4 hours ago
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I’ve been a reluctant visitor to Bali’s overcrowded south recently, and now inland Ubud is cited as the next destination getting spoiled. I’m determined to do it the right way, and immerse myself in the Balinese culture and spirituality particularly associated with this inland town.
So I’m checking into the recently opened Anantara Ubud Bali Resort, a discreet distance north of Ubud near the village of Banjar Puhu, where kids still play on the road and flip-flopping women walk with offerings on their heads to the local temple.
The Mengening Temple water ritual.Credit:
Next morning, instead of doing nothing by the swimming pool, I take one of the resort’s local tours to Mengening Temple for a different kind of water immersion. We drive through villages where time seems to stand still, and the faces of gods and demons look out of wood-carving shops.
The roads get narrower. We slip into a valley where, beneath giant trees, a sacred spring gushes. Mengening Temple’s pavilions are mossy, and its grinning statues sprout ferns. White and yellow flags stir in the humid breeze.
My guide Suryadi leads me through a water purification ritual. First, we leave an offering basket on the altar: coconut, banana, duck egg, sweets, rice, and incense sticks that will carry our prayers up to the gods in their trails of smoke.
We pray with flowers wedged between our thumbs, then tuck them behind our ears. We give thanks for our life. Then we immerse ourselves in the pond, where six waterspouts purge us of evil influences.
The outlook from Anantara – a verdant Ubud rice paddy.Credit:
The spouts of an adjacent pond are said to attract positive energy. As we leave, we feed carp with the leftovers from our offerings as a symbol of harmony with nature. They plop and gulp in contentment.
I’m not a Hindu, or even religious, but these rituals are timeless for a reason. I feel relaxed. It’s a privilege to be offered divine blessings, and to glimpse into Balinese culture and religion, not far over the horizon from the cacophony of downtown Ubud.
There are other ways to relax on this stay. Some guests take basket-weaving and batik-making workshops. The Anantara Spa has traditional Balinese massages and body scrubs. Kirana restaurant has soaring ceilings and a deck from which I can hear birds twitter.
In the evenings, swallows flit. Coconut palms on the ridgeline are splashed against the sky like dark fireworks as I tuck into Balinese crispy duck with lemongrass and sambal, or the impossible-to-resist Sumatran beef rendang braised in coconut milk.
Idha Guru – the repetitive chanting and flicker of flames is meditative.Credit:
Another day, I make another resort-organised visit to a local high priest to participate in a fire purification ceremony. His house is a large compound filled with flowers and statues of Ganesh, and hung with Chinese lanterns.
Idha Guru Sri Empu looks the part. He has a bare chest, wispy beard and ash smeared across his forehead. His son is wearing a black T-shirt with “Free your mind” written across it, as if it were the slogan of a rock band.
A golden tablecloth on the altar glitters. Roosters crow. A blue-faced Vishnu looks on with one hand raised. The repetitive chanting and flicker of flames is meditative; for a while my mind is free.
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That evening, I sit on the Anantara’s enormous deck, which juts out over the hillside, and feel like I’m floating above the trees. All I can see is jungle, a few rice terraces and the outline of volcanoes on the horizon.
This stay has been a blessing indeed – the old Bali endures, despite the tourism development and jet-setting crowds. It’s up to us to find it, and visit Bali in ways that let it thrive.
THE DETAILS
STAY
Anantara Ubud Bali Resort sits in a tranquil scenic setting near Ubud and has a spa and several dining venues. The resort runs various local immersion experiences, such as the purification ritual at Mengening Temple, which costs $260 a couple. Rooms from $630 a night. See anantara.com
FLY
Jetstar operates daily flights between Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane to Bali. See jetstar.com.au
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indonesia.travel
The writer stayed as a guest of Anantara Ubud Bali Resort.
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