Bali - Temple: Tirta Empul

For more than a thousand years, Balinese worshipers have been drawn to Pura Tirta Empul, whose sacred spring is said to have been created by the god Indra and to have curative powers.

The legend: At one time a demon set himself up as a god. He refused to let the people conduct their religious rites and this resulted in the air above Bali becoming so dirty that the true gods could not peer through it. Eventually Indra and numerous other deities were ordered to clean the air, and upon seeing Indra and the deities, the demon fled to Tempaksaring where he poisoned the river. When the deities drank the water, they died. Indra was furious and shot an arrow into the ground to create a source of fresh and clean water. He used the water to bring his companions back to life. The spring became known as Tirta Empul.