Or a working year of six months. German sociologist Ulrich Becker similarly claims that 'There is a life beyond the alternatives of unemployment and stress at work . . . The closest prototype that we can find in the new millennium for a 'World in Balance' is occurring in Bali and some other traditional societies. People visiting Bali are astonished by the unusually vibrant and artistic quality of daily life. Every village has 50 or more festival holidays throughout the year, with elaborate ephemeral artful expressions.
Houses have elegant carvings, landscapes are exquisite.
Many tourists visiting Bali are not aware that the Balinese consider the performances they see as 'practice sessions'. The 'real performances' happen in the temple or for temple-organized activities. These are what I later define as the 'Cooperative' dimension of life. Temple time' is part of the long tradition of a 'gift economy' in Bali. In the Western world, during the current transition period from the Post-Industrial Age, we may not be ready for a pure gift economy.