Balinese mythology is the traditional

mythology Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...

of the

people The term "the people" refers to the public or Common people, common mass of people of a polity. As such it is a concept of human rights law, international law as well as constitutional law, particularly used for claims of popular sovereignty. I ...

of the

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

n island of

Bali Bali (English:; Balinese language, Balinese: ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller o ...

, before the majority adoption of

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

. Balinese mythology is mainly a kind of

animism Animism (from meaning 'breath, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence. Animism perceives all things—animals, plants, rocks, rivers, weather systems, human handiwork, and in ...

with some widely known characters and deities. Many themes of Balinese mythology have been adapted and worked into current

Balinese Hinduism Balinese Hinduism (; , ''Hindusmé Bali''), also known in Indonesia as ''Agama Hindu Dharma'', ''Agama Tirtha'', ''Agama Air Suci'' or ''Agama Hindu Bali'', is the form of Hinduism practised by the majority of the population of Bali.McDaniel, J ...

Aspects of Balinese mythology

Antaboga Antaboga (; ; ; ), or colloquially also known as the Javan Dragon Snake deity is a Serpent (symbolism), serpent deity in Javanism and Sunda Wiwitan, Sundanism (later also adopted in Balinese Hinduism). Nomenclature is a Javanese language, Javan ...

* Bedawang Nala * Barong * Bhoma - known as the Son of the Earth *

Rangda Rangda () is the demon queen of the Leyaks in Bali, according to traditional Balinese mythology. Terrifying to behold, the child-eating Rangda leads an army of evil witches against the leader of the forces of good — Barong. The battle be ...

- a wicked witch and practitioner of black magic * Setesuyara * Batara Kala * Semara * Tjak * Takshaka * The Awan * Perfumed Heaven * Galungan * Calon Arang * Celuluk * Leyak (or Leák) *

Vasuki Vasuki () is the king of the nagas in Hinduism. He is described as having a gem called '' Nagamani'' (serpent's ornament) on his head. Shesha, another king of the nagas and the bed on which Vishnu rests, is his elder brother, and Manasa, a ...

- the serpent king that accompanies Shiva

Creation myth

At the beginning of time, only Antaboga the world

snake Snakes are elongated limbless reptiles of the suborder Serpentes (). Cladistically squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales much like other members of the group. Many species of snakes have s ...

existed. Antaboga

meditate Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness and detach from reflexive, "discursive thinking", achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state, while not judging the meditat ...

d and created the world

turtle Turtles are reptiles of the order (biology), order Testudines, characterized by a special turtle shell, shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Crypt ...

Bedawang. Two snakes lie on top of the world turtle, as does the Black Stone, which forms the lid of the

underworld The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underworld. ...

. The underworld is ruled by the

goddess A goddess is a female deity. In some faiths, a sacred female figure holds a central place in religious prayer and worship. For example, Shaktism (one of the three major Hinduism, Hindu sects), holds that the ultimate deity, the source of all re ...

Setesuyara and the

god In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

Batara Kala, who created light and the earth. Above the earth lies a series of skies. Semara, god of love, lives in the floating sky, and above the sky lies the dark blue sky (space), home to the

sun The Sun is the star at the centre of the Solar System. It is a massive, nearly perfect sphere of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core, radiating the energy from its surface mainly as visible light a ...

and

moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It Orbit of the Moon, orbits around Earth at Lunar distance, an average distance of (; about 30 times Earth diameter, Earth's diameter). The Moon rotation, rotates, with a rotation period (lunar ...

. Next is the perfumed sky, which has many beautiful flowers and is inhabited by Tjak, a bird with a human face; the serpent Taksaka; and a group of snakes collectively known as the Awan, who appear as falling stars. The ancestors live in a flame-filled heaven above the perfumed heaven, and finally beyond that is the abode of the gods.

References

Creation myths {{Asia-myth-stub

Aspects of Balinese mythology

Creation myth

See also

References