Rice: A central part of life in Bali

Rice is the Balinese staple. Ask anyone ‘Sudah Makan?’ (already eat?) And they will say, ‘Yes, makan nasi’, which means, yes, rice. Bali and Java have the most well developed sawah (rice terraces) in Indonesia. In Bali as well as Indonesia there are really 2 types of farming, ladang and sawah. Ladang is carried out on arid land or land where the soil is only inches deep. It is usually used for crops requiring a small amount of rain or cattle. After 1 or 2 crops the soil is exhausted and the farmer must move on to another part of his land. With sawah, the rich volcanic soil, plentiful water and powerful sunlight mean the same land can be farmed without a break, producing huge amounts of rice. In Bali 3 harvests a year are possible on the same land.

The growing and harvesting of rice are governed by adat (traditional law) and the subak (water access governing body) approves and controls the flooding of fields and the diverting of streams. The need for communal cooperation in growing rice is a major factor in Balinese agrarian socialism.

Balinese also believe that Dewi Sri, the Goddess of rice, must be honored and shrines are set up in every sawah to honor her. The Balinese believe that Dewi Sri dwells in every stalk of rice and during harvesting Balinese women use a small curved knife hidden in their palm, cutting only a few stalks with every cut so not to scare Dewi Sri.

Rice means life to the Balinese and is much more than something to fill a belly.

Rice has 3 names: still in the sawah its called padi, in the sack it is beras, on the plate its nasi.