Religion in Bali by C. Hooykaas

10 Priests: Padanda (m)
In insular Southeast Asia it is traditional to indicate an elevated person by chiselling his feet in
the rock or by speaking about him and addressing him with: 'the feet' or 'covering of the feet'. In
Bali Chokor da is the highest feudal title, pada n da is used for the brahman or 'high' priest; both
are words for 'foot'. The padanda is far from illiterate for it takes him years to learn the various
rituals. First of all he has to be experienced in the daily adoration of Siwa Aditya or Siwa Surya,
Siwa in His aspect as the God of the Sun. This Surya sewana, worship of the Sun, a ritual which
takes about an hour in the early morning, results in the preparation of two kinds of tirtha. It is
preceded by the priest's circumstantial cleansing himself materially; it goes on with his burning
away of his last defilements, so that the soul of Siwa deigns descend into him. In this way it is
possible to prepare these waters [23].
They are the base of any other ritual, for instance when the padanda is invited to officiate in
bhuta yajna, offering to the bhuta and kala, in order to get rid of them. He also takes care of
manusa yajna, offering to mankind, i.e. the rites de passage meant to undo the dangers menacing
the foetus, the baby, the child, the puber and the bride and groom. He is responsable for pitra
yajna, the offerings which must bring the soul of the deceased to their state of deity in heaven, or
to final liberation. Considering the first mentioned ritual, surya sewana, as dewa yajna, and
leaving controversial resi yajna out of the picture, we have to do with an official five fold task of
the padanda [24].
These five fields, frequently repeated in numerous mimeographed and printed pamphlets,
certainly give a general idea, but they are still far from exhaustive. Often the help of the padanda
is invoked for mlaspas, inauguration, of a building, balé, of a sanggah, altar, and of a padmasana,
'lotus seat', to which Siwa Aditya is invited to descend.
Just like before a cremation the soil in the graveyard has to be purified, so the ground destined
for a building will be made the subject for a ritual of purification. Elaborate ritual is needed for
the purification of a temple.