Balinese Groups (Seka)

April 15, 2009

The weather today is cloudy, and rainy in some areas of the Gianyar regency.

rain on the paddy fields

Today in his update, Dewa writes about organized groups in Bali.  They’re a very important part of the culture, as Dewa tells us:

Seka (Balinese organized group)

Here I will tell about Balinese organized group in Balinese culture. The Balinese term for any organized group of people is seka. Many kind of seka in Bali, some are: seka many (the group for harvesting paddy), seka subak (the group for the irrigation of the rice fields), seka gong (the group for the traditional gamelan music ), seka pula (the group for planting the paddy), and so on.

Seka (group) that harvests rice

Seka loyalty is a major value in Balinese culture; these voluntary groups are not just unimportant organizations, but a basic part of Balinese social life. Almost every Balinese belongs to two or three private seka of this sort, and the alliance formed in them balances those formed in the more formally organized sectors of Balinese social structure.  Suksma (thank you)

The Balinese Word of the Day is:

group:  seka