Most of us expats on Bali come from a place where there is little, if any, sense of community. The idea of fifty neighbors coming to spend half a day preparing for a ceremony where you live, expecting nothing in return, is a concept that has escaped most of us.
In villages all over Bali, this is commonplace. The village community spirit that I have enjoyed for all these years is something I don’t think I could ever again live without.
We were up early this morning, 5 AM to be precise, as some fifty men and women from our village descended on our compound to help us prepare for our upcoming Melaspas ceremony starting this October 29. The women were all busy preparing food to feed everyone, and also assisting our young priest, Jero Mangku, who conducted the purification ceremony necessary as a preparation for the Melaspas ceremony which will be presided over by two high priests.
Several temporary bale and other structures were needed to be built for this ceremony. The materials were all simple…bamboo and alang alang. In little more than four hours, the men had cut, shaved, tied and erected each of these structures as though it were mere child’s play.
Amply supplied with coffee, cigarettes and a wonderful meal of nasi, ayam betutu, and cooked jackfruit, the men went about their tasks as though they have been doing this for years upon years. Well, they have.
The Balinese word for this preparation day is nanjeb.
Today was humbling. It was also somewhat embarrassing in that all of these men and women would freely give their time and talents for a ceremony which is only for our compound. Sharing these sentiments with Jaya, our village head, he explained,
“Roy, as important as this Melaspas is for you and your family, it is equally important for all of us in our village. The purification, dedication and bringing to life of your compound brings those same things to each of us. We all share in this together.”
For those men and women that came to our compound at 5 AM this morning, I suppose it was just another normal day in their lives. I sometimes wonder if the Balinese really understand and appreciate just how rich they are. I think they do, but for certain, I haven’t a doubt in my mind how lucky and blessed I am.
