Borobudur and Merapi: What went on before?

Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Handewi Soegiharto, Contributor, Jakarta
Mount Merapi has been the focus of much media attention recently because of its heightened volcanic activity.
Much has been published on the volume of material contained in the lava dome, the appearance of wedhus gembel (literally "shaggy goats") or hot ash clouds, the evacuation of villagers and also about the myths surrounding the mountain -- the legends believed by the people living in villages on Merapi's slopes.
Maridjan, the spiritual "guardian" of Merapi, has suddenly become an international his refusal to leave his village, located about six kilometers from Merapi. Maridjan believes the volcanologists are wrong -- that the signs he reads in the mountain show the "big one" is not imminent this time.
Merapi, a volcano believed by geologists to have become active 40,000 years ago, is very much part of the local traditions for the community living on its slopes.
Though Merapi is now at maximum-alert status, many villagers are hesitant to leave their villages. They are concerned about their dairy cows, their main source of income, and also believe that the mountain is not as hazardous as people may think.
Merapi's eruptions are inextricably linked to Javanese history. To explore Merapi also involves an exploration of Javanese culture, its epigraphy and temples, including the huge Buddhist temple at Borobudur.
It all started with a theory proposed in 1933 by Dutch anthropologist WOJ Nieuwenkamp, who said that the temple was built on a hill surrounded by a lake.
That then triggered the curiosity of a Dutch geologist, Reinout Willem van Bemmelen, who carried out more research on the history of the temple.
Concurring with Nieuwenkamp's theory, in the early 1950s, van Bemmelen proposed that the eruption in 1006 resulted in the burial of Borobudur temple and the ancient Mataram-Hindu kingdom, forcing it to relocate to East Java.
But should Merapi be blamed for all this? Dr. Sri Mulyaningsih, a geologist who wrote a dissertation for her doctorate degree at Bandung Institute of Technology on the impact of Merapi eruptions on the old temples at Yogyakarta, agrees with Nieuwenkamp's theory but refutes van Bemmelen's.
"Borobudur is now located at the confluence of three rivers, the Pabelan, Progo and Elo. My research shows that they contain black clay deposits or sediments that could also be found at the meeting point. It is therefore possible that, in the past, Borobudur was surrounded by water," Sri says, adding that the body of water was smaller than Lake Toba, North Sumatra, in its current form, but larger than a fish pond.
The Nieuwenkamp water pond hypothesis is, however, refuted by archaeologists. They cannot accept van Bemmelen's theory, either, on ash covering the temple as a result of a huge explosion.
An archaeologist from the University of Indonesia's school of humanities, Agus Arismunandar says, "The water pond theory might be acceptable, as we have also found archaeological data to corroborate it, but our research also indicates that the pond had dried up a long time before the temple was even built."
The dried water pond that might have surrounded the temple has not been debated further. Geologists could relate the existence of the pond to the mythology of the floating lotus flower. "If there was a water pond, Borobudur might look like a flower from the air," Sri says.
A floating lotus flower is an Indian mythological concept that symbolizes the idea that even in a "dirty" substance like the soil, clean and beautiful things can grow. In today's context, it could mean that even if the earth is full of bad people, there is still hope for the good.
Prof. Nurhadi Magetsari, however, a University of Indonesia archaeologist who is studying the relationship between the temple and Buddhism, has found another reason to dismiss the lotus flower idea.
"Borobudur has an octagonal shape, not like a lotus flower," he said. The lotus shape does exist in the stupas, where Buddha statues sit, but that is as far as the imagery goes.
Both the geologist and the archaeologist, however, have the same opinion on the van Bemmelen theory.
Sri says the mountain could not have been covered by a single serious eruption because none of the deposits in the soil surrounding the volcano indicate a disturbance of that magnitude.
"Besides, there is no geological evidence that can prove that the 1006 eruption did occur," she said. Van Bemmelen's theory proposes that the eruption caused materials from the Merapi dome to slide down to the southwest of Merapi forming Gendol Hill, located to the southwest of the volcano.
"My research shows that not a single item of geological material found in Gendol Hill is the same as that on Merapi," she said.
Aris also has a riposte to van Bemmelen's theory. "From our point of view, it is impossible that a big eruption could have covered Borobudur, because the distance between the mountain and the temple is so far.
"Besides, when Borobudur was found, it was only covered by dirt and wild plants, not by lava sediment," he said. The only sections of the temple that were fully covered were the rupadatu (middle level) and the arupadatu (top level), while the ground level was not.
Aris believed Borobudur was buried by dirt and covered in wild plants because no religious activities were conducted on the temple after Islam entered Java.
An essay written by Soekmono -- Serat Centhini Ungkap Masalah Arca Buddha Dalam Stupa Induk Candi Borobudur (Serat Centhini Uncovers the Secret of the Buddha Statue in the Main Stupa of Borobudur Temple) -- issued by the National Archaeological Research Center in Jakarta -- includes a complete description of the temple in Serat Centhini.
Soekmono's explanation about verses eight and nine of Serat Centhini says that four santri spent the night at Borobudur and carried out observations for two consecutive days. The main stupa, they said, containing an unfinished Buddha statue was located on the seventh level of the temple, while the layout of the galleries on the sixth, fifth and fourth floors was circular.
Today, the temple has one main stupa level, three circular gallery levels (the three topmost) and six square gallery levels. The total of the galleries plus the stupas is 10 levels.
Therefore, if the santri could see only the main stupa and three circular gallery levels, it is possible that the six other (square) levels were buried.
Soekmono concludes that this oversight was probably attributable to the wild vegetation and soil that had covered most, but not all, of the temple.
The most feasible explanation that answers the query as to why the Syailendra dynasty built the Borobudur in its current location comes from an archaeological point of view.

And it all comes down to water, not a fiery volcano. Agus believes the temple stands on an area of tempuran (the convergence of rivers).
"In Indian mythology, such a location would have been suitable for constructing a religious building, because the Gods like to live and play in water," Agus said. The statues of Buddhas and Hindu deities usually sit or stand on "floating" lotus flowers because of this water concept.
"So we have to see more than just the lotus flower but -- more deeply -- water," Agus said.
Despite all the theories, facts and figures, Mount Merapi stands proud and has witnessed many Javanese generations come and go, together with Borobudur, which is much younger than the mountain.