Pura Agung Kentel Gumi: The History and ‘Palinggih’ within It as A Place to Pray for Peace
Bali, which is widely known as ‘Pulau Seribu Pura’, is such a beautiful place. With the existence of many temples in Bali, it become a unique attraction for many tourists from all over the world. Every temple in Bali has a different history and function. Consequently, Hindus in Bali cannot just carelessly pray at all temples in Bali. However, there are also several temples that are categorized as universal which means that every Hindu can come and pray at this temple. One of them is Pura Agung Kentel Gumi.
Pura Agung Kentel Gumi is located in Tusan Village, Banjarangkan, Klungkung Regency approximately 43 km from Denpasar. This temple is part of Kahyangan Tiga. Based on the lontar “Raja Purana Batur”, Pura Agung Kentel Gumi is one of Tri Guna Pura or Pura Kahyangan Tiga, specifically as ‘Pura Puseh’, a place to pray for peace. Meanwhile, Pura Batur as the ‘Pura Desa’, a place to pray for fertility, and Pura Agung Besakih as the ‘Pura Dalem’, a place to pray for purity of sekala-niskala. So, Pura Agung Kentel Gumi became Pura Kahyangan Tiga which is prayed by all Hindus.
Outer Area Pura Agung Kentel Gumi (Source : Private Collection)
The history of Pura Agung Kentel Gumi is connected with the existence of Mpu Kuturan in Bali around the 11th century. Before that, Bali was led by a very powerful king named Maya Denawa. Because of his Power, the king became arrogant. He disallowed Balinese people to pray to God and also destroyed many temples. As a result, the Balinese people became chaos, and disease arose everywhere. Long story short, the king was defeated. Nevertheless, the chaos and riots between Balinese people are still happening. So, it is said that in the past Mpu Kuturan plugged in a ‘pacek’ or stake, which made a place become a ‘pancer jagat’ or ‘dasar bumi’ that gave peace for Bali, which previously often occurred social insecurity became more conducive to the lives of its people.
From that history, Pura Agung Kentel Gumi became a place which was prayed by all Hindus. There is no specific requirement or prohibition for anyone who wants to come or prays in Pura Agung Kentel Gumi, as long as they do not have any bad intention, and also act and dress appropriately.