Original Signed Oil Painting of a Balinese Hindu Ceremony, "Melasti Ceremony"

Walking through the night, villagers participate in the Balinese Melasti ceremony that cleanses the world of evil spirits. During Melasti, all religious objects, meaning "things which symbolize God" as well as sacred statues are taken to the seashore to be purified. In Balinese Hindu belief, the sea is the dwelling place of the God Siwa, who destroys and dissolves all evil spirits – thus the sea becomes the most appropriate place to conduct this purification. By Made A. A. Darmayuda, this painting possesses a mystical beauty.