The temple snake

This beautiful snake  with its yellow rings is considered sacred by the Balinese. it lives mainly in the the,plus and is called the temple snake. Having this snake in your house under the roof is considered a blessing. It show itself on the average once a week coming down from the roof to go hunting for food. Its main food are the frogs it finds around the ponds.It nourishes itself from mice as well.

We have a special approach to the snakes here. Since we are the ones taking the living space away from them, we are respecting and honoring them. The Balinese do make offering for the snakes at the house temples. This way a peaceful co-existence is initiated.

Sacred temple snakes

Tropical snake

Last week we discovered two large beautiful snakes on the ceiling above the dining area.

After checking with the local priest, we were told that these are sacred temple snakes which usually only live in temples. He meant that obviously the energy at Jiwa Damai seemed attractive to them.

Actually they are nocturnal animals. Being concerned about our guests fears, the priest suggested to use burning incense to move them from the spot on the roof where one had gone to sleep. Low and behold, they moved away into the roof of the building.

Snake