Lessons from the Balian People: What We Can Learn from Their Way of Life?

There are probably more planets in our Solar System than there are westerners who haven't yet heard of the Indonesian island of Bali. American pop culture and the unpopularly popular, Elizabeth Gilbert's Eat Pray Love indisputably helped spread awareness of its existence followed by the aesthetically pleasing social media content. So it came to be that Bali, in the past decade, has become a to-be spot for not just your average digital nomad. And this was about as much as I knew about Bali before coming there this summer to start my year-long journey.

Tropical fauna, madness-like traffic, and confusing currency are probably among anomalies which a western traveller like me notices first. As soon as we left the wide roads around the airport in Denpasar and got to more locally preserved areas of Bali, my curious sight set on temples and spiritual sculptures all around. I couldn't wait any longer and had to explore the surrounding streets as soon as we got to our first accommodation in Seminyak. Despite the fact that Seminyak has become popular for everything rather non-spiritual, such as beach bars, clubs and cocktail deals. It is safe to say that no amount of thirsty tourists could take Balinese culture and its traditions out of Bali.

Offerings

As I am passing down the streets I start noticing these little containers, no bigger than the palm of your hand lying all around the streets, on steps, in front of entrances, even on the beach. They usually contained a biscuit, flowers, rice, a cigarette, and one or two sticks of incense. Later I learned that they are offerings and they are meant to please the gods Balinese Hinduists worship. However, these offerings are also made to satisfy the demons. In contrast to other religions, I find this part especially interesting.

So I started digging into Balinese Hinduism more to discover what else it could teach me. In this article, however, I am only going to scratch the surface, yet, I am dedicated to keep learning.

Karma

One day me and my boyfriend were walking down the promenade along the seaside in the south of Bali, in a place called Sanur. We suddenly notice an unfinished shed made out of bamboo. In the shed was a man who seemed to be cleaning a pool which appeared too small and too low for a man. Our curiosity led us inside, carefully and respectfully we approached the man with the mop, and asked him about the purpose of this place. He did not seem to be disturbed at all, quite the contrary. His smile was wide, his spirit was energetic. "It is a turtle sanctuary" the man answered clearly, despite his strong Balienese accent. We started chatting. Him and a number of local people had decided to build this place to help the turtles from any harm. “It is usually the plastic which they struggle with the most. This one I found stuck in a bunch of plastic the other day” he pointed towards a big bucket next to the pool. We could see a turtle about half a meter long floating inside.

The man whose name was Kadek, lifted her up to show us the large indent on the stomach part of her shell, she had most likely been trapped for several days and was dangerously underweight. He put the turtle back into the bucket as she started slapping her fins and was clearly feeling uncomfortable. ''These are two days old'', Kadek is now showing us many little tortoisses in two other buckets. 'We've saved the eggs from being attacked by predators. ''We are now gonna feed them for about a month before releasing them into the sea". One of the first questions on my European mind was: "do you get any funding?". Kadek smiled and shook his head. "No, no funding, only donations from people", then he continued, “we don't do it for money you know, we do it because it makes us happy, it brings us joy to help”. He didn't stop smiling. "We are now teaching kids about the importance of throwing rubbish where it belongs so they understand the harm". Despite never going to school, Kadek's English was remarkably good. He said he likes to talk to people, and he learned a lot from the tourists. As he proceeded talking about his life philosophy, he added "I want to have a good karma you know".

Karma, literaly translated as destiny, is one of the teachings of Hinduism. Hinduists believe in constant reincarnation of the soul until it reaches Moksha (the enlightenment). Enlightened soul does not have to redo the cycle of life and death and is, therefore, freed of the life dispair. Putting it mildly, any action will result in a consequence, good or bad. If someone is born into a desirable state for example, in Hinduism it is believed it is due to his virtuous deeds in past life. Looking around it really seems like people generally do keep their karma in mind here, which partly explains their kind and non-conflicting nature.

In Balinese Hinduism, it is believed that everything in the world, including inanimate objects, holds a spirit or essence and is, therefore, a carrier of a certain energy. Local people clear the space on a daily basis with the incense whose calming smell floats in the air throughout Bali. The highest mountain, an active volcano Mount Agung, "the great mountain", also known as "the mother mountain" with an altitude of 3031 m is believed to be a house of gods and ancestors. It is also worth saying that the island is home to more than 20,000 temples, each of which is unique to its region and people who live there. The spiritual essence of Bali is, therefore, ubiquitous.

Gratefulness

Of course we couldn't possibly miss the well-known sunrise trek to the top of the Mount Batur volcano, situated 1,717 meters above sea level. Our taxi driver picked us up at 1 am from our accommodation in Ubud. About an hour later we arrived at the base camp where we got Indonesian pancakes and coffee for our unusually early breakfast. The outside temperature was way below what we expected. The strong Balian coffee kicked in as our small group of 6 got distributed to the guide who was meant to take us up to the top. He was in his early twenties and full of energy. Despite the early hour and the cold he was smiling joyfully, excited for the hike like it would be the first time in his life. He was asking us questions about where we are from and made a special effort to remember our collection of international names. It was about 3 am when we set off up the volcano.

Despite the hike being promoted as 'beginner's friendly', the conditions were actually pretty challenging and many people seemed to struggle on the steep rocky pathway. Our guide encouraged me, my boyfriend and my boyfriend's cousin who once did the Kilimangaro trek, to feel free to seperate from the other three in our group who prefered walking at a slower pace. We could go ahead in order to make it for the sunrise in time. He needed to make sure that he gets everyone to the top safely. We waited no longer, and in the blink of an eye we were standing at the viewpoint, waiting for the sunrise to greet us. Soon enough, we became witnesses to mother's nature creative genius. Lightning up the horizon gently, shade by shade, from black to dark purple to pink to blood orange, as if she was painting colours on a canvas. I could feel the tranquil atmosphere in the crowd as they intensely stared at the bright orange sun stepping out from behind the clouds to shine light over the top of Mount Batur, as well as Mount Agung which was standing majestically across the bay in front of us. These photos I took will hopefully help show the beauty of the experience, as I struggle to find the words to accurately describe the grace of the moment.

Our guide found us sitting mesmerized while considerably shaking from the cold. He just made the moment even more perfect when he said he was going to get us some food and a coffee. He returned back holding a few pieces of toasts and boiled eggs. A girl followed him with a tray full of cups. I was holding onto my warm boiled egg for a while as my hands were freezing. After the breakfast we took a look around the summit accompanied by a bunch of monkeys who didn't shy away from a human contact.

On the way back we got a chance to properly talk to our guide. He expressed to us how grateful he was for his job. In a busy season, which lasts at least a few months, he works every day. His routine is waking up at 1 o'clock, walking up the mountain and then going to bed at around 7. He said he feels blessed having the opportunity to show people this place and to see the sunrise from the top everyday while getting paid for it. His energy was contagious. The rest of the walk we spent singing english songs he knew because of his love of playing the guitar. We later did another sunrise hike up a volcano, this time it was mount Iljen volcano in Java. Our guide for this trek was similarly joyful, friendly and seemed to be full of life. Perhaps the mountain air is good for the soul?

The moral of the story

Is there anything for us to learn? Of course there is. Admittably, it might be hard to get over the concept of believing in something mystical and unmeaserable at first. Generally, modern western education does not support the belief in anything that cannot be proven with numbers or data. But even if our pragmatic brains refuse to accept the idea of past lives and spirits, we could still try to integrate certain behaviors into our one time life experience. Karma, for instance, less spiritually worded as cause and affect, is worth being mindful of on a day to day basis. While making mistakes is human, making delibarate desicions which negatively impact the existance of another being is not. How do our decisions affect others and the environment? Let's be mindful of that. From making offerings to the gods, to building turtle shelters just because you care. Not everything we do should have to benefit us directly. Acts of kindness for the benefit of others may actually lead to the most joy and fulfillment within ourselves.

As I said, I've only scratched the very surface of Balienese Hinduism and the Balienese lifestyle. But after spending only a couple months in this beautiful country I found myself leaving a lot wiser having taken on board some of the lessons the Indonesian people had to offer. I am inspired to be greatful for what I have, be kind for the sake

of being kind, and enjoy the tiny gifts of life that can be found everyday if you just open your eyes (and mind) to the wonderul world we live in.

Defining terms in Hinduism and Buddhism

Dharma is a difficult word to translate in English. Vaguely it means natural law, duty, moral order, right conduct, or the role in the universe. In Buddhism, Dharma is assigned to "cosmic law and order". It refers to the creation and organisation of the universe out of chaos.

Moksha is derived from the root, muc, which means to free, let go, release, liberate. In Buddhism it is called Nirvana. In our words, the highest level of enlightment.

Samsara refers to the endless cycle of birth and death. Both Hinduism and Buddhism never see life as a lineage, but as a cycle, which means that souls are continually reincarnated into a new life after the end of their previous one. This cycle can only be broken by achieving enlightenment.

Trimuli is known as the 'Holy Trinity'. The dominant gods of Balinese Hinduism are Brahma, the god of creation - the creator; Vishnu, the god of providence - the sustainer; and Shiva, the god of dissolution - the destroyer. These three gods represent the neverending practice of birth, balance (life) and destruction (death), in the same way as humans go through their lifes until they reach Moksha.

Sources:

Asia Highlights

Indonesia Investments