Puja Mandala is a place you can visit while you are in Bali which is located near by the tourist resort of Nusa Dua. In this place there are houses of worship representing five religions (agama) officially recognised by the Indonesian state; Christian church, Catholic church, mosque, temple, and vihara.
The plan to build this complex was initiated by the national government in the early 1990s, following the construction of international chain hotels in Nusa Dua. Puja Mandala was intended to provide visitors with worship facilities, acknowledge the equality of these official religions, and symbolically express tolerance and harmony between the members of different agama embodied in the national slogan, “unity in diversity.” This chapter investigates the mixed responses to Puja Mandala from the different religious communities in the 15 years of its existence and interprets its significance as an invented icon of religious tolerance.
The plan to build this complex was initiated by the national government in the early 1990s, following the construction of international chain hotels in Nusa Dua. Puja Mandala was intended to provide visitors with worship facilities, acknowledge the equality of these official religions, and symbolically express tolerance and harmony between the members of different agama embodied in the national slogan, “unity in diversity.” This chapter investigates the mixed responses to Puja Mandala from the different religious communities in the 15 years of its existence and interprets its significance as an invented icon of religious tolerance.
