STUPA LOVE

I have yet to see China's Great Wall but I was glad I took the $40 crew tour to see Indonesia's most famous monument, hidden deep in the jungle, the mysterious temple of Borobudur.

Borobudur Temple, Indonesia

Borobudur is a ninth-century Mahayana Buddhist monument in Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia. The monument comprises six square platforms topped by three circular platforms, and is decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues.[1] A main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues seated inside perforated stupa.*

The Stupa

Each stupa is bell-shaped and pierced by numerous decorative openings. Statues of the Buddha sit inside the pierced enclosures.*

An exposed Buddha

Reaching and touching Buddha's hands for good luck!

The first circular platform has 32 stupas, the second 24 and the third 16, that add up to 72 stupas.*

A circular row of stupas.

Forest view.

Of the original 504 Buddha statues, over 300 are damaged (mostly headless) and 43 are missing (since the monument's discovery, heads have been stolen as collector's items, mostly by Western museums).*

Temple Buddhas

Borobudur contains approximately 2,670 individual bas reliefs (1,460 narrative and 1,212 decorative panels), which cover the façades and balustrades. The total relief surface is 2,500 square meters (26,909.8 sq ft) and they are distributed at the hidden foot (Kāmadhātu) and the five square platforms (Rupadhatu).*

Amazing Relief Sample

My friend Natalie.

More reliefs.

My friend Sean.

The monument is both a shrine to the Lord Buddha and a place for Buddhist pilgrimage. Borobudur is Indonesia's single most visited tourist attraction.*

A carved gargoyle-shaped water spout for drainage.

A gate.

The lion gate guardian.

Pilgrims and tourists

My friends Lucy and Rean.

Josh, Anthony, Club HAL girl :), Maria and Patrick

Photo Op :)

Borobudur lay hidden for centuries under layers of volcanic ash and jungle growth. The facts behind its abandonment remain a mystery. There is no written record of who built Borobudur or of its intended purpose.*

Borobodur Temple, Indonesia (√)

*courtesy Wikipedia