A unique, sacred mountain sanctuary and royal temple near the peak of Gunung Batukaru, 23 km north of Tabanan, built to venerate deities of mountains and lakes. All the regencies of Bali maintain temples at the temple of Besakih except for the Tabanan princes, who have their ancestral temples here.

Pura Luhur served as the state temple for all of western Bali when Tabanan was an independent kingdom, and even today every temple in western Bali has a shrine dedicated to it. When the archaeologist Hooykaas visited the site in the 1920s, he discovered a number of large upright 'linga', so it's presumed this place has served as a sanctuary since prehistoric times.

Legend says the temple was founded by the Hindu sage Kuturan who proselytized on Bali in the 11th century. This date was corroborated in 1925 when Goris discovered statues in a nearby bathing place similar to those found at 11th century Goa Gajah.

Legend has it that in 1604 the temple was attacked and partially destroyed by the raja of Buleleng, but his troops were beaten back by millions of bees unleashed by the protective spirits of the temple. Pura Luhur was not rebuilt until 1959, even though pilgrims had continued to worship in the rubble.

The temple lies in a solitary clearing 1,300 meters above sea level, set amidst a garden of flowering frangipani and hibiscus, with a gigantic, uninhabited, humid tropical forest all around it. The site is often cool and has the highest rainfall on Bali. Not a very large complex, it consists of a main enclosure to the north, plus two smaller temple complexes tucked away in the forest.

Within the complex are a number of symbolically distinct shrines, each representing a different Tabanan dynasty. Many of the shrines have been newly renovated, so the place has lost a bit of its charm. One of the few temples of its type on Bali, Pura Luhur is known as a 'pura taman', which means it has a bathing place and is maintained by a king.

Note Pura Luhur's seven-tiered 'meru', similar in shape to a Thai stupa, dedicated to the god Mahadewa who presides over Gunung Batukau. The shrine also exalts Di Made, a ruler of Gelgel AD 1164-1686.

A few meters east of the temple are steps leading past lichen-covered statues and demons down to a square artificial pool with a tiny island in the middle, a symbolic microcosm of the Hindu Mount Meru.

On the isle are two 'bale', one dedicated to Gunung Batukau and the other to the deity of the three lakes-Tamblingan, Buyan and Bratan-which stand within its catchment area. Nearby is a small temple and sacred 'air panas' bubbling up from a riverbank. Several paths lead off into the forest, the domain of cicadas and frogs.

If you get to Pura Luhur in the late afternoon you'll probably have the place all to yourself. If there's a ceremony going on, spend the whole day. Thousands of pilgrims journey to this remote pura during Umanis Galungan, (the day after Galungan).

Regional water-opening rites are also held her. 'Subak' heads, 'pemangku' and 'klian' carry small containers of its holy water back to their 'subak' to bless similar ceremonies.