This monument consists of six square terraces on which there are three circular courtyard, the walls are decorated with 2,672 relief panels and originally there are 504 Buddha statues. Borobudur has the most complete collection of Buddhist reliefs and the largest in the world. The largest main stupa in the middle as well crowns this building, surrounded by three circular rows of 72 perforated stupas in which there is a buddha statue sitting cross-legged in a perfect lotus position with mudra (hand attitude) Dharmachakra mudra (rotating wheel dharma).
This monument is a model of the universe and built as a sacred place to glorify Buddha as well as functioning as a place of pilgrimage to guide mankind from the world of carnal lust to enlightenment and wisdom according to Buddhism. Pilgrims enter through the eastern side to begin the ritual at the base of the temple by walking around this sacred building clockwise, while continuing up the next steps through three levels of realm in Buddhist cosmology. These three levels are Kāmadhātu (the realm of lust), Rupadhatu (tangible realm), and Arupadhatu (intangible realm). In this journey pilgrims walk through a series of alleys and staircases by witnessing no less than 1,460 beautiful relief panels engraved on the walls and balustrades.
According to historical evidence, Borobudur was abandoned in the 14th century as the influence of Hindu and Buddhist kingdoms on Java and the influx of Islam influenced. The world began to realize the existence of this building since found in 1814 by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, then serving as Governor-General of England over Java. Since then Borobudur has undergone a series of rescue and restoration efforts. The largest restoration project was held in the period 1975 to 1982 for the efforts of the Government of the Republic of Indonesia and UNESCO, then this historic site included in the list of World Heritage Sites.
Borobudur is still used as a place of religious pilgrimage; Every year Buddhists who come from all over Indonesia and abroad gather in Borobudur to commemorate the Vesak Trisuci. In the world of tourism, Borobudur is the single most visited tourist attraction in Indonesia.
In addition to Borobudur, there are several Buddhist and Hindu temples in the region. At the time of discovery and restoration in the early 20th century found other Buddhist temples of Mendut and Pawon temple stretched stretched in a straight line.Initially allegedly just a coincidence, but based on the fairy tales of the locals, there used to be a stone-lined streets lined with fences A ledge on both sides that connects these three temples. There is no physical evidence of stone-lined highways and gates and maybe this is just a fairy tale, but experts suspect there is indeed a symbolic unity of these three temples. These three temples (Borobudur-Pawon-Mendut) have similarities in architectural styles and decorations and indeed come from the same period that strengthens the allegations of ritual interconnection between these three temples. Sacred linking must exist, but how the religious ritual process of pilgrimage is done is not known for certain.In addition to Mendut and Pawon temples, around Borobudur also found some other ancient relics, including various pottery findings such as stoneware and jugs that show that around Borobudur there were some residential areas. Ancient findings around Borobudur are now housed in the Borobudur Karmawibhangga Museum, located north of the temple adjacent to the Raksa Ocean Museum. Not how far north of Pawon temple found the ruins of a former Hindu temple called Banon Temple. In this temple found some statues of Hindu gods in good condition that is Shiwa, Wishnu, Brahma, and Ganesha. However, the original stone of Banon Temple is very little found so that it is impossible to do reconstruction. At the time of its discovery the statues of Banon were transported to Batavia (now Jakarta) and are now kept in the National Museum of Indonesia.
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