The 10-day Hindu festival celebrates the victory of good over evil and is one of the most sacred periods in the Balinese calendar.
Hundreds of Bali residents are thought to have returned home to mark the start of the festival, despite the looming threat of a Mount Agung eruption.
Made Dwi, a local of the Besakih village told Antara News: “Prayers are being held at the family temple, the village temple, and other various temples.”
“Some people have returned home and stay in each other’s homes, but there are still many in the refugee camps because their neighbourhoods are still in disaster prone spots.”
Officials lowered the Bali volcano‘s alert from level four to level three on Sunday, but there is still a 7.5 kilometre exclusion zone surrounding its crater.
Six villages and Pura Besakih, the largest and holiest temple in Bali, lie within the danger zone but many residents ventured back to make festival preparations.
“I am really confused because I do not have money to prepare for the holidays, local Nyoman Wenten said ahead of the festivities.
“For Galungan, you should buy materials, ranging from ceremonial and ritual items to food.”
The festival of Galungan runs between November 1 and 11 and celebrates a time when ancestral spirits return to walk the Earth.
The sacrifice of pigs and the consumption of pork is a deeply held tradition during Galungan.
Mount Agung has not erupted since 1963 when a series of explosions killed more than 1,100 people.
Seismic activity underneath the volcano has dipped in recent days, but the head of Bali’s Volcanology Centre (PVMBG) has warned that the threat of an eruption has not passed.
“The volcanic activities have not completely calmed down and there is still a potential for an eruption,” he said.
Bali’s Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) has assured worried refugees that they will not be made to leave the camps if their village is just outside the danger zone.
“We did not force them to return home and they can stay at the refugee camp for as long as they want,” Putu Widada, head of the local BPBD said.