Galunguan in 4 days what are they actually celebrating

[RhysG]

Hey guys it Galunguan in 4 day i cant wait to have so yum freshly cooked babi guling and jajan bali heheheh best bit of the celebration, but the more to Galunguan then just the food And i would like to tell everyone what galungun actually all about. hope you all enjoy reading
Galungan

Galungan is the most important feast for Balinese Hindus, a celebration to honor the creator of the universe (Ida Sang Hyang Widi) and the spirits of the honored ancestors.

The festival symbolizes the victory of good (Dharma) over evil (Adharma), and encourages the Balinese to show their gratitude to the creator and sainted ancestors.

Offerings to the Ancestors
The house compounds that make up the nucleus of Balinese society come alive with devotions offered by the families living within. Families offer bountiful sacrifices of food and flowers to the ancestral spirits, expressing gratitude and hopes for protection. These sacrifices are also offered at local temples, which are packed with devotees bringing their offerings.

The whole island sprouts tall bamboo poles called "penjor" - these are usually decorated with fruit, coconut leaves, and flowers, and set up on the right of every residence entrance. At each gate, you'll also find small bamboo altars set up especially for the holiday, each one bearing woven palm-leaf offerings for the spirits.

Intensive Preparations
The preparations for Galungan begin several days before the actual feast day.

Three days before Galungan - "Penyekeban" - families begin their preparations for Galungan. "Penyekeban" literally means "the day to cover up ", as this is the day when green bananas are covered up in huge clay pots to speed their ripening.

Two days before Galungan - "Penyajahan" - marks a time of introspection for Balinese, and more prosaically, a time to make the Balinese cakes known as jaja. These colored cakes made of fried rice dough are used in offerings and are also eaten specially on Galungan. This time of the year finds a glut of jaja in every village market.

A day before Galungan - "Penampahan", or slaughter day - Balinese slaughter the sacrificial animals that will go into the temple or altar offerings. Galungan is marked by the sudden surplus of traditional Balinese food, like lawar (a spicy pork and coconut sauce dish) and satay.

On Galungan day itself, Balinese devotees pray at the temples and make their offerings to the spirits. Women are seen carrying the offerings on their heads, while men bring palm fronds.

The day after Galungan, Balinese visit their kinfolk and closest friends.

The tenth day after Galungan - "Kuningan" - marks the end of Galungan, and is believed to be the day when the spirits ascend back to heaven. On this day, Balinese make special offerings of yellow rice.

Ngelawang - Dance of the Barong
During Galungan, a ceremony known as Ngelawang is performed in the villages. Ngelawang is an exorcism ceremony performed by a "barong" - a divine protector in the form of a mythical beast.

The barong is invited into houses as he makes his way through the village. His presence is meant to restore the balance of good and evil in a house. The residents of the house will pray before the dancing barong, who will afterwards give a piece of his fur as a keepsake.

After the barong pays a visit, it is important to make an offering of a canang sari containing money.

A Treat for the Senses
While the actual festivities are open to Balinese only, tourists who visit Bali during this holiday get an eyeful of the lokal color.

It isn't every day you see richly-dressed women crossing the street to make food offerings to the lokal temple - and there's something festive about the penjor swaying in the wind everywhere you look!

During Galungan, some lokal restaurants ride the rising demand for Balinese food by offering specials on all sorts of native dishes. This is a great time to try Balinese food for the first time!

On the downside, many places will be closed for Galungan, as their devout Balinese employees will likely be going to their respective villages to celebrate.

As the Balinese calendar follows a 210-day cycle, Galungan happens twice a year roughly every six months. The holiday is calculated to occur on the following dates:


February 1-11, 2012
You might want to reserve a villa in Bali early for these days, as holiday-goers from all over are making Galungan plans of their own!

This information from Galungan

[pollyanna]

Thanks RhysG. That’s an interesting article and I learned from it even though I’ve studied Galungan just a little bit. I love Galungan. It reminds me of the Christian Christmas. In Galungan the Gods come down to Earth and in Christianity Jesus comes to Earth. In Christianity the the Christmas period lasts 12 days ending with Twelfth Night. Galungan lasts 10 days and ends with Kuningan.

The day after Galungan is a time to spend with family and friends. The day after Christmas (Boxing Day) is also a day to spend with family and friends.

Galungan is a festive time and so is Christmas. In both Galungan and Christmas homes and neighbourhoods are decorated heavily for the event. Those are the similarities that come to mind. I may be stretching the commonalities but still ... that’s the way it seems to me.

[RhysG]

Thanks RhysG. That’s an interesting article and I learned from it even though I’ve studied Galungan just a little bit. I love Galungan. It reminds me of the Christian Christmas. In Galungan the Gods come down to Earth and in Christianity Jesus comes to Earth. In Christianity the the Christmas period lasts 12 days ending with Twelfth Night. Galungan lasts 10 days and ends with Kuningan.

The day after Galungan is a time to spend with family and friends. The day after Christmas (Boxing Day) is also a day to spend with family and friends.

Galungan is a festive time and so is Christmas. In both Galungan and Christmas homes and neighbourhoods are decorated heavily for the event. Those are the similarities that come to mind. I may be stretching the commonalities but still ... that’s the way it seems to me.

hahahahhaha funny you should say that cux whem ppl ask me what is galungan i wals say it the Balinese Xmas well im glad u you enjoyed my post and have learnt a bit from it.

[gilbert de jong]

great post RhysG

[thinking_about_it]

great thread Rhys :)

just wondering what is the best way to wish my Balinese friends a "happy Galungan"?

Selamat Galungan??

you said that Galungan & Kuningan can be compared to Christmas and as I always receive "Merry Christmas" "Happy New Year" and even "Happy Australia Day" texts from my friends it would be nice to be able to wish them a happy day but write something more appropriate than just "happy Galungan".
I am studying Bahasa Indonesia so how to write it in BI would be appreciated.

Thanks!

[gilbert de jong]

selamat hari raya galungan dan kuningan, semoga membawa kedamaian untuk kita semua. (BI)

or if you really wanna impress them

Rahajeng nyangre rahina Galungan lan Kuningan (BB)

[thinking_about_it]

makasih & suksama Gilbert :)

[RhysG]

her the balinese way of saying it om swastisatu rahjeng nyangra rahina galungan lan kuingan om santi santi santi om

[spicyayam]

A friend said it is not a good time make any big purchases during Galungan and 2 weeks after. Can someone explain if this is true and how this works and how many Balinese would follow this.

[sakumabali]

Well he probably meant that during Galungan and followed by Kuningan most of the Balinese are busy preparing the offerings for the ceremonies, than praying, meeting friends & family and after for some days they're too exhausted & sleepy to concentrate on working properly

BUT there are many chinese & muslim shops open between these days...