
When Rangda strikes her terrible blows. It isn't at all rare for the dancers playing the Barong's followers to become so engrossed in the sacredness of the per- formance that they go into a real trance. A cloud of characters surround the Barong on stage. Rangda, goddess of death, personification of evil, the young girl servant Kalika; Dewi Kunti, queen of the kingdom of Hastina and her stepson Sadewa who will be sacrificed in order to placate the anger of Rangda, the minister Dewi Kunti; Patih who ex- presses sorrow for the fate of Sadewa (Rangda will have to enter his soul in order to make him accept the sacrifice), and then the monkey supporters of the Barong, producers of palm tree wine (nira). A very important element in the entire dance is the large orchestra, known as gamelan, which is essential to underscore the ritual nature of the performance. Many are the instruments that make up the orchestra: some metal xylophones which stand out not only because they are so numerous but because of their power ful and imperious sound; there are also drums as well as flutes, the rebab (a type of violin) and the gender (typical xylophones). All together, these instruments are essential in guiding the dance and underscoring the rhythm of well coordinated movements. These along with the joyful colors are the most alluring elements of this remarkable perfor mance. At the end of the dance, the masks of the Barong and of Rangda, as proof of their sacred nature, are stowed in a special room inside the temple. They are covered very carefully, especially Rangda's mask, because its deadly powers are greatly feared. It's a way of saying that the ritual victory of the Barong, that is of good, which marks the end of the dance, is only temporary: tomorrow the eternal and unresolved conflict could begin again.
The end of the Barong dance is like an entirely separate performance. Also known as the Kris dance, it is named after the famous Malese dagger. The idea is based on the philosophical concept rwa bhineda. good and bad, evil and goodness which have always been present and have always existed together albeit in a constant and inevitably unre solved conflict. Nothing will change in the future. While man is left free to try to develop his positive attitudes and let them win over the negative ones, he must nonetheless resign himself to the fact that the presence of both good and evil is a law of nature and as such must be accepted. When the dance is performed, Rangda is the evil spirit which enters the bodies of his victims, usually followers of the Barong, and pushes them to the edge of suicide. The dancers attempt to stab themselves in the chest with their krises until they are finally stopped by the beneficial appearance of the Barong. It is he who will save these unfortunate beings by revealing that the notion of good and evil will always be inevitably present in the world and in everyone's life and that they must therefore accept it.
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