Their character is easy, courteous, and gentle, but they can
be intense and can show strong temper if aroused. They are gay
and witty; there is nothing that a Balinese loves more than
a good joke, especially. if it is off-colour, and even children
make ribald puns that are applauded by grown-ups. It is perhaps
in their mad sense of humour, the spirit of Rabelaisian fun
with which they handle even such forbidding subjects as religion
and death that lays the key to their character. The adjective
" childish " or “childlike," so often misapplied
to primitive peoples, does not suit the Balinese, because even
the children show a sophistication often lacking in more civilized
grown-ups. They are resourceful and intelligent, with acute
senses and quick minds.
All the Balinese boys chased the monkey, but it let them come
to within a few feet of it and then leaped out of reach onto
the roof or a tree. The only one who did not join in the chase
was Rapung, our teacher of Balinese, because he was a newcomer
to the household and the monkey snarled and sprung at him every
time Rapung passed near where it was tied: they bated each other.
When it became plain that the monkey could not be captured so
easily, one of the boys had the bright idea of having everybody
pretend to attack Rapung, imitating the monkey, making faces,
and squealing at him. Soon the monkey forgot that be himself
was persecuted and joined in the attack, but when he was most
aggressive someone grabbed him.
The pride of the Balinese has not permitted the development
of one of the great professions of the East: there are no beggars
in Bali. But tourists who lure boys and girls with dimes to
take their pictures now threaten this unique distinction, and
lately, in places frequented by tourists, people are beginning
to ask for money as a return for a service. Ordinarily even
a child would be scolded and shamed by anyone who heard him
ask something from a stranger. A gift must be reciprocated.
The aristocracy is despotic and arrogant, but the ordinary people,
although used to acknowledging the superiority of their masters,
are simple and natural in an unservile and unsubmissive way.
By the threat of passive disobedience and boycott they kept
the princes from overstepping their bounds. Europeans complain
that the Balinese make bad servants; they are too free, too
frank, and do not respond to the insolent manner that the white
man has adopted as " the only way to deal with natives."
Their moral code consists in maintaining their traditional behavior,
observing their duties towards their fellow villagers and paying
due respect to the local feudal princes. Among themselves they
are kind and just, avoiding unnecessary quarrels and solving
their disputes by the simplest and most direct methods. The
villages are organized into compact boards or councils, independent
of other villages. Every married man - that is, every grown
man - is a member of the council and is morally and physically
obliged to co-operate for the welfare of the community.
A man is assisted by his neighbors in every task he cannot perform
alone; they help him willingly and as a matter of duty, not
expecting any reward other than the knowledge that, were they
in his case, he would help in the same manner. In this way paid
labors and the relation of boss to coolie are reduced to a minimum
in Bali. Since the world of a Balinese is his community, be
is anxious to prove his worth, for his own welfare is in direct
relation to his social behaviors and his communal standing.
Moral sanctions are regarded 2S stronger than physical punishment,
and no one will risk the dreaded punishment of exile, from the
village, when a man is publicly declared " dead "
to his community. Once " thrown away," he cannot be
admitted into another of the co-operative villages, so no misfortune
could be greater to the Balinese than public disgrace. This
makes of every village a closely unified organism in which the
communal policy is harmony and co-operation - a system that
works to every body's advantage.
