Bali, Saivism

"The two greatest epics of Hindu literature, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, were hugely influential. Three thousand years after they were composed, one has only to visit a Wayang Kulit - shadow puppet - performance in one of the villages in Bali and see the rapt attention of the audience to understand the grip that these wonderful stories have upon Hindus even today."

"In Bali, Saivism is by far the most important than Visnu. Hindu man, faced with the overwhelming problems of life, sees Siva as a vigorous force that energetically breaks down everything that Visnu has protected and Brahma has produced.

(pic: The Barong dance of Bali depicting Dewi Kunti of the Royal court of Hastinapura - from the Epic of Mahabharata.)