I stood afar gazing at the world’s largest Buddhist stupa (of many other stupas) ever built. A monument that was once hidden and forgotten, like a cautionary tale of the Dharma which it represents can be lost in ravages of time. Will all majestic Buddhist monuments in world be shrouded too in time, covered in dust? Such a thought made me shudder a little, reminding me of how the great Nalanda University, the first varsity in the world (be it Buddhist or in general) still lies mostly under dirt today.
Shaped and designed like a three-dimensional mandala, the structure tells a true story of how devotion and faith could crystallise into such magnificent monument. Time stands still when one steps onto the Borobudur complex. While circumambulating on its many levels, one almost feels that like one had arrived in another dimension. Interesting, every ascending level represents different realms of existence, namely, Kāmadhātu (the world of desire), Rupadhatu (the world of forms) and Arupadhatu (the world of formlessness). Decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues, each different level has great lessons to impart and meditate upon:
1st level: The law of karma (Karmavibhangga)
2nd level: The story of the Buddha (Lalitavistara)
3rd level: The previous birth stories of the Buddha-to-be (Jataka) and other legendary persons (Avadana)
4th level: Sudhanas search for the Ultimate Truth (Gandavyuha)
Last but not least is the main and biggest stupa, which is an empty one, located at the centre of the top platform, surrounded by 72 Buddha statues seated inside perforated stupas.
Thanks to the great restoration project by UNESCO and the Indonesia people, we are now able to take a walk through Borobudurs many corridors of history. However, it is a great pity that there are permanent damages done out of greed, hatred and delusion. Borobudur was bombed by extremists and many Buddha statues have missing heads and arms. What’s left to face the elements are the reposed torsos. Another lamentable sight is to witness how unappreciative many non-Buddhist locals are in treating their single most visited national treasure (and tourist attraction). It is certainly not an object they would worship, but there seems little respect for the complex. You see kids and teenagers loitering around the smaller stupas, making fun of each other with loud voices, not hesitating to touch and climb onto the monuments for photo opportunities.
Despite all these, Borobudur is still used for pilgrimage by many Buddhists during Vesak. With pure intention, Javanese ancestors built this miracle to commemorate Buddhas teachings for their descendants. With the same pure intentions, I hope Buddhists in Indonesia will further unite to preserve this Buddhist heritage for further generations.
Amazing fact: On 27 May 2006, an earthquake of 6.2 magnitude on the Richter scale struck the south coast of Central Java. The event caused severe damage around the region and casualties to the nearby city of Yogyakarta, but Borobudur remained intact.
Perhaps the Bodhisattvas and Dharma-protector devas were looking after it? ;))
Wow, it looks much better than I visited more than 10 years ago, maybe I shd revisit this place, which is one of the 7 wonders of the world.
Indonesia is also a beautiful vast country with lots of tourism potential, a pity is its political climate that fails to let this pearl glow.
What is it that make Borobudur one of the wonders of the world?
Imagine the era it was built.
Imagine the size of compound.
Imagine the complexity of it.
Imagine the hours of planning.
Imagine the quantity of work.
Imagine the amount of manpower involved.
Imagine the devotion.
Imagine every single details were truly meticulously handmade.
Now imagine a world without advance technology.
And if you wonder how could they possibly achieved it without modern technology? That probably makes it one of the wonders of the world. :))