BALI, INDONESIA, September 8, 2012 (Jakarta Post): Streets are expected to be empty and offices closed on Saturday as millions of Balinese Hindus flock to the temples to pray and celebrate Kuningan. The festival marks the end of ceremonies to celebrate the victory of dharma (virtue) over adharma (vice) that began with the observation of Galungan on Aug. 29. The religious festivals fall every 210 days according to the Balinese calendar.
Balinese Hindus will go to family temples and major temples starting at sunrise. Dressed in traditional clothing, they will bring offerings, including canang, the simplest of Balinese Hindu offerings, made of fresh flowers and leaves placed on a square of coconut leaves; or gebogan, a towering arrangement of fruits and traditional cakes.
One special offering for Kuningan is yellow rice. The name of the festival is thought to take its name from the color of the rice. “The color yellow [kuning] is a symbol of prosperity, as well as the rice itself. By serving yellow rice on Kuningan, it symbolizes our gratitude to the Gods for the prosperity they have bestowed on us,” Hindu scholar I Ketut Wiana told Bali Daily on Friday.
Kuningan is also associated with tamiang and endong, two kinds of intricately carved young coconut leaves that are hung on shrines across the island. The shield-shaped tamiang symbolizes security and protection, while the endong symbolizes prosperity. “The victory of dharma lends us a sense of security and prosperity. If we don’t feel that way then there is a possibility that we haven’t actually won the battle,” he added.