KULKUL | BALINESE WOODEN BELL

Kulkul, A Traditional Balinese Comunity Bell

Kulkul is a big bell made of wood or bamboo used by the various social organization of Balinese society. Like a bell, it is used to indicate time of gathering, ceremony, and in the past to call the people during a strain time resulted by conflict, or criminal. Organizations in Bali are various based on tradition, profession or hobby. The type of sound must be made differently and typical for each organization, so each member of the organization will soon understand to whom the bell rings. For the need of traditional organization Kulkul is made from selected wood such as jackfruit tree, orange tree, and other hard trees, while those made of bamboo are only for temporary use or only for temporal organization such as the group called" Sekeha " The group of Sekaha is mostly related to profession such as cultivating rice, group of hired labor, and others. 

Kulkul or Bell Construction

On the villages of highland where the village and the farming areas are separated often quite far, from 1 to 5 km away, had forced the farmer to build a pavilion or temporary structure on the farm, but only for rest during the day or some time sleeping during a certain season. The pavilion or temporary construction on the farm is called " Pondok " as opposed to " Umah " the house in the village. The Pondok always made in lower quality, compared to Umah, even most were temporary in nature. At Pondok usually, farmers made Kulkul in various sizes and sound colors. One Kulkul is just for children playing, one is to call the poultry when feeding time comes, and others to announce to anyone that the keeper of the farm is presence. This was probably to prevent someone or thief entering the land, although in the past of Bali thievery was rare, and only happened at a certain area of Bali, but it had become the myth of every people of Bali

Function of Kulkul

Kulkul can be said as a symbol of organization in Balinese society with its changes very little over the millennium despite the presence of telephone, and radio as the most effective means of communication.
In the past traditional organization of Balinese such as Desa organization, Banjar organization, Penabuh ( music player ) organization, youth-girl organization, security, Subak, and other temporary organizations, each has a Kulkul which sound must be different from each other. So that every member of the organization will soon realize when the Kulkul is knocked, to whom the call is addressed. Since every one of Balinese can be a member of more than two organizations, both formal and non-formal it is a must to know with reflecting differentiation between the various colors of Kulkul sound.

The use of Kulkul to call members is proceeded by short notice or without short notice who done by one of the members in charge called " Kasinoman" Usually when the member of the organization will have work together, the head and assistants organize a preliminary meeting at the village hall called Bale Banjar. During the head meets the subject is discussed in short including the schedule such as the time of calling the member to join a complete meeting. When the schedule has been fixed, one is assigned to give short notice to the member by visiting from door to door. The short notice will consist of information to the member of the brief subject and the time of the meeting. On the fixed day the Kulkul will be knocked to remind at once to call the member that the time has come. During a ceremony at the temple which takes more than 2 days including preparation of offering at the temple the knocking of the Kulkul will not be preceded with short information from door to door since the announcement usually given during the dismissal of the gathering. The time schedule contains in the announcement will be indicated by the sound of Kulkul, even unexpected gathering to follow which is not on a plan can be called only by knocking the Kulkul.

Some events indicated by the sound of Kulkul without a short door to door notice by the Kasinoman are when one of the members of the village dead, married, emergency and regular meeting/work. In all events normally the sound of the Kulkul is made as " Duang Tulud " meaning two rounds. One round of sound starting with slow, then quicker and quicker frequency as much as knocker could do, then slowing again. When one of the village members is dead the biggest Kulkul or the Banjar organization owned Kulkul is knocked in three-round. Since dead is the obligation of all members of the organization within a village to participate in the activity of burial and ritual. This Kulkul is placed at the Bale Kulkul ( Kulkul pavilion ) near the Bale Banjar. While other Kulkul that relating to the organization of Desa, music player, youth-girl organization, and other organizations belong to the religious activities are place at the temple.

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