Every Balinese temple has a slightly different layout. There are similar features and also features that are significant to the local history. The most important part of of the pura (temple) is the jeroan (inner courtyard). The most important shrine in the jeroan is the padmasana, or Lotus Throne. Balinese Hindu’s believe the Supreme Deity is Sanghyang Widi Wasa. During the Galungan festival, the most important festival of the year, the Gods, and souls of their ancestors come down to Earth and must be honored.
Sanghyang Widi Wasa is given a stone seat (Lotus throne) atop a sculpted tower. This padmasana (tower) is always located in the rear right of the temple, the section that is closest to Gunung Agung. The whole tower is supported on the back of the Cosmic turtle, or Bedawang, which carries the world on its back. What a wonderful imagination the Balinese have! The Bedawang has 2 helpers in the form of snakes. These are Naga Basukih and Naga Anantaboga and are part of the Balinese creation myth. In the temple I checked out south of Ubud, they had a little golden figure of a man at the top of the tower, symbolizing fertility it seemed.
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Allow me to add something.
You’re right about that naga basuki, it was part of story about creation.
I forgot the details, but there was a time that gods (yes, plurals) and the demons (raksasa) needed something — somekind of potion that allow them to live an eternal life (I guess) — from the center of the earth. At that time they didn’t have high tech drilling machines, so they decided to use mountain as a drill. Also they needed somekind of lasso to be tied around the mountain, to make it easier for them to spin the mountain. So… they used a big, long, snake as a lasso. Poor naga basuki :).
Actually they (the gods and demons) worked together for the common goal. The gods were holding one end of the snake, and the demons were holding the other end. After they managed to dig out that potion, there was a fight among the gods and the demons (I wonder why didn’t they just share it??? I mean, the demons have a right for a share of the potion too…). When one of the god saw that one of the demon were drinking the potion, he decapitated that demon (using his bow). But since the potion had flown through his lung, the head of the demon lives forever. As a revenge, that head of demon demon eats one of the god, the poor god of moon, every once in a while…. That’s why we have lunar eclipse :). He he he.
Saludos from Mexico. One small joke I just picked up on the street: It’s about the city Guadalajara, in estado de Jalisco. As you know the typical image of Los Machos Mexicanos (remember, mariachi?) are something typical Guadalajara. But Guadalajara also has a reputation for having so many gays (eventhough in the D.F. I think there are more). So…. people say: Los hombres se dan en Jalisco, pero se dan entre ellos (the men are from / were born in Jalisco, but they have sex among themselves).
“Se dan”, that’s another word with several different meanings, depending on the context.
i want to know the story about anataboga..
is it same with java mithology?can you explain it in bahasa indonesia?thanks
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