"HE is seeking the water of life, perhaps he is seeking truth', uttered the dalang giving an all night performance of the story of Bhima's encounter with Dewa Ruci in the middle of the ocean. "Perhaps he knew neither what he was seeking nor what he would find," he added.

I was stunned. Throughout the night, on the screen, I watched that tiny form of Dewa Ruci as he told Bhima to enter through his ear. Bhima had to believe that what was impossible was p