Bali — Tanah Lot, Bali, Indonesia

A very busy tourist attraction

August 2015

At the end of my first full day in Bali, I went to Tanah Lot, where I’d heard you could see a spectacular sunset over the sea.

Tanah Lot was about an hour and ten minutes from Ubud. The place had a market area with several designer shops, local traders, temples, and spectacular views out to sea. The entry cost is 20,000 Indonesian Rupiah (£1 GBP; $1.50 USD).

A local legend tells of the formation of Tanah Lot.

A Hindu priest, “Dang Hyang Dwi Jendra” (or “Dang Hyang Nirartha”), also called “Tuan Semeru” (the teacher from Semeru (Semeru is a volcano in East Java)), came to Bali in the 15th century during the reign of “Dalem Waturenggong” to extend the teaching of Hinduism to the area. He journeyed west to east along the southern coast of Bali and made his first stop in Rambut Siwi to perform “Dharma Yatra” (meditation). During his meditation, he saw a ray of light that led to a holy spring, and nearby he made a place to meditate — “Gili Beo” (rock bird).

Dang Hyang Dwi Jendra continued east along the coast and stopped at Beraban Village, where he successfully converted most villagers to Hinduism. However, the “Bendesa Sakti Beraban” (village head) refused to convert and managed to raise a group of followers to chase the priest out of the village. The local legend states that the priest protected himself by moving the rock on which he sat to become a small floating…