting, Renewal of Vows expressing your love and devotion to each other or the Religious Only Ceremony providing a religious component to your ceremony.

Couples choosing to have their ceremony here in Bali we find to be much more relaxed on their ceremony day, therefore being able to truly enjoy their very special celebration, due to the environment and simplicity of the ceremony taking around 20 minute’s, depending on the type of ceremony that is chosen by the couple and its contents. Couples normally choose a time between four and five in the afternoon for their ceremony to commence being a much cooler part of the day and still providing enough time for those couples wanting to include photography prior to sunset.

Please simply click on any of the below icon’s to obtain further information.

	Legal Wedding Ceremony Indonesia recognizes five religions Protestant, Catholic, Hindu, Moslem and Buddhist and it is possible for couples to be legally married in Indonesia who follow one of these five religions with the religious ceremony based on the couples’ religion. A Protestant couple will have a Protestant Wedding Ceremony with a Protestant Minister, a Catholic couple a Catholic Wedding Ceremony with a Catholic Priest…………
	Commitment Ceremony A Commitment Ceremony is a non legal ceremony therefore popular to a variety of couples, with those couples already legally married, those couples yet to be legally married and those couples of the same sex, now wanting to celebrate their love and commitment to each other with a simple but special ceremony………….
	Religious Only Ceremony A non legal Religious Only Ceremony is popular with those couples wanting to declare their love and devotion to each other, having a religious component attached to their ceremony without any of the legal implications attached to a legal wedding ceremony……
	Balinese Blessing Ceremony A Balinese Blessing Ceremony is enjoyed by those couples wanting a more spiritual component attached to their ceremony with the couple being able to experience some of the Balinese Culture & Customs. Being a non legal ceremony this ceremony type is popular with those couples already legally married and those couples choosing to legally marry in the future, wanting now to experience something quite special and meaningful.
	Anniversary / Vow Renewal There are three non legal ceremonies that we can recommend for the very special celebration of your Renewal of Vows Ceremony and your choice will depend on the type of element you would like attached to your ceremony such as a religious, commitment or spiritual.