Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Conceps of Tropical Balinese Architecture









The Balinese community is rich in traditions of music dance, architecture and religion. Bali is home to such a beautiful landscape and vivid culture, it is not surprising the island is filled with inspired artists and performers. Ceremonial dances, music and sacred songs are often performed for the benefit of the gods. Loved by travelers for its lush, tropical scenery and charming people, Bali is considered to be one of the most magnificent places on earth. Spirituality and nature are integral parts of everyday life for the Balinese, so one can easily see why the island’s traditional architecture has a peaceful presence to it.

Many people living in Bali have such great passion about what they are doing. Bali with its potentials effect many people with its abundance of creative energy that drives people to produce inspiring ideas, concept, artworks and designs.

It is said that the traditional architecture in Bali originates from two sources. One is the great Hindu tradition brought to Bali from India. The second is an indigenous architecture before the Hindu epic and is in many ways reminiscent of Polynesian building.
The science of building is held to be a sacred knowledge to traditional Balinese architects. The four directions of the Balinese compass are critical in determining the lay-out and positioning of buildings. There is a developed Balinese science of geomancy written in the ancient palm leaf manuscripts. This is known as Kosala-kosali and through these guidelines local designers can determine the best place to locate the optimal positions for certain rooms of the building. Often when a family is suffering bad luck or misfortune, the first place the local witch doctor will look for is any unsuspecting violations of the Balinese laws of building.
Using such natural materials as thatch roofing, bamboo poles, woven bamboo, coconut wood, mud and stone they are organic statements in complete harmony with the environment. Many of these are temporary such as the offering houses set up before harvest in the rice fields. Others use trees that will actually keep on growing as the bamboo rots and returns to the mother earth. The Balinese have always been particularly adept using the bamboo and behind every Balinese house one can find at least one stand of bamboo.

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