Bali — The Island of a thousand temples, Island of the Gods, also known as the Island of Tirtha, holy water, where holy water is used for cleansing, purification and strengthening — an agent of the power of God.

The Religion of Bali: Hindu (Buddha/Siwa)

The Balinese pray to the trinity of Brahman: The Supreme Lord as Brahma with consort Saraswati, Lord Vishnu with consort Laksmi, Lord Siwa with consort Sakti. Every temple is dedicated to these deities.

Most villages have at least three main temples; namely: Pura Puseh, or temple of origin, facing the mountains; Pura Desa, or village temple, normally found in the centre; and Pura Dalem aligned with the sea, or temple of the Dead. Aside from these 'village temples', almost every house has its own family shrines or temple.

Thousands of people go to the temple for worship. The magnetic power in the earth extends to the idol in the sanctum. The thoughts of the worshipper are also attracted by the idol. Thereby the power of attraction by the idol gets intensified. The rituals performed for the idol also enhances its power of attraction. When worshippers go to a temple the power goes forth from thousands of worshippers: the power or attraction in the idol gets immensely intensified. The idol surcharged with this power is able to energize the worshippers.

— Baba

Symbols of God

Various emblems and symbols of God are illustrated in different forms from one religion to another. This is because there are different cultures and concepts according to the local population.

— Maha Guru

In principle, these symbols/emblems of God, which man has created, are all intended to bring about a feeling of proximity to God/Ida Hyang Widhi Wasa, that gradually gives rise to a progressively more stable feeling of Divine Presence. This is the reason why different symbols are used in Balinese ceremonies and offerings. They are intended to cultivate a stable feeling of this Divine Presence among practitioners.

Entering Temples and Sacred Places in Bali

Entering into a temple or sacred place means you are entering into a spiritual domain and place of God. Developed over hundreds of years, these ancient temples are endowed with divine energies. Through ceremonial intension the divine energies of Mother Earth (Ibu Pertiwi), Buddha Siwa, Bhakti (devotion) and purification have been refined and nurtured. Much work has been done to maintain this energy and to prepare for special elaborate ceremonies.

When the temple ceremonies have come to an end and worshippers have returned home to their other duties, the temple holds that vibration of activity and once again the job has been performed to keep this evolution of man's spiritual stages alive.

Mandala Of Bali – Nawa Sanga

Nawa Sanga, the totality of the universe, symbolized by nine masculine deities and their feminine consorts (Dewa/Dewi). Placed in the eight directions of the compass plus the centre and with their related colours, numbers, weapons, and other attributes, that forms the so-called nawa sanga.mandala (Nawa and Sanga both mean nine in Sanskrit).

The nine-fold system can be reduced into a five-fold division according to the basic directions and centre. This in turn can be further abbreviated into a three-fold division represented by the Trinity of Brahma, Wisnu, Siwa.

The centre, with Lord Siwa and his consort Sakti, together are united and become Ardanareswari, which represents the unity and the totality of everything. The colour may be either multicolored or white.

In many ways the nawa sanga system determines the colours, numbers and other features of the elements used in offerings and ritual decorations.

The Nine Sacred Temples of Bali
The Mandala, Pilgrimage

Other attributes of the Mandala, Nawa Sanga is the nine holy temples that are placed on each of the eight directions and the center. The sacred pilgrimage to these temples brings one to circumambulate the Island, which starts from the center, Pura Besakih then moves across to the east, and goes clockwise until returning to the center again. Here we show each energy point with its temple, color, deity, direction and number which forms the Nawa Sanga.

Mandala means palace of purity, cleansing of spiritual obstacles and impurities.

Direction	Diety	Colour	Number	Weapon	Temple
east	Iswara	white	5	bajra (thunderbolt)	Pura Lempuyang
southeast	Mahesora	pink	2	dupa (incense-burner)	Pura Goa Lawah
south	Brahma	red	9	danda (club)	Pura Andakasa
southwest	Rudra	orange	3	moksala (mace)	Pura Uluwatu
west	Mahadewa	yellow	7	nagapasa (serpent-noose)	Pura Batu Karu
northwest	Sangkara	green	1	angkus (elephant-hook)	Pura Puncak Manggu
north	Wisnu	black	4	cakra (discus)	Pura Batur
northeast	Sambu	blue/gray	6	trisula (trident)	Pura Pasar Agung
centre	Siwa	multi-coloured	8	padma (lotus)	Pura Besakih

Yoga and Meditation

Bali is often considered as a centre of spiritual energy. There are various places in Ubud where meditation and yoga are practiced.

Ask Narasoma for more information on these activities. Ubud is ready to offer these services for this ongoing demand.