Cremation
Reincarnation
Death
Rites
Preparations
The
Tower / Bade
The
Processions
The
Fire
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CREMATION
IN BALI
A Glimpse beyond the Flames
Bali's cremation ceremonies
are especially spectacular and famous and this on a small island where
spectacles are an every-day occurrence. If he is lucky enough to see one,
the visitor is treated to a sight to be found nowhere else in the world.
To appreciate and understand Balinese cremation fully a visitor must comprehend
two things. First of all, that which he sees is but the tip of the iceberg.
Weeks, sometimes months, some no less spectacular than the cremation itself.
And, second, one must have at least a brief introduction to the Balinese
concept of life and its place in the universe.
About 95 percent of the 2.5 million Balinese follow as their religion
a form of Hinduism that is related but not identical to that practiced
in India. Balinese Hinduism conceives of the universe as the macrocosm,
Bhuana Agung, with one God. Ida Sanghyang Widi Wasa, as its soul. This
one God pervades the entire macrocosm, but he has many manifestations,
depending upon which of his aspects is being considered. These manifestations
are often personified and given separate names. But, one must always remember
that they are only separate identities for one entity.
With exactly the same structure as the macrocosm, but on a vastly smaller
scale, one finds the human body. In turn pervaded by its soul. Atma, or
Atman. This structure is the microcosm, Bhuana Alit. The material body
originated from the macrocosm and is only temporarily loaned to the soul.
It consists of five elements of the macrocosm: air, earth, fire, water
and space collectively called the Panca Maha Butha.
The soul or spirit is immortal, but impure. Hinduism embraces the principle
of reincarnation, Samsara, or Numitis, in which the soul experiences cycle
of birth into a new body, release at death, purification and punishment
for misdeeds in a kind of hell, Neraka, a joyous period of residence in
heaven, Suarga, and then re-birth into a new body. This cycle continues
until the soul is sufficiently pure to attain Moksa, a state wherein it
becomes one with God, in a place of perpetual peace, Nirvana, and no longer
experiences reincarnation.
But, when someone dies his soul cannot immediately leave the body completely
and return to the world of God. Instead, the Atma hovers near the body,
sometimes as a ghost that bothers the family. Only after the body's five
elements have been returned by burning to the macrocosm whence they came
can the soul completely detach itself from the body. The whole series
of ceremonies that are involved with the return of the Panca Maha Butha
to the Bhuana Agung are called Pengabenan that the foreigner calls "cremation".
Pengabenan is for the realize of the given elements of the material body
and their return to the macrocosm. There must always follow a second and
complementary, complex series of ceremonies, Nyekah, in which the soul
is returned to God.
The nature of the Bhuana Alit, microcosm, into which a soul is reborn
is completely governed by the very important Hindu doctrine of Karma-Pala,
literally "deed-fruit". According to this principle every act
upon earth, karma, produces an inevitable reward or punishment, Pala.
If one's actions on earth are more bad than good, his soul, after cremation
and Nyekah. Will go first to Suarga for a brief period to enjoy the fruits
of his goods, and then to hell, Neraka for punishment for his bad deeds.
From Neraka the soul is reincarnated into a worse or lower form than in
the previous life. This might involve a lowering of caste Or, it might
even result in a soul being reborn as an animal-which then has to work
its way up the karma ladder to eventual Moksa.
Conversely, if one's karma is mostly good, the soul goes briefly to Neraka
after cremation, for a little punishment, and then for a longer period
of reward in Suarga, from which it is reincarnated into a higher or better
form than in its previous existence. Reincarnation of a spirit may occur
in any form at all, even in a nonhuman form, depending entirely upon its
karma.
An ultra-pure soul can reach Moksa directly upon death without Pengabenan
or Nyekah, because its inner fire is sufficient to release it from its
body-shell by a sort of self-incineration. But, only perhaps one out of
a million people has soul this pure. It takes many cycle of purification
and reincarnation to reach Nirvana.
REINCARNATION
Superimposed upon the principle of reincarnation, and very important in
Bali's religious culture, is the ancient, animistic belief that each soul
maintains a separate identity, even though returned to heaven, and thus
part if God. God manifests part of himself as the soul of a deceased ancestor.
These deified ancestors are called Sanghyang Pitara, or Betara Hyang,
and each family has a special family temple, called Sanggah (or Merajan
for the higher castes) where special shrines are dedicated to the family's
deified ancestors and to which they are invited to descend upon the occasions
of important religious festivals.
The stages in the life of each Balinese, from birth until death are marked
by special religious ceremonies celebrating the rites of passage. The
very last and most important rite of passage is that a family can and
must perform for one or its members occurs at his death, for it is here
that his soul must he released and returned to God. And it is here that
the soul starts its process of purification so that it may become a deified
ancestor and duly installed in the family temple.
DEATH
RITES
Balinese Hindu death rites can be very simple and inexpensive. Certain
basic offerings must be made. And a few important practices must be observed.
A corpse can be cremated and its soul released quite quickly, cheaply
and without much fuss still following the necessary basic and resulting
in proper release of the soul. But and this is a very important "but"
there is a pervasive belief that no expense must be spared in this final
send-off of the soul. To skimp and save would be a sign of disrespect.
And one must remember that this soul will shortly become a deified ancestor.
As such, there is a feeling that it will know that the family could have
provided a more elaborate series of death ceremonies had it wanted to.
Thus, it might pester the family with bad fortune, sickness and the like.
And there is another aspect to this that must be considered. By providing
a large, costly, and elaborate series of death rites, a family gains status
and prestige in the village.
And so, every family will do its best to provide as grand and glorious
a cremation as it can afford-perhaps more than it can afford-in terms
of both money and time.
Now, even a medium-large cremation may cost the equivalent of thousands
of U.S. dollars, severely taxing the family resources, and it may require
the services of hundreds of people over a period of weeks or even month.
Therefore it is very common amongst the poorer people merely to bury the
corpse in the village cemetery, after a relatively simple and in expensive
ceremony of symbolic preparation and cleansing. The family then waits
until it can accumulate sufficient funds for a properly grand cremation.
Alternatively, if some other wealthier family in the village or a very
important member of the community schedules a large and fine cremation
at some future date, the poorer family may ask to join the big ceremony,
with relatively little expense to itself, it is not unknown for dozens,
even hundreds, of bodies to join in the shared glory of a particularly
important, or rich, person's cremation. For this reason some years may
elapse between.
Cremation in Bali is a joyful even and the colorful procession head this
spectaculars 11-tiered tower of Balinese royalty to the cremation grounds,
it is accompanied by horseplay, shouting and laughter. the death of a
person and his cremation, perhaps even a decade or more. During this time
the soul never strays far from the body and may bother the family in various
ways as it seeks total release toward God. Every family of every caste
tries to cremate its dead as soon as possible, but this can only be accomplished
if the family is wealthy.
For a priest, or for a descendant of a former ruler of a royal family,
burial in the impure ground is considered inappropriate. The body is therefore
preserved and kept lying in state in a pavilion in the family house compound.
Fresh, elaborate offerings must be made daily. The services of a high
priest, Pedanda, must be engaged. Guard must be present 24 hours a day.
A great deal of music is required, guest entertained and fed, and even
symbolic daily meals provided for the body.
And that is not all. Not al days are suitable for cremations. So, an expert
on such matters has to be consulted in order to set the day of the final
rites.
PREPARATIONS
When the big day has been decided upon, an unbelievably complex, interlocking
series of preparations are set into motion.
Temporary structures for shrines, shelters and shade must be built and
roped with coconut leaf mats. Offerings must be made daily. Each of the
ceremonies preceding the cremation itself has its own required set of
offerings, as well as those. for the final act itself. the purpose of
them is many-fold. One is to provide symbolic pleasure to the deified
ancestors who are invited to attend the ceremonies, to the soul that will
be shortly released, and satisfaction to the hunger of the evil spirits,
the Butas and Kalas, who stand greedily by, ready to interfere in man's
every activity. The most important purpose is that these offerings will
help implore God to purify the spirit and return it to earth some day
in a higher form.
Every reasonable large cremation will have at least one sarcophagus in
the form of a life-size or large animal. The approved sarcophagus for
those of higher caste is a bull or cow, depending on the sex of the deceased,
called Lembu. The lower castes have other specified shapes - a lion, a
deer, or a fish-elephant, the Gajah mina.
The animal sarcophagus is cut from a solid tree trunk, hollowed out by
hand, and built with a removable back section in which a corpse will be
put. The figure is covered with paper and than with cloth - black for
bulls, yellow for cows, and decorated with colored cotton wool, mirrors,
colored paper cutouts, tinsel, and glitter. Each is mounted on a separate
criss-cross platform of bamboo so that it can be carried by a large group
of men
THE
TOWER
 There
must also be constructed a cremation tower, called Wadah, or bade, the
tower is a symbolic representation of the Balinese universe. Bedawang,
the world turtle, is at the base, surrounded by the two dragon snakes,
Naga Basuki and Naga Antaboga. These represent the physical needs of mortal
man-the former symbolizing safety, the later perpetual food, clothing,
and shelter. Every man microcosm has its two accompanying Nagas.
Above this lower world, Bhur, on the cremation tower, is the world of
man, Bwah, shown by leafy forests and mountains. On top is the world of
heaven, Swah, built of successive tiers of little roofs, like those found
on the pagoda-like towers, and called Meru, in some Balinese temples.
Between heaven and earth on the tower is a house-like structure, the the
bale-balean. This has a protruding shelf on which the body of an unburied
person is placed for transportation to the cemetery. If a body has already
been buried, only a symbolic representation, or effigy, Adegan, of the
body is carried in the tower, as it would be improper to put in an elevated
and holy place the actual impure body that has been in contact with unclean
earth. The effigy is a fan-shaped object, about 40 centimeters high, made
of sandalwood, wrapped in white cloth, and elaborately decorated.
On the back of the tower is a big, grotesque mask, Bhoma, the some face,
with great fangs, that stress down at one from the main gate of most Balinese
temples, and whose function is to scare away evil spirits. Bhoma on the
tower has huge, outstretched wings, often with a span of several meters.
In addition, there may be a photograph or drawing of the deceased on the
back of the tower.
If the body to be cremated has been buried, it is dug up in the cemetery.
Often very little remains-perhaps just a few bone fragments. These are
wrapped in a white cloth and placed in a temporary shrine-shelter in the
cemetery. A buried body. Having been in the impure earth, is not carried
to the family home. Only its effigy is carried in the procession.
Holy water is one of the most important of the essentials of any Balinese
ceremony. Sprinkled on offerings, shrines, and the body or effigy, it
represents the blessings of God. A large coconut oil lamp, spherical in
shape and covered with white cloth is hung on a tall bamboo pole outside
the family house compound, together with a similarly constructed bird.
The lamp is kept lit until the cremation day so as to guide the wandering
soul back to its home. Usually a kind of life size doll the ukur, is made
from old Chinese coins with center holes and from white thread. This represents
the skeleton, nerves, and muscles, and it is cremated along with the body
and effigy.
THE PROCESSION
In north Bali, a great procession, the Madeeng, is held on the day preceding
the cremation. A special percussion orchestra plays for cremations. And
for no other event, in Bali.
On the day of the cremation, crowds of guests arrive early and must be
fed and entertained. All members of the deceased's neighborhood association,
Banjar, are obliged to assemble, very informally dressed, in front of
the house compound where the sarcophaguses and tower are lined up in the
street. No weeping or sorrow is evident. After all, the person may have
died years ago! Besides, it is a joyful event. The soul is about to be
sent to that most desirable of all places, Suarga, and it is on its way
toward deification. Also, weeping might disturb the spirit and make its
departure difficult.
If the body has been kept in the family house compound it is boisterously
snatched up and fought over as it is carried up the ramp and bound to
the tower, amidst much pushing, shoving, and laughter. The body or effigy
is then covered with the Rurub Kajeng, a white cloth on which are inscribed
magic letters and symbols that will help ensure safe passage to heaven
for the spirit. Then procession form.
The empty sarcophaguses are snatched up by the shouting Banjar men and
spun and whirled as they are carried in a crazy melee to the cemetery.
The idea is to confuse the spirit and make it lose its way so that it
cannot return and haunt the family.
After the sarcophaguses comes a long procession of beautifully dressed
women carrying the many cremation offerings on their heads.
Next in the procession comes a very long white cloth, the Lancingan, that
is attached to the tower and is stretched out ahead, carried on the heads
of a long train of people, often with a long rope that also is attached
to the tower. Since not all the family can actually carry the tower, carrying
the cloth symbolizes this act. The tower and ramp are last in line, except
for the Naga Banda that may accompany cremation procession of royal families.
The procession to the cremation grounds, located near the Pura Dalem,
or death temple, may take an hour or longer, depending on distance and
the amount of horseplay. Cremation is generally done in a clearing in
the cemetery, located at the sea-wards or most impure direction from the
village-away from streets, and usually with one or more huge Kapuh trees
providing shade. Upon arrival the sarcophaguses are placed in special
pavilions under a white sheet roof that symbolizes the sky.
Next, family members open the backs of the sarcophaguses with a special
sacred knife. If there is an actual body in the tower that has been kept
in the family house compound it is roughly handed down or carried down
the ramp, often fought over even to the extent of tearing the bundle apart,
and than placed into the appropriate sarcophagus. In the more usual case
of previously buried bodies, the sheet-wrapped bones that have been waiting
in the cemetery are placed in the sarcophagus. Along with the effigy that
has been carried in the tower. The family crowds around for the last look
at whatever there is left of the body as it is exposed by cutting open
the wraps. The Ukur, and other accessories and offerings are placed inside.
Everything is then covered by the magic Rurub Kajeng cloth. Now the attending
Pedanda or senior members of the family four jar of holy water on top
of the contents and the empty clay jars are dashed to the ground and broken.
The backs of the sarcophaguses are replaced. Assistant surround the base
of the sarcophagus with green banana plant logs to prevent spreading of
the fire, and firewood is loaded between the logs.
THE FIRE
When all is in readiness the fires are ignited. This may be done by a
Pedanda, after he has blessed the torch, or it may be done by simply lighting
a match.
When the fires have died down, water is thrown on the ashes, and little
boys scurry to collect the Chinese coins, as the family collects scraps
of ash and bone from the bodies. some of the burned fragments are formed
into a body-shaped pile in a special pavilion, the Bale Selulung, and
wrapped in a white sheet. Other fragments are placed inside a yellow coconut
that is than wrapped and decorated. Meanwhile the Pedanda platform and
is ringing his bell and chanting mantras to help the release of the soul
and its journey.
By now it is near sunset. There Pedanda chants his final mantras. Family
members sit or kneel on the ground to pray, then rise and carry the containers
of ashes on their heads in a procession to the sea. Now the five elements
of the body have been returned to the macrocosm whence they came. And
the spirit has been related to the sea where its impurities will fall
as sediment, and from which its purer essence will be summoned for the
next and final major series of ceremonies, the Nyekah, wherein the soul
is returned to Suarga-Neraka, just as now the body's elements have been
returned to the Bhuana Agung.
The date of the Nyekah is set for an auspicious day far enough ahead so
that there is time for all the necessary intermediate ceremonies to be
completed.
The crowds of women continue to make offerings. Now another large tower
is built, the Bukur, this time decorated only in white and gold. Other
temporary shelters and shrines are constructed by shelters and shrines
are constructed by works gangs. More holy water is fetched. More invitations
are sent. The kitchen and offering work goes on with unabated activity.
Higher caste offerings experts are called in to prepare the effigies for
the soul. A bamboo frame about 40 cm. High is constructed with a conical
base. The base is covered with leaves from a sacred banyan tree, collected
in a special separate ceremony. The leaves must be arranged concave side
down for a male effigy, the opposite for a female. These leaves symbolize
the fire that will release the Atma from the Sekah. The effigy is decorated
with special dried flowers and a fan shaped background similar to the
Adegan of a cremation. It is then wrapped in white, decorated with gold
leaves, and placed in a special shrine on silver tray.
On the day of the Nyekah climax a whole series of important ceremonies
leads up to the main event, which occurs well after midnight. Each Sekah
is unwrapped and the valuable ornaments saved. The inner framework is
placed upon a round clay pedestal and set afire. Family members encourage
the flames with miniature woven bamboo fans. The ashes are ground up,
each family member helping, and placed in a yellow coconut, which is,
in turn, wrapped in white and decorated. This object, sometimes called
Sekar, or Puspa, blossom, is then reverently carried on the head of a
family members in a procession to various family shrines. Prayers are
said, and the effigy is placed in the Bukur, tower, just at dawn. In mass
Nyekahs there may be many effigies in one tower, or each effigy may have
its own tower.
The tower is then carried in solemn procession to the sea or nearby stream,
prayers said, offerings dedicated and the effigies thrown into or carried
out into the water, followed by the tower itself, which is not burned
this time. The soul has finally been seen on its way to God.
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