
largest Buddhist monument in the world | Camera Sony alpha NEX-7
Traveljunkieindonesia.com – Hi travel junkies, I have some fabulous new updates from Borobudur temple to share with you, where International Travel Bloggers spent much of last month.
We woke up early and was out the door at 05.00am to go for a sunrise over the Borobudur; it’s where those picture-postcard shots are taken.
It was freaking WONDERFUL!
The name Borobudur is possibly derived from the Sanskrit words ‘Vihara Buddha Uhr’, which mean ‘Buddhist Monastery on the Hill’.

Borobudur in the morning | Camera Sony alpha NEX-7
Well, Borobudur is built from two million block stones in the form of a massive symmetrical stupa, literally wrapped around a small hill. It stands solidly on its 118m x 118m base. Six square terraces are topped by three circular ones, with four stairways leading up through finely carved gateways to the top. The paintwork is long gone, but it’s thought that the grey stone of Borobudur was at one time washed with a colour to catch the sun.
Viewed from the air, the structure resembles a colossal three-dimensional tantric mandala. It has been suggested, in fact, that the people of the Buddhists community that once supported were early Vajrayana or Tantric Buddhists who used it as a walk-through mandala.
The monument was conceived as a Buddhist vision of the cosmos in stone, starting in the everyday world and spiralling up to nirvana, the Buddhist heaven.
At the base of monument is a series of reliefs representing a world dominated by passion and desire, where the good are rewarded by reincarnation as as higher form of life, while the evil are punished by a lowlier reincarnation. These carvings and their carnal scenes are covered by stone to hide them from view, but they are partly visible on the south side.

Travel Junkie Indonesia and Borobudur relief | Camera Sony alpha NEX-7

Borobudur relief | Camera Sony alpha NEX-7
Starting at the main eastern gateway, go clockwise (as one should around all Buddhist monuments) around the galleries of the stupa. Although Borobudur is impressive for its sheer bulk, the delicate sculptural work when viewed close up is exqusite.
The pilgrim’s walk is about 5km long and takes you along narrow corridors past nearly 1460 richly decorated narrative panels and 1212 decorative panels in which the sculptors have carved a virtual textbook of Buddhist doctrines as well as many aspects of Javanese life 1000 years ago – a continual procession of ships and elephants, musicians and dancing girls, warriors and kigs.

Japanese tourist reaching in through the stupa to touch the fingers or foot of the Buddha inside | Camera Sony alpha NEX-7
Some 432 serene-faced Buddha image stare out from open chambers above the galleries, while 72 more Buddha images sit only partly visible in latticed stupas on the top three terraces. Reaching in through the stupa to touch the fingers or foot of the Buddha inside is believed to bring good luck.

Took an incredible yoga on the Borobudur | Camera Sony alpha NEX-7

Basic yoga pose on the Borobudur | Camera Sony alpha NEX-7
Enter the temple’s grounds before 6am. Then, I took an incredible yoga on the Borobudur. Gah it’s so pretty! why didn’t I do this sooner!?!
TOTALLY LOVE MY INDONESIA!!
I got back around 07.30am, had a hot shower, leisurely washed my body (bliss!), and took a breakfast.
Like I said, Wonderful day.
Happy Sustainable Travels!
Travel Junkie Indonesia was a guest of the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy for the excellent #Travel2Indonesia trip.
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