Besakih Temple

Besakih Temple is a temple complex located in Besakih Village, Rendang District, Karangasem Regency, which is 52.1 km from Renon. Besakih Temple is on the western slopes of Mount Agung, the highest mountain in Bali. The location of Besakih Temple was deliberately chosen in a village that is considered sacred because of its high location, called Hulundang Basukih which later became Besakih Village. The name Besakih is taken from Sanskrit, wasuki or in Old Javanese basuki which means safe. Apart from that, the name Besakih Temple is also based on the mythology of the Basuki Dragon as a balance to Mount Mandara. The Besakih Temple complex consists of 1 central temple (Penataran Agung Besakih Temple) and 18 companion temples (1 Basukian Temple and 17 other temples). It is called the mother of temple because Besakih Temple is the center of activity for all the temples in Bali

Besakih Temple was built in 1284 by Rsi Markandeya who was a Hindu religious leader of Indian descent. Rsi Markandeya built Besakih Temple because he heard supernatural sounds while meditating on the Dieng Plateau. He and his followers even cut through the forests in Java to get to the island of Bali. It is said that at that time there was no Bali Strait like there is now, because the island of Java and Bali were still one and not separated by the ocean. Because the islands that we now call Java and Bali are so long, this island was given the name Dawa Island, which means long island.