Borobudur Temple, Central Java

Credit:Marcel Malherbe, laif/Redux

Borobudur Temple – World’s Largest Buddhist Monument

One of the world’s largest Buddhist monuments on a remote hilltop in Central Java has drawn pilgrims from around Southeast Asia which is surrounded by lush green vegetation and fringed by volcanoes one of which is still active.

This famous temple which dates back to the 8th and the 9th centuries is built in three tiers – a pyramidal base having five concentric square terraces, the trunk of a cone with three circular platforms and a monumental stupa at the top. The balustrades and the walls seems to be decorated with fine low reliefs which cover a total area of a surface of 2,500 sq. m while around the circular platform, one will find some 72 open work stupas each of which contain a statue of Buddha.

The monument was restored in the 1970s with the help of UNESCO. The temple was utilised as a Buddhist temple from the time of its construction till somewhere between the tenth and the fifteen century when it was abandoned by the inhabitants. It was only after its re-discovery during the 19th century and its restoration in the 20th century that it was brought back into Buddhist archaeological site.

Greatest Assemblage of Buddhist Sculptures

It is said that around 1,200 years ago, builders had carted two million stones from the areas of local rivers and streams to fit them tightly together without the use of mortar to develop a 95 foot high step pyramid. Over 500 Buddha statues were seen erected around the temple and its lower terraces comprised of balustrade which blocked out views of the outside world and replaced with 3,000 bas-relief sculptures that illustrated the life as well as the teachings of Buddha.

With this combination it makes up the greatest assemblage of Buddhist sculptures in the world. According to the tenets of Mahayana Buddhism, the pilgrimage climb to Borobudur itself is meant to be a physical as well as a spiritual experience and the pilgrimages ascend upwards from one level to another, they are guided by the wisdom and stories of the bas-reliefs from one symbolic plane of consciousness to the other higher level on their enlightenment journey.

Excavation in Early 19th Century – Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles

This site has drawn pilgrims for several years and one will find Chinese coins together with ceramic which indicate that the practice prevailed till the 15th century. When Borobudur was abandoned mysteriously during the 1500s, the centre of Javan life moved to the East and Islam arrived in the 13th and 14th centuries on the island. With passage of time lush vegetation of Java and eruptions deposited volcanic ash took root on the largely forgotten and abandoned site.

Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, British governor of Java who heard of the site took an interest in its excavation in early 19th century and during the process of excavation, it revealed the treasures of Borobudur which triggered decay due to the exposure to the elements. The stones were liberated for the purpose of building and collectors took Buddha head along with other treasures for private and public collection across the world. The outcome is that this amazing site remains the same what it was around 1,200 years back and is a unique treasure in Southeast Asia.