What Your Body Can Teach You About Bali
Maybe you don’t know how to drive a scooter. Or perhaps you carry your travel guide everywhere you go.
Whatever it is, it’s pretty obvious to Suku Bali (= ‘Balinese people’) that you’re a tourist. And don’t you hate that?
Luckily, there are things you can do to accustom yourself to Balinese culture without having to change the way you look.
One way to do that is to learn the local language. Because Balinese is limited to Bali, the Indonesian translations in this post could help you anywhere throughout the 17.500 islands! You can also use it in Malaysia since the two languages are very similar.
But is speaking the language enough? If you’ve ever been to Bali, you might’ve noticed that the locals seem to use their hands differently.
Balinese only use their right hand, or they place their palms together instead of shaking your hand when they greet you.
You could even say they move their whole tubuh (= ‘body’) differently.
To immerse yourself into another culture, paying attention to those little differences can go a long way. So let’s focus on six body parts for which the Balinese have special cultural rules. And if you follow them, you’ll distinguish yourself from the next ignorant backpacker they meet.
1. What Should I Do With My Tangan?
Tangan (= ‘hands’) are probably the most tricky body part to accustom to Balinese culture. The way most westerners move their hands is not always appreciated in Bali (though the chance that the kind Balinese will ever confess that to you is small).
Let’s start with the polite way of thanking someone. If you receive your meal, drink, or road directions, the way to truly show you know the local culture is to place your palms together and say: terima kasih (= ‘thank you’). You can also use the Balinese translation ‘suksma’.
The same goes for saying ‘you’re welcome’. When saying sama-sama, place your palms together. Sama-sama seems to be more used in Bali than the other Indonesian form of ‘you’re welcome’, kembali. In Balinese, ‘you’re welcome’ would be ‘mewali’.
So you have plenty of options to thank people in Bali!
As in a lot of other Hindu and Muslim cultures, your right hand is the preferred one to use.
Ubud-based language school Cinta Bahasa made up a list with do’s and don’ts for its students, visitors to Bali who’d like to learn Bahasa Indonesia (= ‘Indonesian’) and the local culture. The eskola (= ‘school’) tells its students: “Always use your right hand when you give or receive anything from other people, including when you pay, or even when you pass the menu.”
So what if you’re holding something in your right hand? Cinta Bahasa states that you could apologize when you accidentally use your left hand: Maaf, pakai tangan kiri (= ‘Sorry for using my left hand’).
Maaf means ‘sorry’. Pakai means ‘to use/using’ (verbs aren’t conjugated in Indonesian, learn more about how easy Indonesian grammar is in this post). Kiri means ‘left’.
And if you were to pass in between people, your hand is a useful physical manifestation of where you’d like to go. Cinta Bahasa explains: “When passing in between people, the cultural norm in Indonesia is to bow slightly and to make a hand motion similar to shaking another person’s hand.”
In other words: Move your hand as if you were to cut your way between them, never actually touching them, though. While you’re doing that, always apologize for passing through people: permisi.
Cinta Bahasa also mentions that it’s considered rude to point your finger at people’s faces. Pointing your finger to an object is acceptable, but when you’re indicating a direction on the street, use two or five fingers.
Lastly, if you’d like to indicate to someone that they should come closer, don’t bend and move your finger in that way that only parents do to their misbehaving children. Instead, put your palm down and move all your fingers together.
2. Keep Your Kaki off the Table!
Cinta Bahasa warns that when you enter someone’s house, you should take off your shoes and leave them outside. Balinese tend to clean their porches spotless. In many homes, you could literally eat off the floor.
The school also states that it’s impolite to put your kaki (= ‘feet’) on tables and chairs unless you’re at a friend’s house. When you’re in public, make sure your feet are on the floor the entire time. Soles are the least favored part of the body, whereas the head is so important to Hindus that you should not pat a child on the crown because it is considered inappropriate.
3. Place Your Hand on My Dahi
That brings us to the fact that sometimes, says Cinta Bahasa, “Indonesian kids will touch the back of your hand to their forehead when they greet you.” That’s considered a respectful gesture and places you at the same level as their parents and teachers. Don’t do it yourself, though.
The dahi (= ‘forehead’) also plays a function during ceremonies. After praying, Balinese will put rice grains on their forehead to signify that they have prayed.
Although it’s rude if another person touches the top of your kepala (= ‘head’), you can do it yourself. Balinese actually use their head as a way to carry things from one place to another, as you will often see women do with the greatest strength and grace. Bananas or bricks, nothing seems too heavy to put on top of their heads.
4. Cover Your Hidung!
If someone doesn’t shake your hand when you meet them, don’t consider it a bad thing. By holding their palms together in front of their hidung (= ‘nose’) or dada (= ‘chest’), Balinese are actually greeting you in a way that respects your personal space, Cinta Bahasa says.
You can do the same to greet them. It might be especially useful now, during the current Coronavirus pandemic.
However, the school mentions, sometimes Balinese men put their hand on your shoulder when you talk or shake hands. It’s common and shouldn’t immediately be seen as alarming.
A trick to avoid that physical proximity if you would feel uncomfortable is merely greeting them with your palms held together in front of your nose or chest.
The greeting is similar to the one Balinese Hindus use during prayer. If you’d like to know more about Bali’s main religion, check out this post.
5. You’ll Be in My Jantung
A gesture Balinese usually make after greeting someone for the first time is touching their chest. It looks as if they’re saying ‘this is me’. While actually, Cinta Bahasa explains, they’re touching their jantung (= ‘heart’) because their greeting comes from the heart.
It’s the physical equivalent of ‘nice to meet you’, which isn’t used as commonly as in the English language.
The word jantung is only used to mean the body part. When you’re talking about a heart in an emotional context, the Indonesian word to use is hati. Confusing enough, hati also means ‘liver’ in a physical context.
Some beautiful examples where you could use heart in an emotional way are these.
- Buah hati, cahaya mata (= ‘fruit of my heart, light of my eyes’), meaning ‘sweetheart’.
- Jantung hati (= ‘heart’s heart) is the object of one’s affection or a child.
- Mata hati (= ‘heart’s eye’) is your conscience.
6. Sharpen Your Gigi!
This is not a cultural tradition you should follow when you’re in Bali for a few weeks, but it’s worth mentioning.
For Balinese teens, the traditional way of coming-of-age means getting rid of the six evil traits humanity possesses, according to Hinduism. Those are lust, greed, wrath, pride, jealousy, and intoxication.
One ritual that marks the end of that coming-of-age period is the filing of the gigi (= ‘teeth’), more specifically their upper canine teeth. It’s seen as a metaphorical and physical break from the animal instincts that come with being a child. The ritual looks like a festive dentist appointment, and most teens who had their teeth filed claim that it doesn’t hurt.
News provider VICE explains in this video that sharpening teeth is about “Controlling yourself, controlling your anger, your jealousy…”. The young woman who’s the main focus in the video describes it as getting in touch “With the root of her body.”
The ceremony seen in the video concludes with a sacrifice of an anak ayam (= ‘chick’, anak meaning ‘small’ and ayam meaning ‘chicken’).
An Indonesian expression about teeth, that’s similar to the English ‘to show teeth’, is unjuk gigi (= ‘show teeth’). It means the same thing: show your strength or prove your worth.
And now that we’re on the topic of teeth, don’t forget to smile! Bali is a tropical paradise with happy inhabitants, and they love showing it.
Move Your Tubuh!
The way you move and use your body can say a lot about where you’re from.
By following simple cultural rules in Bali like not touching a child’s head, you could blend in more than other tourists and make the most out of your trip.
And if you sometimes forget about them, don’t panic! Most Balinese are used to visitors and will forgive you. Plus, you can always save the day by giving them a big smile.
Have you been to Bali? Did you notice any cultural differences in the way Balinese use their body? Let me know, and I might include your observations in a post!
If you’d like to learn more about Bali or practice your Indonesian, check out these posts.
- Bali’s Dark Side Explained With 7 Animals
- 7 Animals That Sum up Bali
- Balinese Hinduism Explained
- What the Indonesian Language Can Tell You About Bali
- What These Foods Can Tell You About Bali
- How the Dutch Language Influenced Bali
Sources
The teachers and courses of Indonesian language school Cinta Bahasa in Ubud, Bali
Barker, J., Practical Indonesian: A Communication Guide. Singapore: Periplus Ed, 1987.
Maxwell, V. et. al., Lonely Planet Bali, Lombok & Nusa Tenggara. New York: Random House, 2019.
Torchia C. and Djuhari L., Indonesian Slang: Colloquial Indonesian at Work. Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing, 2011.
