In photos: Bali parade sees kids painted in a riot of bright colours to seek protection from spirits
- They may not all know why they’re doing it but the youngsters in Bali’s Ngerebeg procession know they have to take part – whatever the weather
The sky is grey and overcast that Wednesday. Early-morning rain has soaked the verdant Tegalalang village. But 10-year-old Pande Putu Aditama has met his friends at the community hall, and they are waiting patiently for their turn to have their bodies painted.
Within 10 minutes, Aditama, “Adit” to his friends, is up. The boy removes his shirt, and from his torso, up his face, and through his hair, he is covered in white pigment.
He is one of hundreds of children and adolescents taking part in this ancient ritual here in Tegalalang, a village near Bali’s well-known rice terraces at Ceking, 10km (six miles) north of the tourist magnet of Ubud.
The Ngerebeg parade takes place every six months. I followed Adit through the rituals in February and September.
“I don’t know what the parade ritual means,” he says, “but I know I must participate, and my teacher and my parents told me to participate whatever the weather.”
