A day after Indonesia’s Bali island fell quiet for the annual “Day of Silence” festival, hundreds joined a mud bath purification ritual that has recently been revived, after a sixty-year hiatus.
The mud bath, known locally as mebuug-buugan, is believed to purify, and remove bad luck and negative energy. Men, women and children, wearing sarongs and traditional head gear, collected lumps of mud from a mangrove forest in Kedonganan Village, just outside Denpasar, on Friday and smeared themselves as part of the purification ritual.
It comes a day after Nyepi, a Balinese festival where Hindus — as well as non-Hindus and tourists — are expected to stay at home and self-reflect, while flights, lights and the Internet are all stopped.
Photo: AFP
In the past, participants were naked during the mud festivities, but in the mid-20th century, local residents grew less comfortable with public nudity.
The festivities were halted for six decades, until being revived three years ago — on the understanding that the concept of the ritual would change, so that participants were allowed to wear clothes.
Villagers of all ages smeared mud on anyone in the vicinity, after praying for safety and good fortune.
After the mud bath ritual, they headed to the nearest beach together to rinse off the dirt and ward off evil spirits.
The ritual has been popular since its return, and travelers watched on the sidelines and snapped pictures to capture the moment.
On Wednesday, a day before Nyepi, the island held its annual ritual to ward off demons and evil spirits.
In the parade, colorful effigies known as ogoh-ogoh were paraded through the streets before being burned, representing renewal and purification.
Indonesia is a Muslim-majority country, but more than 80 percent of Bali’s population identify as Hindu and practice a local version of the religion.
A beauty queen who pulled out of the Miss South Africa competition when her nationality was questioned has said she wants to relocate to Nigeria, after coming second in the Miss Universe pageant while representing the West African country. Chidimma Adetshina, whose father is Nigerian, was crowned Miss Universe Africa and Oceania and was runner-up to Denmark’s Victoria Kjar Theilvig in Mexico on Saturday night. The 23-year-old law student withdrew from the Miss South Africa competition in August, saying that she needed to protect herself and her family after the government alleged that her mother had stolen the identity of a South
BELT-TIGHTENING: Chinese investments in Cambodia are projected to drop to US$35 million in 2026 from more than US$420 million in 2021 At a ceremony in August, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet knelt to receive blessings from saffron-robed monks as fireworks and balloons heralded the breaking of ground for a canal he hoped would transform his country’s economic fortunes. Addressing hundreds of people waving the Cambodian flag, Hun Manet said China would contribute 49 percent to the funding of the Funan Techo Canal that would link the Mekong River to the Gulf of Thailand and reduce Cambodia’s shipping reliance on Vietnam. Cambodia’s government estimates the strategic, if contentious, infrastructure project would cost US$1.7 billion, nearly 4 percent of the nation’s annual GDP. However, months later,
Texas’ education board on Friday voted to allow Bible-infused teachings in elementary schools, joining other Republican-led US states that pushed this year to give religion a larger presence in public classrooms. The curriculum adopted by the Texas State Board of Education, which is controlled by elected Republicans, is optional for schools to adopt, but they would receive additional funding if they do so. The materials could appear in classrooms as early as next school year. Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott has voiced support for the lesson plans, which were provided by the state’s education agency that oversees the more than
Ireland, the UK and France faced travel chaos on Saturday and one person died as a winter storm battered northwest Europe with strong winds, heavy rain, snow and ice. Hampshire Police in southern England said a man died after a tree fell onto a car on a major road near Winchester early in the day. Police in West Yorkshire said they were probing whether a second death from a traffic incident was linked to the storm. It is understood the road was not icy at the time of the incident. Storm Bert left at least 60,000 properties in Ireland without power, and closed
RSS