Pejeng village

PEJENG, A VILLAGE on the road from Bedulu to Tampaksiring, lies at the heart of the ancient Pejeng-Bedulu kingdom, and there are many interesting relics from that time to be seen.

The Museum Purbakala (Archaeological Museum) displays prehistoric objects in bronze, stone and ceramics, including several turtleshaped stone sarcophagi.
A short walk from the museum are three temples of particular interest for their sacred stone sculptures. Pura Arjuna Metapa (“Arjuna Meditating” Temple) is a small pavilion standing alone in the ricefields, sheltering a cluster of stone sculptures that were probably once part of a spring temple.

In accordance with the wayang tradition that recounts tales from the Mahabharata, Arjuna is attended by a stonerelief servant character. About 100 m (110 yards) north is Pura Kebo Edan (“Crazy Giant” Temple). The demonic statuary suggests that this was a cult-temple of Bhairava Buddhism. The chief figure is a masked 3.6-m- (12-ft-) high giant, dancing on a corpse. The beautifully proportioned Pura Pusering Jagat (“Navel of the World” Temple) has numerous pavilions housing similar tantric stone figures.

The “Pejeng Vessel”, a cylindrical stone urn carved with cosmological figures, is kept in a shrine in the southeastern corner of the temple. About 2 km (1 mile) north of Pejeng, Pura Penataran Sasih houses the “Pejeng Moon” (sasih means moon), a bronze drum 186 cm (74 inches) long, of unknown age. Considered sacred, it is kept in a tall pavilion. Temple guides sometimes encourage visitors to stand on the base of an adjacent shrine; from here can be glimpsed the drum’s fine geometric patterning.