There are a lot of holidays and ceremonies in Bali and six of the most important are the tumpek holidays: Tumpek Landep, Tumpek Uduh, Tumpek Kuningan, Tumpek Krulut, Tumpek Kandang and Tumpek Wayang.
Our guide to the tumpek holidays will let you know what to expect if your holiday coincides with one of these joyous occasions.
And don’t worry if you miss one, they’re celebrated every 210 days, and there’s always another chance to enjoy these wonderful holidays in Bali.
The Six Tumpek Holidays In Bali
Tumpek holidays are governed by the complicated Pakuwon Calendar in Bali, but through some rather interesting mathematics, mostly, they fall on a Saturday and occur once every 210 days of the year.
The break down of each holiday is found below along with the dates that the holiday is expected to fall on in the near future.
Tumpek Landep: The Weaponry Celebration
This is the day that celebrates Saniscara Kliwon Wuku Landep. It’s in honour of the God Ida Sang Hyang Pasupati, the creator and owner of all tools (or weapons) made of metal.
It takes place on the second Saturday of the Pawukon Calendar (which runs for 210 days) which is called Tumpek Landep.
Balinese Hindu folk celebrate this occasion by making offerings to Ida Sang Hyang Pasupati and praying for their metal tools (iron, bronze, silver, gold) etc.
However, there’s a deeper meaning to this festival and it’s the time of year that the Balinese community dedicates to sharpening their mind.
They believe that by doing this, they will improve the cleanliness of their souls and develop the right positive attitude that ensures that they will control their impulses and not participate in actions that are impure or incorrect.
The word “landep” translates to “sharp”. A sharp mind is one that is well-prepared to resist stupidity, unhappiness and evil.
This day is also for cleaning and purifying important heirlooms in the Balinese home.
Artists may use Tumpek Landep to focus on “taksu” which is the spiritual power that moves others through their their art. They will then imbue their work with this power to help other people develop a sharp mind and better understand moral behaviour.
One wonderful thing about this day is that it’s also a festival of motorbikes (which are mainly made of metal) and you can often see offerings on the mirrors of the bikes.
Dates For Tumpek Landep
All of these festivals regularly change dates as they are celebrated every 210 days and thus it’s important to keep track of these festivals using a printed calendar for most Balinese.
However, we’ve got the upcoming dates for each festival here too:
2024 – 27th July
2025 – 22nd February and 20th September
2026 – 18th April and 14th November
2027 – 12th June
Tumpek Uduh: The Good Festival
This festival is also called Tumpek Wariga and sometimes, also Tumpek Pengatag.
It’s a day of worship for Sanghyang Sangkara, the good of food. It’s a day for prayer for a bountiful harvest and excellent quality produce.
A blessing is given to the crops in the fields with holy water to ensure excellent quality produce and then, people like to chill out under the shade of a tree.
This festival falls on the Saturday of Saniscare Kliwon Wuky Wariga and as with all other tumpek festivals, it comes around every 210 days.
When the god is happy, it is believed he will keep the plants fertile for the year and defend them from pestilence or other external agents of damage.
This is also a day to pray for spiritual purification and as the holy water blesses the fields, there is hope for rain to wash all unclean thoughts away and to restore the Earth.
Dates For Tumpek Uduh
2024 – 31st August (the 3rd of February is passed as we go to press)
2025 – 29th March, 25th October
2026 – 23rd May, 19th December
2027 – 17th July
Tumpek Kuningan
This is the most famous tumpek holiday as it is paired with another important event in the Bali calendar Galungan and we’ve written an extensive article about Kuningan and Galungan here.
However, Kuningan is “yellow day” and the day is spent in honour of the God Wisnu.
Dates For Tumpek Kuningan
2024 – 5th October (9th March has already passed as we go to press)
2025 – 3rd May, 29th November
2026 – 27th June
2027 – 21st August
Tumpek Krulut: The Day Of Affection
You might consider Tumpek Krulut to be the Balinese Hindu Valentine’s Day but it’s more than that, it’s also a day of music and art.
The gamelan orchestra is blessed and celebrated on this day and dancing and singing will be prominent and somewhat euphoric too.
Offerings are made to Siwanataraja, the god of music, and gongs are rung throughout the island in joyous displays of prayer.
This is one of the best tumpek holidays to enjoy as a foreigner in Bali and Tumpek Krulut is a huge amount of fun.
Dates For Tumpek Krulut
2024 – 13th April, 9th November
2025 – 7th June
2026 – 3rd January, 1st August
2027 – 27th February, 25th September
Tumpek Kandang: The Day Of Household Animals And Animal Welfare
Tumpek Kandang is one of the most popular holidays in Bali and it’s dedicated to Sang Hyang Rare Angon, the god of cattle and livestock and all such creatures.
The farm animals are all sprinkled with holy water and rice and are then offered special food.
Cows are always well looked after in Bali because they are essential to many farmers here for ploughing the rice fields and animal welfare isn’t optional when your life depends on it.
But on Tumpek Kandang, the cow will be given a bath, be dressed up in clothes fit for any person in the village and then be given special coverings for their horns made of coconut leaves!
Pigs also get some special treatment at Tumpek Kandang and their bellies are swathed in an ivory-coloured cloth!
Wildlife preservation is part of the life cycle of the island and Balinese Hindu people take this festival very seriously.
Prayers are offered on this day to help raise people’s awareness of the need to live in harmony with all such creatures that can be found on the land and how the natural environment impacts on our own lives.
After all, without the cows and other animals, Bali wouldn’t be able to look forward to a bountiful harvest of any kind.
Tumpek Kandang is a good day to visit the Sacred Monkey Forest in Ubud too where the monkeys are celebrated.
Dates For Tumpek Kandang
2024 – 18th May, 14th December
2025 – 12th July
2026 – 7th February, 5th September
2027 – 3rd April, 30th October
Tumpek Wayang
Tumpek Wayang is the final tumpek holiday of the 6 tumpek holiday cycle and it’s a very popular day, indeed.
That’s because this is a special day for wayang kulit – the shadow puppets – and Bali’s puppeteers use Tumpek Wayang as a day to honour the Lord Iswara.
They will pray for much of the day and then provide amazing puppet shows for their local villages.
However, don’t think that Tumpek Wayang is all about good news. A baby born on the day of Tumpek Wayang is considered to be cursed.
The Balinese community believes that a child born on this day will be sickly and prone to attack from bad spirits.
A new mother must perform a special ceremony to help purify the baby’s soul and protect the child from potential harm.
The puppeteers have a role in this ceremony as a dalang (puppeteer) must provide a special puppet ritual and provide the holy water for the ritual!
Dates For Tumpek Wayang
2024 – 22nd June
2025 – 18th January, 16th August
2026 – 14th March, 10th October
2027 – 8th May, 4th December
FAQs
Which Calendar System In Bali Gives The Tumpek Holidays?
The Balinese people use the Pawukon Calendar to ascertain the dates of each special ceremony and this includes the tumpek holidays like the tumpek kandang celebration.
Which Tumpek Holiday Is For Household Animals And Animal Welfare?
The Tumpek Kandang celebration is the celebration of animals. Cows, pigs, chickens, ducks, dogs and birds, in particular, are the focus of the festival but other animals are also considered.
These household animals are very important as farm animals and you will find that animal welfare is taken as seriously as human life in farming communities.
How To Book A Holiday In Bali During The Tumpek Holidays?
We always recommend that you book a holiday in Bali through the Bali Res Centre, a local specialist travel agency that is owned and managed from Bali.
They can find you excellent deals on rooms, flights, tours and more and their local knowledge means you can always be certain of having a problem-free itinerary.
Final Thoughts On Tumpek Holidays In Bali
The tumpek holidays are a big deal to local Balinese people and you may find that if your holiday coincides with one of the holidays that it’s worth visiting the temples and villages of Balli to see the traditional rituals and ceremonies associated with them.
Most businesses remain open for these holidays, however, and generally, they are not public holidays.
FINNS Beach Club, the world’s best beach club, will be happy to welcome you to an amazing Bali sunset after you’ve enjoyed one of the tumpek holidays here in Bali.Â
