Balidwipa as it was known in ancient history is an amazing place. I was scheduled to visit Guam and Saipan the following week and Singapore, while a great place to visit, was not my first choice to stay on for the weekend. I decided to visit Bali and as it turned out a classmate who lived in Indonesia and spoke bahasa agreed to be my tourguide. I had read that Bali island has a majority (93%) Hindu population and was curious. The airport was like any other developing country until you notice the tiny flourishes on the furniture and the roof.
I got to my hotel and on the way noticed architecture that reminded me of India. The taxi driver wore a traditional dress and as I entered the hotel – a sense of familiarity set in. Was it presence of statues of Ganesha, Saraswathi, Laksmi and a wide variety of characters from Hindu mythology, maybe. I was curious about the names of the staff and they were all names that one had read in Amar chitra katha comics ranging from Deva to Damayanti. They have a unique naming system and for the first time in decades I was asked which caste I belonged to in a very matter of fact way. It had nothing to do with discrimination – it was very much like which tribe one belongs to.
The story of Rama and Sita is everywhere and the erstwhile kings of Bali called their capital Ayudhya. Their greetings look like a namaste with a wonderful flourish including a bowed head. After seeing that the namaste with folded palms looks like an urban slang as compared to what must be the original form in Bali.
I spent a couple of days visiting all the temples and tourist spots. The toll booths had Ganesha statues to symbolize good luck on the road. ( I guess no obstacles). The people were geninunely warm and seemed to be hardworking. As I went around the island with its immense hospitality, warmth, smiles and of course ever present statues depicting hindu mythology, I wondered whether India would have looked like this more than 1200 years ago.
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