The Gringsing cloth found in the village of Tenganan, East Bali ranks among the most-rare and most sought-after form of traditional textile found anywhere in the world. Made from hand-spun threads that are tie-dyed with the final design embedded in both the warp and weft (woof) at the time of dying. Almost unimaginably complex in its execution, a fine quality gringsing can take 2-5 years to produce. The word “gringsing” is derived from “gring” meaning “sick” and “sing” meaning “no.” The meaning has evolved to mean a way to ward off armies or enemies in a wide variety of forms. Accordingly, gringsing is an important omen of good and plays a central role in religious rights of passage such as weddings and tooth-filings performed in Tenganan.
The people of Tenganan believe the gringsing possesses magic powers, necessary for religious practice and capable of warding off sickness and bad influences. Textile experts say that the complex “double ikat” cloths can be found in only three locations: Tenganan in East Bali, Japan and India. While the varieties of gringsing once numbered around 20, there are only around 14 types of “double ikat” extant in Tenganan today. An listing of some of the remaining forms of gringsing still being made by the village's traditional weavers are: Lubeng – is characterized by a scorpion motif and used as traditional dress and worn at religious rites. There are several variations of Lubeng including the Lubeng Luhur that is the longest piece comprised of three flowers resembling scorpions; Lubeng Petang Desa comprised of a one complete floral scorpion surrounded by half-flowers on its border; Lubeng Pat Likur - the smallest piece of the Lubeng sub-class. Sanan Empeg – characterized by poleng or a checkerboard design of red and white. This cloth is used for religious rites.
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