Pandoraspace

On Prambanan

In Paul Michel Munoz’ Early Kingdoms of the Indonesian Archipelago and the Malay Peninsula, he says that “Prambanan was a complex of temples dedicated to [the Hindu god] Shiva, which was built to celebrate the return to power of the Sanjaya Dynasty in Central Java around 825AD.” (at 354)

“As with the majority of Indonesian Hindu temples, the shrine of Prambanan presents typical cruciform, mountain-type shapes symbolizing Mout Meru, the residence of the Gods and the axis of the world in Hindu mythology.  The temple is divided by three concentric prescints with surrounding low walls which present openings for doors.  The external precinct was empty.  In the middle precinct were 224 small chapels or shrines disposed on four ranks…The inner precinct contained 16 cruciform temples.”  (Ibid., at 355)

The three main temples in the inner precinct are dedicate to the Hindu gods, Vishnu, Shiva and Brahma.  In front of each temple is a smaller temple dedicated to the vahanas or mount of those gods.  The vahanas of Vishnu, Shiva and Brahma are the Garuda, Nandi Bull and Hamsa, respectively.  To read more about vahanas, click on this. (more…)

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. (more…)