Nyepi is a day of silence in Bali by people…although the chickens, dogs and crickets have not received the memo. The airport shuts down. No driving. No Internet. No working. No phone calls. No lights on outside. No visiting neighbors. Whispering. The idea is to stay so silent that the evil spirits who were lurking just before the Hindu New Year, get so bored with island that they pass it by for more fun elsewhere.   It’s also very peaceful. No honking, traffic or truck brakes. The sound of the chickens, dogs, cows, birds and crickets dominated the stage. Felicity held a tea party for the Ashram girls. Dave did yoga without the rock music he usually plays. (We must all make our sacrifices.) Here is a video of what Nyepi sounded like. But the night before Nyepi, NOISY!

Ogoh Ogoh Monster

It’s a big party to rile up and confuse the evil spirits. It’s called Ogoh Ogoh.  The main purpose of the making of Ogoh-ogoh is the purification of the natural environment of any spiritual pollutants emitted from the activities of living beings (especially humans). There are parades of fun (supposedly scary) monster statues that are taken to the cemetery and burned. It finishes up with a fire dance in which young men whip each other with burning sticks all in the name of purification, balancing out the negative energy. Anyways, after Oga Oga, comes peace…Nyepi and the Hindu New Year!! Selamat Hari Raya Nyepi!!