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Balinese Dance

...demonstration to show of physical maturity. The maturity of a man is proved \ by a demonstration of his skill in the use of a military weapon, The Baris Dance is thus a patriotic dance as well as a ritual dance. the Baris Dance can be performed by men in pairs of four, eight, sometimes even tens, The accompanying gamelan is the gamelan gong or gamelan gong kebyar.

SANGHYANG DANCE

The Sanghyang Dance is a Balinese trance-dance performed to drive away epidemic diseases. If there is an epidemic anywhere in 11tili, people perform Sanghyang dances.

According to Balinese belief, Nusa Penida, a small island southeast of Bali, is inhabited by evil beings or demons. Among the demons in Nusa Penida, the most frightening Gde jero Mecaling or jero Gde Mecaling, who has the shape of a giant with fangs. Gde jero Mecaling has an army of loyaks or demons who continuously disturb man's peace and are the cause of epidemic.

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When the leyaks from Nusa Penida conic to the island of Bali, Bali is certain to have an epidemic, and to evercome this disaster the Balinese people ask the help of a dewi or goddess. The goddess is called to come to the pura dalam or death temple. To enable the goddess to give help, a young girl most serve as the place or the body into which must enter the goddess. The girl whose body has been entered by the goddess is now become a goddess, which it. Balinese is "Sanghyang". While dancing the Sanghyang bears holy water called toya pangentas help to drive away the leyaks or overcome the epidemic.

The Sanghyang Dance is a trance-dance. At the time the goddess enters the body of the dancer, the latter becomes unconscious. The dance is also used as a means of protecting the Balinese from the threat of evil forces caused by black magic.

The Sanghyang Dance is usually performed by two little girls.
Behind the two girl who are to be the Sanghyangs there are the women who look after them as well as a women's chorus and a men,s chorus chanting prayers in chorus. The heads of the two dancers are filled with the smoke of incense while prayers are chanted. The chant is Gending Pangedusan, sung only by women. At the beginning the rhythm is slow, but if there are indications that the goddess evoked is about to come, the rhythm is speeded up. The indication that the goddess has entered the bodies of the two Sanghyangs is that both dancers seem more and more in trance and then fall backwards. Up to that time the Sanghyang dancers wear white clothes and their hair hangs loose before them. After the goddess has entered, their white clothes are replaced by the costume of the dance, and then they dance with closed eyes. Usually the Sanghyang dancers are carried round the village on the shoulders of men. With closed eyes, the Sanghyang dancers dance on the men's shoulders, and in this way they drive away the epidemic.

A girl who is to be a Sanghyang dancer must be wholly pure, because her body will be entered by a goddess. Consequently she must lead a life full of taboes and prohibitions. She may not swear, she, may not cat left overs, she may not creep under the bed, she may not steal nor fight, and so on.

The goddess usually evoked to enter the body of the Sanghyang is the goddess Suprabha. There are several varieties of the Sanghyang dance, among others the Sanghyang Dedari, the Sanghyang Deling, the Sanghyang Jaran and the Sanghyang Bumbung.

SANGHYANG DEDARL. The Sanghyang Dedari is danced by a little girl. After the Sanghyang has been entered by the goddess Suprabha she is dressed in the costume of the Legong and at dance the moment the gamelan palegongan is sounded. Sometimes a men's chorus acc6mpanies the dance, the singers being called the kecak. The Sanghyang Dedari is found in several regions of Bali. Sometimes the dance is performed by two girls, who often dance on the shoulders of the men carrying them.