Tanah Lot is a rock formation off the Indonesian island of Bali. It is home of a pilgrimage temple, the Pura Tanah Lot (literally "Tanah Lot temple"), and a popular tourist and cultural icon for photography and general exoticism.History
Tanah Lot means "Land [sic: in the] Sea" in the Balinese language. Located in Tabanan, about 20 kilometres (12 mi) from Denpasar, the temple sits on a large offshore rock which has been shaped continuously over the years by the ocean tide.
Tanah Lot is claimed to be the work of the 15th-century priest Nirartha.
During his travels along the south coast he saw the rock-island's
beautiful setting and rested there. Some fishermen saw him, and bought
him gifts. Nirartha then spent the night on the little island. Later he
spoke to the fishermen and told them to build a shrine on the rock for
he felt it to be a holy place to worship the Balinese sea gods
The Tanah Lot temple was built and has been a part of Balinese mythology for centuries. The temple is one of seven sea temples
around the Balinese coast. Each of the sea temples were established
within eyesight of the next to form a chain along the south-western
coast. However, the temple had significant Hindu influence.
At the base of the rocky island, poisonous sea snakes
are believed to guard the temple from evil spirits and intruders. A
giant snake purportedly protects the temple, which was created from
Nirartha's scarf when he established the island.
Restoration
In 1980, the temple's rock face was starting to crumble and the area around and inside the temple started to become dangerous. The Japanese government then provided a loan to the Indonesian government of Rp 800 billion (approximately USD $130 million)
to conserve the historic temple and other significant locations around
Bali. As a result, over one third of Tanah Lot's "rock" is actually
cleverly disguised artificial rock created during the Japanese-funded
and supervised renovation and stabilization program.
Tourism
The area leading to Tanah Lot is highly commercialized and people are
required to pay to enter the area. To reach the temple, visitors must
walk through a carefully planned set of Balinese market-format souvenir
shops which cover each side of the path down to the sea. On the mainland
cliff tops, restaurants have also been provided for tourists.