Prayascita/Purification
On another weekend I travelled with my Balinese friend to visit a new Balinese temple in a little town called Senduro at the foot of Gunung Semeru or Mount Meru, the sacred and highest Volcano in Java (3,676m). We paid our respects and did a bit of meditation. And luckily the Pemangku (Hindu Priest) happened to be at the temple, and we had a chat with him, who then invited us to his house. There seemed to be a lot of stories exchanged between my Balinese friend and the priest, mostly about why a Balinese temple was built in Java. The main reason is the sacred Volcano known as Gunung Semeru or Mount Meru with its peak called Maha Meru. According to Hindu belief, Maha Meru is where the gods reside. They built the temple for Balinese people who are making their pilgrimage to Mount Meru.
At a certain point in our conversation, the Priest suddenly asked me about an Old China Man he saw standing behind me. He seemed to be clairvoyant since no one else could see the Old China Man.
I said: “I don’t know, I can’t see him.”
“He is your guide,” the Priest said. “He (the China Man) asks me to do a purification ceremony on you.”
I got interested and inquired a bit more about the ceremony. According to the Priest, the purification ceremony is meant to purify my body and mind so I will have a clear channel to the spiritual world.
Then I asked what I need to do. “Not to worry”, we have enough people here to help prepare the offerings required. You only need to come here. We also need to agree when we will do it. It should be done on a full moon at midnight, on Mount Meru. We don’t have to climb to the top, only half way to a sacred site called Watu Klosot.
When the priest went to the kitchen to serve us some tea, I asked my friend how much shall I pay for the cost of the ceremony and everything else? He suggested that I should give a donation, whatever amount I feel comfortable with.
At the agreed date we met at the Priest’s house. He was ready with his little bus loaded with another six people and all the offerings. We had to drive around an hour up the mountain until the road ends, and then continue by foot for another half an hour. It was dark, cloudy and raining lightly. So, we can’t see much of the surroundings beyond the reach of our flashlight. But it seems that we were walking on top of rocks of frozen lava. Once we arrived at Watu Klosot, the crews set up the place with the offering in the middle, and the nine of us then sat in a circle around it.
Exactly at midnight, the Priest lit some incense and then started the ceremony with his prayer. The site was dark, the sky was cloudy, and the rain had not stopped. In the middle of the ceremony, I wanted to know if it works. So I asked for a sign. Suddenly the cloud above us opened up, and the full moon shone on us for a few seconds before the cloud covered it again. So, it did work I thought to myself. Now I think I will be able to get the spiritual information that I want to know.
Then suddenly, as if I am talking to myself:
“Up here you know everything, but now that you are down there, you need to know about down there not about up here.”
The Middle Way
On another occasion we went across to Denpasar, Bali to visit a Balinese Elder. As a courtesy and respect, after exchanging some greetings, we stated the purpose of our visit and asked him for some guidance. To our surprise, he just laughed at me and said, “What guidance do you need from me? It’s like you are asking me how to get to Denpasar while you are already in Denpasar. What I can see in you is that your path is right in the middle”.
We then asked what does he mean with “right in the middle”. From the long story he told us, there seem to be many things. He mentioned like The Buddha Siddhartha’s path sometimes also called “The Middle Way”. Another meaning is that I am not only living a spiritual life but right in the middle or halfway in between. I am working on material things like normal people, but spirituality is very important in my life, or my life is spiritually driven. It is also between light and darkness. I am not a light warrior fighting against darkness but being right in the middle embracing both. And so am I with Science and Spirituality.
Another purification processes.
Another Elder, Pak Wayan, we visited at Lovina, North Bali was also a clairvoyant who saw the Old China Man behind me. He was also asked to do some purification ceremony on me. This time I can do it by myself at his place, at midnight on a full moon night. I only have to pour blessed water on myself while facing North, East, South and West. We picked the date, the Wesak[1] day in May 1994.
One week before the Wesak day, I had a couple of visitors who came from Yogyakarta, Central Java. They are relatives of a friend who worked for the forwarding agent for the same project. Firstly they said that they are interested to know more about my paper/thesis The Ultimate Unification Theory which they received through my friend from the forwarding agent. They then invited me to come to their place in Yogyakarta whenever I could. [2]
On Wesak Day 1994, I went to Lovina with my Balinese friend for the purification ceremony. Before leaving, I asked my friend what shall we bring for Pak Wayan?. He said: “Usually we only need to bring some coffee and sugar.”
We were there at about 10 pm, which is quite early, so we still have some time to have a chat. Suddenly Pak Wayan asked me if I have been paying my respect to my ancestor at the Chinese temple in Kuta, which was built by the community to worship him. According to Pak Wayan, I am a direct descendant of Tan Hu Cin Yin, the central figure worshipped at that temple. He was a healer who has done a lot to the community, and the legend says that he built Taman Ayun, a Water Palace in Mengwi district within one night. Pak Wayan also told us that there are also other temples built for him in Singaraja, Banyuwangi and Probolinggo.
That night I did the ceremony, showering myself with blessed water while facing the four cardinal points. However, I am now curious to know more about my ancestor. But first, as soon as I am back to Probolinggo, I went to pay my respect at the temple, close by where I rent our boarding house.
And I think; “What a synchronicity”!
[1] Wesak commemorates the birth, enlightenment, and death of the Buddha, which are all said to have happened on the same (lunar) date. It is held on the Full moon in Taurus around May.
[2] My visit to Yogya is in Chapter 7 – Master Liu
Mystic Reflections 