Uluwatu Temple

Pura Luhur Uluwatu stands on a limestone cliff about seventy metres above the sea at the south-western tip of Bali, one of the sad kahyangan, the six temples regarded as the pillars of the island, and like Tanah Lot it is attributed to Dang Hyang Nirartha - tradition holds he achieved moksha here. The temple compound itself is entered only by worshippers; visitors walk the cliff path in sarongs for the setting, which is the point. A kecak performance runs in an open amphitheatre on the cliff at sunset, the Ramayana told by a chorus of men chanting chak in interlocking rhythm, a form developed in the 1930s from a trance ritual with input from the German artist Walter Spies. The macaques here are organised thieves who take glasses and phones and trade them back for food.

History

The temple stands at the edge, ulu, of a 70-metre cliff or rock, watu, said in folklore to be part of the petrified barque of the goddess Dewi Danu. A small temple may have stood here earlier, but the Javanese sage Empu Kuturan greatly enlarged it in the 11th century, and Dang Hyang Nirartha, who came from East Java at the turn of the 16th century, added the padmasana shrines and is said to have attained moksha here (Wikipedia, Uluwatu Temple).

What you'll find

• A temple on a 70-metre cliff - one of Bali's six pillar temples.
• A cliff path - the walk along the edge, which is what visitors actually see.
• Kecak at sunset - the chanted Ramayana in the cliff amphitheatre.
• Thieving macaques - taking glasses and phones and bartering them back.

When to go

April to October; late afternoon for the kecak. Half a day.

Before you go

The monkeys genuinely steal - remove glasses, hats and dangling items before entering. The temple interior is closed to non-worshippers. Kecak tickets sell out and seating is a scramble.

Nearby

Padang Padang and the Bukit surf beaches are close; Jimbaran is north.

Key facts