The concept of spiritual posession often plays an important role in the multitude of Bali’s ceremonies. Here, a Balinese man is at the brink of falling into trance at a ceremony held in a small village in the East of Bali.
The Balinese believe that in trance spirits take posession of their bodies and can in this way communicate with the human world. The ceremony was held to honour the spirits and ancestors and to achieve harmony between humans and gods.
Trance ceremonies like this one present a spectacular variety of extreme emotions – involving a mixture of horrendous screams, crying and people fainting that can trigger a response of fear without the knowledge of meaning and cultural background.
A Balinese man dancing trough the temple in trance.
As part of the ritual, the men in trance also hit and stab themselves with ceremonial daggers called “Keris” – without truly getting hurt. To the people of Bali, traditions and ceremonies belong to their everyday life: Many are watching the spectacl
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A man biting of the head of a living chicken to end his trance.
Back to normal – after the spectacular part is over, the ceremony is concluded with further rituals and prayers: waiting for them to begin.
Offerings to the spirits of Bali
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