Hindu
Pura Besakih
“At the foot of the mountain of the gods, the mother temple to which every temple looks up”
Photo: Philip Nalangan · CC BY 4.0
Scenes
Meaning
Climbing the steep stone stairs, black towers rise tier upon tier against Mount Agung, the topmost of the eleven-tiered tower seeming to touch the clouds.
The largest and holiest temple complex in Bali, set on the slopes of Mount Agung, the island's highest peak, and so regarded as the place nearest to the gods. More than twenty temples gather here as the 'Mother Temple,' and it is said that when Mount Agung erupted in 1963 the lava flowed past the temple, deepening its sanctity.
Field notes
- Location
- Mount Agung, Bali · Indonesia · S8.4° · E115.5°
- Best time
- A clear morning when Mount Agung sheds its clouds, or the day of a great ceremony
- Getting there
- About an hour and a half's drive from Denpasar, on the southwestern slopes of Mount Agung.
- Etiquette
- Wear a sarong and sash; the inner courts are reserved for worshippers, so keep to the set areas.
Sources
- · Encyclopaedia Britannica: Besakih
- · Wikipedia: Besakih Temple
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