THE MAGIC OF THE RIGHT

". . . Ong! ang ung mang ang ah. I am Sanghyang Sukla the Powerful. I descend with the sun and the moon, I am above Kala Rahu. My head-dress has a white diamond and the gods love me. Sanghyang Tintiya and Sarad Manik contemplate me, my parasol is yellow and Brahma admires me. Fire descend! Clean the country and burn all the devils, burn all the witches, burn Banaspati Radja, burn them all! . . ."

(Ong, ang ung mang ang ah. Aranku Sanghyang Sukla Wisesa, tumurun ak(i ring SurYa amor ring Sanghyang Ulan, anunggang aku Kala Rahu, gelunganaku wintcn petak, sarwa dewa kasih, anelengaku Sanghyang Tintiya, wetu Sarad Manik, apayong aku djenar, anelang aku ring Brahma, metu geni melesat sedjagat, sekuwihning buta peresel geseng, leyak geseng, Banaspati Radja geseng, teka geseng. . . . )

In many of these formulas the Ieyaks, demons, and even the higher spirits are mercilessly abused and there are often phrases by which the exalted magician places himself on equal footing with the gods and even above them. Thus it is easy to understand why the Balinese fear uttering the formulas and why they feel that only the highly prepared or the naturally magic people like the priests may do so with impunity.

Many priests and witch-doctors sincerely believe they possess in themselves powers equal to the spirits', but the ordinary people, who look in awe at all this hocus-pocus, either buy the amulets already strengthened by the formulas of a priest or witch-doctor or, always resourceful, depend on offerings, trances, and dramatic exorcizing performances of plays and dances like the tjalon arang or the sanghyang, when the deities themselves provide the necessary amulets.

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