Pura Dalem Puri, a stairway to heaven

Jagadhita, Contributor, Denpasar

Have you ever heard the screams of tortured souls? If you want to hear them, come to Pura Dalem Puri, a temple located in Karangasem, about 80 kilometers east of Denpasar.

It is believed the souls of sinful people are tormented here before they reach nirvana. This holy place at the foot of Mount Agung is situated on the way to Pura Besakih, one of the important temples in Bali. Pura Dalem Puri is where people come for self-reflection. Many may have violated religious commands.

Balinese Hindus believe that before dead people enter heaven, they are taken to Pura Dalem Puri. In this temple, the souls of people who have committed bad deeds during their life are tortured.

It is believed inside the temple there is a crater called Candra Goh, a bridge called Ugal-agil and a square called Tegal Penangsaran where a Curiga tree with kris (or knife) leaves grows. Murderers, drug traffickers and other criminals are believed to be tortured in this place.

Some of them are tied up to the tree while the kris leaves pierce their bodies. Others are thrown into the crater, which is full of molten copper.

However, Balinese Hindus believe the dead can escape the torture in Pura Dalem Puri if their bodies are burned during the ngaben ritual. After this cremation, the ashes are thrown into the sea with a prayer the soul will go to nirvana. The process continues with a ritual called pengastian carried out in the house of the dead person. During this ritual, the soul of the dead person is symbolized by a piece of kayu cendana (sandalwood). The wood is later thrown into the sea, accompanied by a prayer to the God of the Sea and the God of the Mountain in a ritual called Nyegara Gunung. When this process is over, the dead person is believed to have passed through the sea to the mountain. The mountain is Mount Agung and the location is the Pura Dalem Puri.

If the family of the dead person conducts all of these rituals, their soul will not be tortured in Pura Dalem Puri and the family will not hear any screams from the temple.

One day, when he passed Pura Dalem Puri on his way to Pura Besakih, Gede Astawa, a resident from Negara, heard his late grandfather crying.

He stopped and tried to find the source of the noise. In the ensuing silence he felt the hair on the back of his neck rising. Astawa, who earlier did not believe the horrible stories about Pura Dalem Puri, became a believer and determined to hold a ngaben ritual for his late grandfather. When the old man had died, Astawa and his family had buried the body instead of holding the cremation because of financial constraints.

Astawa, a small-scale trader, says since he held the ngaben ritual for his grandfather he never hears his soul crying when he passes Pura Dalem Puri. He also feels gratitude because since the ritual, he has had a profitable business.

A Balinese Hindu figure, I Ketut Wiana, says Pura Dalem Puri cannot be separated from Pura Besakih. The two temples represent the universe, which consists of two parts, saptaloka (heaven) and saptapetala (hell).

Pura Dalem Puri, he says, is a unique temple. It is secluded and is enveloped in a magical atmosphere. This is in accordance with its function as a stairway to heaven.

"The souls should pass the examinations and temptations in the temple compound before they become clean of sin. Because in order to enter heaven or pura besakih, one must be free of cuntaka (dirt)," Wiana says.

If people make offerings for their ancestors or hold ngaben rituals for them, this will help them cope with any difficulties in their lives, including economic problems.

"If they don't hold the ngaben ritual, they will face many problems in their lives."

Wiana also suggested people pray in Pura Dalem Puri for the souls of their ancestors so that they could find peace. "If they are peaceful, their offspring will be prosperous," he said.