Sejarah dan Asal Usul Bali Aga, Penduduk Pertama di Bali

History of Bali | History and Origins of the Bali Aga, Bali's First Inhabitants Mentioning the name Bali immediately conjures up images of an island with natural beauty and friendly people. Bali is a region with a rich Hindu culture. Almost every aspect of its people's lives is steeped in Hinduism, from the architecture of their buildings to the way they dress. According to indonesia.go.id, the strong Hindu culture in the lives of its adherents, who make up 86.8 percent of Bali's 4.32 million population, has apparently been present for centuries. Precisely when Austronesian people from the Tonkin region of China, aboard outrigger boats and navigating the vast ocean, landed on the island of Bali approximately 2,000 years before Christ. They lived a well-organized and orderly life and formed legal associations called thanas, or hamlets. As quoted from Thomas Reuter's book *Custodians of Sacred Mountains: Culture and Society in the Mountains of Bali*, they inhabited many mountainous areas. The arrival of people to Bali occurred in three waves. The first wave occurred during prehistoric times. The second wave of migration occurred during the development of Hinduism in the Indonesian archipelago. The third wave of migration occurred during the fall of Majapahit and the Islamization of Java. Of these three waves, the first two are known as the Bali Aga people. Balinese people from the Bali Aga tribe have their own unique lifestyles, typically establishing communities in mountainous areas. In their daily lives, the Bali Aga people adhere to strict customary rules. Thomas Reuter states that the Bali Aga people, as the community is known, maintain their culture through a number of strict customary rules, or awig-awig. They predate the immigrant community from the Majapahit Kingdom. These immigrants from Majapahit arrived in Bali in 1343 AD. They settled mainly in the lowlands and coastal areas. These immigrants from the Majapahit Kingdom are known as Bali Jawi, or from Java. The population of these immigrants in Bali increased with the fall of the Majapahit Kingdom. The Bali Aga are also known as the Bali Mula. The original inhabitants of Bali in these mountains were initially agnostic and worshipped their ancestors, whom they called Hyang. This practice persisted until the fourth century AD, when several Hindu leaders from India, such as Resi Markandya, began to arrive in Bali. The Bali Aga have a distinct Hindu culture from the descendants of Majapahit. For example, the Bali Aga do not practice the cremation ceremony, or cremation of the deceased. They instead practice a traditional burial ceremony known as beya tanem. According to I Ketut Darsana, a historian from Ganesha University of Education, Bali, social groups between men and women formed the basis for the emergence of leadership within the community. The leader of this community is known as Lulu Apad. Furthermore, the Bali Aga's distinctive dialect differs from that of the Balinese in general. Several interesting aspects of the Bali Aga community can be learned, particularly their efforts to preserve their culture. For example, the Bali Aga are not permitted to marry outside their village. If this happens, the person in question must leave the village and be deprived of all rights from their family. Marriage within the family is still possible, with a limit of four generations. #bali #baliaga #history #balihistory #baliagahistory