Yesterday's was actually a big trip, arranged by ViaVia, whose previous introduction had whetted my appetite for this one.

It took us first to a mountain top, then to a shrine, and finally to the sea. A kind of pilgrimage.

This is all about "Kejawen", or Javanese spiritual knowledge and practice. The goal of Kejawen is to gain the spiritual knowledge that enables us to live calmly, wisely, and fully, in a harmonious relationship with God, the universe, and nature.

I am so only scratching the surface of all this. But there is much that I find very attractive. This is a holistic outlook. It touches mind, body, and spirit; it links humans, the spirit realm, and the natural world. And it is very eclectic, comfortably drawing from and/or coexisting with Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam. Pak Moko, our guide, explained that the ideas of energy flows and complementary opposites are even very similar to Chinese beliefs.

Our mountain was Gunung Nglanggeran. Its name means that all bad actions will be caught and stopped. So (after tackling, as is only appropriate, steep slopes and narrow gaps, and stopping to watch Pak Moko make an offering by a beautiful spring), we emerged at the top clean, open-hearted, and ready for blessing (we hope). (More prosaically, we were pretty exhausted... We walk a lot in Yogya, but we don't climb much these days...)

Awesome views, of course.



Our shrine was that of Ki Ageng Giring III. His is an interesting story. Told that the one to drink the contents of a certain coconut, in one draught, would be the one whose son would become king, he goes off to the paddy-fields to work up a thirst. Meanwhile the coconut is drunk by someone else... His friend, who then became Senopati's father.

As his heart sank with disappointment, a bit of the local river sank in sympathy.

But later, a female descendant married into Senopati's family, thereby introducing the genes of Ki Ageng Giring into the royal bloodline after all...

What are we to learn from this story? Seize the day? If you're offered an opportunity, don't delay, but embrace it at once? Yes, maybe. But also -- if we miss that opportunity -- accepting the loss with dignity might bring a second chance... What if Ki Ageng Giring had killed his coconut-slurping friend in a frenzy of disappointment? No more chances after that. Just oblivion. So you face your loss with calm... Very Javanese.

The site of the shrine is beautiful. Very peaceful. Just a couple of men quietly smoking in the shaded area leading to the tomb. We drank some sweet tea, and then were invited into the ante-chamber to make the offering. In my ears, the soft crackling of the kemenyan (gum incense) burning in the stove; the beautiful Javanese prayers; the light wind swooshing the trees outside; the song of the birds... In my nostrils, the sweet smell of the fading flower petals on the children's graves beside me; the scent of the incense... On my face, the cooling breeze... After the prayers, we took the bundles of flowers, now blessed, into the inner chamber, and scattered them on top of the white-swathed tomb.



I could have stayed a very long time in this lovely place, its atmosphere steeped in history and tradition and faith.

But we needed to look after our bodies, too. This we did at Pantai Ngrenehan, a very pretty cove, with squadrons of highly photogenic boats drawn up on its sands.



For dinner: young coconut (how could you not, after the Ki Ageng Giring story?), delicious local tofu, tempe, and crispy rumput laut (seaweed), and great-tasting grilled fish and squid.

And finally, the extraordinary Pantai Ngobaran. Here, in close proximity, are Hindu, Buddhist, Javanese, and Muslim places of worship (and the latter, unusually, faces south).



As the sun was setting, we climbed down the steep steps to a ledge above the beach. Here, in the shelter of the overhanging cliff, we had another offering/meditation.

I generally struggle with meditation. My mind flies about, and is difficult to still. I'm easily distracted. (Even at the lovely tomb of Ki Ageng Giring, I was bothered by an irksome mosquito.) But here, by the sea, it was much easier. Just let your ears fill up with the big, booming sound of the sea and the small, calming sound of the prayers, and focus on the flames from the kemenyan. And -- for oh so brief a time -- your mind gets back in its box, and stops bothering you.

By the time we had finished, the light had drained out of the sky, and the stars had emerged.

From the mountain to the sea. From the sunlight to the starlight. All that remained was the dark and winding road home to Yogya, and sleep...

An almost perfect way to spend our last Sunday of 2013...