Paradise

It happened back in March, here in Bali, Nyepi, as it does every year, according to the lunar calendar. This year I missed it, sadly, as I was in Europe, but last year and the year before I experienced it with body and soul. And yes, it did make me feel, more than usual, that I was in Paradise. And here is what I wrote the morning after, in 2009:


Sound of Silence - Light of Darkness

Nyepi - It was as if the Earth had been returned to her creator, Nature. For us, children of a different, less spiritual world than the gentle Balinese, the experience of the 24 hours' silence and introspection without human noise or light, still feels like a wonder, even the second or third time around.

Aware of how precious silence and darkness are to our inner peace and harmony, and equally aware of how difficult they are to achieve in our modern world, we have perhaps become even more protective of this wondrous ritual than the Balinese themselves. Having chosen to live here, rather than in the West, some of us in search of a calmer, less hectic, less materialistic life, we strive to respect and observe the local codes of behaviour, be they religious, social or commercial. We have come to love this little island with all its secrets, its good and evil spirits, its endless offerings to the thousands of Balinese Hindu gods, we try to understand the superstitious nature of our hosts, and even though we may smile at the black and white magic practised here, we just may, secretly, begin to feel it occasionally and even to believe in it the longer we live here. I, for one, am very kind and helpful to a slim, tall, beautiful old woman, who, I was told in secret, was a black witch.

For me, of all things Balinese, of all the ceremonies and countless holidays in the local calendar, Nyepi is the most special, the most intriguing, the one I wish the whole world could adopt. It seems mysterious and miraculous, exactly because it is unlikely for a Nyepi Day to be introduced almost anywhere else. Leaders of industrial nations would surely declare it an impossibility, the financial sacrifice would be intolerable for them: No electricity, no light, no noise, no cooking, no work, no machines, no cars, no planes, no traffic whatsoever, everyone stays at home, noiselessly, quitely, a day and night of reflection, meditation and sleep.

This brings me back to Bali, where nothing seems intolerable, where most things are possible, respected and accepted. The main concern for the average Balinese is to provide food for the day, to be able to pay for the education of the children, and to keep the good as well as the evil spirits happy. This is living for the moment, not to quarrel with fate, accepting death as natural as birth, with joy, not sadness, accepting the good as well as the bad and believing that the bad will not last for ever, no more than the good can. Life is transient, in constant motion, we have to ride it like a surfer rides the big waves, with enthusiasm, optimism, confidence, and if we go under, we are bound to resurface, maybe a little wiser, a little more skilled, a little less frightened, but a little more humble.

Looking in awe at the sky last night, at the thousands of breathtaking stars which in their beauty shone brighter than ever and brought light to the darkest corner of my heart, seeing the Southern cross, even traces of the Milky Way, I felt truly humble and so very lucky and thankful to experience this moment of inner clarity and light.

And early this morning, when all was still and devoid of human noise, and Nature suddenly sent a powerful sound of thunder and lightening to leave no doubt in any human's mind who the real master of the universe is, and later, when the rain started to fall heavily to be followed just before dawn by the singing and chattering of countless birds, I sent a thousand prayers and a million thanks out into the world, to whoever or whatever then sent me promptly the morning sunshine in reply.

Problems creating a blog

Later. Patience, patience, pazienca, Geduld. Sorry, importing an earlier written text seems to be too difficult. Need to work out how it's done.

Quite fun though, they give you all sorts of things to choose from, format-wise, I mean. BUT, for one like me, ie not a computer fan, all a bit worrying and confusing. Here I am, giving away my age, and that's exactly what I am going to write about! Are we too old for facebook, my spacce, blogging, and all that stuff. NO!! See you soon.xx