What are Galungan and Kuningan?
Galungan and Kuningan are two sacred days celebrated by the Balinese. But they are actually holy days in Hindu religion and they are not only celebrated in Bali, they are also celebrated throughout the country as well. During Galungan and Kuningan gods and the spirits of the ancestors are believed to descend from the heaven and they will return at 12 noon at the day of Kuningan.
In Bali, however, Galungan and Kuningan are at their most because the majority of Hindus live there. There is a Hindu temple near my neighborhood (which is very rare to find because I live in Jakarta) and they will be celebrating Galungan and Kuningan—too bad I can’t go to the temple because I have to go to school. On these days and the days before, between and after them schools are out and families pay a visit to the temples and grave of their ancestors—they gather to pray, celebrate, eat and show gratitude.
Galungan and Kuningan are celebrated every six months or once in every period of 210 days. Galungan means “when the dharma is winning”. The meanings/purposes of the celebrations are actually a symbol of respect and gratitude towards the Earth. On these days people pay their respect and their thankfulness to the Earth—not to a god or a person—but to the earth. Why? Because this earth has always supply us with everything we need—we have water, we have oxygen, we have plants and crops to sell, we have animals to love and to work with, we have trees to cut and ground to built a house on. Everything on this earth exists to benefit us and therefore it is time for us to show our gratitude towards them.

Galungan, Kuningan, and the series of Celebrations
Before and between Galungan and Kuningan there is a series of celebration that include:
• Tumpek Kandang
On this day all the animals on earth are being respected. Animals must not be put to work, must not be slaughtered or harmed etc. People also have to clean their animals’ cages and stables. But why must we thank the animals? Take one example—the insects. People like you and I will probably shriek hysterically when we see a creepy crawly or a scary looking bee in our house, in our garden or in our cars—but without them, who would help the flowers grow a fruit? Who would help carry the seeds? Take an ordinary paddy field as an ecosystem. If you kill the insects, the ecosystem will be imbalanced and probably the paddy won’t grow properly. No paddy means no rice. No rice means disaster for the farmers. Another example you could take is the buffalo. In Bali or in Indonesia, it is a custom to use buffaloes to plough the paddy fields. Everyday we force the buffaloes to work, work and work. But animals in some ways are just the same like humans. They need to be respected, they need food and they need rest. This day is considered to be the holiday for all animals.
• Tumpek Ngatag
Like the animals, all the plants on earth are being respected. No plant must be harmed and no trees shall be cut down. For the whole year, our paddy has given us our precious rice and our vegetables keep our body and mind healthy. Each day we eat, we cut our trees and trim our grass, we pluck their flowers and eat their fruits, we overworked the soil and the plants but doing too much of so will get us nowhere. Today is for the plants to rest, grow and repair themselves.
• Penyajaan
Penyajaan is celebrated two days before Galungan. At this day all the animals and plants are considered to be ready for use—they are prepared to work for us and benefit us humans. They’ve had their holiday and now they are blessed and ready to serve mankind.
• Penampahan/Galungan Lelaki/Men’s Galungan
Men will wake up on dawn and slaughter those unlucky animals for the feast. Families will be busy cooking a wide variation of food to offer at the graves and the temples—but once the praying is done, a delicious series of meals are ready for you to enjoy! On this day as well, there is a ceremony called Mabhya Kala followed by men. On this day there is believed to be three temptations: Buta Dungulan, Buta Galungan and Buta Amangkurat. Before Galungan, women are busy staying at their houses and making a beautifully made ‘banten’ or offerings made from young coconut fronds.
• Galungan
Galungan always falls on Wednesday. On Galungan, you will see a lot of beautifully decorated bamboo poles lining the street—these are called penjor, made from bamboo poles, natural fibers and coconut leaves. Penjor is also decorated with paddy, fruits, leaves, crops etc. these penjors are a symbol of respect towards the goddess of prosperity. On Galungan, families will pray on their family temple (Every family owns a small family temple located on their own backyard—this is a common sight in Bali). They give offerings and pray. On Galungan, people must clean and bathe themselves. Oddly enough, on this day people must thank their own bodies. For example: “Thank you, fingers, without you I wouldn’t be able to work.” Or “Thank you, tongue, without you I wouldn’t be able to speak or taste anything! Imagine life without eating or tasting anything!” or “Thank you, feet, without you I wouldn’t be able to walk anywhere.” It may sound silly, yes, but it’s being thankful to yourself. All your body parts have served you and they never complained—it’s time to thank them and think about how much they’ve helped you live well. Imagine life without your eye or your ear—life without your tongue, hands and feet—no teeth and no healthy lungs. Thank God you are still a healthy person! On this day as well, you must thank all the things in your house—especially the broom and the sewer. For example: “Thank you, broom, without you I wouldn’t be able to clean my house.” Or “Thank you, knife, you’ve helped me cook.” Not to say gratitude to your sewer or your sweep is believed to be a bad omen—illness or flood may be fallen on you! Now, to put things simply there are two main purposes of Galungan: one, to express your gratitude to all the things on earth—reflect yourself and the environment around you. Two, to eat!
• Manis Galungan
This is the day where you will clean all corners of your house. You will have to place all the things on their right place: knives on the kitchen, magazines on the bookshelf and socks on the drawers. You will realize how easy you are, as a human, to forget where to put your things and misplace them. Everything has their own rightful place and you’re supposed to return them to their correct place (money in the piggybank, not under the bed!). You will also realize how clumsy you are, or how many things you have lost or misplaced during the year (where are my socks? I know I have 36 of them last year and now I have only 15?)
• Kuningan
Kuningan falls nine or ten days after Galungan and always falls on Saturday. On the day of Kuningan all the families will gather and pray at the temple until 12 noon. If on Galungan the gods and spirits of ancestors descend from heaven, Kuningan is the day where the souls of the ancestors and the gods are sent back at exactly 12 o’clock, it is too late to pray for the dead or pray for prosperity after noon. That is why people rush to the temple as early as possible, so they can pray for as long as possible.

After all the celebrations, praying, thanking and self introspection, afterwards people can enjoy themselves—they can play on the beach, or eat and enjoy the rest of the day! After all, this is a holiday!

Written by:
Aya
Student of Madania School