Eat, Pray, Love’s footprint is everywhere in Ubud, Bali, where author Elizabeth Gilbert spent her bestselling book’s “Love” chapter. You can feel its influence at every turn—from the steady stream of readers wandering Ubud’s streets to the clichéd tours and locals eagerly name-dropping spiritual healer Ketut Liyer and medicine woman Wayan Nuriasih. Having heard what an unforgettable character Ketut was, Shawn and I couldn’t resist dropping by for a visit.
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Meeting Ketut: Our Visit to His Home
We first visited Ketut’s home compound on a Balinese holiday. Our homestay hosts, Madde and Ayu, had explained that Ketut would not be seeing clients that day, but said that it would be interesting to observe Ketut leading ceremonies for locals who’d be visiting his temple for spiritual cleansing.
They were right. Locals flocked to his home compound, dropping in to the family temple to deliver offerings and partake in the ceremony that Ketut was leading. The famous medicine man had a bell in hand and seemed thoroughly immersed. Yet for a brief moment, the famous healer caught our eyes and flashed us an incredibly warm, nearly toothless smile.
On Thanksgiving Day, we returned to Ketut’s home. As anticipated, the compound was buzzing with activity. A group of tourists from Jakarta huddled around the 98-year-old man, a dog napped in the shade of a temple, caged birds serenaded, and women carried construction supplies on their heads to a corner of the compound.
Once the guests from Jakarta departed, Ketut gestured to us from his position on the floor, where he sat effortlessly in lotus pose.
“Make introduction, please,” he said.
As we began chatting, Mango—the stuffed monkey who’d been tagging along to bring a bit of fun to our travel pictures—instantly caught Ketut’s curiosity.
Ketut playfully interacted with Mango and then went into his trunk. He pulled out an original copy of Eat Pray Love, as well as a letter from Elizabeth Gilbert. Ketut’s long, ring-adorned fingers paged through the book and showed us select passages.
“Here is my name… and here is my name…” Little did Ketut know that we had heard of him before!
Then, he pulled a note card from an envelope.
“I don’t understand it,” Ketut said. “Please read Liz’s letter,” he continued, handing us the note card.
In the letter, Gilbert wrote Ketut that she thought of him often, and that she was grateful for what the wise man had taught her about love.
“What’s that word? Graaatefull? I don’t understand,” Ketut asked us.
“Thankful. Happy for what you taught her,” I explained. It was fun helping the Balinese man increase his English vocabulary.
Ketut seemed perplexed by the colorful, hard-covered notebook that we travel with, in which we’d jotted down a few questions for him.
“Are you going to make me a picture?” he jokingly asked.
Ketut gently offered his palm-reading services, mentioning that most visitors to his compound are “wanting to know about the future.”
We replied that we instead wanted to just talk with him, and that we would like to make a donation for his kidney stone operation, which he mentioned several times.
Ketut seemed pleasantly surprised that our visit didn’t follow the typical tourist formula.
We asked Ketut about his secrets for leading a happy life. I am not certain that Ketut understood the question, but he did say that he was not sad to die because he had lived a happy and full life.
Ketut reached into his trunk once more, this time pulling out a polished brass bell wrapped in a yellow satin bag.
“This from Liz,” he said.
He began to chant, ringing the bell as its clear sound filled the room. By the end of our visit, he had proudly demonstrated three different bells from his collection.
As the evening sun began to dip below the horizon—and with a long walk back ahead of us—Shawn and I thanked Ketut for his generosity and warmth.
“Don’t forget about me,” he said softly. “Thank you for coming.”
His small frame shook with a hearty laugh before he delivered his final farewell:
“See you later, alligator!”
Update: Ketut Liyer died in June 2016.
See author Elizabeth Gilbert’s thoughts on the passing of this beloved and mischievous medicine man.
Ketut’s family also posted about his death here.
Where in the World?
Plan Your Visit to Ketut Liyer’s Home:
Ketut Liyer passed away in the summer of 2016. You can read author Elizabeth Gilbert’s tribute to Ketut on her Facebook page.
How to stay at Ketut’s family home:
Ketut’s family is now running a guesthouse called the Liyer Spirit House (affiliate link). It’s housed in the same compound as Ketut’s former home. We did not stay there, so I can’t report on what the accommodations are like.
Address and telephone number:
Pengosekan, Mas, Ubud, Bali, Indonesia, +62 361 974092.
Getting to Ketut’s home:
The family compound is a bit of a walk from Ubud’s center; however, we made the journey twice on foot. Most taxi drivers should be able to easily find the home. We did not make any arrangements in advance, and we simply showed up at his business/home.
Accommodation in Ubud:
During our 2 weeks in Ubud, we stayed at the pretty and tranquil Nirwa Homestay (affiliate link), run by Madde and Ayu. This family-run guesthouse was surrounded by a panorama of vibrant rice paddies, and our soundtrack was that of nature: cricket sopranos, confident roosters, and babbling canals. If you go, be sure to order Ayu’s legendary green banana pancakes for breakfast.
Looking for more Bali trip-planning inspiration?
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Photography & text © Tricia A. Mitchell. All Rights Reserved.
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