And what did I do but visit a temple in Bali. Nothing Christmasy about being in Medewi, Bali. There was only one white plastic Christmas tree at one of the bigger chalets but that was it.
The Pura Rambut Siwi temple (translation : Temple of Worshiping Hair) is in the Jembrana district, 15 minutes drive from Medewi. I could also take the short-cut and walk for more than 1/2 hour from the place I stayed through the beach, crossing about 2 rivers in between (on foot of course, what do you think?). Built in the 16th century, all the monuments and shrines looked really old with no one maintaining them. No fresh paint and definitely some algae growing on a few of the shrines.
One have to wear a pretty sarong and tie a sheath of silk cloth over before entering the temple, as with all other temples. I wanted to buy the sarong but travelling with Caucasians sometimes make that impossible because of the price the locals offer their goods. Caucasians there are like money Gods to some of them.
Before entering the temple, a big signboard reads (translation and I forgot some of the warnings) :
1. Do not enter the temple without proper dressing (proper dressing means sarong?)
2. The temple is holy and please keep it holy (How?)
3. As the temple is holy, women with periods are not allowed to enter (Oopss...are they going to check?)
The history behind this temple is that a Hindu priest by the name of Danghyang Nirartha arrived on the southwest coast of Bali from Java and began preaching Hinduism. He declared a spot near Medewi to be holy and donated some of his hair to the local villagers. They built a temple on the edge of a cliff overlooking the dramatic black beach, and they buried Nirartha's hair in a sandalwood box inside. Steep steps lead past several small shrines down to the beach.
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