Before 1926 this famous place of worship and the village which hosted it was located in a volcanic crater right at Batur Volcano’s foot. In a violent volcanic eruption the temple and the village got destroyed but the eleven tiered ‘meru’, a multi-roofed shrine, the most significant shrine commemorating the goddess, survived the eruption. The survivors of the volcanic eruption moved their village to a higher point in the crater and rebuilt their place of worship. The main worship area of this lovely complex is known as the Pura Penataran Agung Batur and is the most dominant shrine. It features five exquisite courtyards and the innermost and the most sacred of these, houses the eleven tiered ‘meru’ dedicated to the goddess of the lake. This complex is also home to three 9 tiered ‘meru’ dedicated to the gods of mount Abang, mount Batur and sacred king of Gelgel dynasty, ‘Ida Batara Dalem Waturenggong’, and one three tiered ‘meru’ dedicated to the Ida Ratu Ayu Kentel Gumi, to ensure that the local farmer’s crops are protected from disease.
Another interesting part of this complex is the Chinese style shrine located in the north-western corner. The colourful statues here are to commemorate the Ida Ratu Ayu Subandar a famous god from the Hindu-Javanese days of Bali.
