Full of Spirit

One of my favorite trips was to Bali. It is an island in Indonesia that is famous for its wooden masks. There I learned how to carve wooden masks.

Carving masks is hard work. After the masks are carved, artists paint them with many colors. They use 15 to 20 coats of paint to get each mask just right. Some artists add hair or jewels.

The masks are used in plays about good and evil. People in Bali believe that the character’s spirit lives in each mask. Wearing masks helps people act as those characters.

Many cultures have similar beliefs about the power of masks.

An actor from Bali wears a mask in a play. The mask helps the actor show the spirit of the character.

An actor from Bali wears a mask in a play. The mask helps the actor show the spirit of the character.

Key Vocabulary

  • carve v., to cut shapes from a material like stone or wood

  • belief n., a feeling that something is true or right

In Other Words

  • coats layers

  • spirit life force

Before You Move On

  • 1. Author’s Point of View Why does the author think that masks have power?

  • 2. Steps in a Process How does an artist in Bali make a wooden mask? List three steps in order.