The Powerful Guardian of Balinese House

Balinese Statue Powerful Guardian of Balinese House

Have you been seen the statue in front of a temple or palace during you spent the holiday in Bali? It was called by Bedogol which is the Balinese name for the gate guardian statue. It also called Dwarapala.

The statues were placed only in Pura (temples) and Puri (Royal homes), but nowadays they can be found in most houses in Bali. The statues are usually placed on the left and right sides of the gate - they are an essential element of Balinese exteriors. They mark homes with stark personality, charm, beauty or eccentric figures. People are free to choose any character to be used as a Bedogol. 

The statue representing the more powerful character is placed on the right side of the gate. Balinese People are always concerned with directions and also with positions - left and right. The complementary nature of Bedogol and their placement on both sides of the gate relates to the Balinese philosophy of good and bad, positive and negative and the essential necessity to balance these forces - to make them neutral. And it is important to know that the good does not exist without the bad or, for that matter, the bad without the good. The bedogol’s purpose is to organize possibly unbalanced elements from the outside world, to make the positive and negative neutral before they enter the home.

The guardian statues are typically a pair of characters that complement each other, such as young and old brother. Most Balinese use the male-female Dwarapala to guard their homes. Sometimes they look alike, but they are not identical. Often the statues are like a mirror image rather than an exact replica. For example, if one statue makes a gesture to the left, the other would make it to the right. So, you just glance at our Dwarapala statues and walk through the gate assured of a stable and peaceful atmosphere. This is one of the unique things in Bali that you must know when you spent the holiday in Paradise Island.