Name : Prambanan Tample
Location : Yogyakarta
Country : Indonesia
This location is very beautiful and stunning highly inappropriate for a family vacation who want to travel. This location is ideal and will never regret after the visit.
Prambanan Temple (built 9th century)
Candi Prambanan is the grandest temple in Java apart from Borobudur. Located on the Prambanan plain, this sprawling temple complex sits majestically in an open area about twenty kilometers south of Mount Merapi, which dominates the horizon. The temple was constructed in the early ninth century by the Sanjaya dynasty, a flourishing Hindu kingdom that shared the island with the Buddhist Saliendra dynasty that built Borobudur. The relationship between the two dynasties is not clear, but one theory maintains that the Sanjayas constructed Candi Prambanan as a symbol of dynastic power in response to the construction of Borobudur. However, the Sanjayas do not seem to have been particularly antagonistic toward the Buddhist faith of the Saliendras—indeed, the temple complex is located just a few hundred meters south of Candi Sewu, a once awe-inspiring marvel of Buddhist art.Whatever their motives, the Sanjayas certainly constructed Candi Prambanan on a grand scale comparable to Borobudur. In its original form, the temple complex contained over 250 large and small temples. From afar, the temple probably resembled a small city, with a towering core of central spires surrounded by hundreds of subsidiary structures. At the center of this "city" is a square-shaped terrace surrounded by a heavy wall. Gates in the wall are oriented to the four cardinal directions, leading into a middle courtyard surrounded by a much wider wall. Within this zone were once 224 nearly identical temples, each measuring 6 x 6 x 14 meters. Beyond the middle wall was an even larger outer wall that was skewed at an angle to the inner walls. No traces of this wall remain, though parts of it existed as late as the 19th century.
Prambanan temple has three main temples in the primary yard, namely Vishnu, Brahma, and Shiva temples. Those three temples are symbols of Trimurti in Hindu belief. All of them face to the east. Each main temple has accompanying temple facing to the west, namely Nandini for Shiva, Angsa for Brahma, and Garuda for Vishnu. Besides, there are 2 flank temples, 4 kelir temples and 4 corner temples. In the second area, there are 224 temples.
Entering Shiva temple, the highest temple and is located in the middle, you will find four rooms. One main room contains Shiva statue, while the other three rooms contain the statues of Durga (Shiva's wife), Agastya (Shiva's teacher), and Ganesha (Shiva's son). Durga statue is said to be the statue of Roro Jonggrang in the above legend.
In Vishnu temple, to the north of Shiva temple, you will find only one room with Vishnu statue in it. In Brahma temple, to the south of Shiva temple, you find only room as well with Brahma statue in it.
Quite attractive accompanying temple is Garuda temple that is located close to Vishnu temple. This temple keeps a story of half-bird human being named Garuda. Garuda is a mystical bird in Hindu mythology. The figure is of golden body, white face, red wings, with the beak and wings similar to eagle's. It is assumed that the figure is Hindu adaptation of Bennu (means 'rises' or 'shines') that is associated with the god of the Sun or Re in Old Egypt mythology or Phoenix in Old Greek mythology. Garuda succeeded in saving his mother from the curse of Aruna (Garuda's handicapped brother) by stealing Tirta Amerta (the sacred water of the gods).
Its ability to save her mother made many people admire it to the present time and it is used for various purposes. Indonesia uses the bird as the symbol of the country. Other country using the same symbol is Thailand, with the same reason but different form adaptation and appearance. In Thailand, Garuda is known as Krut or Pha Krut.
Prambanan also has panels of relief describing the story of Ramayana. Experts say that the relief is similar to the story of Ramayana that is told orally from generation to generation. Another interesting relief is Kalpataru tree that - in Hindu - the tree is considered tree of life, eternity and environment harmony. In Prambanan, relief of Kalpataru tree is described as flanking a lion. The presence of this tree makes experts consider that Javanese society in the ninth century had wisdom to manage its environment.
Layout of the Temple
The cella containing the statue of Loro Jonggrang, or Durga, is one of four in the massive Shiva temple (34 x 34 meters wide, 47 meters tall). The main image in the Shiva temple is the god himself, placed in a large, centrally placed cella facing east. Facing south, a small cella contains the statue of Agastya, an incarnation of Shiva. To the west, the remaining cella is occupied by Ganesh, the elephant-headed son of Shiva.
The Shiva temple is the central building in a row of three temples on the west side of the terrace. Dedicated to the trimurti--the trinity of Brahma, Siva, and Vishnu, the three temples honor each of these gods in turn. Facing them to the east are a row of smaller temples that are empty except for the one at the center, which contains a large statue of Nandi--Shiva's divine bull. It was once thought that the temples to the north and south of the Nandi temple contained the animals assocated with Vishnu and Brahma. If this were correct, the northeast temple might have held an image of Hamsa, Vishnu's swan, and the southeast temple might have held Garuda, Brahma's eagle. However, this theory has been discredited in recent years and nowadays the two temples are simply called Candi A and Candi B.
The remaining major temples on the terrace are two small, inward facing buildings called the Apit Temples. With one on the north side of the terrace, and the other on the south, they frame the space in between the two rows of major temples.
The eight minor temples on the terrace are called Candi Kelir. Shaped like small turrets, they mark the inside gateways to the four directions and the corners of the terrace. A ninth Candi Kelir is embedded in the Shiva temple, marking the center of the terrace
source:www.orientalarchitecture.com,www.yogyes.com
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