This general information page about Bali covers everything from the history, geography of the island to the tourism industry sector in general and briefly.
Regarding the island of Bali, of course you are already familiar with the province whose capital is Denpasar, right?
Starting from the natural beauty of Bali and its culture. Down to the original customs of Indonesian ancestors, the heritage is still neatly preserved on this island of the gods.
General Information About Bali
Bali Island is one of the more than 17.000 islands in Indonesia. With an island area of 153 km long and 112 km wide and an island area of 123,98 km2.
The area of this island is half the area of East Java Province and about 3,2 km from Ketapang, the eastern part of Java Island.
Geographically, this island is located on an imaginary line of 8°25′23″ south latitude and 115°14′55″ east longitude. This is what makes it have a tropical climate like other parts of Indonesia.
Bali Islands is also the last chain of tropical islands, the imaginary line that marks the separation of the Asian and Australasian ecological zones.
Island Geography
Topologically, this island stretches across mountains from the west of the island to the east. Sandwiched between the western island of Java and the eastern island of Lombok.
Among these mountains there are a number of active volcanoes and unlike:
- Mount Agung is 3.142 meters high.
- Mount Batur 1.717 meters high above sea level.
- Mount Abang is 2.276 meters high.
- Mount Batukaru is 2.276 meters high.
In General Information About Bali Today, this island of the gods is dissected by rivers, canals and also canyons covered in forest. The valleys and hills are colored by green rice fields, the ends of beautiful beaches and lakes that fill the rest of the crater.
It has 4 (four) lakes located in the middle of the island in the mountainous area, namely:
- Beratan Lake / Lake Bedugul
- Buyan Lake.
- Tamblingan Lake.
- And Lake Batur.
The beautiful Bali makes this island famous as a tourist area. Lake Batur has an area of 1.607,5 hectares, Lake Beratan 375,6 hectares, Lake Buyan 336 hectares and Lake Tamblingan 110 hectares.
Rivers that originate from tropical forests and lakes that flow to the south. These rivers include the Unda River, Petanu River, Ayung River, Pulukan River, Loloan River and others.
Local government
The 4th smallest according to the Statistics Agency in terms of area, Bali Province has 8 regional government districts and one provincial capital.
- Badung Regency with 6 Districts
- Bangli Regency with 4 Districts
- Buleleng Regency with 9 Districts
- Gianyar Regency with 7 Districts
- Jembrana Regency with 5 Districts
- Karangasem Regency with 8 Districts
- Klungkung Regency with 4 Districts
- Tabanan Regency with 10 Districts
- Denpasar City with 4 Districts
The province was inaugurated on August 14 1958. Based on the legal basis of Law no. 64 of 1958 concerning the Establishment of Level I Regions.
Covers the Lesser Sunda region which consists of Bali, West Nusa Tenggara and East Nusa Tenggara.
Until every August 14th was made the anniversary of the Province of Bali before the expansion and until now.
Balinese History
The ancient island of Bali was inhabited by Austronesians around 2000 BC. Who migrated and came from Taiwan via Maritime Southeast Asia.
The culture and language of the local people are closely related to those of the Indonesian Archipelago, Malaysia, the Philippines and Oceania. Archaeological discoveries such as stone tools dating from the Austronesian era have been found near the village of Cekik in the west of the island.
In ancient Bali, there were nine Hindu sects, namely Pasupata, Bhairawa, Shiva Shidanta, Vaishnava, Bodha, Brahma, Rishi, Sora and Ganapatya. Each sect Honors a particular deity as its personal Godhead.
Its culture is strongly influenced by Indian, Chinese and especially Hindu culture. This culture began around the 1st century AD.
Read it later, okay? Dang Hyang Nirartha Pura Luhur Uluwatu
The name Bali Dwipa ("Bali Island") has been found from various inscriptions, including the Blanjong Inscription pillar written by Sri Kesari Warmadewa in 914 AD which mentions "Walidwipa".
At that time, the complex Subak irrigation system had been developed to grow rice. Some religious and cultural traditions still exist today and can be traced back (General Information about Bali).
The Hindu Majapahit Kingdom (1293-1520 AD) in East Java founded a colony here in 1343.
In the 15th century AD when the Majapahit Kingdom was defeated by the forces of the Islamic Kingdom of Demak, there was a massive exodus of Javanese-Hindu intellectuals, artists, priests and musicians from the island of Java to the island of Bali.
Balinese Life Beliefs
The beliefs of ancient people as explained above consist of nine Hindu sects, namely:
- Pasupata Sect.
- Bhairawa Sect.
- Shiva Shidanta Sect.
- Vaishnava sect.
- Bodha Sect.
- Brahma Sect.
- Rishi Sect.
- Sora Sect.
- Ganapatya Sect.
Each sect honors a particular deity as its personal Godhead. Balinese beliefs today are a complex phenomenon based on various aspects of Hinduism, Shiva, Buddhism and combined with ancestral traditions.
Therefore, the worship of spirits, ancestors and natural elements is combined with Hinduism itself.
In some cases, traditional ceremonies and religious rituals differ from one region to another.
The majority of Balinese people are almost 95% Hindu, although the syncretic form of Balinese Hinduism or sometimes also called Hindu Dharma.
Religious ceremony
In general information about Bali, one of the important ceremonies is the cremation or corpse burning ceremony which is usually called take a nap.
During this ceremony, gamelan, dancing, and offerings accompany the procession with a “decorated tower” being carried from the funeral home to the burial place.
The cosmology and symbolization of mountains in architecture can be seen in the shape and structure of temple architecture or the characteristics of gates that are made to resemble towers.
There are curves that resemble two separate parts of a pyramid and depict two parts of a mountain, one part of Mount Agung and the other an embodiment of Mount Batur.
Another common symbol is meru which are tens or even hundreds of buildings resembling pagodas standing in holy places and in temple grounds.
The Meru building is a layer of stone that has a series of roof shapes resembling overlapping pyramids that are covered by black palm leaves. The number eleven is a number determined on the basis of beliefs related to the order of the universe.
Beliefs, ceremonies and celebrations have guided people's lives from birth to form a blend that reflects the cultural character of the community.
Religious regulations not only bind the shape of temples and shrines but also regulate village layout, the structure of family homes, and a series of rights and responsibilities in their lives. Starting from everyday life on Earth, starting from eating, going to bed, walking to speaking.
Bali and Tourism
Bali is the most popular tourist destination on earth. You will find most of the honeymoon tourists and vacation tourists who visit this island.
It is also famous for its dance and culture, Traditional music, lots of carvings, paintings, Leather crafts and metal working are quite popular.
See also: 15 Types of Dance Arts in Bali | Kecak dance & others
The first tour was carried out by Maha Rishi Markandeya from Java for the purpose of spreading Hinduism on this island in the 8th century AD.
Then there were also several other spiritual figures who came to this island for the same purpose afterwards.
Travel from Europe to the island of Bali is done Cornelis de Houtman from the Netherlands in 1579 as the first westerner to land on this island. His arrival was part of an expedition to search for spices and trade in the archipelago.
Even though they didn't find the spices they were looking for on this island, during a brief stop the group explained about this Island of the Gods.
They described the island of Bali as just a life with its culture which, in their view, was very unique, never found in other places they visited while they were traveling around the world.
Bung Karno, Bali and Tourism in the 20th Century
Until the beginning of the 20th century when Bali was completely conquered by the Dutch, the entrance for westerners was wide open and this was also the initial milestone for the influx of tourists which began in the 1920s.
First President of Indonesia Ir Soekarno. He made this island (General Information about Bali) a place to receive state guests as well as introduce Bali more widely in the eyes of the world.
Landing with excitement at Ngurah Rai International Airport, some of the country's guests included India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, North Vietnam's leader Ho Chi Minh, and American President John F. Kennedy.
On the idea of Bung Karno, in Tampaksiring in 1957, the Tampaksiring Palace was built to welcome State Guests.
Then in 1963, it was Bung Karno who initiated the establishment of the Bali Beach Hotel on the Sanur beach.
This hotel will be the tallest building to date (because it is in accordance with the Decree of the Governor of Bali in 1971, which states, among other things, that the building must have a maximum height of a coconut tree or 15 meters.)
Bali Tourism Now
The rapid growth of development in the tourism sector to date has had a great impact and influence on the traditions and lifestyles of the Balinese and those on the island.
Interestingly, culture is still as it is, growing along with Globalization. Another thing that can be the answer to preserving culture is the vision of the Balinese people which inspires every soul to love and glorify their own culture without having to be ashamed.
Balinese Human Creativity
The creativity of Balinese people in various fields such as: sculpture making techniques, dance, architecture, music and various other artistic expressions, they confidently show to the world.
And according to what was reported by CNN (cnnindonesiacom 10 April 2016) "Bali is Still the Main Gateway to Indonesian Tourism".
Although tourism is promising as an economic driver, in recent decades it has slowly but surely given rise to several problems, mainly in the form of environmental decline, the erosion of traditions, inflation, and an increase in crime.
General Information About Bali in recent years it has even become a gateway for "dangerous" things. This is a challenge for Bali in the future.
- Indonesian Wikipedia
- Indonesian CNN
- Wacana.co
That's the page General Information About Bali We present it to travelers, hopefully it will be useful and become a reference and insight for future traveler friends to enjoy the natural beauty of Bali.
Tourist Destination Spot
Bali has no doubt has many and worldwide destination spots. One of them you can read on page 101 Popular Tourist Spots on the Island of the Gods.
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