Even the rice fields are full of gratitude. Every fifty or a hundred feet is a shrine, to thank the gods for the crops.
Join us on our 2018 Bali tour
I have travelled the globe, but this is my first time in Bali. What’s really catching my attention here is how the Balinese people find a sacredness in relationship to everything–to the earth itself and to all its inhabitants, slimy multi-legged ones to us upright on two-leg ones. What I have seen is that every moment of the day is some sort of sacred ceremony, a never-ending opportunity for appreciation. It’s a gratitude for existence.
A few days into the trip we visited a butterfly ‘park’. The caretakers handled the butterflies with such tenderness and regard. One of the butterflies laid eggs on me, right on my heart! The caretakers gingerly removed the eggs and brought them to where they’d incubate. I’ve never felt so honored!
Another day we went to a monkey temple; another kind of park, teeming with many species of monkeys. The people who work there are so connected to the monkeys with such a palpable sense of caring and appreciation. There’s a high vibration that’s perceivable–a sense of care for the environment, for one another, for gratitude.
We went to a restaurant that featured gently crafted foods all grown nearby. I felt the same sense of gratitude, not from us consumers of the amazing food, but by the cooks and servers. It was a very gentle, sweet atmosphere of love…very different than anything I’ve ever felt at a restaurant.
Did I mention we had 19 dishes?
Then there’s how the Balinese are connected as a people. I learned at a full moon ceremony at a temple that if there’s been a death in your village, no one in the village can come to temple until everyone in the village has had a purifying ceremony. So if one person in your family dies, everyone in the village grieves and the caring extends far beyond the family experiencing the loss.
Even the rice fields are full of gratitude. Every fifty or a hundred feet is a shrine, to thank the gods for the crops.
What I realize is that this culture is based on feeling included, not feeling separate. I understand how the Balinese have no feelings of doubt that we’re loved, because life itself is the most amazing example of being loved. We’re being loved by life itself. And in return, we love all of life, inclusively.
