Before I could be formally ordained as a Jero Mangku, it was required that I first be initiated into the Hindu faith — the spiritual foundation upon which Balinese ceremonial life is built.
This sacred rite of passage took place in a deeply intimate ceremony, led by the wife of the Brahmin — herself a respected Mangku — and her assistant. At my side throughout was Mangku Jati, holding space, guiding, and witnessing as I crossed this spiritual threshold.
Though the process could be described as a “conversion,” it was far more than that. It was a remembrance. A recognition. A return.
The ceremony marked a sacred alignment between my soul’s calling and the spiritual lineage I had long been walking alongside.
That day, I didn’t feel like I was becoming something new — I felt like I was coming home.
“This was not a change of religion — it was a deepening of my path. The soul already knew. The spirit was simply waiting to be received.”