08:11 05/04/2014 “You’re not able to catch a sunrise in Borobudur” as if someone whispered to our ears. It was just an echo until justified by a beam of light piercing the curtains which disrupted our splendid slumber. Oh! shoot! the sun had already ablaze the sky. We missed the “spectacle moment at Kedu plains” as claimed by the locals we met. We can’t be disheartened, we traveled below the equator for the first time just to tick off one of our 40ish lists.
The glimpse of Borobudur from a distance relive that high school memoirs of “One day, I’m going to visit this architectural wonder”. Here we are in Magelang, Central Java gazing its might and awestruck to its presence. We’d seen a lot of Buddhist temples with imposing stupas in Thailand but never saw as grandiose as this.
The temple was built during the reign of Syailendra dynasty and stood for more than 1200 years. It is constructed with pyramidal base, with a layer of concentric terraces, circular platforms, and monumental stupa.
The Complex
We ascended the steep stairs and halted each layer. The intricate bas-reliefs on the wall which depicts the life of Buddha kept us curious at the same time impressed. The decapitated Buddhas on the altar and unique balustrade posed a lot of inquiry and we regretted not to hire a temple guide. It would have been more insightful and should cover our intriguing questions.
Moving up, we reach the circular platforms with negligible challenges. We’re welcomed by equally astonishing 72 stone stupas each with a statue of meditating Buddha within. The surreal view of the misty vegetation and thick clouds shrouded the mountains complements as the perfect background of Borobudur temples. Now we totally understand why they keep on urging us to visit it during sunrise. Sigh!
We look for space away from the crowd and prepare ourselves for meditation. You might be wondering why at the top? Arupadhatu which is on the top level of Buddhist cosmology. This is the perfect place if one is seeking for an enlightenment of something or simply a reason of one’s existence. Though we’re not following Buddhism as a religion but we adopted it’s basic teaching, especially “Karma”.
We squatted, cross our legs, then formed to meditate. We didn’t utter any mantra since an omnipotent energy flow completely silenced our mind which entered to a meditative state. The feeling was exclusive and this could be attributed to the 72 Buddhas inside the stupas doing the same.
We achieved inner calmness and left Borobudur with pure bliss. Thus ticked off 17. Meditate in Borobudur Temple, Indonesia of our 40ish list.
Temple Raiders,
Sky and Summer
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