Water Purification in Bali

Water is one of my favourite elements, if you can even choose one.

It’s central to life and links the whole world, as it does the body.

There’s nothing like floating, or letting a stream run through your fingers. And I “think” best in the shower.

And one of its greatest powers? Purification.

Think holy water, tears, washing. It is cleansing.

And that’s why I visited Bali’s Temple of the Holy Water.  It was a deeply personal experience as well as spiritual and cultural. In the quiet of the temple, I sojourned with my inner self. I cleansed my emotional debris. It was an emotionally painful time when I went earlier this year. A time of great change and very uncertain times.

Pura Tirta Empul or the Temple of the Holy Water is one of most important Hindu temples in Bali.

The spring, Tirta Empul, is connected with a legend (of different variations). For more than 1,000 years a holy stone was taken to this sacred site for cleansing every year. The legend itself is about two ponds – one poisonous, one healing.

So a legend of the triumph of good over evil.

The Legend

King Maya Danawa was a black magician who could transform himself into anything. His powers corrupted him absolutely, and Indra was called upon to vanquish him. From his spies, the king was forewarned and he poisoned a pool in the camps which made Indra’s celestial army violently ill.  Indra struck open the ground to bring forth clean water and went on to defeat the king who turned himself into a stone.

THE PREPARATION

When I flew to Bali this past spring, sightseeing wasn’t on the agenda. I was there for a detox and a break, from life. A Water Purification Ceremony felt just right. Information was scant and I tried to google it. I found very little on personal experiences at Tirta Empul. It was another lesson of surrender and letting go. And trust. Yes, trust, a scarce currency at that time.

My butler at Como Shambhala prepared what I needed – a sarong and sash, towels, and plastic bags. Tirta Empul is a sacred place so a sarong is required. You can always borrow one at the temple.

My guide showed me how to properly tie my sash at the hotel, so I was already dressed and ready to go.

The Trip

We left on the pilgrimage mid-morning, passing through markets and preparations for an upcoming festival. You know you’re not in Kansas anymore. My guide gave me some background information. He comes from a long line of priests, himself in training since young. Inside track, I thought. And he did tell me many tibbits and stories. Religion and spirituality are an integrated part of life in Bali, woven into everything they do. Everyone knows what to do, what is expected.

The Temple

Bali is still au naturel so it wasn’t surprising that lush gardens greeted us. Before we entered the temple grounds, my guide made the first of many prayers and offerings. He carried a woven basket of all the offerings we would make at the pools and with the priest. Beautiful colourful flowers that held special meanings and different combinations would be used during the ritual of prayers.

Pura Tirta Empul, like all temples, consists of three parts – the foyer, middle yard, and inner sanctum. It also has a few shower rooms and lockers to keep all your dry clothes…because you get wet doing the water purification ceremony.  Very wet.

The facilities are very basic. The shower room is pretty run down and the floors are constantly wet, making changing into dry clothes somewhat of a challenge and a balancing act to keep everything dry.

The Water Purification Ceremony

Dressed in a t-shirt, sarong, and sash, I followed my guide towards the pools. And we began the ceremony with prayers and rituals.

The water was cool as I stepped into the pool, walking on anti-slip mats, which was weird though probably good to prevent accidents. I followed my guide, in prayer, at each spout, dunking my head under the jet to cleanse. Each spout is said to purify something different, from evil and poison to bad dreams.

In silence, I tapped into the spirituality and devotion that breathed through everything on this island. It was beautiful, and ancient. As I let the cold water rush over my head and my back, the world became just the sound of water.

Water symbolizes emotions. Being in holy water and being there for purification, strong feelings welled up, stirring up memories to be released. As the water fell over my body, I let go. I let go of pains I had once decided to hold onto. I let go of memories I once chose to live from. I let go and surrendered. And welcomed home trust.

More Prayers

After we were in dry clothes, my guide showed me the rest of the temple grounds. He spoke of how the level of the spring is steadily decreasing over the years. He pondered a future without the spring, without the holy water for their rituals.

We sat down behind a priest as he performed a prayer for us. Again, I followed the guide as we made our last offerings of the day.

It was still quite early when we finished our purification ceremony. As we left the priest, the first tourists were just making their way around, adjusting their sarongs, taking photos, and looking around with a somewhat confused look. I would say it makes all the difference to have a local guide or at least a good guidebook to explain the subtleties. And of course to actually participate in the water purification ceremony.

The upside of coming so early was the souvenir stalls were just opening and I could avoid being stuck there, coming home with more unnecessary trinkets, little reminders you buy to preserve the memory with the thought you may never return. Instead, my souvenir was two bottles of holy water. You can buy water-tight containers for bringing home some. I’d suggest first testing the containers at the hotel, before packing them in your luggage.

The Experience

My Bali experience this past March felt quite Eat, Pray, Love. The year was 2012, a pivotal time for myself and many others I know. I too was seeking. As in the book, I also went to a local healer, who had very kind and loving words for me. Probably not quite as dramatic.

A beautiful moving spiritual journey in this very spiritual place.