When thinking of a temple, probably loom in your mind is a whole building is composed of stone or brick red. However, in Gianyar, Bali, there is a temple that is not made of stone structure, but rather takes advantage of wall rocks by the river as a medium to create a house of worship of the Hindus. The trick, stone walls were carved and shaped like a temple walls. Not only is that, the stone walls are also equipped with a meditation room.

This temple is called the Gunug Kawi Temple, or usually also called Tebing Kawi Temple. Although it is one of the protected archaeological sites in Bali, this place remains a place of worship of Hindus to the present. Gunung Kawi own name supposedly comes from the mountain (= mountain or mountains) and Kawi (= carving). So, as the name implies Gunung Kawi means that in this place that a mountain was carved to be a temple. This unique temple complex was first discovered by Dutch researchers around the year 1920. Since then, this temple started attracting the interest of researchers, especially researchers of ancient archaeological Bali. According to estimates by experts, this temple was built around the 11th century AD, during the reign of King Udayana to government Child Wungsu.

According to historical records, King Udayana is one of Bali’s famous kings from Dynasty Marwadewa. Through his marriage to a princess from Java named Gunapriya Dharma Patni, he has a son and son Wungsu grants. As an adult, grants later became king in East Java, while the Son Wungsu ruled in Bali. During this period the estimated climbing Kawi temple was built. One of the archaeological evidence to corroborate this assumption is the inscription over the door that uses a pseudo-Kediri letters that read haji lumah jalu, which means the king who (symbolically) buried in Jalu. The king in question is King Udayana. While the word spur that was the term for spurs (weapons) on a rooster, can be associated as well as a dagger or pakerisan. Name of River or Tukad Pakerisan Pakerisan is now known as the name of the river that divides the two Tebing Kawi Temples. Continue reading 'Gunung Kawi Temple'»