ting people. The trance states and the way in which the people of Bali was the topic of this film. It showed much symbolism as well as ceremonies. The film centered on the Horse Ritual. To fully understand the ritual and the symbolic meaning of this ritual we must look at the history of these people especially the origin of their modern day religion. The native people had an indigenous religion that consisted of many deities, however, missionaries came promoting the message of one god by Mohammad. That God's name was Ali. The people still held true to their own religion and combined these two together and created what they have now. One thing that truly stood out was the way all of the people of the culture seemed to hold true the religions sacredness including the children who very somberly washed their hands and feet as they entered the Mosque to chant the ancient words of the Islamic faith. The film centered on the Horse Ritual. This ritual represents a tale from history. The men become an army that opposed the missionaries and they will recreate the insanity that the original warriors felt when a magician casts a spell upon them that made them feel as if they themselves were horses. During this insanity they did dangerous acts and self inflicting injuries to themselves. The ritual itself was carried out by normal towns people but was orchestrated by the shaman of the village. The shaman was also the head government official who prays, fasts and recites magical words and phrases throughout the night prior to the day of the ritual. The men danced themselves into trance. Giving themselves completely to the power of the shaman. Realizing this power, the men gave themselves to the land and to the ancient ancestors and began to tremble and falling into the complete trance. Not all the men went into the trance smoothly, some had their minds go bland and their bodies fell limp to the ground. The Balinese being masters at al...
