Reform on Paradise Island
Bali Hindus are questioning the validity of a religious concept that restricts the priesthood to a privileged few—a concept that dates back to the colonial period.
March 27, 2001
On Bali, Hindus have just celebrated Nyepi, in the Balinese saka year of 1923. The day before, Tawur Kesanga, a ritual that proceeds the holy day, went off without a hitch in the island's capital of Denpasar. The Supreme Hindu Council of Indonesia (PDHI), the umbrella organization of the Balinese Hindus that organized the event, agreed to let the ritual be performed by priests representing all classes of Balinese society.
For years, the majority
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