Symbolical of Buddhism

Buddhism

Borobudur, the magnificent and little known temple - the mountain of the virtues - is first a landscape, which over a thousand years ago, met the eyes of those who came on pilgrimage here to seek the inner peace to which all believers in the Buddha aspire.

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.

Stupa of Borobudur
The largest main stupa is located in the center and crowns this building, surrounded by three circular rows of 72 perforated stupas in which there is a statue of Buddha sitting cross-legged in a perfect lotus position with the Dharmachakra mudra (turning the wheel of dharma). Source: Scouting Techniques Chandi Borobudur arisguide. arisguide's photo.

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.

Buddha statue on the top of Arupadhatu Platform.

The daring break with tradition is a further demonstration of 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 absolute 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.

The Eight Fold Paths 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: Guiding Technique Chandi Borobudur arisguide.

References:

1. Walubi. "Borobudur: Candi Berbukit Kebajikan".

2. "Buddhism in Indonesia". Buddhanet. Diakses tanggal 4 May 2015.

3. "Vesak Festival: A Truly Sacred Experience". Wonderful Indonesia. Diakses tanggal 4 May 2015.

4. Dr. Soekmono, Candi Borobudur - Pusaka Budaya Umat Manusia, Jakarta: Pustaka Jaya (1978).

5. Galeri Lalitavistara di Borobudur di photodharma.net

6. Tipitakadhara Mingun Sayadaw. (2008). RIWAYAT AGUNG PARA BUDDHA 1. Ehipassiko Foundation Giri Mangala Publications.

7. Tipitakadhara Mingun Sayadaw. (2008). RIWAYAT AGUNG PARA BUDDHA 2. Ehipassiko Foundation Giri Mangala Publications.

8. Tipitakadhara Mingun Sayadaw. (2008). RIWAYAT AGUNG PARA BUDDHA 3. Ehipassiko Foundation Giri Mangala Publications.

9. Let it share, you may like and open more detail to Welcome to Borobudur Temple, the fabric of life in the Buddhist culture.

10. Text adapted from Guiding Technique Chandi Borobudur arisguide, Foto arisguide.