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The Barong Dance
"Lord of the forest" and magical protector of Balinese villages, the Barong is a mythical, shaggy half-dog, half-lion creature, with a long mane, fantastic fangs, and bulging eyes. It is propelled by two men who maneuver the costume with whimsical and mischievous movements to express its fun-loving nature.
The Barong's opponent is Rangda, the evil witch who rules over the spirits of Darkness. The Barong dance epitomizes the eternal struggle between good and evil.
The fight of Barong and Rangda is also a topic of traditional narratives performed in temples and takes various forms. The Barong will snap its jaws at the gamelan, prance around a bit, and enjoy the acclaim of its supporters - a group of kris (a traditional long-spiral knife)-wielding men.
Then ferocious Rangda will then appear lolling her long tongue, baring her threatening fangs, her neck draped with human entrails...not a pretty sight.
The duel begins. Each opponent tries to overcome the other with magical powers but when things do not look too good for the Barong, supporters will lunge at Rangda with krises to weaken or stall her. In retaliation, Rangda would put them all into a trance with her mystical powers and make them stab themselves with their weapons. Fortunately, the Barong possesses magic that is strong enough to cast a spell on the krises from harming the men. This part would be the highlight of the dance; the gamelan rings madly and intensely as the men rush back and forth waving their krises in a frenzy, sometimes even rolling on the ground in a desperate attempt to stab themselves. Often, there seems to be a plot to terrify the audience in the front row! Eventually, Rangda will retire, defeated. And once again, good will reign over evil.
I took this picture a few days ago when I was in Bali (Indonesia), the place called Bukit Uluwatu (Uluwatu Hill), 10 minutes driving south of Jimbaran. Lucky me, suddenly a big lion walked in front of me!! Yes it's true, it was a big lion called Barong!
They were in preparation before doing a Barong Dance. |
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