A BRIEF HISTORY OF BOROBUDUR TEMPLE
Brief History of Borobudur Temple ~ The magnificence of Borobudur Temple cannot be separated from the greatness of Indonesia in the past. As Bung Karno said, so that we study the fire of our history, we should know how the magnificent Borobudur Temple stood up to now. The following is a brief history of the magnificent Borobudur Temple.
According to historical records, it is estimated that the Borobudur Temple began to be built in the 9th century at which time the Magelang region was currently controlled by the Syailendra Dynasty led by King Samaratungga. The king ordered to build a temple construction which was then led by an architect named Gunadharma.
Without the help of today's sophisticated technology, Gunadharma drew the Borobudur Temple, which has an area of hundreds of square meters. From this development, Borobudur can be completed within 50-70 years later. Which is said to be Gunadharma himself did not see the end result.
The name Borobudur itself means 'Uhr Buddhist Temple' which comes from Sanskrit and means Buddhist Monastery on the hill. Indeed at that time, Borobudur was located on a hill. that's a brief history of Borobudur Temple before its construction. However, afterwards Borobudur also witnessed other Indonesian history.
Because at that time Buddhism was the majority religion in the land of Java, Borobudur Temple was also inseparable from religious activities. Borobudur Temple is the center of the greatest religious power both in the country and from various kingdoms around the archipelago. However, gradually the development of Islam began to enter the archipelago.
The entry of Islamic influence into Indonesia in the 15th century made the Borobudur temple begin to be abandoned by people who converted to Islam. There were times when Borobudur was forgotten and several times Borobudur was even more forgotten during the eruption of Mount Merapi which resulted in it being buried by volcanic ash.
In a brief history of Borobudur Temple during the Dutch colonialism era, namely in 1814, Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles managed to reveal the existence of Borobudur Temple. Raffles received information that there was a large building buried by volcanic ash in Java.
Since then, Borobudur was forgotten for 10 centuries until it was discovered by Raffles. The condition of Borobudur which had been forgotten at that time was not only buried by volcanic ash but also filled with thickets so that it did not look its shape and appearance, which was messy and partially buried.
Borobudur Temple has a height of up to 42 meters but when it was found and until now it is only 34.5 meters high. There are levels that are indeed buried and left buried for reasons of strengthening the foundation of the temple and the second is because the lowest level has a panel image of husband and wife relationships.
Until finally found and carried out restoration and various efforts to reconstruct the temple that began during the British and Dutch colonial times. Restoration since Indonesia's independence was counted in the short history of Borobudur Temple, both from domestic businesses and from various parts of the world.
Although now Borobudur Temple is no longer included in the 7 wonders of the world, Borobudur was still listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1991 after a long restoration of the largest Buddhist temple in the world. Borobudur is also included in the list of world memories, proposed together with the Panji Story, the Non-Aligned Movement, and the Aceh Tsunami.
Meanwhile, 4 documents that have been included in the UNESCO list of World Memories from Indonesia are I La Galigo from Sulawesi, Negarakertagama, Babad Diponegoro, and the Asia-Africa Conference. Shows how rich the history and culture of Indonesia is to the world.
