The Balinese
Hindus have a special day devoted to the goddess of knowledge,
Saraswati. Saraswati is God’s manifestation of knowledge
and wisdom.
She
is depicted as a beautiful and gracious goddess, a personification
of all knowledge, with four arms holding the following item; a
chain symbolizing the ever lasting quality of knowledge, a “lontar”
palm book symbolizing the source of accumulated knowledge, a lotus
water lily as the symbol of beauty and purify and the “rebab”
(Balinese violin) the symbol of science and culture. Saraswati
ride a white swan which s the symbol of prudence. It is though
prudence one’s knowledge can be used to distinguished good
from bad. The swans struggle to keep floating on the swift unending
current of passing time. Saraswati itself means flowing in Sanskrit
which represents knowledge.
The Saraswati holiday’s believed as the
day knowledge descends to earth and ever six months or so, according
the Balinese lunar “Wuku”
calendar, Saraswati as the source of knowledge and guardian
of all books and learning, is given a well-earned rest for one
day and material is temporary made unavailable to mortals. On
that holiday, Balinese refrain from reading and writing, for to
do so, would show their ingratitude to the goddess.
On the Saraswati day ceremonies
will be held all over Bali, however Balinese people learn or work,
using written materials. The celebration begins with a prayer
requesting a blessing for peace and knowledge which has descended
to the earth. Special offering called “Canang Saraswati”
are made for all books, including “lontar”
traditional palm leaf , the source of knowledge. The tool
of knowledge will be blessed and showered with offering; not only
the old holy “books” (written on along, thin, slabs
of stiff lontar palm), but all other form of written material
and this now include computers and typewriters with their built-in
memory. Children have their school books blessed at home but may
still make a trip to school to help organize the blessing of other
written material kept at school. Libraries temporarily off laden
books from shelves so the books can be blessed. Offices attend
to their books in much the same way and people visit their temple
as “the island of the Gods” says thank-you to the
Saraswati.
The following day, the Balinese will have a self
purification ceremony to enable them to receive the knowledge
and wisdom from the goodness. Four days after Saraswati ceremonies,
the Balinese will hold “Pagerwesi” which a continuation
of the Saraswati ceremonies. This is hope that knowledge will
make people aware of their duty of their fellow beings and that
man will use science for improvement not destruction.
Although the ceremony
is in the Balinese month of “Sasih”, on the day called
“Watugunung”, it is always falls on the western Saturday.
If you wish to see mass of offering being carried out by the Balinese
on this special day, you can visit the Jagatnatha Temple in central
Denpasar at about
09:00 a.m. Perhaps with the blessing of the goddess Saraswati,
a little knowledge concerning this day can be bestowed upon you.
We wish you a Happy Saraswati Day!
