File:Cultural-religious tolerance in Indonesia.jpg

English: This photo was taken in Ubud, Bali, Indonesia, a day before Nyepi, the annual Hindu Silence Day, focused on tolerance, meditation, and introspection. 87% of Balinese are Hindu, while 87% of Indonesians are Muslim. The photo depicts women bringing offerings to the community temple, in course of intense religious preparations preceding the most important Hindu celebration of the year, Nyepi. Excerpt from the official speech launching the pre-Nyepi celebrations at Ubud Palace, 10 March 2024, to numerous locals and foreigners gathered in front of the palace: ‘’On behalf of the Balinese Ubud community, I would like to explain to you: Nyepi is a day of tolerance. (…) It started in India, in the year Saka of 78, (…) during a time with a lot of wars between difference in religions, difference in communities, to be able to put it together and celebrate it, by the celebration called Nyepi, the day of tolerance. (…) In Bali we do not care just for tolerance between human to human, but also tolerance between human and environment and nature and also tolerance with yourself, with your inner life, with your feelings, with your emotions, with your thoughts and today is the day you can practice introspection, to recognize it, after that you will be a fresh young man and woman in the world. So that culture came to Indonesia around 426 and then ended up in Bali. Until now we still celebrate the tolerance ceremony of differences. Unity in differences, that is our philosophy in our daily life, between human and human, human and environment and nature and human to God, to your God, whoever he is, whatever you are calling it, whether it is the nature, the universe.” (video available)