Borobudur, or
Barabudur, is a 9th-century
Mahayana Buddhist monument in
Magelang,
Central
Java,
Indonesia.
The monument consists of six square platforms topped by three circular
platforms, and is decorated with 2,672
relief panels and
504
Buddha
statues. A main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded
by 72 Buddha statues seated inside a perforated
stupa.
Built in the 9th century during the reign of the
Sailendra
Dynasty, the temple’s design in
Gupta
architecture reflects
India's
influence on the region, yet there are enough indigenous scenes and elements
incorporated to make Borobudur uniquely Indonesian. The monument is both a
shrine to the
Lord Buddha
and a place for Buddhist
pilgrimage. The journey for pilgrims begins at the base of
the monument and follows a path around the monument and ascends to the top
through three levels symbolic of
Buddhist cosmology:
Kāmadhātu
(the world of desire),
Rupadhatu (the world of forms) and
Arupadhatu
(the world of formlessness). The monument guides pilgrims through an extensive
system of stairways and corridors with 1,460 narrative relief panels on the
walls and the
balustrades.
Evidence suggest Borobudur was constructed in the 9th century and abandoned
following the 14th century decline of Buddhist and
Hindu kingdoms in Java, and the
Javanese
conversion to Islam.
[4]
Worldwide knowledge of its existence was sparked in 1814 by
Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, then the
British ruler of Java, who was advised of its location by native Indonesians.
Borobudur has since been preserved through several restorations. The largest
restoration project was undertaken between 1975 and 1982 by the
Indonesian government and
UNESCO, following
which the monument was listed as a UNESCO
World Heritage Site.
[5]
Borobudur is still used for pilgrimage; once a year Buddhists in Indonesia
celebrate
Vesak at
the monument, and Borobudur is Indonesia's single most visited
tourist attraction
History
Construction
There is no written record of who built Borobudur or of its intended
purpose. The construction time has been estimated by comparison between
carved
reliefs on the temple's hidden foot and the
inscriptions
commonly used in royal charters during the 8th and 9th centuries. Borobudur was
likely founded around 800 CE. This corresponds to the period between 760 and
830 CE, the peak of the
Sailendra dynasty in central Java, when it was under the
influence of the
Srivijayan Empire. The construction has been estimated to
have taken 75 years and been completed during the reign of
Samaratungga
in 825.
There is confusion between Hindu and Buddhist rulers in
Java around that time.
The Sailendras were known as ardent followers of Buddhism, though stone
inscriptions found at Sojomerto suggest they may have been Hindus. It was
during this time that many Hindu and Buddhist monuments were built on the
plains and mountains around the Kedu Plain. The Buddhist monuments, including
Borobudur, were erected around the same time as the Hindu
Shiva Prambanan
temple compound. In 732 CE, the Shivaite King
Sanjaya
commissioned a
Shivalinga sanctuary to be built on the Wukir hill, only
10 km (6.2 mi) east of Borobudur.
Construction of Buddhist temples, including Borobudur, at that time was
possible because Sanjaya's immediate successor,
Rakai
Panangkaran, granted his permission to the Buddhist followers to build such
temples.
In fact, to show his respect,
Panangkaran gave the village of
Kalasan to the Buddhist community, as is written in the
Kalasan Charter dated 778 CE. This has led some archaeologists to believe that
there was never serious conflict concerning religion in Java as it was possible
for a Hindu king to patronize the establishment of a Buddhist monument; or for
a Buddhist king to act likewise. However, it is likely that there were two
rival royal dynasties in Java at the time—the Buddhist Sailendra and the
Saivite
Sanjaya—in which the latter triumphed over their rival in the 856 battle on the
Ratubaka
plateau. This confusion also exists regarding the Lara Jonggrang temple at the
Prambanan
complex, which was believed that it was erected by the victor Rakai Pikatan as
the Sanjaya dynasty's reply to Borobudur, but others suggest that there was a
climate of peaceful coexistence where Sailendra involvement exists in Lara
Jonggrang.