Balinese Hinduism and the Majapahit dynasty

In the beginning, we have more primitive religion. We used to celebrate the earth and our ancestors. Then, by eight century, our Balinese princes brought over from India high priests from both Hindu and Buddhist religions. From then on, their teachings were followed throughout Bali. Our princes also asked these priests to assign them divine their origin, in order to establish their authority. This is how we adopted very early on the three main Hindu Gods; Wisnu (the guardian), Brahma (the creator) and Siwa (the destructor), as well as their spouses. These Hindu Gods are very complicated, for each of them appears in various shapes – sometimes positive sometimes negative.

For example, in the founding myth of the Hindu religion, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, Wisnu came back nine times in the form of human, such as Krishna or Rama, to rescue man; whereas Brahma, who is very important since he is the creator, has always stood aloof from humans. As for Siwa, he alone embodies the two opposing forces of destruction by death and rebirth, with the equilibrium being symbolized by dance. Around the tenth century, where they were brought over from India and translated, we adopted the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. These epic tales have becomes as familiar to us if they had taken place on our island and before our eyes. In fact, in place of the Himalayan Mount Meru, we even gave Siwa the top of our highest volcano, Mount Agung, in which to reside.

But doesn’t mean we have given up on worshipping our ancestors. We believe that they live up there with him and sometimes come down to visit us on the occasion of certain ceremonies. With our offerings we give back to our ancestor part of what belongs to them (as they still own the earth) and honor our Gods at the same time. This is what Krishna, an incarnation of Wisnu tells Arjuna he should do, in the tale of Mahabharata. The heroes of the Mahabharata, the five Pandawa brothers, and all the episode of their struggle against their own cousins, the Korawa, are well-known to us. We adore Rama, the hero of Ramayana, who fought against the demons that reigned over Sri Lanka because he had kidnapped his wife, Sita. For us, he is not only the ideal man but also, like Khrisna, the driver of Arjuna’s carts a representation of the God, Wisnu. These are myths that we still stage today artistic representations such as ballet, plays or even puppet shows.

Though still Hindu, our religion was slightly different from the one practiced in Java, where the famous dynasty of the Majapahit reigned. Between the twelfth and fifteenth century, the relations between the two kingdoms were sometimes peaceful, sometimes warlike. The rivalry between our Balinese princes and the Javanese prince gave birth to a mythology as important and scared as the Hindus myths, as we credit our kings with divine origin and supernatural powers.

The conquest of Bali by the Majapahit Minister of State, the great Gajah Mada, in 1343, is still very famous. In those days, a part of Balinese governed by King Beda Ulu, who used to brag about his very strong supernatural powers. One day, he even cut off his own head and claimed he could put it back on all by himself. Siwa was so upset by his bragging that he replaced his head with one of a boar. From that day on, the king forbade anyone from looking at him, under penalty of death. When Gajah Mada arrived at the court on reconnaissance, he claimed to be very tired and famished. So he asked Beda Ulu permission to eat the fern leaves and rice he had brought from Java. The king having granted him the favor, Gajah Mada purposely grabbed a very long leaf. In order to put it in his mouth, he tipped has head so far back that he could stare straight into the eyes of the horrible Beda Ulu, thus violating the lethal interdiction. But because of the very ancient rule that prohibited disturbing anyone eating, Beda Ulu could not kill him. Out of his mind with anger, he flew into a rage so terrible that he was consumed by his own fire. Then by end of the fifteenth century, all of Majapahit fled Java and settled in Bali to escape from Islamization. After the reign of Prince Batu Rengong, the kingdom of Bali was divided onto numerous principalities. Hence-forth, the prince reigned over very tiny lands. Today, they still have their title, but their only kingdom is the respect of their subjects.

The invasion of the Majapahit resulted in the castes system; in Java as in India, the society was not classified like ours in two categories – those from outside and those from within, but in four. These our part or castes, stemmed from the first Hindu scriptures – the Vedic scriptures. They speak of how Brahma sacrificed himself to create mankind and how from his mouth came the purest, the Brahman; then from his arms, the valiant Ksatriyas warriors from his hips, the Wesyas; and from his feet, the more numerous Sudras. Today our society is still divided in these four categories and though it does not make a big different professionally, we still have more respect for the member of superior castes. Though it is possible for a young woman from an inferior caste to marry a member of superior castes, the opposite is looked down upon. Our religion as it is practiced nowadays, is thus a rather complex mix between worshipping nature and the ancestors, Buddhist and Hindu practices and the diabolical beliefs of the tantric cults … Recently, there came from India the belief on one supreme and unique God: Sang Hyang Widhi. He is the God by excellence, above all the others and existing prior to the creation of the world. One day, weary of nothingness, he created the other inferior Gods, in order to share his knowledge and to have them to create the world. Only his son Siwa supposedly had the courage to comply with his request. The others, having refused for fear of not being equal to the task, were sent back to each of the four cardinal points and transformed, then restored to favor… Of course you must find it very complicated, and we do too, actually. But in our life, all these different influences have resulted in way of thinking that simplifies things…