Hindus in Bali celebrated “Saraswati” day on Saturday, August 1st 2009 which is the day to commemorate the birth of science and knowledge. The ceremony was carried out in Jagatnatha temple in Denpasar.
Students started from elementary school through university didn’t study on that day but they carried out ceremony and pry in their own school and in the temple. The ceremony accompanied by Balinese traditional music, gong, and holy song called “kidung”.
The Saraswati day falls every 210 days and it being celebrated by offering “ banten” made from coconut leaves, fruits and various kinds of foods. The offering is the symbol of gratitude toward God.
I Ketut Sumadi, a lecturer in Denpasar Hindu Dharma Institute (IHDN), said “the Goddess of Saraswati is the symbol of knowledge and she describes as a beautiful woman with dignity.
The Saraswati Goddess has four hands, each hold different things which symbolize the knowledge. One hand holds “keropak” which symbolize the effort to learn science, the other hold lotus flower which means holiness, “genitri” symbolize long life education, and musical instrument symbolize knowledge is beautiful.
Mr. Sumadi said that the knowledge also similar to water which flows constantly and can not be blocked. “If someone thinks that he or she is very smart and stop learning then it would be a very huge mistake. There is so much to earn and the knowledge could make someone wiser and didn’t arrogant,” he added.
For that reson, every schoold in Bali places the statue of Saraswati Goddess as the symbol of knowledge. Most of the schools and government offices closed during the Saraswati day. The traffic in Puputan Badung filed was very crowded because many people wanted to pray in the temple.

News by International Bali Post

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