SIGHTS OF MENGWI
The Realm of Royal Architects

According to the chronicles of the rulers of Mengwi, the son of the first Cokorda or Lord of Mengwi, I Gusti Agung Panji, received a shrine in this temple after his death around 1710. The divinity of the temple is Bhatara Jayengrat, the Divine World Conqueror.

At present the complex is venerated and maintained by the people of Kapal, irrespective of their caste or kin group. It was severely damaged during the earthquake of 1917 and was restored by the Archaeological Survey in 1948-49. The leader of the team, Balinese craftsmen was I Made Nama, and it is said that the construction of the tall was quite a challenge for him and his men.

The forecourt of the temple is large and spacious. A big tree grows at the center. The temple complex is surrounded by a wall of red brick constructed in the traditional way, without mortar. By rubbing one stone against the other, a fine powder crumbles from surface layers. When water is added to it the stones can be simply stuck together.

A split gateway on the west side leads to the central courtyard. A second, closed gate way with a three-tiered roof on the west give way to the inner court, in which 16 shrines are to be seen. Right in front of the gateway is the prasada and behind it a square pedestal with 54 little stone seats. These are shrine for the satya, the servants, and facing them one shrine together in the south are the three mekel satya, their leaders.

The following story is connected with them: A long time ago, when a king Majapahit in East Java died, he was cremated and his ashes were carried by 54 men towards the sea in a bamboo tower (bukur) with a tiered roof. The tower was placed on a little boat (kapal), on which were seated 54 followers (patih) of the deceased three leaders (mekel). The boat however was stranded at sea.

This episode has been transposed to the temple and is symbolized in the stone tower at the center and in the pedestals with the 45 and 3 stone seats. The tower is, in fact a replica of the bamboo cremation structure. Close to it, to the south, is a shrine with 11-tiered roof, called "little garden with pond" (taman). During the temple festival Tumpek Kuningan, its "water" is used to bathe the god of the tower. This is in fact very convenient, because then a long tour outside the temple to a bathing place is not necessary.

Replicas of mountains which are important for south Bali (Agung, Batur and Batukaru) are found in north shrines in the no and the east of the inner court. They are always provided with tiered roofs, Called meru. The number of tiers should be odd, the highest being able for the most important peak. In this case it represents Mt Agung.

The main purpose of placing a replica of a mountain or lake in a temple is to save the time and effort needed to actually visit them. This is necessary if one needs holy water for a ritual.

There are more shrines in the north and the east devoted to various divine kings, including a padmasana seat in which the god Siwa in his manifestation as Surya is venerated, and a little building in which a barong mask is kept.

Kapal to Mengwi

Along the northern side of the main road in Kapal, a grand pura puseh temple has relief panels on its outer wall depicting scenes from the Ramayana. The eyes of the monkeys and the demons are painted white, which was the fashion in the '20s and '30s in south Bali. The long bale gede pavilion, which is clearly visible from the road, was provided with fresh paint early in 1989. Shiny black-and-white and red-and-white checkered patterns dominate.

The cattle market in Bringkit just past Kapal is held once every three days. Here, herds of buffaloes and cows crowd the road and often block traffic along the DenpasarTabanan thoroughfare. To watch the traders bargaining over these beasts is as exciting as watching a cockfight in the old days.

The village of Mengwi, the former political center of the region, is reached via a turnoff to the right just past Bringkit. Traveling north for 3 km, one soon enters the town, and just west of the main crossroads, the palace of the present Cokorda is to be found. It is surrounded by grey walls and in the northern corner stands a large, square bell tower with lovely carvings.

A hundred meters east of the crossroads lies the fabulous state temple of Mengwi, Pura Taman Ayun. Taman Ayun refers to a huge open space (ayun) representing a garden (taman). It was constructed under Cokorda Munggu around 1740, and was restored and enlarged in 1937. It "floats," as it were, surrounded by a moat with lotuses. Ibis represents the heavens, where divine nymphs and ancestors relax in floating pavilions and enjoy themselves. At present, one may row round the sanctuary in a little rented boat.

The temple consists of a forecourt, a central court and a spacious inner court. A tall stone gateway with wooden doors leads into it. The inner court has rows of shrines on the north and east sides and carved stone pedestals with wooden pavilions the west. The total number of structures is 27. Apart from the divine ancestor of the dynasty the mountains so important to Mengwi (Agung, Batur, Batukaru, Pengelengan) are represented here by means of shrines with slender tiered roofs in the north and the east. Replicas of temples founded by the rulers of Mengwi atop these mountains (Pura Pucak) and bordering the sea (Pura Ulun Siwi), and of state temples built by former Mengwi rulers (Pura Sada, Pura Bekak) are to be found as well.

The basement of a pavilion in which the brahman priest prepares holy water during temple festivals (bale pawedan) is provided with a relief series on Arjuna, who meditated to receive a grant from the gods and was tested by means of nymphs who tried to seduce him. A recent addition is a colorful painting on the wooden wall of the bale murda pavilion. The barong from Seseh is displayed during its visit to the temple a month after Galungan. It represents Siwa's demonic son Kala, who after having stolen the magic elixir (amreta), is chased by the host of gods.

Folktales in stone

Continuing east and then north from Mengwi toward the Monkey Forest at Sangeh, passes along a quiet, beautiful road through, the villages of Sibanggede, Abiansemal, Mambal and Blahkiuh. This area is famous for its stone sculptors, and all the temples, kulkul towers and palaces along this road provided with beautiful sculptures, relief and stone ornaments.

Many temples in this area were restored, or renewed after the earthquake of 1917, and then during the 1930s there was another restoration boom. Relief's with scenes from the Tantri stories were favorite subjects. In these stories, which are of Indian origin, animals teach people how to live and about the good and evil they can expect from life, depending on their behavior.

There is the story, for example, of the lion king of the forest and the bull, the ruler to be. They either have a peaceful conversation, face to face, or are engaged in a fight to the death. Then there are the two thoughtful geese holding a pole with a tortoise while flying away to a safe place, and the two jackals devouring an absent-minded tortoise who fell off the pole.

There is the story of the wicked heron Baka, surrounded by the bones of fish he promised to bring to a better lake, but then ate instead. Baka wanted to take a crab also, but this clever creature discovered the wickedness of the heron and pinched its neck off. And there is the story of the grateful crab and the brahman who rescued it. Later the crab rescued the brahman from a wicked bird and snake by pinching their necks off

A few kms before Sangeh one passes Blahkiuh. This village possesses a huge and holy waringin tree on the eastern side of the crossroads. In 1989 the temporary stalls of the market at the foot of this tree were replaced by a concrete structure. In order to do this, part of the aerial roots had to be cut, which could only be done by a specialist with enough magic power to protect himself.

The monkey forest temple

In Sangeh, 15 km beyond Mengwi, lies the famous Monkey Forest and Pura Bukit Sari temple. This small temple may date from the founding of Mengwi, although it is also said that it existed in the 17th century. There is an old statue here of Garuda, the mount of Wisnu, who is also associated with the search for the magic elixir (amreta) to release his parents from their torments in hell.

The temple is surrounded by tall nutmeg trees with grayish-white trunks. These are very rare in Bali, and it is clear that they have been planted deliberately. Many monkeys roam about in the forest. They are quite a nuisance, for they attack visitors and steal their spectacles, jewellery, watches and handbags, and make life impossible for souvenir vendors in little shops closely. It is said that some of Hanoman's monkey troops fell down with the top of Mt Mahameru on Sangeh when he tried to crush the evil demon king Rawana with it.

Far to the north of here on the slopes of Mt Pengelengan, to the east of Lake Bratan, is the Pura Pucak or sacred "Peak Temple" of Mengwi. It has various names - Pura Pucak Tiingan, Pura Panataran Agung - and marked the northernmost point of the realm under I Gusti Agung Nyoman Mayun in the first half of the 19th century.