Pura Taman Ayun (

Balinese script The Balinese script, natively known as and , (Balinese language, Balinese: ᬅᬓ᭄ᬱᬭᬩᬮᬶ) is an abugida used in the island of Bali, Indonesia, commonly for writing the Austronesian language, Austronesian Balinese language, Kawi la ...

: ᬧᬸᬭᬢᬫᬦ᭄ᬅᬬᬸᬦ᭄) is a compound of

Balinese temple A Balinese temple, or better-known as () is a Balinese culture, Bali-style (commonly associated to Hindu temple, Hindu) temple, it serves as the place of worship for adherents of Balinese Hinduism in Indonesia. Puras are built following rules, s ...

and

garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate bot ...

located in

Mengwi Mengwi (Balinese script: ᬫᭂᬗ᭄ᬯᬶ) is an administrative district (''kecamatan'') in the Badung Regency of Bali Province, Indonesia and is situated to the north of Bali's heaviest tourist regions, which lie in Kuta District (including S ...

district (''

kecamatan In Indonesia, district or ambiguously subdistrict, is the third-level administrative subdivision, below regency or city. The local term is used in the majority of Indonesian areas. The term is used in provinces in Papua. In the Special Regio ...

'') in

Badung Regency Badung Regency (; ) is a Regency (Indonesia), regency (''kabupaten'') of the province of Bali, Indonesia. Its regency seat is in the upland town of Mangupura. It covers districts to the west of the provincial capital of Denpasar, and it has a la ...

Bali Bali (English:; Balinese language, Balinese: ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller o ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

. Its water features are an integral part of the local ''

subak Subak () is an ancient martial art that originated in Korea and uses bare-hand techniques. The term was also used in Korea to refer to any fighting style that used bare hands. It is a different fighting style from Soo Bahk Do, which is a modern ...

'' system.

Location

The temple is in the middle of the town of

, 19 km north of Denpasar.

Description

Taman Ayung, meaning "beautiful garden", is the second-largest temple in Bali. Its whole compound covers , a rectangular piece of land oriented north-south and surrounded to the west, south and east by a large body of water. It is accessed by a bridge on the south side. It has the three sections common to holy temples: outer courtyard (''jabaan'' or ''Nista Mandala''), middle courtyard (''jaba tengah'' or ''Madia Mandala'') and inner sanctuary (''jeroan'' or ''jaba jero'', or ''Utama Mandala''). Each courtyard is separated from the others by a ''

candi bentar Candi bentar, or split gateway, is a classical Javanese and Balinese architecture, Balinese gateway entrance commonly found at the entrance of religious compounds, Kraton (Indonesia), palaces, or cemeteries in Indonesia. It is a Candi of Indonesia ...

'' or split gate. The inner sanctuary, reserved for worshippers, has the highest constructions; its shrines have different heights, ranging from two tiers all the way up to eleven tiers. Here, Hindu gods are venerated as well as the ancestors of the Mengwi dynasty.

Water temple, the ''subak'' system and World Heritage

Water is a large part of its design and that which makes Taman Ayun Temple unique, both in aesthetics and as an essential part of the local irrigation system or ''

''. A large body of water surrounds the whole compound, like a huge moat. The inner sanctuary is also surrounded by a smaller moat. There are multiple ponds, basins and fountains. On 6 July 2012, Pura Taman Ayun became a

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

as one of the five sites defined by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

in the ''Subak'' cultural landscape of Bali. The exact name of that global site is "''Cultural Landscape of Bali Province: the Subak System as a Manifestation of the Tri Hita Karana Philosophy''". For Taman Ayun, it takes in the surface of the compound including the large outer moat; to which it adds a

buffer zone A buffer zone, also historically known as a march, is a neutral area that lies between two or more bodies of land; usually, between countries. Depending on the type of buffer zone, it may serve to separate regions or conjoin them. Common types o ...

of . The temple's waters are said to feed three ''subaks'' in the

. File:014 Gate and Moat, Taman Ayun Temple, Mengwi, Bali, photograph by Anandajoti Bhikkhu.jpg, Moat by a gate File:Taman Ayun Temple - 2015.02 - panoramio.jpg, Moat around the inner sanctuary File:Taman Ayun temple Mengwi-5.jpg, Moat around the inner sanctuary File:Air Mancur dan Kolam di Pura Taman Ayun.jpg, Fountain File:003 The Fountain, Taman Ayun Temple, Mengwi, Bali, photograph by Anandajoti Bhikkhu.jpg, Fountain

History

Taman Ayun was built in 1634 AD (year 1556 on the ''çaka'' calendar) by the king of

Gusti Agung Putu (also known as Cokorda Sakti Blambangan), as a family temple (''pura kawiten'') to honour the spirits of his ancestors. Throughout the centuries, it enderwent several restorations and renovations. According to

Henk Schulte Nordholt H.G.C. "Henk" Schulte Nordholt (born 13 June 1953, in De Bilt) is former head of research at KITLV and emeritus KITLV professor of Indonesian History at Leiden University. His focus is on Southeast Asian history, contemporary politics in Ind ...

, it was renovated in 1750 by an architect named ''Hobin Ho''. The last major renovation was in 1937.

Media and others

The temple garden was featured on the television program '' Around the World in 80 Gardens''. A wing of the complex includes an art gallery, and a theatre showing the history of the temple as told by the Mengwi royal family. This building is linked to the outer courtyard by a ''wantilan'', an open pavilion originally used for cockfighting which now used caters for gatherings and musical performances. The small ''Ogoh Ogoh'' Museum is in Jl. Ayodya, only metres away from the south-west corner of the temple compound. It gathers some ''ogoh ogoh'' figures, representations of demons used in Ngrupuk parade, the day before

Nyepi Nyepi, also known as Day of Silence, is a Balinese people, Balinese holiday held every ''Isakawarsa'' ("new year") according to the Balinese saka calendar, Balinese calendar, and it can be traced as far back as 78 A.D. It displays replicas of Balinese Hindu rituals.

Gallery

File:Taman Ayun temple.jpg,

Meru tower A Meru tower, or pelinggih meru, is the principal shrine of a Balinese temple. It is a wooden, pagoda-like structure with a masonry base, a wooden chamber, and multi-tiered thatched roofs. The height of Meru towers represents the Hindu Mount Meru ...

pagoda A pagoda is a tiered tower with multiple eaves common to Thailand, Cambodia, Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most often Buddhist, but some ...

-like shrines. File:Cockfighting Pavilion, Pura Taman Ayun 1490.jpg, The

wantilan A wantilan (Balinese script: ᬯᬦ᭄ᬢᬶᬮᬦ᭄) is a Balinese pavilion (''bale'') used for activities involving large crowds. A wantilan is the largest type of ''bale'' in Balinese architecture. A wantilan is basically a large wall-less hall ...

or cockfighting pavilion. File:Pura Taman Ayun.JPG, ''Bale bengong'', garden contemplating pavilion. File:Garuda Shrine, Pura Taman Ayun 1509.jpg,

Garuda Garuda (; ; Vedic Sanskrit: , ) is a Hindu deity who is primarily depicted as the mount (''vahana'') of the Hindu god Vishnu. This divine creature is mentioned in the Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain faiths. Garuda is also the half-brother of the D ...

shrine. File:Barong, Pura Taman Ayun 1501.jpg, Barong. File:Guardian Sculptures with European Crowns, Pura Taman Ayun 1498.jpg, Guardian sculptures with European crowns.

References

{{Hindu temples in Indonesia Balinese temples Hindu temples in Indonesia Tourist attractions in Bali Buildings and structures in Bali