Indonesia Tour, Denpasar Bali – Day 2 (Fri Apr 22, 2011)

The swimming pool has proven to be a place of great popularity, perfect for a dip between events, or a relaxing cool down before bed.

Last night after another beautiful music and meditation program, it was the scene for a midnight session of pool Olympics… well done to Tyrone Mardesic who picked up gold in ‘Pool Running Open Class’, narrowly fending off Andre Maynard. Special mentions to Vishwanath Saundakar and Sameer Shinde for sterling efforts in the underwater distance event. A notable absentee was Matthew Fogarty who was at the time being pursued by rabid dogs up into the Ubud Hills on a (light) 10k burst.

After fresh fruit juices, pancakes and omelettes, we enjoyed a collective morning meditation (yes we ate first but it’s not a new trend ok!) We gathered in a Balinese styled loft overlooking a rich green landscape of flora including bountiful banana trees. As we meditated the skies opened and we were treated to a cleansing downpour that went as quickly as it arrived. Brief busts of rain of this nature are a common occurrence in Bali, and most welcome as they bring regular relief to the humid conditions.

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Post meditation some caught up on some much needed rest, while others explored the local environs or attended to comms. We shared a lovely lunch banquet at the impressive Casa Luna before heading down in taxis to Denpasar to set up for the evening program.

The venue for the evening was the Kertalangu Kesiman Centre in Denpasar. The venues so far have exceeded expectations and Kertalangu was no exception.

Once again we arrived in sufficient time to undertake a complete sound check, even having time to practice Manuk Dadali. It’s the composition we’re most nervous about because it is a national folk song and of course it’s well known by all the locals. We’ve yet to perform it but feel we are ready now, so perhaps tonight is the night. In this composition Matthew plays the Irish whistle, which is perfect. As I write this Kevin Fitzgerald is picking away on his guitar. He’s been treating us to morning ragas on the santoor, quite the perfect start to the day.

It must be said that the women looked simply resplendent in their brand new batik silk blouses and the men had to concede a point for best dress tonight. The competition currently stands at 1-1.

The music and meditation program was delivered in segments, initially with some quiet instrumental with Matthew on the saxophone and Kevin on the sarod. This was followed by several slower bhajans. We then enjoyed another Balinese traditional dance performed by a quartet. A set of medium-faster bhajans continued to build the atmosphere and led into the realisation part of the program. Pak Nyoman and John Fisher again combined to facilitate the meditational aspect of the program with the English and Indonesian translations.

We then finished with a lovely contrasting set of lively bhajans, (Mata Oh Mata was enthusiastically received), and devotional ones, (Apani Panaah has made a strong resurgence on the tour and is becoming a favourite). The powerful Shiva bhajans are also very well received including Shiva Shankara Bhole Bhale and Shiva Shiva Shambu Bam Bam Bam. Newcomers to the program numbered approximately 100. They were very attentive to all parts of the program.

Jawa Pos, Indonesian’s main newspaper, featured a story on the Sahaja Yoga Bhakti group complete with colour photo of group members in a practice session. The event was also featured on local radio.

The challenges to get program permits continue, so collective attention on this is most appreciated.

Kind Regards
Martin Purcell in Indonesia