9 Miraculous Pancoran of the Sala Blending Garden Temple: A Spiritual Miracle for Wellbeing and Healing

The island of Bali is famous for its natural beauty, culture, and diverse traditions. Balinese culture is based on Hinduism, which is the core of the Balinese cultural soul. One of the main attractions for tourists is the Balinese devotion to religious traditions and beliefs, such as the use of water in cleansing rituals called penglukatan. This ritual has many variations and purposes, such as getting closer to the Gods, seeking blessings, or spiritually cleansing oneself.

In Bali, there are many melukat places that are believed to have certain purposes, such as the Taman Pecampuhan Sala Temple in Bangli Regency whose existence has been quite long, but has only been popularized by visitors who have melukat here.

Taman Pecampuhan Sala Temple is a melukat place in Bali located in Banjar Sala, Abuan Village, Susut District, Bangli Regency. This temple is a place of melukat or self-cleansing with holy water that comes from nine different pancoran. This temple is also known as Pura Taman or Pura Beji Sala. The name "Pecampuhan" refers to the meeting of two rivers, while "Sala" is the name of the location where this temple is located. The distance is about 4.5 km west of Bangli city, about 40 km from Denpasar, and about 7.5 km from the place of melukat Pancoran Tirta Sudamala.

Campuhan River from two districts (Photo Source: Personal Collection)

This temple originally only had one pancoran, but in 2017, after performing a ceremony and asking for guidance, this temple was added with eight more pancoran, bringing the total to nine. Each pancoran has its own name and properties, such as Tirta Taman, Tirta Utama, Tirta Bolakan, Tirta Bungbung, Tirta Tulakwali, Tirta Pandan, Gerojogan Pesiram Tan Hana, and Gerojogan Pesiram Dedari.

The creation of this temple in Pecampuhan Sala was motivated by the community who wanted to purify themselves from negative things, both from thoughts, words, and deeds because during the Kali Yuga Era there was a degradation or decrease in the value of purity according to the surrounding community.

The basic concept of the construction of Pacampuhan Sala Temple uses the concept of Catur Yuga by using symbols of the era. For example in Kerta Yuga, there is a Lingga where this Lingga is a means or tool of worship in the Kerta Yuga era, as well as a symbol of purusa and Talus of Lord Shiva. The symbol used in Tretya Yuga is the statue on the bridge that tells the Ramayana story where Hanuman rejects the gift from the King and shows that Rama and Sita are in his heart. The symbol used in Dwapara Yuga is a bridge that tells the story of Arjuna and Hanuman in reducing Arjuna's arrogance and pride. 

Hanuman Statue (Photo Source: Personal Collection)

As is known, each melukat place on the Island of the Gods in Bali has its own privileges and benefits. In Bangli, there is a melukat place under Pura Taman which has 9 pancoran which are divided into two parts. The first part at the top has 7 pancoran with a height of up to 3 meters, as well as a 1 meter high water reservoir.

Meanwhile, the other 2 pancoran are located on the riverbank at the bottom. In addition to the holy water flowing from the 9 pancoran, the melukat place is also located in the river, which is the confluence of two streams called "campuhan." This place is believed to bring blessings through rituals. This place is believed to bring blessings through rituals performed with sincere faith and devotion. The two streams are named Grojogan Pesiraman Tan Hana for the left stream that flows from Gianyar Regency and Grojogan Pesiraman Dedari for the right stream that flows from Bangli Regency.

Grojogan Pesiraman Dedari (Photo Source: Personal Collection)

On the left side of the river, there is another pancoran where melukat is performed. The interesting thing in Pecampuhan Sala Bangli is the presence of waterfalls in each river, although access to the location is a little challenging but not too difficult.

Grojogan Pesiraman Tan Hana (Photo Source: Personal Collection)

This Sala mixture is believed to have benefits and properties such as Tirta Pule for treatment, Tirta Pandan for repelling Bala, Tirta Bungbung for economic smoothness and Tirta Tulak Wali for family harmony, strengthening the relationship between husband and wife to last.

Pancoran Tirta Bungbung, Tirta Pandan, and Tirta Tulakwali (Photo Source: Personal Collection)

On Hindu holidays or celebrations such as Banyupinaruh, full moon, tilem, and kajeng Kliwon, many Hindus come to this place to worship and perform religious rituals.

The process of melukat and praying at Taman Pecampuhan Sala Temple follows a certain sequence. First of all, prayers are performed at the pelinggih in front of the melukat place. Then, the ritual starts from the Campuhan river, then continues to the right river (Grojogan Pesiraman Dedari) while enjoying the beauty of the waterfall.

After that, the journey continues to the left river (Grojogan Pesiraman Tan Hana), where there is another pancoran for melukat. After completing the melukat in the river area, the next step is to go to two pancoran on the riverbank, and finally to the melukat place with 7 pancoran. What makes this bowing different is that we have to ring the bell 3 times before entering the bowing area at these 7 pancoran.

Tirta Bolakan and Tirta Taman (Photo Source: Personal Collection)

After completing the melukat, it ends by offering prayers at Taman Temple. For those who come to do melukat for the first time, it is expected to bring a banten pejati which is presented at the place of melukat, and if you have additional banten pejati, it can be presented at Taman Temple after finishing melukat. In addition, it is advisable to bring more canang sari to be offered at the various melukat sites.