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Some notes on Borobudur

I was a little disappointed at having gone to Borobudur without knowing much about it.  I was even more disappointed when I read about it after my visit and realized that I would have had a better appreciation of Borobudur had I know more about it to begin with.

I put together the few things I learned about Borobudur in this article for you.  Just in case you decided to go there, these tidbits of information may help you appreciate Borobudur more and prevent you from become, like me, disappointed at not having read about it beforehand.

Borobudur is not found (as I originally though) in Jogjakarta, but rather, in Magelang Regency, Central Java, Indonesia. If you look at a map of Indonesia, you will immediately see that Borobudur is at the center of the Java Island. I am not certain if those who build Borobudur purposely built it in the center of Java. I would, however, like to believe that there was a purpose for building it there.

The book by Paul Michel Munoz, Early Kingdoms of the Indonesian Archipelago and Malay Peninsula, states that Borobudur derives its name from Bhumisambraharabhaudara, which literally means “the mountain of the accumulation of virtue on the (ten) stages (to becoming a Bodhissatva).” (at 351)  According to this article, “[t]he Borobodur Temple complex is one of the greatest monuments in the world. It is of uncertain age, but thought to have been built between the end of the seventh and beginning of the eighth century A.D. For about a century and a half it was the spiritual centre of Buddhism in Java, then it was lost until its rediscovery in the eighteenth century.”  Like Masjid Istiqlal the measurement and position of various objects and structures at Borobudur are precise and meaningful. According to this article, which to me best explains the meaning of the various objects and structures of Borobudur, it is

“…composed of 55,000 square meters of lava-rock [erected] on a hill in the form of a stepped-pyramid of six rectangular storeys, three circular terraces and a central stupa forming the summit. The whole structure is in the form of a lotus, the sacred flower of Buddha.

For each direction there are ninety-two Dhyani Buddha statues and 1,460 relief scenes. The lowest level has 160 reliefs depicting cause and effect; the middle level contains various stories of the Buddha’s life from the Jataka Tales; the highest level has no reliefs or decorations whatsoever but has a balcony, square in shape with round walls: a circle without beginning or end. Here is the place of the ninety-two Vajrasattvas or Dhyani Buddhas tucked into small stupas. Each of these statues has a mudra (hand gesture) indicating one of the five directions: east, with the mudra of calling the earth to witness; south, with the hand position of blessing; west, with the gesture of meditation; north, the mudra of fearlessness; and the centre with the gesture of teaching. Besides being the highest symbol of Buddhism, the Borobodur stupa is also a replica of the universe. It symbolises the micro-cosmos, which is divided into three levels, in which man’s world of desire is influenced by negative impulses; the middle level, the world in which man has control of his negative impulses and uses his positive impulses; the highest level, in which the world of man is no longer bounded by physical and worldly ancient desire.

It is devotional practice to circumambulate around the galleries and terraces always turning to the left and keeping the edifice to the right while either chanting or meditating. In total, Borobodur represents the ten levels of a Bodhisattva’s life which he or she must develop to become a Buddha or an awakened one.”

On the three highest levels, there are seventy-two stupas. Originally, there were buddhas inside each stupa. Nowadays, some stupas no longer have a buddha inside or one that is complete (most of the buddhas’ heads are missing). According to our guide Aisha, several years ago, some people bombed nine stupas. There was a bomb planted on a tenth stupa but it did no go off. For that reason, the Buddha inside that stupa is considered lucky. Aisha told us to reach in the stupa and hold the feet of the Buddha (for men they should hold the hands of the buddha) and make a wish. Being the wishful (i.e., guillible) girls we are, LS and I reached inside the stupa, held the foot of the lucky buddha and made our wishes.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 28th, 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.