On Saturday May 21st, 2011, I visited the National Museum which is often reffered as the statue of the Elephant (from Chulalngkong, king of Thailand) who graced in the front of the Museum. On that day can be classified as very few visitors. Just me and a friend of mine, some students from another school (can be counted) and a tourist.
When I got there, after buying a ticket for Rp. 5.000, -, I asked one of the employee, a guidebook to facilitate me around. The employee simply said, "a guide book at the office above. I'm on duty. " It was very confusing. The employee suppose to serve all the museum’s visitors. I consider this a trivial problem. I ignored it, eventhough disappointed. Without knowing direction where to go first, I tried enjoying my visit.
There was a room where I can see uncounted statues. I took pictures and collected information of the statues. However, the information provided is very minimal. Like for rxample, there was a statue of Garuda, the explanation about it, is only a small notes near the statue : the statue of Garuda. Found in Purwodadi. 12th century. Lack of information makes difficult to know about all of these relics.
When I got there, after buying a ticket for Rp. 5.000, -, I asked one of the employee, a guidebook to facilitate me around. The employee simply said, "a guide book at the office above. I'm on duty. " It was very confusing. The employee suppose to serve all the museum’s visitors. I consider this a trivial problem. I ignored it, eventhough disappointed. Without knowing direction where to go first, I tried enjoying my visit.
There was a room where I can see uncounted statues. I took pictures and collected information of the statues. However, the information provided is very minimal. Like for rxample, there was a statue of Garuda, the explanation about it, is only a small notes near the statue : the statue of Garuda. Found in Purwodadi. 12th century. Lack of information makes difficult to know about all of these relics.
Until I found a sculpture that I think is interesting. A statue of the Buddha's head, taken from one of the statues at Borobudur temple. I was interested in discussing the Borobudur temple.
Borobudur Temple is a Buddhist temple located in Magelang, Central Java. This temple was founded by the Mahayana Buddhists around the year AD 800 or so, precisely at the time of syailendra dynasty.
Borobudur itself comes from two words "coal" and "beduhur". The word "coal" is derived from the monastery, there is also another explanation in which the coals Sanskrit which means temple or monastery and "beduhur" which means high, in Balinese language means "above". So the point is a monastery located on high ground.
Borobudur is the founder of the dynasty king of Mataram dynasty named Samaratungga, who do construction around 824 AD The giant new buildings can be completed at the time of her daughter, Queen Pramudawardhani. Borobudur estimated construction takes half a century. A history researcher, named Casparis estimates that Bhumi Sambhāra Bhudhāra in Sanskrit which means "Mount of the set of ten levels boddhisattwa virtue" was the original name of Borobudur.
Plan forming Borobudur Mandala, a symbol of the universe in Buddhist cosmology.
Borobudur has a basic structure punden staircase, with a six-yard square, three circular courtyard and a main stupa as a peak. Also scattered in all pelatarannya several stupas.
Ten yard owned Borobudur clearly illustrates the Mahayana school of philosophy. Like a book, Borobudur describes ten levels of Bodhisattva who must pass to reach the perfection of the Buddha.
The foot of Borobudur represents Kamadhatu, the world is still dominated by kama, or "low desire". This section is mostly covered by a pile of stone that allegedly made to strengthen the construction of the temple. At the closed part of this additional structure there are 120 panels Kammawibhangga story. A small part of an additional structure was set aside so people can still see the relief in this section.
Four floors with walls berelief on it by the experts called Rupadhatu. The floor is rectangular. Rupadhatu is a world that has been able to free himself from passion, but still bound by the appearance and shape. This level represents the nature of that is, between the bottom and the nature of nature. In part this Rupadhatu Buddha statues found in the recesses of the wall above ballustrade or breezeway.
Starting the fifth to the seventh floor walls are not berelief. This level is called Arupadhatu (which means no tangible form or not). Circular floor plan. This level represents the nature of, where people are free from all desires and bond forms and shapes, but have not reached nirvana. Buddha statues are placed in the stupa is covered with holes as in the cage. From outside the statues were still dim.
The highest level that describes the lack of being represented in the form of the largest and highest stupa. Stupa depicted plain without holes. In the largest stupa Buddha statue ever found an imperfect or unfinished also called Buddha, who disalahsangkakan as Adibuddha statue, but through further research there has never been a statue at the main stupa, which is not finished sculpture was a mistake pemahatnya in ancient times. according to the belief that the statue was wrong in the manufacturing process should not be tampered with. Archaeological excavations carried out in the courtyard of the temple was found a lot of statues like this.
In the past, several statues of Buddha along with 30 stones with reliefs, two statues of lions, some rocks shaped stage, stairs and gates are sent to the King of Thailand, Chulalongkorn, who visited the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) in 1896 as a gift from the Dutch Government as it.
Borobudur has no worship spaces like other temples. That there are long hallways which is a narrow road. The hallways surrounding the walled temple level by level. In the halls of the Buddhist is expected to perform the ceremony walk around the temple to the right. Shape of the building without room and terraced structure is thought to be an outgrowth of the form punden staircase, which is a form of architecture from prehistoric native Indonesia.
Borobudur structure does not use cement at all, but the Interlock system is like Lego blocks that can be attached without glue.
at every level carved reliefs on temple walls. Reliefs are read according to the clockwise or called mapradaksina in Old Javanese.
Lalitawistara about the history of the depiction of the Buddha in a row of reliefs (but not a complete history) that starts from the Buddha's descent from heaven Tusita, and ends with the first sermon in the Deer Park near the city of Banaras. then, there and Awadana Jataka stories of the Buddha was born as Prince Siddhartha before and, Gandawyuha mengenaicerita Sudhana who traveled tirelessly in his quest for knowledge about the Supreme Truth by Sudhana.
Buddha statue in the recesses at the level Rupadhatu, arranged by row on the outer side of the balustrade. Dwindling at the top. Balustrade of the first row consists of 104 niches, recesses 104 second row, third row recesses 88, fourth 72 recesses, and the fifth line 64 niches. Total there are 432 statues of Buddha at the Rupadhatu. In the Arupadhatu (three circular courtyard), statues of Buddha placed in stupas berterawang (perforated). At first there is a circular platform 32 stupas, the second court of the 24 stupas, and the third courtyard there are 16 stupas, all of them a total of 72 stupas. Of the original number as many as 504 statues of Buddha, more than 300 have been damaged (mostly headless) and 43 missing (since the discovery of this monument, head of the buddha is often stolen as collector's item, mostly by foreign museums), may be one of the national museum.
On the face of all this buddha statues look similar, but there are subtle differences between, namely the attitude of mudras or hand positions. There are five categories mudra: North, East, South, West, and Central, all based on five main direction of the compass according to the teachings of Mahayana. Fourth balustrade has four mudras: North, East, South, and West, where each buddha statues facing the direction of a typical display mudra. Buddha statues on the balustrade of the fifth and the buddha statues inside the 72 stupas in the court on showing berterawang mudra: Middle or Center. Each mudra symbolize the five Dhyani Buddhas, each with its own symbolic meaning.
All relief panels in Borobudur temple reflect Buddha's teachings. For the reason, this temple functions as educating medium for those who want to learn Buddhism suggests that you walk through each narrow passage in Borobudur in order for you to know the philosophy of Buddhism. Atisha, a Buddhist from India in the tenth century once visited this temple that was built 3 centuries before Angkor Wat in Cambodia and 4 centuries before the Grand Cathedrals in Europe.
A question about Borobudur that is still unanswered by far is how the condition around the temple was at the beginning of its foundation and why at the time of it's finding the temple was buried. Some hypotheses claim that Borobudur in its initial foundation was surrounded by swamps and it was buried because of Merapi explosion. It was based on Kalkutta inscription with the writing 'Amawa' that means sea of milk. The Sanskrit word was used to describe the occurrence of disaster. The sea of milk was then translated into Merapi lava. Some others say that Borobudur was buried by cold lava of Merapi Mountain.
