Penglipuran is located in the Bangli district, central Bali, 45km north of Denpasar and at about 700m above sea level, surrounded by bamboo forests and coffee plantations. It is one of the Bali Aga villages, where the people, most of the farmers, still live after strict rules and regulations (the Adat) just like their ancestors did centuries ago. Even among Balinese people, Penglipuran is famous for being so different by the other villages on the island and local people like to visit it, as well as foreign tourists. The traditions and culture of Bali Aga villages derives from the Pre-Hindu animistic culture. One of things preserved from the pre-Hindu period is the way the religious life is organized. In Penglipuran there is no caste system – all villagers are Shudras – and the process of choosing the priests differs from the way it is done in other places. Usually in Balinese villages the priests are supposed to belong to the caste of the Brahmans, who are forming the highest caste in Balinese society. The village was build with three distinctive parts, respecting the “Tri Mandala” concept which describes a place based on the location, function and level of purity. The first part is the holy part with the temple. The second is the housing, where the people live. The third is the place where the dead bodies are buried and where the garbage is thrown. The same structure is applied for the structure of each house compound. In the front side of the courtyard, oriented towards the holy mountain in the east (Mount Agung – the place of the gods), there is the temple of the house, then in the middle, more westwards, there is the traditional kitchen and the house in which the family lives. In the back of the courtyard is the place where the animals are. The structure is supposedly similar to the human body with head, torso and legs.
Posted on: Fri, 15 Aug 2014 21:14:05 +0000
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