Pura Desa, Puseh, Dalem — The Village 3-Temple Set

If Sad Kahyangan (3.2.1) is the island-wide perimeter, then at the village level the skeleton is Pura Kahyangan Tiga — the 3-temple set. Every Balinese village (Banjar, see 4.1) maintains all three. Without them, it is not a village. Pura Puseh (origin), Pura Desa (present), Pura Dalem (death and purification) — together they form a time axis of past, present, future, and the village-level realization of the Tri Murti (Brahma, Wisnu, Siwa, 3.1.3).

A. Kahyangan Tiga — The Three Temples as One Bundle

Kahyangan Tiga = Kahyangan (sacred abode) + Tiga (three). A legal obligation of every Desa Adat (customary village).

Three temples and the time axis:

Why three?

In the Balinese cosmos time is cyclical. A village runs beginning → present → end → beginning again — a perpetual cycle. Each phase needs a dedicated temple so the cycle never breaks.

Empu Kuturan's design (11th c.) — The Javanese sage Empu Kuturan (contemporary of Airlangga) systematized the Balinese village. He required three temples in every village. This took root alongside the Banjar self-government system (4.1).

Sources: Kahyangan Tiga · Empu Kuturan

B. Pura Puseh — Temple of Origin

Puseh = navel (from Balinese Pusat). Where the village began.

Location — At the village's Kaja (mountain side, sacred direction) end. Deity — Wisnu (preserver) + the spirits of village founders.

Roles:

• The village's founding rite — its anniversary Odalan
• Entry point for ancestor souls — souls of deceased villagers reside here after purification
• Keeper of the village's spiritual identity

Structure:

• Tri Mandala 3 courtyards (see 3.2.4)
• Meru (multi-tier tower) — usually 3, 5, 7, 9, or 11 tiers (odd numbers)
• Bale Agung — assembly pavilion (Banjar meetings)
• Padmasana — seat for Shiva/the sun

Odalan — The founding date is observed on the Pawukon 210-day cycle. The whole village participates.

Sources: Pura · Reuter T., Custodians of the Sacred Mountains (2002)

C. Pura Desa — Temple of the Present

Desa = village. The temple of the living community.

Location — The center of the village (near the Banjar assembly site). Often shares the compound with Pura Puseh or sits adjacent to it.

Deity — Brahma (creator) + the village deity.

Roles:

• The Bale Agung where the Banjar meeting (Sangkep) takes place
• Village-scale rites — marriage, tooth-filing, farewells
• Sangkep resolutions carry Adat legal force — the temple acts as village court (see 4.4)
• Galungan, Kuningan, Nyepi and other community holidays

Structural features:

• A very large Bale Agung — accommodates the whole village
• Wantilan — the cockfight (Tajen) ritual venue — derived from Tabuh Rah (the ritual blood offering)
• Bale Kulkul — the village bell tower (slit-drum carved from a coconut trunk) — for ritual and emergency signals

Daily use:

• A priest visits each morning to lay canang sari
• Weekly Bale Agung cleaning and flower decoration
• Monthly Banjar regular meetings

Sources: Pura Desa · Geertz C., Negara: The Theatre State in Nineteenth-Century Bali (Princeton, 1980)

D. Pura Dalem — Temple of Death and Purification

Dalem = deep, inner. Temple of death, dissolution, purification.

Location — At the village's Kelod (sea side, spirit direction) end. Usually beside the village cemetery (Setra).

Deity — Siwa Mahadewa + Durga (his fierce consort) + Bhuta Kala.

Roles:

• Ngaben (cremation) — temporary enshrining of the body
• Together with Setra (village cemetery), the realm of death
• Center for Bhuta Kala (spirit) offering (Mecaru)
• Where Calon Arang and Barong–Rangda dances are performed — ritual embodiment of Rwa Bineda

Why Kelod (toward the sea)?

In Balinese cosmology:

• Kaja (mountain) — sacred, purified ancestors
• Kelod (sea) — spirits, death, unpurified souls
• Corpses, death = Kelod — separated from the village's Kaja zone

This is the village-scale application of the Tri Mandala spatial hierarchy (3.2.4).

Structural features:

• Padmasana + statue of Durga (Shiva's fierce consort)
• Bale Pemujaan — Mecaru ritual venue
• The atmosphere is darker than Puseh/Desa — deep shade and black banners
• Penataran Agung Ped (Nusa Penida) — Bali's largest Pura Dalem, the headquarters of Bhuta Kala guardianship

Rites:

• Parts of the Ngaben (cremation) sequence
• Memukur (post-cremation purification)
• Tawur Kesanga (great purification on Nyepi eve)
• Emergency Mecaru in times of epidemic or disaster

Sources: Pura Dalem · Pura Dalem Ped · Eiseman F.B., Bali: Sekala and Niskala (1989)

E. Spatial Arrangement — Village as Microcosm

The Balinese village's spatial composition is set by the placement of the three temples.

[ Mountain / Kaja / Sacred ]
       ↑
   Pura Puseh  (origin · ancestors)
       |
   Pura Desa   (present · community)  ← Banjar assembly, market
       |
   Pura Dalem  (death · purification) — Setra (cemetery)
       ↓
[ Sea / Kelod / Spirits ]

Principles:

• Puseh at the most sacred Kaja end
• Desa at the village center
• Dalem and the cemetery at the Kelod end
• Ordinary houses sit between the three

Island-scale application — the same pattern extends to the whole island:

• Of the Sad Kahyangan, Besakih (at the Kaja end) = the island's Puseh
• Pura Dalem Ped (Nusa Penida, Kelod end) = the island's Dalem
• Inland villages and cities (middle) = the island's Desa

Modern stresses:

• Urbanization blurs Banjar boundaries — disputes over which Pura Dalem covers a household
• Foreigner villas built near Setra (cemetery) — Kelod violations
• Inside the Sarbagita megacity (2.3.2), the Kahyangan Tiga of dozens of villages overlap

Sources: Lansing J.S., Priests and Programmers (Princeton, 1991) · Reuter T., Custodians of the Sacred Mountains (2002)

F. The Foreigner's View — What to Know

1. Villa / residence choice

• Villas next to Pura Dalem or Setra (cemetery) are avoided by locals — rent is 20–30% cheaper, but concerns about Bhuta Kala influence
• Next to Pura Desa or Puseh — possible ritual processions and noise
• Villas within 100 m of any of the 3 temples face strong Banjar ritual-participation expectations

2. Understanding the ritual calendar

• Pura Desa Odalan — every Pawukon 210 days
• Galungan, Kuningan — every village rites simultaneously
• Pura Dalem rites are quiet — foreigners should keep a respectful distance

3. Photography

• Pura Puseh, Desa — outer courtyards OK
• Pura Dalem — many places no photography (cemetery, death realm)
• Inner courtyards (Jeroan) — devotees only

4. Donations

• During village events — Rp 50,000–100,000 welcomed
• Long-term foreign residents may extend regular support to the Klian Banjar — builds trust

Quick Summary

Sources / References

• Wiki — Kahyangan Tiga · Pura · Pura Dalem Ped · Mpu Kuturan · Banjar
• Official — PHDI Pusat — Desa Adat classification · Bali Provincial Government — Adat policy
• News — The Jakarta Post — Banjar/Pura dispute reports · Bali Post — village ritual commentary
• Academic — Reuter T., Custodians of the Sacred Mountains (University of Hawaii Press, 2002); Lansing J.S., Priests and Programmers (Princeton, 1991); Geertz C., Negara (Princeton, 1980); Eiseman F. B. Jr., Bali: Sekala and Niskala (Periplus, 1989-90)