天堂之鸟——巴厘

Even today, there is a certain magic about Bali. The longer one stays on the island, the more one is impressed1 by the many exquisite2 sights and the scores of talented and charming people one encounters3. All the tourist hype4 aside, Bali truly is exceptional.

The island of Bali indeed presents a modern paradox5 -- an ancient, traditional society that is still incredibly alive and vital. While the basic conservatism6 of the Balinese has enabled them to preserve many of their past achievements, it has never hindered7 the acceptance of new and innovative8 elements, whether home-grown or foreign.

How are we to account for9theisland's fabled cultural wealth? A fortuitous10 congruence11 of circumstances -- accidents, really, of geography and history, seems responsible.

First and foremost, Bali is extraordinarily blessed by Nature. Lying within a narrow band of the tropics where wet and dry seasons fall roughly into balance -- providing both adequate rainfall and long periods of sunshine -- the island's soils, topography12 anti water resources are all remarkably well suited to human habitation. As a result, Bali has been civilized since very early times.

This is also the only island in "inner Indonesia" that has enjoyed centuries of more or less uninterrupted13 cultural continuity. While other traditional states in the region suffered major disruptions due to Islamization and Dutch colonization, Bali was isolated, left to go her own way.

As a result, this is the only area of Indonesia that remains "Hindu" today-retaining elements of the great fusion14 of indigenous15 and Indian cultures which took place over a thousand years ago. When Bali was, finally colonized by the Dutch, at the turn of last century, the European invaders16 were so fascinated by what they found here that a concerted17 effort was made to preserve and foster the island's traditional culture.

Balinese society remains strong and vital, moreover, because it promotes18 family and communal values. This is indeed the key -- a self-strengthening system in which religion,custom and art combine with age - old childrearing techniques and deeply- entrenched19 village institutions to produce an exceptionally well- integrated society. Feelings of alienation20 from parents and peers, so common now in the West are rare in Bali.

Children are carried everywhere until they are at least three months old,held at all times in the warm, protective embrace of family, friends and neighbors. Elaborate21 rituals22 are performed at frequent intervals23 to ensure their well-being. Every aspect of village life is organized to the nth24 degree--the individual's rights and responsibilities within the community being carefully defined by tradition.

Despite all this, it should be noted that traditional Bali was far from perfect. For the majority of Balinese peasants, it was in fact a world wracked25 by warfare,disease, pestilence26 and famine. In last century, moreover, Bali was continuously plagued27 by political violence, over-population and poverty.

Bali's unique culture should in fact be viewed as a response to difficult, uncertain conditions. Its strong village institutions served as bulwarks28 against the ever-present threat of disaster; their inherent flexibility was a guarantee of survival in the face of often overwhelming odds29.

The rapid changes now occurring on the island must be seen from this historical perspective. Certainly there are problems, some perhaps as serious as those faced in earlier times. But the Balinese are eternal30 optimists, fervently31 believing that their "Island of the Gods" enjoys a very special place indeed in the grander scheme of things.

即使在目前看来，巴厘岛的风光仍然有着其独特的魅力。游客在该岛停留的时间越长，他就会对岛上风景的幽微之处感触越深，并对所遇到的达人雅士留下深刻的印象、抛开所有为招徕游客吹得天花乱坠的广告不说，巴厘岛的确是不可不游。

置身巴厘岛，它确确实实能带给你一种古今时空相互交错的感觉——古老的、传统的社会仍然保持着惊人的活力；尽管思想上的守旧性使得巴厘人继续保持了自己旧有的文化传统，但这并不妨碍他们接受新的事物，不管这些人是土生土长的巴厘人，还是后来移居至此的外来者。

那是什么样的原因使得巴厘岛上蕴含了如此丰厚的文化?或许是一种地理及历史环境和偶然事件的巧合使然。

首要的原因是，大自然格外地垂青巴厘岛。巴厘岛地处热带狭窄地带，它的雨季和旱季周期取得了近乎完美的季节平衡，这使得该岛的降雨量和日照时间都十分充足，同时也使得巴厘岛的土壤、地形及水源条件都极其适合人类的居住有鉴于此，巴厘岛在很早以前就发展了人类文明。

其次，在过去的几个世纪中，巴厘岛是“印尼内陆”中惟一没有出现文化断裂的岛屿，其文化发展保持了连续性。也就是说，在印尼大部分地区先后受到伊斯兰文化及荷兰殖民文化的影响时，巴厘岛却没有受到这种干扰，而是保持了自己的文化发展道路。

正因为如此，目前巴厘岛还在很大程度保留了自己1000多年前由当地文化与印度文化相融合的文化传统，这种传统使巴厘岛是印尼境内惟一一个保留印度教的地区。在上个世纪初，当荷兰殖民者们最终侵占此地时，这些欧洲侵略者们对巴厘岛上所保留的文化传统感到十分惊讶，他们因而商定，一定要对巴厘岛上的这种文化传统加以扶植，使得它能够得以继续保持下去。

巴厘岛上的社会文化观念依然保持着强大的活力而且它还促进了家庭及社区观念的发展。该岛的社会体制属于一种自治性的社会结构，而维持这种结构稳定的则是宗教、习俗、古老的儿童教育方式以及牢固的村落机构。通过这些方式，巴厘岛形成了自己独有的完整统一的社会体制。在当今西方国家，很多人已经不知道亲情为何物，而巴厘岛上这种现象却极为罕见。

在婴儿出生3个月之后，这些婴儿会被大人们带到各处。孩子的家长、朋友及邻居都会对这幼小的生命极尽所有的关爱。当地的人们会时常举行各种隆重的仪式来祝福这些婴儿的健康成长。这些村落中的日常生活由无数种既定的规矩所组成——传统的风俗已经为每个个体的权利和义务做出了详尽的规定。

尽管如此，巴厘岛的生活离尽善尽美的地步还有很大的一段距离。对于当地大多数的村民来说，他们每天还受到来自战争、疾病、瘟疫及饥荒的威胁。自上个世纪以来，连续不断的政治冲突、急剧增长的人口数量及由此而带来的贫困交加等社会问题还一直如影随形地缠绕着当地的巴厘人。

因而巴厘岛的独特文化也就可以视为是他们对困境及社会变幻不定的一种应对。它所奉行的村社制度也就可能成为他们抵挡所有灾难威胁的堡垒，也正是这种文化中所固有的柔韧性成为了当地村民敢于面对未来的保证。

针对目前巴厘岛上所发生的种种巨变，我们应该以历史的眼光来看待。不可否认，目前巴厘岛还存在着诸多社会问题，有些问题的严重程度甚至等同于以前他们所遭受的苦难。然而巴厘人永远都是乐观主义者，并虔诚地相信，他们所居住的“天堂之岛”实际上是世界上独一无二的美丽家园。

注释

1．impress vt．使感动，使铭记，给…深刻的印象

2．exquisite adj. 微妙的，有不寻常(或奥秘的)吸引力的

3．encounter vt. 意外地遇见，偶然碰到

4．hype n. (刺激兴趣、促进销售等的)天花乱坠的广告宣传

5．paradox n．有明显的矛盾特点的人(或事物、行为等)

6．conservatism n．保守主义，守旧性

7．hinder vt．阻碍，阻止，妨碍

8．innovative adj．新颖的，革新的

9．account for 作出说明，作出解释；提出理由

10．fortuitous adj．偶然的，偶然发生的

11．congruence n．一致，和谐

12．topography n，地形，地貌，地势

13．uninterrupted adj．不中断的，连续不断的

14．fusion n．(音乐或其它文化形式的)融合

15．indigenous adj．当地的，本土的，本地的

16．invader n．入侵者，侵略者

17．concerted adj.商定的，一致的

18．promote vt. 促进，增进

19．entrench vt. 确立，使处于牢固地位

20．alienation n．(感情上的)疏远，离间

21．elaborate adj．精心计划(或制作)的

22．ritual n．(宗教等的)仪式

23．interval n．(时间、空间上的)间隔；间距

24．nth adj. 极大的，极度的，to the~degree极 度地，极端地

25．wrack vt. 折磨，使痛苦

26．pestilence n．恶性传染病，瘟疫，疫病

27．plague vt．[口]使痛苦，使烦恼，烦扰，打扰

28．bulwark n．堡垒，壁垒

29．odds [复] n．[常用作复]可能性

30．eternal adj．永恒的，永存的，永远不变的

31．fervently adv．强烈地，热诚地