Sanghyang Jaran Dance Poem by Ahmad Shiddiqi

a small number of men are put into trance
but their transition is much more violent
they fall, convulsed, to the ground
and rush to grab hobbyhorses

force that enters bodies of entranced dancer
a priest is always on hand
to help bring dancers out of their trance-state
at the end of the performance

during the pre-trance chanting
coconut shells have been lit
leaving red-hot coals

the trancers are said
to be attracted by all forms of fire
onlookers are required not to smoke

the entranced dancers
leap into the coals, prancing on top of them
picking up the hot pieces and bathing themselves in fire

kecak chorus men accompany the Sanghyangs
can be seen four times a week in Bona, Bali
where it is claimed that the dancer are
indeed possessed, though by lesser deities

silent, but communicate using complex gestures
of the hand, head and body
story lines usually follow popular myths
or episodes from history

a boy dances around
and bravely through a fire
riding a coconut palm hobbyhorse
Sanghyang means holiness, Jaran means horse