Sitting in the Court of Buddha

My cousins happened to stay at my home yesterday (30/07). Since it was holiday, my mom asked us out for a trip. At first, she wanted to go to Tritis. FORTUNATELY, Ndy and Sien had been there before. (Yuck! Can you imagine me going on a pilgrim to a holy sanctuary??? I might not be able to make it back in a whole body! Hehehehe!). So, as the alternative, I asked them whether they’ve been to small temples around Yogya or not. Turned out, they never went there. Thus, it was decided that we would visit Candi Sambisari, Candi Kledulan, Candi Sari, and Candi Plaosan. Actually we also planned to go to Candi Ijo and Candi Kalasan, but those kiddos were tired already………

Not much to say about Candi Sambisari. It is very beautiful, safe, well organized, but very sterile. Umm, Sterile? Well, in some extends, it felt very ‘safe’ and doesn’t have that many ‘things’. Ehehehehe!

Candi Kledulan? Well, it was still excavated though. So, we only saw the excavation site. Good for the kiddos, though. They can see the process of excavation. Sien even said that the process of reviving the temple is just similar to the process of constructing humongous puzzle. Hehehehehe!

Candi Sari gave us creep. Well, not that it was totally creepy; it was very solemn and silent indeed. Cold and breezy indeed. However, I felt some slight of chill when looking at the left chamber. Something startled me, but I just didn’t know what it was yet. So, I decided to enter the right chamber first, along with everybody. It was very calm and soothing. I went to the left chamber together with my dad. It was darker than the other chamber though, and the atmosphere was so tight. I realized which part startled me there. It was the hole for the missing statue under the Kala Makara. Later outside, I heard Ndy said to us that she saw someone very big at that very spot, under the Kala Makara. She didn’t have the courage to re-enter the temple, so I did with mum. Yes, the guardian was there, the very old and powerful one from the ancient era of that temple’s glorious moment. He’s still there, standing firmly.

We continued to Candi Plaosan. Well, I didn’t have that much expectation though. As far as I knew, it was just another small temple in the rural area, just in the same level of Candi Sari, Sambisari, Kalasan, and such. However, a twist happened. It grew! The second temple was almost finished built. The foundation of the third main temple was found. Many candi perwara has been restored, and the air photo showed that the whole complex of this Candi Plaosan, along with its vihara like that in Mendut, will be bigger than Borobudur or even Angkor Wat. And the small temples around it were many and in a relatively small distance among another. So, if everything is restored, then this will be biggest ancient temple complex in the world so far. The grandeur of this complex is totally astonishing. I can even imagine how this complex used to be, the centre of the syncretism between Hinduism and Buddhism, the destination of pilgrimage, a hidden library of philosophy, and a great school of life, along with many scholars and monks.

Enough talking about the grandeur of the construction. As I entered the only opened main temple (sure, one is being reconstructed, and one is only the foundation yet!), I saw another three-chamber-temple. Nothing like Candi Sari though. Every chamber was so grand, with a couple of Buddha statues of different rudra. Those two statues each with different persona, anima and animus. One was big in built, and the other one is slimmer, just like a queen and a king, though all the statues were representing male Buddha Avalokitesvara. The atmosphere was very much like a palace.

Now, to the most interesting part of the story! The third main temple. As you know from my story, it was only a foundation with no wall. However, there were 21 statues of Buddha, each with different built. They were formed in some kind of court formation. Seven in front and five in each side. You could even say that they were having meeting, with Gaotama as the centre (the position of the leader). Too bad, the broken statue of Tara, the only female Buddha (yet also regarded as the avatar of Avalokitesvara according to the ancient syncretism belief) was not put there. The other statues were not complete either.

I walked around the statues, looking each one carefully. From the slimmest figure to the fattest one (Was the fat figure supposed to be the Laughing Buddha?), examined Gaotama in the centre (so far, this is the most complete statue, and the only figurative close to the original Buddha, while the others are the usual figurative of Javanese Buddha!).

Tempted by the unusual atmosphere, I tried to look for the centre of the circle. Quite easy, since there were some pointer there. Taking a straight line from Gaotama statue, I stood at that spot. IT WAS AMAZING! You will feel like you were standing in a royal hall surrounded by the court of Buddha. You could also feel the power and force. Ever saw Monkey King, in the scene of Heaven Court? That was like it!

Something inside me said that I should sit at that spot. I did sit! However, the voice said that I should sit in a meditation pose. I felt very comfortable, but my other side was frightened. I even felt like closing my eyes and started meditating. I know that I should do it, but at the same time, I was also afraid that I couldn’t get back to my body, to reality. Yet, I decided to close my eyes for some seconds. It felt very calm and comfy. I snapped my consciousness and promised to get back to the complex later on.

At home, I contemplated and rethink that experience. And I realized, the forces there are even older than those usually absorbed by other people seeking for power. Older than the forces in the imperial palace. You could even say that this is an ancient force in its purest form. Seeing from the origin of Plaosan, we may conclude that this force is the result of puja, a very constant and sincere puja.

Wew!