Myth as Ritual Foundation: A Semiotic Analysis of the Mayadenawa Narrative in Balinese Religious Practice
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24843/JKB.2026.v16.i01.p08Keywords:
Mayadenawa, myth, semiotics, ritual, Balinese Hinduism, GalunganAbstract
This article examines the Mayadenawa myth as a semiotic foundation of Balinese Hindu ritual, with particular attention to the Galungan festival. Galungan is a major religious celebration held every 210 days in Bali to commemorate the victory of dharma (cosmic order) over adharma (disorder) and to mark the return of ancestral spirits to the human realm. Employing Barthes’ theory of two-order signification, this study analyzes the Mayadenawa narrative at the levels of denotation, connotation, and myth. The findings show that the myth functions not merely as a narrative of divine conflict, but as a cultural sign system that legitimizes ritual practice and naturalizes moral and religious values. By applying a semiotic approach, this study moves beyond descriptive interpretations and demonstrates how myth operates ideologically to sustain Balinese Hindu identity through rituals.
References
Althusser, L. (2008). Tentang Ideologi: Marxisme, Strukturalisme, Psikoanalisis, Cultural Studies. Jalasutra.
Ardika, I. W. (2015). Sejarah Bali: Dari Prasejarah Hingga Modern. Udayana University Press.
Arta, I. G. A. J. (2022). Mitologi Tirta Empul dalam Teks Usana Bali: Kajian Teologi Sosial. Maha Widya Bhuwana: Jurnal Pendidikan, Agama dan Budaya, 5(1), 8-15. https://doi.org/10.55115/bhuwana.v5i1.1471
Arshiniwati, N. M. & Peradantha, I.B.G.S. (2025). Reviving the Sanghyang Grodog Ritual Dance: Promoting Social Harmony and Sustainable Cultural Tourism in Nusa Lembongan Island, Bali. Jurnal Kajian Bali (Journal of Bali Studies), 15(1), 61–91. https://doi.org/10.24843/JKB.2025.v15.i01.p03
Barthes, R. (1972). Mythologies. Hill and Wang.
Barthes, R. (1982). Empire of Signs. Hill and Wang.
Chandler, D. (2017). Semiotics: The Basics (3rd ed.). Routledge.
Ciptahadi, K. G. O., Waisaka, A. A. N. M. C. D., & Budhayana, I. W. A. (2021). Ilustrasi Animasi 3D Sejarah Hari Raya Galungan di Pulau Bali. Jurnal Informatika, 9(2), 1–9. Retrieved from https://www.ejournal.lembahdempo.ac.id/index.php/AMIK-JI
Cobley, P. (2010). The Routledge Companion to Semiotics. Routledge.
Creswell, J. W. (2018). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches (5th ed.). Sage.
Creswell, J. W. (2022). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches (6th ed.). Sage.
Danesi, M. (2004). Of Meaning and Madness: Semioticians on Myth and Identity. University of Toronto Press.
Donder, K., Sudarsana, I. K., Rat Dwiyana Putra, I. D. G., & Devi Maheswari, P. (2025). Spiritual Vibrations and Vedic Philosophy as Foundations of Balinese Culture and Global Appeal: The Sakala-Niskala as Parā Vidyā-Aparā Vidyā Paradigm. Jurnal Kajian Bali (Journal of Bali Studies), 15(3), 1159–1189. https://doi.org/10.24843/JKB.2025.v15.i03.p10
Eagleton, T. (1991). Ideology: An Introduction. Verso.
Eco, U. (1976). A Theory of Semiotics. Indiana University Press.
Eiseman, F. (1990). Bali: Sekala and Niskala. Periplus.
Eliade, M. (1963). Myth and Reality. Harper & Row.
Spirit, N. W. E. (2023). Makna dan Fungsi Upacara Galungan dalam Kehidupan Spiritual Umat Hindu di Bali. Jurnal Ilmiah Multidisiplin, 1(1), 345–349. https://doi.org/10.62017/merdeka
Fairclough, N. (2015). Language and Power (3rd ed.). Routledge.
Geertz, C. (1973). The Interpretation of Cultures. Basic Books.
Girard, R. (1977). Violence and the Sacred. Johns Hopkins University Press.
Goris, R. (1954). Prasasti Bali: Inscripties voor Anak Wungçu (Vol. 1). N. V. Masa Baru.
Gramsci, A. (1971). Selections from the Prison Notebooks (Q. Hoare & G. Nowell Smith, Eds. & Trans.). International Publishers.
Hinzler, H. I. R. (1986). The Usana Bali as a Source of History. In T. Abdullah (Ed.), Papers of the Indonesian-Dutch Historical Conference (124–162). Gadjah Mada University Press.
Hobart, A. (2003). Healing performances of Bali: Between darkness and light. Berghahn Books.
Irwanti, N.K.D & Adnyani, I.A.S. (2022). Perbaikan Postur Kerja melalui Konsep Tri Angga untuk Meningkatkan Kualitas Kesehatan Pendeta Hindu di Pura Tirta Empul Tampaksiring Bali . Jurnal Kajian Bali (Journal of Bali Studies), 12(1), 197–222. https://doi.org/10.24843/JKB.2022.v12.i01.p10
Lansing, J. S. (1983). The Three Worlds of Bali. Praeger.
Leach, E. (1976). Culture and Communication: The Logic by which Symbols are Connected. Cambridge University Press.
Picard, M. (1996). Bali: Cultural Tourism and Touristic Culture. Archipelago Press.
Pradnyan, I. G. M. S. D., & Rustiani, K. W. (2018). Masyarakat Anomie di Era Mitos Mayadenawa: Perspektif Psikologi Sastra. Ganaya: Jurnal Ilmu Sosial dan Humaniora, 1(2), 213–224. https://jayapanguspress.penerbit.org/index.php/ganaya/article/view/99
Rubinstein, R. (2000). Beyond the Realm of the Senses. KITLV Press.
Satori, D., & Komariah, A. (2009). Metodologi Penelitian Kualitatif. Alfabeta.
Saussure, F. de. (1996). Course in General Linguistics. McGraw-Hill.
Segal, R. A. (1999). Theorizing about Myth. University of Massachusetts Press.
Sriasih, S. A. P., Marta, I. N., Rai, I. B., Aryana, I. B. P. M., & Purnami, I. A. P. (2014). Kontribusi Sastra Tradisional Bali dalam Pendidikan Karakter. In Seminar Nasional Inovatif II (416–424).
Storey, J. (2003). Cultural Theory and Popular Culture: An Introduction. Pearson Education.
Strinati, D. (1995). An Introduction to Theories of Popular Culture. Routledge.
Sturrock, J. (1998). Structuralism and After. Routledge.
Suardana, I. W., Laba, I. N., & Jamnongsarn, S. (2025). Aesthetic Transformations of Ogoh-Ogoh: From Conventional Giant Figures to Hybrid Myth–Popular Culture Characters. Jurnal Kajian Bali (Journal of Bali Studies), 15(3), 1004–1036. https://doi.org/10.24843/JKB.2025.v15.i03.p05
Takwin, B. (2003). Akar-akar Ideologi. Jalasutra.
Thompson, J. B. (1990). Ideology and Modern Culture. Stanford University Press.
Turner, V. (1967). The Forest of Symbols: Aspects of Ndembu Ritual. Cornell University Press.
van Dijk, T. A. (2009). Society and Discourse. Cambridge University Press.
Wijaya, I. N. (2024). The Galungan Holiday in Postmodern Historical Studies. Indonesia Historical Studies, 8(2), 214–228. https://doi.org/10.14710/ihis.v8i2.23607.
Wiradnyana, I. M. (2020). The existence of Māyādanawa story in Bali. International Journal of Linguistics, Literature and Culture, 6(1), 62–69. https://doi.org/10.21744/ijllc.v6n1.844.
