Raising the Dead
the idea is actually an hour before dawn as I make my way up the gently sloping hill to the cemetery outside the village of Blangsinga, on the island of Bali. There is actually no wind along with also a scimitar of a completely new moon hangs overhead.
I fall into step with perhaps fifty or so men who carry an assortment of implements for digging. Hoes, shovels, picks along with also long metal spikes are carried nonchalantly over shoulders. In a way we resemble a ragtag medieval army off to fight a battle.
On arrival at the cemetery, the men divide into modest groups along with also make for their assigned family grave. from the darkness I can hear others already at their task of digging. As the completely new day begins to dawn along with also the light casts its morning glow I see, standing in rows, gaudy platforms along with also life-sized animal statues looming over me in rows under the trees. Elephants, bulls, both black along with also white, dragons along with also huge fish rear like giant sentinels, as if keeping watch over the morning’s proceedings.
Today is actually to be a special day for the village along with also the hundreds, if not thousands, of family, distant relatives along with also a host of friends, many of whom have travelled great distances to be here, to gather to farewell the dead. One hundred along with also eleven bodies will be exhumed, the bones washed along with also wrapped carefully in white muslin along with also placed into their allotted sarcophagus, blessed by priests with holy water before being burned along with also sent into the afterlife.
A Balinese cremation is actually, to the western eye, a dramatic event which can leave the onlooker puzzled by its complexity, as in reality the cremation ceremony has absolutely nothing to do that has a dead body. In Bali, the body is actually nothing more than an impure, temporary shell, having no significance at all, except as the container of the soul along with also its anchor to the earth.
At the time of death all thoughts are concentrated upon the spirit along with also its passage to heaven. Instead of grieving, the Balinese prefer to throw a great celebration to hasten the departed souls to oneness with God.
The soul of someone who dies cannot immediately leave the body. At first the Atman (the immortal soul) hovers near the body sometimes as a ghost which can bother the deceased’s family. Only after the body’s all 5 elements (air, earth, fire, water, along with also space) have been returned to the macrocosm by burning, can the soul completely detach itself through the body.
The sun at This specific point makes its way above the line of trees along with also the light glistens on the myriad of colours which make up the hundred or so, large along with also modest sarcophagi scattered throughout the cemetery. There is actually shouting along with also laughter through the rapidly growing crowd as a procession of women arrive carrying objects in silver bowls on their heads. A large orchestra of men along with also boys dressed in vivid, purple jackets adds to the growing din.
Mass cremations are never simple.
There is actually a pervasive belief which no expense should be spared for the final send-off of the soul along with also any skimping constitutes disrespect to the departed. A cheap cremation is actually considered a rather bad way to start one’s afterlife. These ceremonies can, along with also do cost millions of Rupiah, which can severely tax the families’ resources as hundreds of people are involved from the lead up to the grand day, which can take weeks along with also even months of preparation. Not only are the spirits impressed by a grand cremation, however the family gains prestige along with also status from the village that has a costly ceremony.
Today’s particular event is actually a ‘communal’ cremation where funds are in effect pooled in order which the cost is actually spread throughout all of the participants, thus lessening the burden on the poorest of the community.
With all the thousands of details from the lead up to the event, there seems to be no checklist, as in essence no one is actually in charge however the idea all works out in typical cooperative Balinese fashion.
The diggers, who regularly swap places, are deep into the graves along with also finally the buried bodies, wrapped in white shrouds are spotted from the earth. The attending family members at This specific point jostle for position around the grave along with also a white ribbon attached to a three-pointed stick through the dab dab tree is actually ceremoniously lowered into the open pit.
that has a mighty “One, two, three!” shout, the resting corpse is actually rather unceremoniously hoisted onto the side of the grave. The shout I am told is actually to wake the sleeping dead!
Once there, the idea is actually gently unwrapped, exposing the bones, washed in holy water along with also carefully arranged before being wrapped in pure white muslin. The body is actually then borne by several men shoulder-high, three times around the grave before being carried to the allotted sarcophagus along with also placed inside.
Once all of the bodies have been exhumed the idea seems the idea is actually time for lunch along with also a bit of a rest. Cheerful vendors have set up stalls selling all manner of food along with also drink while balloon sellers holding aloft their colourful wares wander amongst the crowds, followed by bands of excited children.
I take my rest along with also lunch at the family home of my host, Leo Sinatra, who fills me in on some of the more intricate details of the day’s events. Suitably fed along with also rested, we make our way back to the cemetery following a large procession of family members carrying offerings on their heads.
The orchestra bringing up the rear is actually in fine form!
Children, mothers along with also wives carry photographs or paintings of the deceased along with also the mood is actually joyful with laughter along with also horseplay taking place along the line. Each family breaks away to deposit their offerings into their family’s sarcophagi, attended by a priest who sprinkles holy water through clay pots which are ceremoniously broken when the ritual is actually complete.
This specific takes a while along with also a torpid lull falls over the crowd which by at This specific point measures at least three thousand. They sit around from the shade catching up on local gossip along with also chatting with relatives who have travelled through all over Indonesia to attend This specific grandest of ceremonies.
Then without warning, young men race through the crowd carrying lighted torches along with also within minutes the tranquil scene is actually no longer tranquil as the entire cemetery suddenly ablaze. This specific is actually high drama at its best.
The huge sarcophagi begin to smoke along with also then, as fire catches hold, flames dance around the elaborate structures consuming them in yellow busts of fire which crackle along with also explode in showers of sparks. I am in a frenzy, desperately trying to take as many pictures as possible, while at the same time avoiding the fierce heat erupting all around me. I begin to understand what the idea must be like for a photographer in a war zone!
Burning elephants, bulls along with also dragons are rapidly consumed from the blaze along with also slowly begin to topple through their lofty platforms. All too soon the idea is actually over, along with also as the heat subsides, I wander through the charred remains. Black along with also singed dragon; heads seem to breathe actual fire, while elephant trunks are at This specific point reduced to smouldering appendages. This specific certainly gives completely new meaning to the term, “ashes to ashes”!
Tonight the ashes will be collected along with also taken to the temple along with also guarded overnight before a grand procession tomorrow makes its way to the sea. which story, however, I will leave for another time.
NB:
I am greatly indebted to Fred B. Eisman JR whose essays Bali: Sekala & Niskala was helpful in giving me an insight to the complexity of Balinese cremation.
along with also also to Leo Sinatra for his extraordinary hospitality along with also intimate knowledge, which he so willingly gave.
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Raising the Dead
Raising the Dead