Hyang

Hyang (Kawi, Sundanese, Javanese, and Balinese) is a representation of the supreme being, in ancient Java and Bali mythology.

The reverence for this spiritual entity can be found in the folk religions of Java and Bali, such as the Sunda Wiwitan (a.k.a.

It is also referred to as the name for a spiritual existence that has supernatural powers, portrayed like the sun in a dream and often mentioned in a masculine form.

The hyang concept had indigenously developed in the Indonesian archipelago and is not considered to have originated from Indian dharmic religions.

Before the adoption of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam, the natives of the Indonesian archipelago believed in powerful but unseen spiritual entities that could be both benevolent and malevolent.

The ancestral spirit may gain god-like spiritual power and remain involved in their offspring’s worldly affairs.

These mountainous regions are considered sacred realms, as the abode of gods and the resting place for the soul of the ancestors.

Accordingly, traditional Balinese buildings have a wall called an aling-aling just inside the doorway, which keeps the spirits out because they only move in straight lines, and hence bounce off.