Bayung Gede Placenta Graveyard 巴勇格德胎盘墓地

In this Balinese village, coconut shells containing placentas are hung from trees. 

A SACRED GARDEN GROWS ALONG the southern edge of a Balinese village. The trees’ branches bear more than just fruit: they’re also draped with coconut shells containing human placentas.

In Bali, Indonesia, a newborn’s placenta is seen as an invisible, spiritual sibling to the child (the word for placenta, Ari-Ari, translates to “younger sibling”). Traditionally, the placentas are bathed in fragrant, floral water, then sealed inside a coconut shell before being buried beneath a plant within the family’s yard.

But the village of Bayung Gede has a different custom. In this village’s Setra Ari-Ari (placenta graveyard), the placenta-carrying coconuts are hung from the branches of the bukak trees, forming a sacred garden. The residents of Bayung Gede have been following this unique tradition for centuries. According to local legend, the custom is as old as the village itself.

It’s believed that the bukak tree’s sap and fruit can help absorb the smell of the decaying organs. After a tree has been adorned with placentas, its branches are sliced to better release the sap held within.

在这个巴厘岛村庄，含有胎盘的椰子壳挂在树上。

一个神圣的花园沿着巴厘岛村庄的南部边缘生长。这些树的树枝不仅结出果实：它们还覆盖着含有人类胎盘的椰子壳。

在印度尼西亚巴厘岛，新生儿的胎盘被视为孩子的无形的、精神上的兄弟姐妹（胎盘这个词，Ari-Ari，翻译为“弟弟妹妹”）。传统上，将胎盘浸泡在芬芳的花水中，然后密封在椰子壳内，然后埋在家庭院子里的植物下。

但巴永格德村却有不同的习俗。在这个村子的 Setra Ari-Ari（胎盘墓地）里，携带胎盘的椰子挂在 bukak 树的树枝上，形成了一个神圣的花园。巴永格德的居民几个世纪以来一直遵循这一独特的传统。据当地传说，这种习俗与村庄本身一样古老。

人们相信，bukak 树的汁液和果实可以帮助吸收腐烂器官的气味。用胎盘装饰一棵树后，将其树枝切成薄片以更好地释放其中的汁液。