"Bidadari" is Balinese for "Angel."
This Bidadari is wearing a paper heart for Valentine's Day.
"Bidadari and Rajapala" is the story of Rajapala, a young hunter, who sneaks up on a flock of angels while they are bathing in the river. He manages to grab one of the angels' garments and keep her from flying away. The angel has no choice but to stay on earth and marry him. However, as soon as she gives birth to a child, Rajapala's hold on her is broken, and she returns to heaven. This traditional Balinese fairytale is a warning to any mortal who would attempt to control the divine for his or her own purposes.
Wonder what that means for us now, controlling the divine for our own purposes? What form does that take? Would that be like building a nuclear bomb and using it to win a war? Harnessing the sun's rays for energy? Seeding clouds? Test tube babies? Mood-enhancing drugs? Plastic surgery? Suicide? Organ transplants?
Or could it be something like passing judgment? Something we do all the time, unconsciously.
Or refusing to love?
Let love in?
I sometimes find it very hard to love certain people, especially those who swear at me, malign me, or hurt me in some insidious way. War is that way, too. Think of the suffering it brings. And why is war always started by MEN???
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