Bali Hiring Hindu Studies Teachers , Indonesia

Source: www.thejakartapost.com
Wed,March17,2010

INDONESIA, : Bali province will need 9,000 more teachers of Hindu studies at elementary to high school level by 2014. Nyoman Arya from the religious affairs agency said many teachers were now close to their retirement period, while the recruitment of new teachers was slow. There are 2,476 elementary schools in Bali, both state and private schools, 298 junior high schools and 275 senior high schools. The majority of state schools in Bali teach Hindu as the main religious subject.

Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika expressed concern over the shortage of Hindu teachers. “I have already coordinated with the Religious Affairs Ministry and the Bali Education Agency to find a solution,” he said. “Given that the majority of Balinese are Hindu, I am concerned by the shortage of teachers we now face, especially for Hindu studies,” Pastika said.

Balinese Hindus Gear Up For New Year and International Bali-India Yoga Festival II

February 26th, 2010
Source: www.thejakartapost.com

 Balinese Hindus Gear Up For New Year

JAKARTA, INDONESIA, February 17, 2010: Thousands of people across Bali have been busy making the giant ogoh-ogoh effigies in preparation for the celebrations of the upcoming Caka Hindu New Year 1932, popularly known as Nyepi, or the Day of Silence. The event falls on March 16. Local resident Wayan Chandra said making the ogoh-ogoh helps strengthen communal relation among neighbors. “It’s a collective work by all villagers,” he said.

The ogoh-ogoh are giant papier-mache demons that symbolize all things bad. Every banjar, or traditional village community, must prepare at least one ogoh-ogoh for each Nyepi. On the eve of the Caka New Year, Balinese Hindus parade them along the streets and burn them together to dissipate any negative energy.

The Caka New Year is observed in total quiet and contemplation. The entire island falls into darkness on the night, as the Hindu faithful are prohibited from lighting a fire or using electricity, or even leaving home. Virtually all activities will come to a halt for 24 hours, including tourism offices and the airport, while the streets will be deserted.

February 26th, 2010
Source: Press Release

 International Bali-India Yoga Festival II  

 
BALI, INDONESIA, February 2010: Bali-India Foundation will be organizing the second International Bali-India Yoga Festival from 3-10 March, 2010. The theme of the festival is ‘Yoga & Global Warming’. Bali, which has an ancestral relationship with India, shares a great concern about Global Warming. Bali, the Island of the Gods, where the sage Markandeya meditated and taught this divine practice of yoga to its people is a perfect place to discuss and find a solution to the problem of Global Warming and other various matters related to yoga.

The opening of this prestigious festival will simultaneously inaugurate ‘The Markandeya Yoga City’ at Gunung Sari, Singaraja, Bali. The Yoga city will be completed within five years on a total of 15 hectares of land surrounded by beautiful forests and mountains 1000 meters above sea level in a Balinese architectural style.