Water Palaces in the Age of Rajas
 Taman Mayura, Cakranegara, West Lombok
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Last month I was interviewed for a French cultural television documentary about the Taman Sukasada water palace of the last raja of Karangasem, in Ujung, East Bali.
I was interviewed as an art historian and landscape designer. By chance, I have also known four of the twelve sons of the last raja, one of whom, Professor Anak Agung Putra Agung, is still alive.
During the 1980s, when I always danced the part of the envoy of the Dutch governor in Batavia at the annual Dance Academy production of ‘Puputan Badung’, I used to borrow the sabre of another son, A.A. Made Karang, former Head of Denpasar Police. Another son — who was married to an exotic princess from Singapadu — was former Indonesian ambassador to Argentina.
But my closest acquaintance was Dr. A.A. Made Djelantik former ambassador to Venezuela and W.H.O. director, who lived in Renon, Denpasar with his Dutch wife Astri and five children, who all remain close friends. Three of the children — Widoer, Madelief and Mardy — now live in Europe and the US; the eldest daughter, A.A. Ayu Bulantrisna, a retired E.N.T. specialist, now performs classical legongdances with her Jakarta - based troupe. All three sisters were trained by the legendary dancer I Mario of Tabanan.
I am bothering to share all this just to show the depth, complexity and influence of these major puri (palace) families in Bali — a fact often misunderstood by expats and Balinese alike.
 Best of Chinese architect Loto Ang from Canton who helped design Taman Sukasada,
Ujung and Puri Kanginan Karangasem
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During my research on the water gardens of the Karangasem family — two in Bali, and two built by their ancestors in West Lombok during the 18th and 19th centuries — I discovered that Taman Sukasada was actually designed by a Dutch colonial architect, named Van Den Hentz, together with a Chinese architect Loto Ang.
Dr. Djelantik once told me that Loto Ang had been sent by the ruler of Canton in China, in the early 1920s as a gift to his father.
Together with a dozen or so artisans they rebuilt much of the Puri Agung palace in neo-Chinese-Balinese style, and added a colonial style living pavilion, called the Bale Materdam, with an elaborate Chinese style carved door. All survive to this day.
That Chinese door was copied in palaces all over the island.
The French researchers were keen to attribute all sorts of cosmological significance to the layout of Taman Sukasada — something with which I could not agree. The water palace, according to all accounts, was just a pleasure garden with reception pavilions. Limited mediation was done there.
The original water garden, built in 1901 on the site, was called Kolam Dirah. It had been used by the old raja for exorcism rites, but the municipal follies put an end to all that. There is a temple inside the park in the cosmologically-significant North Eastern corner and a pavilion dedicated to the moon goddess high on a hill in the western corner of the park, above the formal water gardens. This seems to be more of an Ancient Greek affection than anything Hindu-Balinese.
The rajas of West Lombok and East Bali were great aesthetes and water-garden builders: it is sad that their legacy is not being protected from the hands of mediocre meddlers. Very little of the original charm of any of the gardens remains; I was lucky to visit all of them in the mid-1970s when they were still poetic and romantic. Here are some of the photographs I took.
Annual Walkabout of the God of Uluwatu to two palaces in Denpasar, 21st , 22nd April, 2016
In the early 19th Century the great God of the Pura Luhur, Uluwatu (16th century Moksa-site of Bali’s most revered saint Dang Hyang Dwijendra) enjoyed a celestial friendship with Cokorda Sakti Kesiman the Prince of Kesiman Palace in East Denpasar.
To this day the God of Uluwatu visits that palace on the day of it’s the tatoyon, the anniversary of the family house temple (Merajan Agung). The night before the God stops on his way to Kesiman at Pura Tambangan Badung the ancestral temple of the rival palace Puri Pemecutan.
Today, the 11th full moon, I took some friends to Pura Tambangan, Badung to pray and we bumped into Bhatara Luhur, the God of Uluwatu, at the crossroads. Here is my Facebook post of the occurrence:
Such a poignant moment in the middle of Denpasar late afternoon yesterday. I was on Jalan Hassanuddin in front of Puri Pemecutan Palace heading for Tambangan Badung temple when I spied the head of a procession bearing sugar cane stalks and not much else. Traffic heading west was stopped by a group of well-dressed officers. We are allowed to park at the base of the CPXI puputan memorial statue and take in the scene.
Best of images from the Pemapagan ceremonies,
at Pura Tambangan Badung, 20 & 21 April 2016
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The drums were sounding in Denpasar's most revered tower opposite as I hurled myself out of the car and crossed the road.
From the south, from the direction of SETRA BADUNG cemetery, the god of Uluwatu was approaching with his own spritely bleganjurgamelan, an angklung, a team of beefy pecalang guards and a phalanx of priests.
The Pura Tambangan priests started to weave the light fantastic as the uluwatu procession approached ― four directions of heavy traffic were stopped to marvel at this ancient ritual.
22nd April, 2016: to Merajan Agung Puri Kesiman for the Totoyan anniversary.
The moated family house temple at Puri Kesiman ― a survivor from the 17th century ― is the most beautiful house temple in the land. The temple’s gate matches the gates of both Pura Uluwatu and Pura Sakenan, on Serangan Island.
The temple has an 11 tiered stone pagoda, called a prasada, where the God of Uluwatu presides during his annual homage. Tonight I am greeted by the prince and his attractive wife as I enter the temple and lead to the small court where my old buddy Kiwi musicologist Vaughan Hatch, his Balinese wife Evie and their son are playing the selonding gamelan.
 Merajan Agung Puri Kesiman, the famous 17th century moated temple at Kesiman Palace
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Puri Kesiman has always had close relations with westerners, starting with Danish trader Mads Lange in the early 19th Century. Mads Lange was married to a Tabanan lass by Cokorda Sakti, inside Puri Kesiman. His daughter married the Sultan Ismail of Johor, Malaysia.
All the Sultans of Johore are thus related to hundreds of Danes.
It is a beautiful night in the water temple, under the full moon, with the hundreds of devotees from Pecatu Village, near Uluwatu, and the very extended palace family.
Best of images from the Merajan Agung ceremonies,
at Puri Kesiman 22 April 2016
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FACEBOOK POSTINGS
20th April 2016:Pura Dalem Pelilit, Nusa Penida. NOW AND THEN: Baris Jangkang/Goak (crow dance). See my Video: https://youtu.be/dnW2wApGGJI Photography by Rolf de mare 1930 (snatched from low res. Pirated 1930 video) versus Mus Takim's photos of the same dance tonight.
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21 April 2016
Liza Rae Dawn of Penida Colada restaurant near Pura Dalem Ped, Nusa Penida, just posted these images of a Baris Jangkang Juniors dance (in kain nusa costume) performing at Dalem Ped temple, September 2015 |
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GUSTRA BALI
"Baris Jangkang"
During the 15th century, in Hindu Java, twenty varieties of Baris Gede warrior dances were recorded. Nearly all seem to have survived in Hindu Bali today. The Baris Jangkang dance, portrayed here in Pelilit village, Nusa Penida, is one of the rarest. It is often called the Baris Goak or Crow Dance. The sinewy movements are mesmerizing.
The Dansmuseet in Stockholm has a 1930s recording filmed by Rolf de Mare, the legendary ethno-cinematographer. Today’s version is fairly similar to the old dance recorded
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