Pandoraspace

Candi Borobudur is not a temple but a monument

According to the dictionary, a temple is a place of worship and the dwelling place of gods. It is derived from the Latin word templum, which means “open or consecrated space”. The reason I looked up this word is because Aisha and Danang took pains in emphasizing that Borobudur is not a temple but a monument. Aisha even told us that the literal translation of Borobudur is “monument on a hill”. I found this strange because the signs leading to Borobudur say “Candi Borobudur” and candi is the Indonesian word for temple.

Perhaps what Aisha and Danang meant when they said that Borobudur is not a temple is that, although it is a place where one could pray, it is not a place where people go to worship or bring offerings to their gods as there are no religious icons or statues of gods in Borobudur. The only statues one would find are those of Buddha. According to Aisha, Buddha is not a god and neither does Buddhism teach one to worship Buddha.

As I am not privy to the teachings of Buddha or Buddhism, I must rely on this article, which to me, summarized what Aisha told me about Buddhism. The article says -

“Buddhism is a path of practice and spiritual development leading to Insight into the true nature of life. Buddhist practices such as meditation are means of changing oneself in order to develop the qualities of awareness, kindness, and wisdom. The experience developed within the Buddhist tradition over thousands of years has created an incomparable resource for all those who wish to follow a path — a path which ultimately culminates in Enlightenment or Buddhahood.

Because Buddhism does not include the idea of worshipping a creator god, some people do not see it as a religion in the normal, Western sense. The basic tenets of Buddhist teaching are straightforward and practical: nothing is fixed or permanent; actions have consequences; change is possible. Thus Buddhism addresses itself to all people irrespective of race, nationality, or gender. It teaches practical methods (such as meditation) which enable people to realise and utilise its teachings in order to transform their experience, to be fully responsible for their lives and to develop the qualities of Wisdom and Compassion.”

If one were to understand Buddhism in that sense, then truly, Borobudur cannot be called a temple.

This entry was posted on Monday, April 27th, 2009 at 12:08 am and is filed under My Indonesian Experience. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.