Officials on hunt for naked tourist who meditated at Hindu shrine
Topics: News, World News
Kit Roberts
Featured Image Credit: Instagram/@niluhdjelantik
Topics: News, World News
Authorities in Bali are on the hunt for a tourist who filmed himself meditating naked in front of a Hindu shrine.
The incident came to the attention of authorities after it was reposted by Balinese influencer Ni Luh Djelantik repeatedly until it went viral.
In the video, the tourist can be seen sitting in the lotus position in front of the shrine inhaling smelling salts and relaxing, with a leaf preserving his modesty.
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Reposting the video, however, Djelantik said: "Harassment against places of worship must be actioned strongly!!! We are fed up with the behavior of trash tourists who insult our homeland."
The video which she reposted contained text from the man in the video.
The text said: "This video has gone viral. But sadly not in a positive way. Let me give you some context before you judge me.
"I met this Balinese rice farmer who was struggling to maintain his personal finances. I wanted to help him so I offered a loan. We agreed that he would put up his land as collateral.
"After he defaulted payments, legally the land was mine. As a compassionate digital nomad and content creator I decided to be kind."
It continues: "After taking his house, field, and temples I decided to let him and his family stay in the 1 bedroom guest house while it was being renovated to be put on Airbnb.
"So when others say I am meditating naked at a holy site, I want to let you know that they are wrong. I am actually meditating naked on MY OWN GOD DAMN LAND.
"People are so quick to judge these days. It's important to be compassionate."
The video has seen a furious backlash online, and Balinese authorities have claimed that they have identified the individual in question.
In a statement to AFP on Tuesday, Immigration Office head Tedy Riyandi said: “We are still carrying out investigations regarding this incident.
“The efforts currently being made by the Immigration Office are to contact the foreigner’s social media account, but to date there has been no response.”
This is not the first time that a foreign visitor has gotten into trouble while visiting Bali.
In April, a Russian woman was deported from the island after posting a nude photo of herself in front of a sacred tree.
Meanwhile in June a Danish woman was deported after being filmed flashing the public while riding a motorbike.
In the same month, local government officials released a guide for tourists wanting to visit Bali following pressure from the immigration office.