Asia > Indonesia > Nusa Tenggara/ Southeast Islands > Bali > Archaeology > Articles > Waters of Life: Bali Goes World Heritage

“These steps were built over 700 years ago by a race of giants”, said Ngakan Madé Dana, an expert on the ancient heritage of Bali. “They were nearly four metres tall – and you can still see one of their footprints embedded in this rock”, he added, pointing to what looked remarkably like a size 23 human foot solidly imprinted in one of the stone steps below Pura Pengukur-ukuran Temple.

I tried to detect a hint of leg-pulling on his face, but there was none. Nor did any of the other Balinese seem to harbour the slightest disbelief in the “giants” story.

“The leader of the giants was Kebo Iwa”, Ngakan Madé went on. “And even today, bands of wong samar (spirit figures) from that time live on the banks of the Pakerisan River just below us. They even hold pig-roasts on the riverbanks, and bring the excess meat up to us in the village.”

My doubts were fast turning into derision. But it was harder to discredit the story of Kebo Iwa, the “Giant of Pejeng”, who is quite literally a larger-than-life figure in Balinese history/legend. It is said that by his teens he was as big as a buffalo, and later that he became Chief Minister to the 14th Century King of Bedugul.

I hadn’t reckoned on encountering the power of Kebo Iwa while in Bali, but had heard a little about one of the other central themes of Balinese belief – the healing and life-giving power of water. This theme is a liquid thread that runs through all aspects of the island’s culture – so much so that all three of the Balinese sites nominated in early 2007 for UNESCO World Heritage listing have an intimate connection with water.

Astonishingly, the island of Bali has until now had no World Heritage listings, despite the listing of a number of sites in other parts of Indonesia - including the temples of Borobodur and Prambanan in Java. But all this is now set to change, with the visit by a UNESCO delegation to three nominated Balinese sites - the aforementioned Pakerisan riverbanks near Gianyar, the terraced rice fields of Jatiluwih and Mengwi’s Taman Ayun temple.

With tourist numbers in Bali still way down following the bombings of 2002 and 2005, I spoke to the project co-ordinator Drs Ida Bagus Kade Subiksu, of the Ministry of Cultural Affairs, about the proposed World Heritage listings. “If all goes well, the nominated sites should be listed by next year (2008)”, he said. “I hope this will lead to an increase in the number of visitors to the sites, as the people of these districts who rely on tourism badly need the income.”

Stretched out along a narrow corridor between the sacred Pakerisan and Petanu Rivers the Tukad Pakerisan riverbanks are home to some of Bali’s finest treasures. In the citation for World Heritage listing, eight sites in this area are listed, the most important being Pura Tirtha Empul (Bali’s most revered holy spring), Goa Gajah Cave and Pegulingan Temple. The “Temple of the Giants” Pura Pengukur-ukuran by contrast is little-known and little-visited, but it is surely one of the most intriguing.

By good fortune I visited Pura Tirtha Empul on a full moon day, when the temple’s sacred pools are thronged with visitors. The word “tirtha” means “water” in High Balinese, and for over a thousand years people have been making the pilgrimage to Tirtha Empul to bathe in and drink the waters of its springs. Abandoning usual caution about not drinking the water in Bali, I took a swig – with no noticeable side-effects. Near the bathing pool, temple priests bless the faithful with offerings of holy water.

Like most Balinese temples, Pura Tirtha Empul is laid out in three mandalas, or concentric circles. The inner mandala is meant to represent the world of heaven, the middle circle the world of human beings, and the outer circle the environment. To a Westerner taught to think of heaven as being somewhere “up there”, this arrangement turns reality right on its head.

Not far from Pura Tirtha Empul, you have to walk through rice paddies to get to Pura Pegulingan, near the traditional village of Basangambu. Not many people make the (minimal) effort, so it’s good to have room to properly experience the extraordinary juxtaposition of Buddhist stupa and Hindu monuments. Pegulingan Temple is dedicated to a foursome made up of the Hindu trinity Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma plus Mahadeva, the Balinese term for the Buddha.

Further downstream on the Petanu River, Pura Goa Gajah or “the Elephant Cave Temple” is something else again. The two sections – Hindu and Buddhist – are separated. Sadly, most of the Buddhist section (on the lower riverbanks) was destroyed in the eruption of Mount Agung in 1963.

The name Goa Gajah is itself something of a mystery. “There aren’t any elephants in Bali”, said a local guide. So how did the name come about? Some say it’s named after the Hindu elephant god Ganesha, while others say it comes from the old Balinese name for the cave – antakunjarapada, in which “kunjara” means “elephant”. Maybe the truth has yet to be revealed, as the main archaeological finds at the site – including a 1,000 year old Indian style step well and bathing pools - were not excavated until 1954, and there is still much conjecture about whether Buddhism or Hinduism came here first.

Other temples along the Pakerisan River also have their own special features. Gunung Kawi consists of two rows of royal tombs deep in a ravine overlooked by terraced rice-fields. Once again, the theme of sacred waters underpins their construction.

The other two World Heritage sites – the Jatiluwih rice terraces and the Taman Ayun Temple, are both in Bali’s Tabanan Regency, northwest of Denpasar. The rice terraces are located in Penebel sub-regency, and I set out to visit this site with I Gusti Ngurah Yudhi, a member of the former ruling family of Penebel. Ngurah Yudhi traces his ancestry back some 950 years to the early rulers of eastern Java, who migrated to Bali in the 14th Century.

The road from Tabanan city to Jatiluwih climbs steeply past Penebel village. We’re entering subak country, the heartland of the ancient Balinese system of hydraulic engineering. A subak is a co-op of rice-growers who work adjacent fields sharing a common water supply. In total Bali has about 1,200 of these collectives.

The village of Utu, at the start of “terrace territory”, sits starkly atop a hill. Below the village, rice terraces cascade down into the Utu River gorge. On the other side of the gorge, other terraces rise up towards Jatiluwih, so that the whole landscape resembles the tiered seating in a giant football stadium.

But at least it’s a green stadium. The shimmering colours of the ripening rice-stalks ripple across the fields as in a Renoir painting. Dotted amongst the terraces are small temples, to which the rice deities are invited at every important stage in the growing cycle. From planting to weed cultivation and final harvest, each stage is marked by elaborate ceremonies.

I took a rest at the very relaxing hilltop café in Jatiluwih village, with awesome views of the surrounding countryside. Then it was back to Penebel village via a rutted and little-used loop route though the timber-cutting settlement of Kesambi, thence through the villages of Mengesta and Kedampal Pitra. A fun way to make this downhill trip and enjoy the awesome scenery is by bicycle (see Trip Notes for details).

The third site nominated for World Heritage listing is Pura Taman Ayun, an eclectic temple mixing Balinese and Chinese architectural styles. Once again, the theme is water, with the temple being surrounded by a moat from which water flows in different directions. This is meant to be a representation of the Balinese cosmological system, in which the world is encircled by “secret oceans”.

Once again, the Balinese view of the world had me stumped. Heaven is within, water is “out there” and…there’s one other thing I didn’t mention - namely, that the Pakerisan River derives its name from the word kris, the name of a magical metal dagger.

But as JK Rowling would say, that’s another story!

Getting there
The nominated sites are in two districts: Gianyar regency, NE of Denpasar, and Tabanan regency, NW of Denpasar.

To the NE: From Denpasar, take the Ubud road through the village of Mas. Ten km before reaching Ubud, turn east onto the Gianyar road. Goa Gajah is about five km from the turnoff (and 25 km from Denpasar). Then turn north onto the road to Tampaksiring. Pejeng village (for Pengukur-ukuran Temple*) is about 8 km north of Goa Gajah (or 33 km from Denpasar). Tirtha Empul is 14 km north of Goa Gajah (ie 39 km from Denpasar), and Pegulingan Temple is a further three km.

* NB Pengukur-ukuran Temple is a little hard to find. Best take a guide. Ngakan Madé Dana and others who know the area well hang out in the market square opposite the Moon Temple in Pejeng village.

To the NW: Tabanan town is 33 km NW of Denpasar. The rice terraces start about 47 km from Denpasar, and extend as far as Jatiluwih (about 58 km from Denpasar)

Mengwi is about 11 km east of Tabanan (or 17 km from Denpasar). Taman Ayun Temple is just out of town, to the north. Things to do: Fun tours of the rice-terraces by ATV or bicycle are run by Bhutours (402 Jalan Bypass Ngurah Rai, Sanur, Bali, tel (+62) 361 288 488; see http://www.bhutours.com/optional/paddy_adventure/index.php

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