H

indu devotees across Bali are welcoming the celebration of the Hindu new year of Nyepi by performing melasti, a procession to purify their souls.

Melasti is carried out on beaches and major water springs across the island.

People have been flocking to beaches since early Saturday morning to hold the purification ritual by carrying colorful offerings and performing pratima (sacred effigies).

Padanggalak Beach, 5 kilometers east of Bali's capital of Denpasar, turned into a sea of white as most of the adherents, who come from around 50 traditional customary village, wore white traditional attire.

Some reached the beach on foot, but others arrived in large groups in vehicles, creating congestion for 2 kilometers along the route.

Made Kartana, a devotee from Penatih Dangin Puri, has come to the beach for melasti ceremony since he was a child.

"This is a sacred beach. Melasti is time to purify our body and souls from our wrongdoings," he said.

After performing a sacrifice ritual, they brought the pratima to the coast line, as well as dipping their feet in water. Devotees also ask to receive the gift of purification from the deity of the ocean, Waruna.

"We purify ourselves, as well as the temple statues and other symbols and paraphernalia to ward off misfortune," said devotee Rai Sutanaya.

Some also collect the seawater using glass pots, take it home and sprinkle water on their family members, who did not join the ritual.

I Ketut Wiana from the Parisada Hindu Dharma Indonesia organization said that the melasti ritual was performed to enhance devotion to God and pray for purification of self.

"Hindus are reminded to apply religious values to their daily lives.

"Being religious is not only devoting ourselves to God and taking care of ourselves, but helping others and protecting nature," he said.

At around 3 p.m., Kuta Beach was packed with Hindu adherents from surrounding areas and Denpasar, as many foreign tourists watched them holding melasti.

"Hindus from villages in Denpasar held the ritual in the morning, while those from Kuta did in the afternoon," said Desa Pekraman Kuta chief Gusti Ketut Sudira said.

Villages in Gianyar and Klungkung conducted melasti on Friday and Saturday, while ones in Tabanan held it Sunday.

On Monday, one day ahead of Nyepi, Hindus continue the series of rituals by carrying out the Tawur Agung (grand sacrificial) ceremony, aimed at appeasing negative forces. The Tawur will start with the sacrifice of various animals in the village's respective open field and will end with Pengerupukan, in which people hold a street parade and bring ogoh-ogoh (effigies) and then burn them.

"The Tawur ritual is usually performed in the morning and the pengerupukan is performed in the afternoon.

"The effigies are symbols of negative forces," Wiana said.

On the first day of the new year, falling Tuesday, the island will be in silence as people will halt their activities.