Chapter 43 Indonesian Stories (42)

"Okay." I promised him again, choked up and unable to speak. "Let your conscience guide you. If you have western friends coming to Bali, bring them over and let me read your palm. Since the bombing, my bank is empty. Do you want to go to the baby ceremony with me today?" " So I participated in the blessing ceremony for the six-month-old baby who was about to touch the ground for the first time.Balinese people don't let their children touch the ground within six months of birth, because newborn babies are regarded as gods sent from heaven, and you shouldn't let gods crawl around on the floor full of nail clippings and cigarette butts.So the Balinese hold the baby during his first six months and honor him as a little god.If the baby dies within six months, a special cremation ceremony will be held, and the ashes will not be placed in the human cemetery, because the baby has never been a human being, but has always been a god.But if the little baby lives to six months, a grand ceremony is held, and the child's feet are finally allowed to touch the ground, and the youngest son is welcomed to join the ranks of human beings.

Today the ceremony was held at Lai Ye's neighbor's house.The protagonist is a girl who has been nicknamed "Pudu".Her mother was a beautiful young girl, and her father was an equally beautiful young man, and the young man was the grandson of a certain nephew of Lord Lai, probably.Lai was well dressed - in a white silk sarong (with gold trim), a white long-sleeved button-down tunic with gold buttons and a Nehru-style collar, which made him look like a station porter or A minibus driver for a luxury hotel.A white turban is wrapped around his head.He proudly showed me his hands covered with golden rings and magic gemstones, about seven rings in all, each of which had power.He carried his grandfather's shiny brass bell, which he used to summon the gods, and he asked me to take many pictures of him.

We walked together to his neighbor's house.It's a long way to go, and it's bound to pass through busy Main Street for a while.I have been in Bali for nearly four months, but I have never seen Lai leave his house.It was embarrassing to see him among the speeding cars and crazy motorcycles.He looked so small and fragile.Against the modern backdrop of cars and honking horns, he looked very out of place.For some reason, it made me want to cry, but maybe I was a little emotional today. There were about forty guests at the neighbor's house when we arrived, and the family altar was filled with offerings - piles of palm baskets filled with rice, flowers, sandalwood, roasted pigs, a few geese, a few chickens, coconuts, etc. , and banknotes fluttering in the breeze.All adorned themselves with the finest silks and lace.I was dressed too casually, my body was sweaty from cycling, and amidst all the finery I was conscious of my tattered T-shirt that stood out.But they welcomed me anyway, the way an ill-dressed white girl who shows up uninvited hopes to be welcomed.Everyone smiled at me enthusiastically, and then just sat around admiring each other's outfits.

The ceremony lasted several hours and was performed by Lai Ye.Only an anthropologist accompanied by an interpreter can tell you what happened, but I can understand some of the rituals from Lai's descriptions and books I've read.The father holds the baby during the first round of blessings, and the mother holds a coconut that simulates the baby, which looks like a baby when swaddled.Like the real baby, the coconut is blessed, bathed in holy water, and placed on the ground before the baby's feet touch the ground for the first time: this is to trick the devil into attacking the fake baby and letting the real baby go .

However, hours of chanting must be performed before the real baby's feet touch the ground.Grandpa Lai rang the bell and kept chanting mantras, joy and pride bloomed on the faces of the young parents.Guests come and go, gossip, gossip, watch the ceremony for a while; after presenting gifts, set off for another invitation.In the etiquette of this ancient ceremony, it is surprisingly informal, like a combination of backyard picnic and liturgical church.The mantra that Master Lai sang to Xiaowa was very beautiful, combining sacred and dear hearts.The mother was holding the baby, and Lai was waving all kinds of food in front of the child, fruits, flowers, water, bells, chicken wings of roast chicken, a bit of pork, split coconuts... He sang a passage for her with each new item.Xiao Wa smiled and clapped her hands, Master Lai also laughed and continued singing.

I imagined the sentence he sang, and translated it myself as follows: Oh... baby, here's a roast chicken for you!You'll love roast chicken in the future, and we wish you lots of roast chicken!Oh... baby, this is rice, may you always eat as much as you want, may you always have plenty of rice to eat!Oh... baby, this is a coconut, isn't the coconut very funny, you will have a lot of coconuts to eat in the future!Oh... baby, this is your family, don't you see how much your family loves you?Oh... little baby, you are the baby of the whole universe!You are an honor student!You are our best little bunny!You are our little fool!Oh baby, you are pistachio, you are everything to us...