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| Air Suci (Holy Spring Water) |
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| Blessed with Holy Spring Water |
An excessively popular day trip, Pura Tanah Lot is the most visited
and photographed temple in Bali, especially at sunset when crowds and
traffic overwhelm the site. However, it has all the authenticity of a
stage set – even the tower of rock that the temple sits upon is an
artful reconstruction (the entire structure was crumbling) and over
one-third of the rock is artificial.
For the Balinese, Pura Tanah Lot is one of the most important and venerated sea temples. Like Pura Luhur Ulu Watu, at the tip of the southern Bukit Peninsula, and Pura Rambut Siwi to the west, it is closely associated with the Majapahit priest Nirartha. It’s said that each of the sea temples was intended to be within sight of the next, so they formed a chain along Bali’s southwestern coast – from Pura Tanah Lot you can usually see the clifftop site of Pura Ulu Watu far to the south, and the long sweep of sea shore west to Perancak, near Negara.
But at Tanah Lot itself you may just see from one vendor to the next. To reach the temple, walkways run from the vast parking lots through a mind-boggling sideshow of tatty souvenir shops down to the sea. Clamorous announcements screech out from loudspeakers.
You can walk over to the temple itself at low tide, but non-Balinese people are not allowed to enter.
For the Balinese, Pura Tanah Lot is one of the most important and venerated sea temples. Like Pura Luhur Ulu Watu, at the tip of the southern Bukit Peninsula, and Pura Rambut Siwi to the west, it is closely associated with the Majapahit priest Nirartha. It’s said that each of the sea temples was intended to be within sight of the next, so they formed a chain along Bali’s southwestern coast – from Pura Tanah Lot you can usually see the clifftop site of Pura Ulu Watu far to the south, and the long sweep of sea shore west to Perancak, near Negara.
But at Tanah Lot itself you may just see from one vendor to the next. To reach the temple, walkways run from the vast parking lots through a mind-boggling sideshow of tatty souvenir shops down to the sea. Clamorous announcements screech out from loudspeakers.
You can walk over to the temple itself at low tide, but non-Balinese people are not allowed to enter.
Tanah Lot is one of the important directional temples in Bali. The temple is located on a rock just offshore. It is said to be the work of revered 15th century Hindu priest Nirartha and forms an important element of Balinese spirtualism and mythology.
This is an extremely popular tourist destination and the whole area is often very busy indeed, especially in the late afternoons, pre-sunset. The area between the car park (IDR 5,000 per vehicle) and the beach adjacent to the temple is a maze of souvenir shops selling just about every Balinese trinket imaginable.
Once you have fought your way through the souvenir vendors to the beach, you will see the magnificent temple perched on a rock just a few metres offshore. There is a footpath to the raised cliff area just to the south from where the views of the temple and the sunset behind it are outstanding.
At low tide visitors can walk to to the base of Tanah Lot. For a small donation you can be blessed and can then walk some 20 metres around the side on a path, that eventually leads up to the temple. You have no better view of than from that on the sand. The only advantage being that you are standing on the base of Tanah Lot itself.
Pictures by MSW
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