015:00 PM
Arrive at the temple
Meet the hosts at Pura Dalem Ageng Bakbakan as the courtyard gathers and the gamelan begins to set the evening’s atmosphere.
FROM TEMPLE THRESHOLD TO SHARED TABLE
The complete full-moon evening.
Follow the night in its full sequence: temple clothing and blessing, live gamelan, young dancers, Topeng Tua and dinner prepared by local families.
04 / INSIDE THE TEMPLE
The evening closes in the temple’s own rhythm.
From 7 PM, the mangku leads the prayer ceremony with offerings. Guests follow the guidance given on the night, keeping the temple and its people—not the performance—at the centre of the final hour.
This is not a temple reconstructed for visitors. It is the community’s own place of worship. Temple clothing is prepared by the hosts for women and men, and help with dressing is included in the evening.
05 / HOW THE NIGHT UNFOLDS
The regular evening begins at 5 PM.
Buffet, gamelan, dance, prayer and offerings follow one another through the temple courtyard. The earlier purification programme is a separate special activity; this is the standard full-moon evening.
01
025:30 PM
The buffet opens
Share a buffet prepared by local families before the dance programme begins.
036:00–7:00 PM
The dance programme begins
Panyembrama, Jauk Manis, Bird of Paradise and the Old Mask Dance turn the courtyard into a stage, accompanied by live gamelan.
047:00–8:00 PM
Prayer and offerings with the mangku
The evening closes with prayer, offerings and the mangku’s guidance inside the living temple community.
DANCE PROGRAMME · 6:00–7:00 PM
Four dances in the courtyard.
- 01Panyembrama Dance
- 02Jauk Manis (Sweet Jauk)
- 03Bird of Paradise
- 04Old Mask Dance
SPECIAL EVENTS
Other ways to move through Bakbakan, Gianyar.
Some gatherings extend beyond the full-moon courtyard, bringing guests into other places and shared movements connected with village life.
HOLY WATER
Purification at Pura Mengening
Begin at 3 PM at the temple, receive sarong, udeng and antang, and take part in the 3:30 PM offering ceremony before the purification. Return to the temple at 5 PM to join the regular full-moon evening.
Read the cultural field note →
OFFERINGS IN MOTION
Walk through the village with the offering procession
Join village women carrying flowers and offerings as the group moves together through the village. The route reveals ceremony not as a still image, but as something carried through Bakbakan, Gianyar.
06 / TOPENG TUA
The old man who refuses to keep his distance.
Slow steps and trembling hands make the mask feel ancient; a sudden glance makes it mischievous. Topeng Tua never speaks, yet the old man’s character is unmistakable. Here, he leaves the centre of the courtyard and meets the audience face to face.
TOPENGBalinese masked dance, where the body gives the character a voice.
Read the cultural field note ↗Read the cultural field note
The evening opens into a larger cultural world.
Continue through the mask, the temple and holy water in three research-backed field notes.