Ritual clothing is an indispensable part of the sacred order of Tenganan Pegringsing. The double ikat cloths known as geringsing produced here rank among the masterwork of traditional textile art, providing a further sign of the divinely-ordained exclusivity of the society. The cloths are said to have directly inspired by Batara Indra, the Creator who was once sitting in a tree enjoying the beauty of the moon and stars. While contemplating the heavens, he decided to teach the women of Tenganan the art of ikat patterning. Since then, the community has obeyed a divine commandment to wear kamben geringsing or double ikat cloths. In this way, the villagers evince purity and the ability to perform rituals qualities, which these clothes protect from harmful outside influences.

Festival of the swings

Among the most important religious duties of the villagers of Tenganan is the festive reception of gods and ancestors, who from time to time descend to their megalithic thrones and altars in and around the inner village precincts. The presence of deities and ancestors is of great significance, above all during the fifth month of the Tenganan year, Sasih Sambah, for it is then that the universe, the village and the religious community are renewed and given strength through the performance of extensive, solemn rites.

The ceremonies that take place then are reminiscent of old Vedic swinging rites performed during the mahavrata winter solstice celebration, which focuses on Indra. The swinging unites sun and earth, and together with textile techniques and recent genetic research, suggests that Tenganan may be connected with immigration from east or southeast India during Vedic times.

In a legendary account, the people of Tenganan are said to have arrived here while searching for the favorite horse of the king of Bedahulu. Although it was dead when found, the king showed his gratitude by promising to give the searchers all land in the area where the horse's decomposed body could be smelt. So a representative of the court, accompanied by the village head, walked around the huge area which today forms

Tenganan, finding that in fact the horse's flesh could still be smelled for quite a distance. After the court officer had departed, the cunning village chief pulled a piece of bad smelling horsemeat from under his waistband. The remnants of the horse are believed to be scattered around the village as megalithic monuments.

There are other indications, too, that the people of Tenganan have not always lived here. A copper inscription dated A.D. 1040 speaks of a relationship between the powerful governor from Java, a certain Buddhist reformer Mpu Kuturan in Silayukti (near Padangbai), and a nearby village named "Tranganan" that was then on the coast at Candidasa and later moved to the interior.

Proof that the villagers of Tenganan moved from the seaside to their present location is provided in the design and placement of the original altars (sanggah kamulan) in the house compounds. In other parts of Bali this altar is always built in the corner facing east and toward the mountains. In Tenganan it is placed towards the sea.

When a member of the community of Tenganan dies, his or her body is not cremated. Once the sun is past the zenith, the corpse is carried from the compound to the cemetery. At the grave the body is' undressed, then it is returned to Mother Earth (Pertiwi), head seaward and face down.

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