TRUNYAN VILLAGE

Sixty-eight kilometers from denpasar the road to kintamani leads up into the mountains.The road climbs up to a spectacular view on the ridge of a caldera which surrounds the mountain and lake of batur.from this point a small winding road lead down to the lakeside village of Trunyan which is know as a Bali aga''or original Bali'village,becouse of its isolated position has protected the ancient customs practised there.
The people of trunyan follow a Hindu relegion similar to that which existed before the javanese influence of the Majapahit kingdom.Their village,directly accross the lake from Mount Batur,is backed by steep hill and tronted by the deep lake.it takes about an hour to cross the lake to Trunyan by boat,or there is an alternative route around the lake that is rathehard to traverse.
There are several mythos and legends about the original of trunyan.The most comment is the story of a beautiful goddes who was drawn from the heavens by an exquisite perfume.she found this perfune originated from the menyan tree and the village was named'taru menyan' a name later simplified to Trunyan.
There is as unique system of burial practised here.where as in other parts of bali the deceased cremated,here the dead are simply laid out in an open cemetery.according to mythology the rulers of trunyan were afrain at the time that the perfume of the menyan tree would draw outsiders to the village,who might usurp their power.in orderte prevent detection of the perfume they forbid the lokal people to bury their head,hoping that the smell would hide their precious tree however the perfume of the tree was so strong that even the smell from the cemetry could not camoflage it.to reach the cemetry are must take about from Trunyan,as it is not accessible by road.
There is also a giant statue,said to be approximately 4 meters is height,in the temple at trunyan,which dates back to the megalithic period.this is a statue of their most respected God,Ratu Sakti Pancerin Jagat,or Dewa Datonta.it is concealed within atiered pagoda known as the'Meru Tumpang Pitu'and only on special holydays may the virgin boys at the village enter this pagoda.