A visitor to Bali will be struck by the importance of the stories from the Hindu epic the Rāmāyaṇa (see Rāmāyaṇa) in various rituals. In fact, Bali is the only Hindu-Buddhist civilization in Indonesia. The official religion is Bali Hinduism (see Hinduism). Old Balinese and Sanskrit texts on the island indicate Indian influence from perhaps as early as the first millennium BCE. These texts reveal the presence in Old Balinese mythology and religion of such familiar Hindu figures as Gaṇeśa (see Gaṇeśa), Durgā (see Durgā), various Buddhas, Viṣṇu (see Viṣṇu), and Śiva (see Śiva). All the sacred texts of Bali are dedicated to the goddess of speech and wisdom, Sarasvatī (see Sarasvatī), who is the wife of Brahmā (see Brahmā). The Balinese say that the Hindu world center, Mount Meru (see Meru), is in fact their own sacred mountain, Gunung Agung (see Mountain Mythology). The Balinese also have Anantaboga, their own version of the primeval Indian serpent Ananta (see Ananta). There are also remnants in Balinese mythology of pre-Hindu gods such as the popular trickster-like Twalen, who is assimilated into Hinduism as a brother of the great god Siwa (see Śiva).
