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Balinese priests climb active volcano despite ban

Christine T. Tjandraningsih (Kyodo News)
Nongan village, Karangasem, Bali
Thu, October 5, 2017

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Balinese priests climb active volcano despite ban A general view shows Mount Agung from Karangasem on the resort island of Bali on Sept. 24, 2017. (Agence France -Presse/Sonny Tumbelaka)

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ndonesian authorities have banned activities like hiking within a certain radius of Bali's Mt. Agung volcano, as it shows signs of an imminent eruption, but some Hindu priests did so anyway over the weekend, attracting both criticism and support.

Jero Mangku Kari, one of the priests, told Kyodo News that when they climbed barefoot to its top last Friday, their only intention was to pray for the safety of nearby villagers.

The 67-year-old priest and his nephew Jero Mangku Ado, 41, went up the volcano early in the morning and came down in the afternoon.

On the mountaintop, they coincidentally met two other Hindu priests -- an uncle and a nephew from another temple on the slopes of the volcano.

"We climbed up to pray, asking for God to protect the people living on the slopes of Mt. Agung and its surrounding areas and to forgive us for having made a lot of mistakes," Kari told Kyodo News in an interview at an evacuation center in the village of Nongan, about 13 kilometers from the volcano's crater.

"I prayed at the peak because it's closer to God, so I could directly talk to him," he added.

The government raised the status of Mt. Agung to top alert on Sept. 22 after it had showed increasing activities. It also declared a radius of 9 km from the peak and 12 km from the peak in certain parts of the volcano's slopes as dangerous zones.

Read also: Popular tourist sites in Bali safe amid tremors around Mount Agung

The priests' decision to climb the volcano immediately attracted both support and criticism, particularly after they posted photos of themselves on the peak, as well as the video of the steaming crater, on Facebook.

"The smoke was white, while the water inside the caldera was yellow with strong smell; people say it was sulphur," Kari disclosed about what he had seen in the steaming crater.

While some supported their action, others thought they were only looking for sensation and accused them of being irresponsible because it might encourage others to do likewise.

A day after their climb, Kari received a telephone call from a local military chief, asking him not to do it again. On Tuesday, the photos and video disappeared from the Facebook account.

Living in the village of Temukus, about 3 km from the crater, Kari carries a position as "mangku gede," or the highest Hindu priest at nearby Tunggul Besi Temple.

Hindu priests, who are determined by bloodline in Balinese Hindu tradition, are very well-respected on the island.

They carry out their duties without payment and dedicate their entire lives for the spiritual health of their followers and their words are more listened than any government officials' voices.

"Life and death is not determined by humans, but by God. God decides when you are born and when you die," Kari explained when asked whether he was not afraid to die for breaching the dangerous line determined by the government.

Read also: Human activity continues in Mt. Agung's danger zone

"But if I have to die, I am willing to as long as it is for the goodness of the people. I am willing to sacrifice myself as long as the people living on the slopes and around Mt. Agung are safe," the priest added.

The priest, who earns living as an Edelweiss farmer, once experienced Mt. Agung's sudden eruption in 1963 when he was 3 years old.

"It spewed white smoke and rain of ashes. A few days later, the smoke became black and the mountain spewed sand and stones," he said.

"The sky was dark and then flames were seen from the peak that spewed hot lava and lahar, sweeping everything," he added.

In his prayer, Kari asked God for a minor eruption to prevent people from falling victims if the volcano has to erupt.

"Everything is decided by God. Except God, no one can decide. We should regard an eruption as a warning from God for having taken a distance from him," he stressed.

"The relationship between God and humans is just like the one between a mother and her child. Your relationship will get closer when a danger comes," he added.

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