High medieval · Hindu · Indonesia

Pura Besakih (Mother Temple)

Mount Agung slopes, Bali · -8.3739°, 115.4517°

Sang Hyang Widhi / Shiva (Balinese Hinduism)Gelgel/KlungkungBalinese meru towers
Sacred since
800 CE
Attributed to Rsi Markandeya's mission to Bali
Standing structure
complex grown over 700+ years; origins older
Gelgel/Klungkung

History & significance

The Mother Temple of Bali: 23 linked puras on Mount Agung's slope, axis of the island's mandala of temples, where every Balinese clan and kingdom keeps a shrine. The Eka Dasa Rudra — the once-a-century purification of the universe — was underway in 1963 when Agung erupted catastrophically; lava spared the temple by metres, read across Bali as the gods' own testimony.

Sthala katha — the legend

The sage Markandeya, guided by a vision, buried the panca datu — five sacred metals — here to still the island's unquiet forces; on that buried offering the whole thousand-year edifice of Balinese Hinduism literally stands.

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Sources

coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-26 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Gelgel/Klungkung