Barong and Keris Dance is Balinese dance story about the fight between Barong as a good spirit with Rangda as a bad spirit. Barong is a character in the mythology of hosts of good, and enemy of Rangda in the mythological tradition of Bali. Banas Pati Rajah is the fourth brother or spirit child that accompanies a child throughout life. Banas Patih Rajah is the spirit with animates Barong a protector spirit, he is often represented by a lion and traditional performances of his struggles against Rangda are popular parts of Balinese culture. The Barong Dance is often portraited with two monkeys.
Barong Keris Dance is a battle between good and evil spirit. Barong can take various forms but in this dance Barong Keket, the most holy of Barong. The Barong Keket is a strange creature, half shaggy dog, half lion and is played by two men in much the same way as a circus clown-horse. His opponent is with Rangda. Barong Dance is one of the distinctive arts community of Bali, where Barong it self is symbolic of Goodness with shape like a lion.
Barong is probably the most well known dance. It is also another story telling dance narrating the fight between good and evil. Barong and Keris Dance is the classic example of Balinese way of acting out mythology, resulting in myth and history being blended in to one reality.
The fight between Barong and Rangda is also the topic traditional narratives, usually performed in the temple of the dead. The most famous is the story of Calonarang, a widow from Jirah who is furious because she cannot find a suitable husband for her daughter Ratna Manggali. all the eligible young men are scared of her black magic, so she gets revenge by wreaking havoc over the kingdom of Daha. The King Erlangga, tries to punish her, but all his attempts fail. She kills all the soldiers he sends to destroy her. Then Rangda decides to destroy Daha. She summons all her disciples and in the still of night they go the Setra Gendrainayu cemetery to present offerings of dead flesh to Durga, the goddess of death. Durga agrees to the destruction, although she warms the witch not to enter the city of Daha. But the witch does not heed Durga’s advice and the kingdom is soon hit by grubug (a plague) and the villages quickly become cemeteries, people dying even before they can bury their dead. Corpses are scattered everywhere and the stench is unbearable. The only person who can defeat the witch is Mpu Bharadah. At the king’s request, Bharadah sends his disciple Bahula to steal Calonarang’s magic weapon. Bahula pretends to ask Ratna Manggali,s hand in marriage, and while the witch is always, Bahula steals the magic weapon to his teacher Bharadah. The weapon turns out to be a manuscript containing the key to ultimate release which has been used upside-down by Calonarang. Bharadah goes to Daha to challenge the witch with the help of the Barong, she is defeated. Before being killed, she asks to be released from her curse and purified.
The story goes that Rangda, he mother of Erlangga, the King of Bali in the tenth century, was condemned by Erlangga’s father because she practiced black magic. After she became a widow, she summoned all the evil spirits in the jungle, the leaks and the demons to come after Erlangga A fight occurred, but she and her black magic troops were too strong that Erlangga had to ask for to help of Barong. And Barong come to with Erlangga soldiers, and fight ensued. Rangda casted a spell that made Erlangga soldiers all wanted to kill themselves, pointing their poisoned keris in to their own stomachs and chests. Barong casted a spell that turned their body resistant to the sharp keris. At the end, Barong won and Rangda ran away.
Somebody can die or get seriously injured a Barong Dance. It is said that if Rangda’s spell is too strong, a weak soldier may not be able to resist it, with the help of Barong. He may end up hurting himself with his own keris. The masks of Barong and Rangda are considered sacred items, and before they are brought out a priest must be present to offer blessings by sprinkling them with holy water taken from Mount Agung, and offerings must be presented.
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