In Reply to: Some are shocked by one thing, others... posted by Paul on Tuesday, 15. December 2009 at 12:44 Bali Time:
ceremony to be held at Mt Batur. My Balinese Family are so excited about it and it has being making my stomach churn for days now, on Sunday we stood around the kitchen talking about it (while I was eating breakfast) and they were so excited and happy and planning.
Tomorrow morning there is a huge ceremony, my family have said all of Bali will be there and we must be there, I will be staying in bed to have a silent cry as I love my Balinese family but I still after all these years cannot cope with this part of their religion.
1 chicken, 1 duck, 1 goose, 1 dog, 1 pig and 1 cow will be hog tied and weighted down with cement bricks and taken to the centre of Lake Batur, they will be pushed alive into the water to appease Dewa the crater god. Then the same thing will happen again, this time into the crater of Batur.
This is to appease the gods and ask them to not make Mt Batur erupt.
I know this is their religion and they are my family but I am nearly crying now thinking about how scared those animals are going to feel tomorrow.
The little Devil in me even said to my husband I hope one of the animals knocks the priest into the water (but then I remembered the Priest does not know how to swim and for a split second......)