The Balinese are deeply spiritual (and superstitious). Unlike most of Muslim-majority Indonesia, about 93% of Bali's population adheres to Balinese Hinduism (a combination of existing local beliefs and Hindu influences from mainland Southeast Asia and South Asia). Gods and demigods are worshipped together with Buddhist heroes, the spirits of ancestors, indigenous agricultural deities and sacred places.
The Balinese are extremely devout and no day goes by without making (multiple) offerings. The offerings (which consume around 60% of a family's annual income!) are made of flowers, fruit, cigarettes, cookies, eggs, rice and sometimes money and are given to the good spirits in hopes of continued prosperity as well as to the evil spirits as an appeasement. Festivals, celebrations and parades happen frequently and may not be skipped!
Gods and ancestors are believed to live on the mountain whereas demons live in the sea. Buildings such as temples and residential homes are oriented by having the most sacred spaces, such as the family temple, closest to the highest mountain on Bali, Mt Agung, and the unclean places nearest to the sea. You must sleep with your head towards the mountain or death and destruction may come to you or your family...
The friendly Balinese always ask you where you are from as a person is identified by his or her village. That is where the family compound (where the entire family lives) and the family temple (where the souls of the ancestors live) are located. It is where you are born and where you will die...
Location:Bali, Indonesia
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