Let’s delve into the ancient enigma of Melukat – a mystical cleansing ritual from Bali, Indonesia. This transformative practice goes beyond mere water rituals; it beckons you to confront your shadows, vanquish your demons, and cleanse your very essence. Embrace the challenge of purifying your mind, body, and spirit in a journey that is anything but ordinary.
Getting ready for Melukat
After arriving in Bali, I prepared to ride to Ubud from Balian for the ceremony thinking it was about a two-hour drive. When we arrived in Ubud, there was a lot of traffic and a lot more motorists.
I was a little anxious about the commotion and at the same time I think I was anticipating that we would arrive at my ceremony shortly. We started going a little deeper into the village.
When I got closer to the temple where they would do the ceremony for me, Adus, my driver, told me that we would have to walk because the GPS was already at the end. It was a little scary because I didn’t know where I was going and I clearly don’t know the language. He was very kind and got out of the car with me. As we walked, he asked several people for directions to the temple. We saw signs posted, but between the signs and the distance to the temple it was a little confusing. On the way to the temple, I noticed that a brand new beautiful villa was being built. What shocked me a bit was that they were building near a large water drainpipe and the water stench was accumulating a bit.
When we arrived at the address, there was a small wooden building that was like a café and shop at the same time. I had already decided that I wasn’t going to buy anything there, so I checked in and the young woman confirmed my appointment. I waited patiently and nervously until they took me to the house inside the property. Adus waited for me outside at the shop until my ceremony was over.
The ceremony itself began when I was given a cup of Jasmine tea.
There was an young African-American woman from Georgia who also came to do the Melukat ceremony. The staff were finishing with other people before us, so we talked for a little bit. She was turning 28 years old, and to celebrate, she decided to do the ritual.
They led her away and when she came back, she was dressed in a ceremonial sarong in a shade of dark pink. Then a young Balinese woman walked with me and told me I could put my the things in a locker so I could change. I took out the key and started to get dressed in the ceremonial sarong I picked with its matching scarf. The blue I chose just stood out. I felt a little vulnerable because I did not have a bra on, but comfortable at the same time.
The woman from Georgia was called in. I waited my turn. There was a part of me that I can’t deny was a bit skeptical. It made me ask myself if I really wanted to do that ceremony and if it was worth having traveled 10,000 miles from the United States to get to that moment.
When they called me, I followed the young Indonesian woman into a small room where there was another woman dressed in a beautiful white lace blouse and wrapped in a colorful skirt sitting in a yoga position. I was instructed to sit across from her on the floor. The young woman told me that the lady was going to read the Tarot cards for me and that I could make a donation if I wanted when I finished. Then she left us alone. There was still doubt inside me. The lady started to draw cards and told me about an internal fight that I have with myself and that when I let go of that fight and that pain, I would be able to center myself.
She said a lot of things that resonated and that I don’t want to share because they’re private to me. She told me about love and told me that when I was ready to open up, then the right person would come along. When she was done, I placed a small donation in the box. I returned to my seat outside the room. I realized that the woman from Georgia was gone, but I could hear it in the distance: someone chanting loudly.
Time to face, acknowledge and let go
The young Balinese woman came back and took me with her. We walked on some flat stones until we reached a wooden platform, where I was asked to sit on the floor with my legs extended. She explained to me what would happen and told me that if I wanted her to take a video of the ceremony, she could do it with my cell phone, so I gave it to her. Everything was very fast. The lady who read the cards for me earlier was standing in front of me. She said some things in Indonesian and for a moment I felt how the cold water she brought over from the big pot began falling onto my head. I felt the flower petals also falling on me, tangling in my hair.
The lady continued to chant and I listened to her as she instructed me on what to do. She told me that she would touch me on the back to get the energy out, and that when she instructed me to let go of my pain and distress me by screaming and crying. When she did, I resisted. I wanted to be strong. I wanted to believe that I wouldn’t feel anything. For the moment I thought about my mom and my trauma of abandonment from childhood, about how much I missed her, and how much I also resented her for leaving me again. And then it came out. The first cry was soft, it was light. Then the woman told me to scream and scream out the pain, and asked me to scream again to gather strength. I thought about my Dad and all the physical and psychological abuse I went through at his hands and I screamed again in pain and forgave him again. She told me to scream again and I thought about the bullying I faced as a little girl, including the sexual harassment with several male family members, some whom are still alive. I kept screaming. I felt the pain.
I thought about the men who had come into my life since I was 15 years old. I thought of the bad love experiences and all that I had attracted over the years in terms of romantic relationships. I thought about the bad loves, I thought about the betrayals, I thought about what I allowed in my life allowed, and I screamed. I screamed hard again. My throat was already starting to hurt a little.
Finally, I thought about my daughters. I thought about the pain I’ve felt because I thought I had been a bad mother all my life. I thought about everything I put them through as I was raising them. I thought about my guilt, I felt my guilt, I felt the pain. I thought about the criticism that I had always been subjected to by people who didn’t add anything valuable in my life, but who with their opinion, had hurt and shaped who I was. They were the ones who had programmed in me the thought of me not being good enough of a mother. I felt shame and I got the biggest painful scream I could have felt in my life in a long time.
I cried and felt and let go. I felt free and liberated. I felt safe.
The photographer kept taking pictures without me noticing that he was there. At one point, he told me to look at him, that’s when I remembered that he was with us. From there, I was asked to seat in a small hut to reflect wrapped in a towel, waiting for the woman from Georgia to finish before me.
Receiving my Blessings
After 10 minutes, the young woman from Tridesna returned and took me with her. She came with a basket that she asked me to put on my head. It was my offering. It had flowers and palm fronds and other things, including a coconut, rice, flowers, and I don’t remember what else. I put it on my head and the photographer took several pictures of me before I proceeded. I followed her along the little path through the courtyard until we came to another wooden temple where a woman whom I consider a High Priestess, was sitting on the floor.
She asked me to sit cross-legged in front of her, but I sat down as best I could. She told me her name was Elena. Beautiful Elena. We looked into each other’s eyes and I didn’t take my eyes off her. On top of that, I couldn’t see anything but Elena. She also had a gorgeous white lace blouse and colorful skirt. She told me what we were going to do and began her prayer. She gave me her blessings in different ways. She opened my hands and poured a little bit of cold water. She put rice in each hand for prosperity and told me to rub my hands. She continued to pray and grabbed some of the flowers. The flowers were very nice offerings. After a while, she put small bits of uncooked rice on my forehead and collarbones. With the rice, she opened my spiritual chakra and third eye chakra and migrated to the throat chakra so that I could say what I had to say.
She then took a small coconut in her hand and told me that inside there was a little ball, a seed. She told me that it was known as Shiva’s tears. She proceeded to empty the coconut water in my hands and tells me to let the seed fall out into my hands. She put it inside a tiny purple box and gave it to me to keep. Elena told me that I could put it on a bracelet, on a necklace or that I should always keep it with me. She then proceeded to twist and tie three little yarn strings colored in black, red, and white on my right wrist.
We did a 5-segment Balinese style prayer together. In some segments, we thanked and in others, we asked. I was thankful for all the good things in my life that had come to this moment. I was thankful for that special moment and grateful for the life I have had all these years. In asking, I asked for my daughters, for my parents, for my life. I prayed for my future. I asked for my business, prosperity, abundance of all that is good and positive.
I was thankful for them, for their guidance and for that moment.
The priestess was very impressed by me. She told me several times. She looked at me and kept looking at my tattoos, she told me that I was different from all the people who had gone before.
She told me she felt like he wanted to give me a hug, so I let her hug me. Everything was very emotional.
From there, I went back to the front desk and they offered me a towel to dry myself. They gave me the key to my locker where I left my things stored. I changed my clothes and when I looked in the mirror, I realized that I had little colorful flowers in my wet hair. I wasn’t sure what had just happened to me. I just know that I felt very free. And for the moment, I felt peace.
I proceeded to pay for my ceremony. They gave me a bag full of fruit and food for the road. They were very good to me. I finished with them and went to find my driver. Adus was waiting for me at the café. He had had a cup of tea while he was waiting for me.
I felt light. I felt free.
Did you know about this ritual? Would you ever venture out to do it?
