Last week, the Internet flew over the news that on one of the islands of Indonesia, they made another traditional exhumation in order to see dead relatives, clean their clothes and remains, and in such a wild way to pay tribute to the deceased.
Especially for those who would like to look at such a sight with their own eyes, and are upset that the next exhumation is waiting for several years, we inform you that in Indonesia the dead can be seen at any time of the year, and in the most unexpected place – in the center of Bali Island!
Far from the noisy places of the crowd of tourists, on the shore of Lake Batur, on the slope of Mount Abang, surrounded by the jungle, there is a small closed village of Trunyan. Its inhabitants call themselves Bali Aga, that is, mountain Balines. Their closed community did not succumb to external influence, traditions are rooted in antiquity, and religion is built on respectful attitude to the Earth and the forces of nature.
Photo: yusuf ijsselijk
The most extravagant tradition of the inhabitants of the village of Trunyan is a funeral, or rather, the ceremony of the transition to the afterlife, since the deceased here is not buried and not cremated. They are simply put on the ground.
It all starts with ritual ablution of the body with rainwater, after which the deceased is taken to the sacred tree of the container of less, which is located about five hundred meters from the village, but it can only be reached by boat by the lake. Near this tree, 11 bamboo cells in the form of triangular prisms were built. The body is wrapped in the tissue, put in one of these cells and left. If all the cells are busy, then the body, or rather the remains that lay in one of the cells longer than the rest, are pulled out and put nearby, and the cell occupies a new body.
Photo: yusuf ijsselijk
Thus, all the deceased are given to the power of nature – rains and winds slowly but surely destroy soft fabrics. As soon as only the skeleton remains from the body, its skull takes its place in a ritual pyramid growing for centuries near the sacred tree. Residents worship the tree for a reason – its greatness is not so much in size and age as that the subtle aroma that exudes its bark neutralizes the smell of decaying bodies.
Photo: yusuf ijsselijk
By tradition, only married and married members of the community can fall under the tree of the Tara Tara, the same who did not have time to create a family during his lifetime, after death they are sent to an ordinary cemetery near the village. In addition, women of the village are forbidden to visit the cemetery, participate in the ceremonies of the burial and swim to the sacred tree, since it is believed that this will cause the anger of the gods and cause an earthquake, avalanche or eruption of the volcano. Locals are also not too located for tourists, but today for a certain fee you can temporarily acquire their favor. To visit the deceased under a sacred tree, you will have to spend the night near the village and pay the boatman well for transport. It is not worth expecting that Tara Lesse is completely absorbed in an unpleasant odor, it only dilutes it with its aroma. In general, such a tour is not for the faint of heart and to an amateur, but if you really want, then you can.
Photo: yusuf ijsselijk
