During Galungan (February 28 to March 9, 2024), every house is decorated with penjar pillars at the entrance. It is believed that during the ten days of Galungan, all the gods will come down to earth and join the festivities. The last day of the 10-day celebration is Kuningan (March 9, 2024), which is a day to pray and pay homage to ancestors. The Balinese believe that Kuningan day is the day when their ancestors return to heaven after visiting the earth during Galungan celebration.
The Ogah-Ogah Festival is kind of like Balinese New Year’s Eve. It is a massive celebration that takes place throughout the entire island. Each village has their own celebration, one that involves a lot of dancing, drumming, and parades. The name comes from the massive structures they build out of various materials, ranging from weird to terrifying. These structures are demons, or Ogah-Ogah, and will be set on fire at the end of the night before the New Year begins.
The burning of the Ogah-Ogah represents leaving your demons behind in the past year. Everyone gets a fresh start without having to worry or stress about things that happened in the past.
Nyepi is the Balinese New Year and Ogah-Ogah always takes place the night before the Balinese New Year. Usually, this is in March of the Gregorian Calendar, but the actual date varies.