3rd October 2022 – An Instagram photo showing a foreigner sitting on top of a shrine of a Balinese temple went viral over the weekend, prompting to cause a huge backlash from netizens and officials of Bali.
A photo posted to the @dreamchaser_traveling Instagram account shows a foreigner sitting at a Peringgi (shrine). The incident took place at the Pura Teratai Bang in the Eka Karya Bali Botanical Garden area, Candikuning Village, Baturiti District, Tabanan Regency. The man was wearing black jeans and a white shirt and was smiling. In the photo, a man is seen sitting on a Pelinggih, not even wear a kamen (cloth) and a selendang (scarf). Just wearing black jeans, a white t-shirt, and carrying a red bag. He wrote lengthy details about the park’s botanical gardens on the Instagram caption.
The head of Candikuning Village, I Made Mudita, confirmed that the pelinggih occupied by the tourists was the Pelinggih Bale Pelik at the Teratai Bang Temple. The local police and Customary Soldiers have arrived at the location. Mudita further stated that the police are currently tracing the identity of the tourist.
The image went viral after being reposted by a well-known social media influencer on the island. The foreigner reportedly took the photo apologetically, claiming he had not been informed that such actions were prohibited and that the photo was taken when no one was around. The photo has been deleted and since the publication of this article, his Instagram account has also not been found.
Furthermore, Gusti Made Ngurah, a member of the island’s village council who supervises religious, traditional, art, and cultural affairs, said that a set of Bali Gubernatorial Regulation from 2020 forbids any form of desecration of religious symbols, including Pelinggih. He also urged local Bendesa (village leaders) to continue raising awareness of regulations to prevent further religious and cultural misconduct.
