Nyepi, Ogoh-ogoh and Message to the World

If the world is able to pause for only an hour, a great deal of energy will be saved. It is not only fuel energy, but also human inner energy.

The Day of Silence or Nyepi in the Balinese calendar of Saka 1945 falls on Wednesday, 22 March 2023. Over the last three decades, a parade of ogoh-ogoh (evil-looking hulk effigies) has always marked this holiday on the day of pengrupukan, a ritual on the eve of Nyepi.

The COVID-19 pandemic halted this parade for two years. However, this year the parade will be resumed. What is the relationship between ogoh-ogoh and Nyepi?