The clanging began. Boys with cymbals and instruments like portable gamelans. Drums. The beat sped up, the metal clanging became louder and as it crescendoed, up went the first ogoh-ogoh.
A team of 10-12 year-old boys dressed in sarongs and their village's special Nyepi t-shirt uniforms lifted a giant bamboo rack carrying a 10-foot tall demon. The intricately decorated paper mache and styrofoam figure rose with a bounce. The adults around encouraged the boys to bounce it more, giving the ogoh-ogoh motion, as if it was alive. It was clearly designed to bounce and threaten people.
After some bouncing and cheering, the boys – probably in their first year of ogoh-ogoh stewardship – clumsily moved forward, carrying the demon on their shoulders down the road, behind the village girls who led the procession with torches in hand. A group of percussionists boys followed. Each ogoh-ogoh gets its own orchestra.
Then the next group began – slightly older boys, slightly bigger ogoh-ogoh. This one was a fiendish woman with giant, pendular breasts. Evil female characters always have exaggerated, dragging breasts here. These boys had clearly carried an ogoh-ogoh before and had a slightly better lift-off. Again, cheering and bouncing commenced and their support orchestra of same-age boys created musical drama to perfectly accent the events.
The third group of boys carried the ogoh-ogoh de resistance. Red, angry, demonic, threatening and at least 15 feet tall. These 17-18 year-olds knew how to run an ogoh-ogoh and were perfectly at ease. They excitedly spun it around so it threatened everyone in the village as the carried it through one of the largest roads around Ubud. It took a number of helpers and a lot of bending to ensure it cleared the power lines.
Everyone in the village lined the streets, dressed in ceremonial wear – complete with sarongs and ceremonial hats. Little children in their little outfits watched in awe. Some were amused and giggly, others sacred. Many stayed safe in the arms of their parents and grandparents.
The business of demon carrying is left to growing boys and young men. The business of enjoying and participating belongs to everyone in the village. As soon as the ogoh-ogohs were on the move, everyone picked up and followed.
We watched this in one village. But every village in Bali has or will perform this exact same ceremony at some point tonight. As we rode home from Ubud and were forced into a post-ceremonial detour we rode through innumerable villages with anywhere between three and ten ogoh-ogohs on display.
Throughout the day, women brought offerings to lay before and around the ogoh-ogohs, to help keep their evil spirits appeased and contained. They also brought large offerings of fruits, rice, candies and sometimes whole loaves of bread to their village temples. The gods must be honored and appeased at times like this.
The day before Nyepi (today) is a sort of the Balinese version of Christmas Eve. Shops close early. People run around town doing their last minute grocery shopping – the supermarket in Ubud was PACKED with foreigners stocking up for tomorrow when no one is allowed outside for 24 hours. As the day progresses, people head home to their families and villages. The roads become empty except when parades of ogoh-ogohs are taking place. By sunset, everyone is in their villages, engaged in holiday activities.
Very much unlike Christmas Eve- unless you have a family of angry drinkers – the quiet togetherness turns into villages banging gongs and cymbals as they march demons down the roads and set them ablaze at night. Fireworks then light up the night further as young men of each village launch them out of large bamboo stalks.
The part I like most is that the Balinese new year starts off with everyone literally facing and ridding themselves of demons. Each village makes and has their own demons. They give color to their demons and take the time to vividly depict them. Most of us just wrestle blindly with ours.
Tomorrow on Nyepi, the Balinese spend the first day of their year making a concerted effort not to collect any new demons. With their ogoh-ogohs burned and gone, they require everyone on the island to stay inside and be quiet. At night, no one is allowed to use lights – just candles as necessary. The evil spirits looking to ruin their new year will see and hear nothing, leading them to believe there's no one on the island to haunt – and they'll go away.
So it is that Emily and I have bought our provisions, have our candles ready and have holed up for the next day. We're fine with it – we have the skills and experience. It's a lot like being Jews on Christmas – only there are no movie theaters or Chinese restaurants to which we can escape.
Tonight, after returning home from our ogoh-ogoh viewing, we enjoyed a nice dinner, overlooking the rice terraces. The nearby village was banging their instruments and cheering as they carried their ogoh-ogohs off on their death march. The skies all around us remain filled with fireworks and lightening. Everywhere, absolutely everywhere there is chanting, music and celebration. Not a bad way to end a Friday.
Selamat Hari Raya Nyepi!
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One Response
Fantastic looking demons!