ISSN 0970-8669 Odisha Review Early Maritime Contacts between Kalinga and Bali : A Historical Perspective Dr. Benudhar Patra Kalinga or Odisha in ancient times had brisk culture of India. Hindu Gods like Shiva, Vishnu, overseas contact with different parts of the world. Brahma, Indra, Varuna, and Ganesha are In the process, Odia culture, customs, beliefs, worshipped and highly venerated in Bali. ideas, language, script and manners were H.B.Sarkar3 very correctly says, “Indeed, all popularised in those lands where settlements were known gods of any importance in the Hindu and established by Odia merchants, missionaries and Buddhist pantheon of India had their heyday in political adventurers. The maritime trade of Bali.” Lord Shiva, however, was considered the Kalinga brought in vast amount of wealth and supreme and most powerful deity. He was the glory, and the prosperity of Kalinga beyond doubt presiding deity and was considered the elder was largely due to her overseas trade with distant brother of Buddha. According to traditional lands. The people of ancient Odisha maintained beliefs, Bali was the centre of Universe and the enduring commercial and cultural relationship with abode of Gods. The Balinese verses, which refer the Indonesian islands of Java, Sumatra, Bali and to five pious women are very much similar to India Borneo, collectively known as Suvarnadvipa i.e., “Om Ahalya Draupadi Sita Dara (for Tara) (roughly modern Indonesia). They played a Mandodari tatha panchakanya smarennityam." leading role in the dissemination of their culture Besides Hinduism, Buddhism was also very and civilization in the Indonesian island of Bali. In popular in ancient Bali. Indian influence on Bali fact, Indonesian islands, particularly the island of could be marked in composition of works on Bali, formed the most attractive destination for astrology (Balinese called it wariga). Sanskrit the merchants of ancient Odisha. also influenced to a great extent the language and The island of Bali is situated between Java literature of the Balinese. The Balinese also and Lombok. In the Chinese sources it has been celebrate Indian festivals like Shivaratri, mentioned as Poli. 1 The Chinese pilgrim I-Tsing,2 Saraswati puja, Durga puja etc. The name Bali who stayed at Sri Vijaya, mentions the name of is said to have originated from the kingdom of the Poli (Bali) among other islands. Bali is the only pious demon emperor Maha Bali (of the vamana island, in the whole of Indonesia, where Hinduism, avatar fame), who had gifted away the entire blended with Balinese concepts, is still prevalent. world to Lord Vishnu, who came to him in the Even now Bali is a veritable repository of the Hindu disguise of a midget.4 34 November - 2016 Odisha Review ISSN 0970-8669 There are ample proofs to testify that the voyages to the island of Bali and had their Hindu influence from India reached Bali as a result settlements in the island who consequently of direct contact between the two countries. disseminated Hindu culture there. As a result, the Recent archaeological discoveries indicate that the whole island of Bali was Hinduised. The contact between India and Indonesia, particularly reminiscent of this link of the glorious past has Bali, had been occurring at least from the been preserved in a festival of Odisha known as beginning of Christian era (Common Era or CE).5 Bali yatra, celebrated throughout the length and The discovery of Indian rouletted ware of first breadth of Odisha. It is also otherwise known as and second centuries CE from Sembiran (in north- boita bandana festival. It is celebrated on the east Bali) have established the fact that Indian auspicious purnima (full-moon) day in the month traders were coming to the region. Discovery of of kartika (October-November). Even today, rouletted ware, glass beads, semi-precious stone the people of Odisha celebrate this festival with beads, potsherds with kharosthi characters etc., much pomp and ceremony by sailing boats of from Bali points to ancient cultural contact banana peel in rivers, ponds and sea. The lit boats between Bali and different regions of India. carry betel leaf and betel nuts as token of Archaeological findings refer to the development merchandise and are sent off amidst chanting of of a trading network between eastern coast of nostalgic refrains: India, Sri Lanka and Bali. The Hindu texts such as Vrihat Samhita and Kathasarita Sagara “aa – ka – ma – ba (bha) i inform us that there were trade relations between pana – gua – thoi India and Bali since very early times. However, pana-gua-tora the earliest Indian literary source which masaka dharama mora” authentically mentions about the island of Bali is At Gadagadia ghatta of Cuttack, on the the Buddhist text Aryamanjusrimulakalpa (c. bank of the great river Mahanadi, people of seventh-eighth century CE) which mentions Odisha, irrespective of age, sex and caste, “Dvipe varusake chaiva nagnavali celebrate this festival in great earnest and pomp. samudbhabe yavadvipoba …” In the opinion On this auspicious day (kartika purnima), early of K.S.Behera, 6 varusake of the text is evidently in the morning, every household floats down in Sumatra, nagna dvipa is the Nicobar island, Yava the sea, river, stream or even in the village tank dvipa is Java and vali is no doubt, the island of (whichever is near or favourable to them), a gaily Bali. decorated sholapith, banana stem or paper boat Kalinga had close links with the Hindu with all paraphernalia of a real ship to mark the kingdom of Bali. The island of Bali was known to beginning of the voyage of shipping season. The the sailors of Kalinga as Narikela dvipa. Many scene of the celebration of the festival Balinese inscriptions refer to Bali as the island of automatically creates a nostalgic mood in the minds coconut. The Poh Inscription of Bali (c. 905 CE) of the spectators. In the words of A.K. Mishra, 9 mentions that Bali was the island of coconut “The cold and misty dawn suddenly becomes (wanuari rumaksan ringnyu)7 and once was the vibrant and takes on a festive look as men, women centre of Odisha’s commercial and maritime and children, attired in colourful costumes throng activities.8 The sailors of Kalinga made frequent all waterfronts carrying tiny boats made either of November - 2016 35 ISSN 0970-8669 Odisha Review banana peels, or sholapith, or paper, with lighted script, spoken and written in contemporary lamps inside, in a frenzied bid to launch those Odisha.12 P.C. Rath, 13 on the basis of the language brightly lit toy vessels on the gentle waves to the and script used in this 14th century CE inscription accompaniment of ululations by women, blowing alludes that this might indicate ‘the arrival of a of conch, and occasional burst of crackers.” Again new batch of immigrants in sufficiently large he observes, “The receding line of the flickering number.’ The scripts used in Bali in the tenth lamps and spectacle of a large number of Oriya century CE were also used in Kalinga. Hence, [Odia] women, in colourful saris, for performing on the basis of this, the contact between Odisha the rite of ‘Boita-Bandana’ (the ceremonial send- and Bali can be easily established. off to the sailing ships) evoke the memories of the Odisha played a significant role in the voyages of the adventurous Kalingans of yore and 10 evolution of Hindu culture in Bali. A section of create a truly romantic and nostalgic mood.” The brahmanas in the Karangasam district of Bali small hours of the morning of kartika purnima styled themselves as Brahmana-Bouddha - were used to be considered as the most auspicious Kalinga. It seems very likely that their ancestors and suitable time for the beginning of sea journey. were immigrants from Kalinga. In this context, it Kalinga and the island of Bali have is worthwhile to mention that some words and influenced each other’s culture to a very usages with regard to vocabulary, crafts, religious considerable extent, though the share of practices, form of worship, food habits and Kalingans was more. I.G.P. Phalgunadi, an manners prevalent in Bali are indubitably of Odia Indonesian scholar who visited Odisha and did in origin. There are linguistic parallels between some field work in connection of his research was Odisha and the island of Bali. For example, in the pleasantly surprised at many instances of similarity coastal districts of Odisha, mother is addressed between the culture and life styles of the people as bou and father as baba and in Bali the former of both the places. There are many cultural is called bu (boo) and the latter as bapa. In some elements that are similar between Odisha and Bali, places of Odisha, father is also called as bapa e.g. religious activities, dance forms, art and crafts, (the author was addressing his father as bapa temples and monuments, textile designs, even while his wife is addressing her father as food habits, manners and the vocabulary. Temples baba).The Balinese term for betel-nut is buah14 as socio-cultural centres are common both to Bali (goah) and in Odisha it is gua or guah. Cina/ and Odisha. The discovery of similar type of China is the Balinese word for groundnut, while rouletted ware at Sembiran, located in north in Odia it is china or chinabadam. Both Balinese eastern Bali and from the sites like as well as Odias used to call uncooked rice made Shishupalagarh, Manikpatna, Tamluk etc., of out of part-boiled (or sun dried) paddy as arua.15 Odisha suggest trade contact between Odisha and The plough is called lengallo in Bali while the the island of Bali.11 Interestingly, a potsherd from Odias used the term langala for the same.