Kertha Gosa Pavilion

The Kertha Gosa Pavilion is an example of Balinese architecture located on the island of Bali, in city Klungkung, Indonesia.

[1] In 1960 the entire ceiling at Kertha Gosa was replaced and new paintings were made, still depicting the story of Bhima Swarga but adding greater detail.

Paintings in the wayang style are related closely to shadow theatre art and have been faithfully preserved to reflect Bali's Hindu-Javanese heritage in its traditional iconography and content.

[1] The upper panels depict scenes from a section of the Hindu epic Mahabharata, called Bhima Swarga story.

Some of the lower panels show scenes from the Tantri narrative ; others illustrate the story of the bird-god Garuda in his quest for the water of immortality.

The earliest, and only, record of paintings at Kertha Gosa dates from 1842 and is written in a lontara (a book that holds prayers, the history of Bali, and epics).

One of Bhima's most important features, assigned only to him, is his right thumb which ends in a long curved nail as his weapon; this is a magical implication.

[citation needed] In the paintings, social standing is portrayed by the hierarchical position of the characters, the size of their body, and the side on which they are placed (left or right of the scene).

[citation needed] The Bhima Swarga painting is a moral epic, depicting wisdom and perseverance, and the ultimate victory of virtue over vice.

It is said, “He who with fervid devotion listens to a recitation of the Mahabharata attains to high success in consequence of the merit that becomes his through understanding even a very small portion thereof.