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Metatah (Teeth Filing)

Bali's Cultures

Metatah is one of the religious ceremonies that must be done by the Balinese Hindus (Hindu Dharma) adherent. Metatah is a ceremony to smooth six upper teeth of teenager by using the tight-fisted.

The filing ceremony of the six teeth is a symbol of filing six human natures which are considered as enemy of human being. Those six enemies are: Kama (uncontrollable desire); loba (greed, always want to get more); krodha (unmanageable anger); mada (intoxication that brings dark thoughts); moha (confusion that lead to someone unable to finish tasks perfectly); matsarya (jealousy that caused hostility). Those Six natures that are enemies of human are called sad ripu.

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The Process of Teeth Filing

The teeth filing (metatah) process takes about 10-15 minutes. The filing is done by a dental specialist called as sangging. Before the ceremony started the sangging will read magical spells to ensure that ceremony run smoothly.

After the magical spells reading, sangging will write a mystical property of 'Ongkara' on the teeth and chest using a ruby ring. This Ring is also useful to protect the ceremony from the attacks of black magic. Before the filing of teeth the mouth of the teenager will be first propped with lumber or sugar cane. The teenage will then rinse his mouth with turmeric distillation water.

When the ceremony has ended then teenagers whose teeth are filed will bite betel leaf. The saliva will be collected on an ivory coconut. The ritual ended with a sprinkle of each teenager with purified water (tirtha).

Metatah ceremony is very expensive. Therefore, the ceremony is usually done in mass. The ceremony is frequently performed between July to August.