Celebrate Galungan
At Shankari’s Bali Retreat

Join us in May as we celebrate Galungan, the victory day of goodness (dharma) against evil (adharma).

Wednesday, May 12th, 2010

A day of prayer and observence, join us for cermony  in the morning in our temple and then in the afternoon, please join us for Meditation and Discussion.

Spend the day in the retreat, align your spirit going for a swim in one of our pools, nourish your body with healthy food, clear your mind and strengthen your core by participating in one of our meditation or yoga sessions.

We hope to see you! Make your booking today…

History of Galungan

Galungan is celebrated as the victory day of “Dharma” upon “Adharma” according to the old history of Bali (Purana) and is the day we thank the God and feel grateful for the blessing of the creation of the Earth and it’s contents.

This day is the day of rituals, festivities and celebrations with “Penjor” the artistically decorated bamboo-pole stuck at every house entrance, adorning the both sides of the village-roads symbolizing of prosperity.
The history of Galungan refers to the legend of Mayadenawa.

Once upon a time, there was a powerful king, Mayadenawa, who reigned in Balingkang, about a few kilometers north of Batur Lake, Kintamani, Bangli. He also ruled such areas as Makasar, Sumbawa, Bugis, Lombok, and Blambangan.

Mayadenawa was a descendant of daitya (powerful giant), son of Goddess Danu.
Because of his magical power, Mayadenawa was able to transform himself into various shapes of creatures.

Mayadenawa became arrogantly evil. He forbad Balinese people to worship God and destroyed all the shrines and temples. The plants were destroyed. Food shortages and diseases occurred. People suffered but they did not have the courage to fight against Mayadenawa because of his magical power.

Mpu Kulputih, a powerful Hindu priest, was concerned about the suffering. He meditated at Besakih Temple to ask for God’s guidance. In his meditation, he received revelation from Mahadewa that he should go to Jambu Dwipa (India) and ask for help.

It was not clear about who went to India, but afterward it was said that a platoon of troops from heaven with complete weapons came to attack Mayadenawa. The troop was led by Indra. The right wing of the platoon was led by Citrasena and Citraganda. The left wing was led by Jayantaka while Gandarwa led the main platoon.

Indra sent Bhagawan Narada to spy on the Mayadenawa Kingdom, but Mayadenawa found out and prepared his troop to face the attack.

It resulted in a dreadful war that caused many victims from both sides.
Since Indra’s troops were much stronger, Mayadenawa’s troops ran off and left Mayadenawa and his assistant, Si Kala Wong.

The battle had to be stopped at nightfall. When Indra’s troops were still asleep, Mayadenawa came and created ‘tirtha cetik’ (poisonous water) nearby. He then ran away by walking his angled feet sideways in order not to leave any footprints on the ground. The area passed by Mayadenawa is later known as ‘Tampaksiring’ which literally means angled footsteps.

The toxic water poisoned Indra’s troops. He then created another spring to cure them, called Tirta Empul (spring). The holy spring flew to form a river which is called Tukad Pakerisan (Pakerisan River).

Indra’s army chased Mayadenawa who transformed himself into several creatures.
The area where Mayadenawa transformed into ‘manuk raya’ (big bird) is called Manukaya village.
The area where he turned into ‘buah timbul’ (a kind of vegetable) is later known as Timbul village.
The place where he transformed into ‘busung’ (young coconut leaf) is called Busung village and the location in which he turned into a goddess (dewata) is known as Kedewatan village.

Lastly, Mayadenawa transformed himself into a huge rock. Indra killed him, shooting him with an arrow.
His blood flowed and formed a river called the Tukad Petanu (Petanu River). It is believed that the river was cursed. If it was used to water the rice field, blood would come out of the paddies and the paddies would smell.
This curse was said to last 1000 years.

The death of Mayadenawa was later celebrated as the victory of good over evil and is commemorated every six months (210 days) of the Balinese calendar. It is called Galungan, possibly because it is occurred on wuku Galungan (based on the Balinese almanac).

There are several processions that need to be done to celebrate Galungan Day:

We hope to see you on Galungan Day, 2010
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Walk-ins welcome

(10% Discount in the Boutique for Guests of Shankari’s Bali Retreat)