Gunung Kawi

A few kilometers south of Tampaksiring on the Gianyar road is a religious site of an unusual type. In the narrow valley of the little river Pakerisan, below Gunung Kawi ("Mountain of Poetry"), are three groups of hermits' cells hewn from the rock, and three other groups of monuments whose date and function were for many years a mystery.

Various inscriptions, however, indicate that Anak Wungsu, at one time ruler of much of Bali, was venerated here together with his four wives and four concubines (who according to the legend committed suttee after his death). On this basis it appears that the complex was established in the 11th century, either in Anak's lifetime or soon after his death.

It was formerly believed, on the evidence of ashes found on the site, that the candis decorated with reliefs were the tombs of princes and princesses of divine status. Intensive research has shown this theory to be untenable, for closer examination of the ashes indicated that in all probability they came from the bones of animals sacrificed here to the spirits of the underworld.