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Moon of Pejeng

bulan bulan my friend the moon

pale beauty always shining

bulan bulan my friend the moon

I know why you are lonely

once long ago this starry sky

held two moons that were lovers

one fateful night one fell to earth

caught fast amongst tree branches

blinding thieves from this close height

they ceased their nefarious actions

the boldest man climbed up to see

how to stop the moonlight streaming

then shame of shames

he adjusted his kain

and on her he started peeing

poor moon exploded killing all

now to the ground has fallen

a giant crack at base

such loss of face

forlornly to her mate keeps calling.

some people saw her awful plight

their hearts were filled with pity

they picked her up and placed her safe

and hid her in their temple

bulan bulan my friend the moon

pale beauty softly shining

bulan bulan my friend the moon

in Pejeng your love waits crying

The Moon of Pejeng

A Balinese legend relates that originally there was more than one moon in the night sky and how the moon fell to earth and landed in a tree. It was shining so brightly that it prevented thieves going about their nefarious nightly pursuits. One of the thieves climbed into a tree and put out the light by urinating on it. The moon exploded, killing him. It fell to earth as a gong with a crack in its base as a result of the fall.

The huge bronze gong known as the Moon of Pejeng is a relic of the Bronze Age in Indonesia. The hourglass shaped gong is nearly two metres long. It is one of the largest single cast gongs in the world. The Balinese believe the Moon of Pejeng possesses great magical power.

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