Religious Meaning of Borobudur

 

Welcome to Borobudur, one of the sacred buildings of Buddhism as a World Cultural Heritage site. The splendor and beauty of Borobudur has its own historical value for Indonesian people. The Indonesian government has designated Chandi Borobudur as a major tourist attraction, and also a priority tourist destination for domestic and foreign visitors.

Chandi Borobudur attracts extraordinary enthusiasm to visit and explore several narrative sources in thematic tours, with the aim of getting to know more closely the history, architecture and fine arts of this building.

The friendly Pamong Carita will accompany and guide you to provide explanations and narratives about Borobudur and its surroundings. Introducing 'Upanat', namely special footwear worn when visiting the terraces through a corridor with a series of relief panel galleries, leading to the top of the circular upper terrace with a row of stupas at Borobudur Temple. Explore history and admire the beauty of architectural art, as well as the origin of the name Chandi Borobudur.

The high esteem of the founder 

of Chandi Borobudur for the forefather whom he identified with the Buddha.

Source: Guidance Technique Chandi Borobudur arisguide. Foto a screenshot arisguide.

The threre superimposed spheres of kamadhatu, rupadhatu and arupadhatu accord perfectly depicting with bhurloka (earth), bhuvarloka (atmosphere) and svarloka (heaven), symbolizes the Cosmic Mountain, which is in turn the symbol parexcellence of the Universe.

Welcome, nice to meet you on the Borobudur tour, You will now step on and visit the splendor of Chandi Borobudur which is one of the world's cultural heritage sites. The reopening of Borobudur sends an interesting opportunity to explore several narrative sources about the existence of the Borobudur in the insights of travel guides on to Borobudur.

Mentioned in the history of Borobudur, there is one of the relief panels carved on a hidden foot based on the text of Karmawibhangga, panel number 150, concerning about the offering of footwear called 'Upanat', which is dedicated to Brahmins.

The bas-relief of the foot wall is hidden in the Karmawibhangga text panel number 150, regarding the offering of footwear with the name 'Upanat', the footwear offered to Brahmins, in order to obtain rewards and prosperity in life.

The bas-relief of the foot wall 

is hidden in the Karmawibhangga text panel number 150, regarding the offering of footwear with the name 'Upanat', the footwear offered to Brahmins, in order to obtain rewards and prosperity in life.

Source: Borobudur Conservation Center. Guidance Technique Chandi Borobudur arisguide. A screenshot arisguide.

The relief found on the wall of hidden foot, based on the Karmawibhangga text panel 150, concerns the offering of a footwear as its name 'Upanat', a special footwear offered to Brahmins, to obtain merit and prosperity in life.

Introducing 'Upanat', a footwear used to visit on the terraces of Chandi Borobudur, with the aim of getting to know the monument better, learning history, doing thematic tours and admiring the splendor of Chandi Borobudur as a sacred temple for Buddhists. The trip will be part of an appreciation in learning, admiring, and participating in safeguarding and protecting the world cultural heritage site located at Borobudur Indonesia.

It's fun going around the temple to get a source of explanation guided by a tour guide. Opportunity to find out the source, explanation of the written history of Chandi Borobudur and study of Borobudur at religius meaning.

Welcome to Chandi Borobudur

You will now step on and visit the splendor of Chandi Borobudur which is one of the world's cultural heritage sites.

Source: Guidance Technique Chandi Borobudur arisguide. Foto arisguide.

Step on Borobudur

Chandi Borobudur is one of a world cultural heritage site or World Heritage Site, a Buddhist temple located in Borobudur, belongs to Magelang regency and located in Central Java province. To reach the monument is approximately 96 kilometers from Semarang, the capital city of Central Java, and approximately 86 kilometers from the city of Surakarta, and about 40 kilometers from the city of Yogyakarta.

Chandi Borobudur is located right above the hill and built in the middle of several mountains and hills. Looking to the west, there are Mount Sundoro and Sumbing. Looking to the east you can see Mount Merbabu and an active volcano, Merapi. View to the north, it is approximately 15 kilometers from Borobudur, there is Tidar hill, and to the south it is bounded by the Menoreh hill range. Borobudur is located at the confluence of two rivers, they are Progo and Elo River, located right in the middle between the east of Chandi Borobudur and Pawon Temple.

Chandi Borobudur or Barabudur 

is a 9th–century Mahayana Buddhist temple, which consists of nine stacked platforms, six square and three circular, topped by a central dome, surrounded by 72 stupas and decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues.

Source: Guidance Technique Chandi Borobudur arisguide. Foto a screenshot arisguide.

Religious meaning

The high esteem of the founder 

of Chandi Borobudur for the forefather whom he identified with the Buddha.

The threre superimposed spheres of kamadhatu, rupadhatu and arupadhatu accord perfectly depicting with bhurloka (earth), bhuvarloka (atmosphere) and svarloka (heaven), symbolizes the Cosmic Mountain, which is in turn the symbol parexcellence of the Universe.

The Cosmic Mountain concept is purely Hindu and alien to Buddhism. The Buddhist cosmology ascribes no obvious significance to it. The Lord Buddha is said to have once instructed his disciples to burn his corpse after that he had entered nirvana, and to deposit the ashes in a stupa.

Buddhist pilgrims meditate on the top of the Platform.

Source: Guidance Technique Chandi Borobudur arisguide. Foto a screenshot arisguide.

When asked what a stupa was, the Master folded his garments on the ground, put his beggar’s bowl upside down on it, and stood his staff over the bowl. This instruction resulted in the constructions, which usually consist of a square base, a semi-circular dome and a pinnacle.

Consequently, the symbolical meaning of Chandi Borobudur has a two fold origin, in Mahayana Buddhism, and ancestor worship. The ten mounting terraces of the structure then correspond to the ten successive stages the Bodhisattva has to achieve before attaining to Buddhahood.

The high esteem of the founder of Chandi Borobudur for the forefather whom he identified with the Buddha; and a stepped pyramid with a stupa on top was a most appropriate symbol to depict the virtue the dynasty had accumulated successively along the Path of the Bodhisattva.

Underlying the doctrine is the conviction that life is misery. The world is not real; life in all its aspects is illusion. Its changing all the time, and nothing in it is eternal. Life is both a continuation of earlier lives, and a preparation for the next one, a station in the endless cycle of being born and reborn. The form and circumstances of each station are determined by their predecessors.

The factor is not the station, but the karma, the balance of good and bad acts. A positive balance will secure a better next life, and a life that continues to improve will culminate in a rebirth in heaven. The ultimate goal is therefore to avoid any form of rebirth. At this final stage the devotee achieves arhat to enter nirvana, which is aboslute non-existence.

The Four Noble Truths explain how ultimate salvation from samsara is attained. The conviction that life is suffering is the first Truth. The second is that suffering is caused by desire - the desire to exist and to cling to the phenomenal world. The third Truth is that suffering can be eliminated by extinguishing desire. The fourth is formulated in the Eight fold Path, showing the way in which desire can be extinguished.

Buddhism

In the sense that there was no god to be worshipped, Buddhism was not originally a religion. It was rather a doctrine explaining how to achieve the ultimate release from all sufferings: to nullify karrna, to break up samsara, and finally to achieve nirvana.

A stepped pyramid with a stupa on top 

was a most appropriate symbol to depict the virtue the dynasty had accumulated successively along the Path of the Bodhisattva.

Source: Guidance Technique Chandi Borobudur arisguide. Foto a screenshot arisguide.

The Path consists of the following steps: 1. Correct view, 2. Correct thought and purpose, 3. Correct speech, 4. Correct conduct, 5. Correct livelihood or occupation, 6. Correct zeal, 7. Correct remembrance, which retains the true and excludes the false, 8. Correct meditation. Desire is the fundamental source of misery, the result of an illusive insight. The primary source of all sufferings is avidya or ignorance.

Source: Guide Book arisguide, Guiding Technique arisguide. Guidance Technique Chandi Borobudur arisguide.

Get more narration and materials about Chandi Borobudur in Barabudur atau Borobudur, Candi Buddha Pusaka Budaya Indonesia.

Reading is more fun exploring the thematic narratives, beyond travel guide its more detail in UPANAT - Wisata di Borobudur.

Reading in English is fun and also seems so interesting to translate into language that is easy and flexible, get readings in detail in Welcome to Borobudur Temple, the fabric of life in the Buddhist culture.

Explore, admire the beauty of art in pictures and photos by typing the detailed link in PHOTO IMAGE BOROBUDUR.