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このBorobudurに興味を持ったのは高校生のときに習った世界史からでした。もともと、世界遺産や戦場地の資料や写真、地図などを見るのがとても好きで、教科書よりも、資料集で勉強するようなタイプでした。あるとき、いつものように、西洋の航海地図や、領土地図などを見てわくわくしているときに、突然ぞっとするような圧迫を受ける写真がありました。そう、それがBorobudurだったのです。そのときの写真はすべてが石でできていて、とても存在感にあふれているものでした。どういったものかワクワクしながら授業を待っていたのですが、高校の世界史では触れずに先に行ってしまいました。それが心残りで今回のテーマに取り上げました。
<青山学院大学経済学部 経済学科 大場 広隆>
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Pre-reading Questions:
1. What country is Jakarta in?

世界遺産とは
世界遺産とは、人類が歴史に残した偉大な文明の証明ともいえる遺跡や文化的な価値の高い建造物、そして、この地球上から失われてはならない貴重な自然環境を保護・保全することにより、人類にとってかけがえのない共通の財産を後世に継承していくことを目的に、1972年のユネスコ総会で採択された「世界遺産条約」に基づく「世界遺産リスト」に登録されている物件のことです。


Reading Passage
Borobudur is a Buddhist stupa related to the Mahayana tradition, and is the largest Buddhist monument on earth. It is located in the Indonesian province of Central Java, 40 kilometers (25mi) north-west of Yogyakarta. It was built between 750 and 850 CE by the Javanese rulers of the Sailendra dynasty. The name may derive from the Sanskrit "Vihara Buddha Ur", which can be liberally translated as "the Buddhist temple on the mountain". Another theory suggests that the name originally was "Bhara Beduhur", an Old Javanese expression for "The temple on the hill". It is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Indonesia.

 

    General overview Buddha in an open stupa, Borobudur Borobudur is built as a single large stupa, and viewed from above takes the form of a giant mandala. The foundation is a square, 118 metres on each side. It has nine levels, of which the lower six are square and the upper three circular. This is said to be a map of the cosmos as conceptualized by the Buddhist philosophers of the time. The upper level features seventy-two small stupas surrounding one large central stupa. Each stupa is a bell shape pierced by numerous decorative apertures. Statues of the Buddha sit inside the pierced enclosures. Borobudur is still a place of prayer and pilgrimage. Pilgrims circumambulate each level seven times in a clockwise direction. The stupas on the topmost level contain statues of the Buddha in various poses. According to local folklore, touching the finger and toe of a particular Buddha through the holes in the stupa wall brings good luck.

Construction The monument was constructed with approximately 55,000 m3 of stone, taken from neighbouring rivers, built on top of a hill. These stones were cut to size, transported to the site and laid without mortar. Knobs, indentations and dovetails were used to make joints between stones. Reliefs, which covers about 2,500 m2 of the wall surface, were created after the building had been completed. This building technique was similar with other Java temples. The main vertical structure can be divided into 3 groups: base, body and top. The base is a 123x123 m2 square in size and 4 m high of walls. The body is composed of 5 terraces. Each with diminishing heights. The first terrace stands back 7 m from the edge of the base. The other terraces retreats only 2 m, leaving a narrow corridor in each stage. The top consists of 3 circular platforms, with each stage supports a row of perforated stupas, arranged in concentric circles. In the center, there is one giant stupa, which its dome has elevation of 35 m above the ground level. Access to the upper part is provided by stairways at each middle side. The main entrance is at the eastern side, where it is the beginning of the narrative relief. In total, there are 9 levels of this monument. The designer of Borobudur has thought of the drainage system, because the area has a high precipitation throughout the year. To avoid being flooded by rain water, 100 spouts were provided at each corner with a unique carved gargoyles (makaras).

Site selection In the 1940s, the Dutch artist Nieuwenkamp suggested that Borobudur in fact represented the Buddha on a lotus leaf, and that thus had likely been built on a lake. In 1949, geologists found clay sediments near the site, which they interpreted as a remnant of a lake bed. They suggested that the lake may have been created by the eruption of a nearby volcano, Mount Merapi, either circa 1006 CE or much earlier. However, it was not at all clear whether the lake dried up before the stupa was built, or the site pre-dated a lake, which was an accident of nature. More recent research indicates that a lake existed in the area as recently as between the 12th and 14th centuries, validating the earlier supposition that Borobudur was built as an aquatic lotus symbol, seen as floating on the adjoining lake.
Properties inscribed on the World Heritage List  in Indonesia


Cultural
Borobudur Temple Compounds (1991)
Prambanan Temple Compounds (1991)
Sangiran Early Man Site (1996)


Natural
Komodo National Park (1991)
Lorentz National Park (1999)
Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra (2004)
Ujung Kulon National Park (1991)

ボロブドゥール」の語源
一般には、 「ボロ」=サンスクリット語の「ビャラ(byara)」(「寺、お堂」)の転訛 「ブドゥール」=バリ語の「ブドゥフル(beduhur)」(「丘の上」)から派生 との解釈から、「丘の上の僧房」を意味すると言われる。

CHECK POINT

MATERIAL−andesite and tuff  安山岩と凝灰岩
AGE−Around 780~792
HEIGHT−42 meter (now 33.5 meter)
SIDE−115meter
STUPAS−72

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borobudur
やり終えてからの感想
ボロブドゥールについて調べていくにつれて、自分の思っていたものとは違っていた。自分の想像ではこれほど偉大な存在感をもつものは何か戦にかかわる要塞として用いられていたのだろうと思っていた。しかし、他の世界遺産を見てもわかるように戦いの中で滅び行くものはあっても、軍事利用されたものは少ない。なぜ、自分はボロブドゥールを要塞と感じたのだろうか。
それは日本が珍しく姫路城に代表されるように城があるからだと思う。姫路城は城としての役割と白鷺城と名づけられたように美しさも兼ね備えている。
そんな美を日本人が愛するがゆえに、姫路城はあれほどのうつくしさのまま残っているのだろう。他の国(民族)では稀な思考をしているのだと思った。

Notes
Mahayana
マハヤナ、仏教の学校◆チベット、モンゴルの。凡、救済、和などを教える。
Central Java
ジャワ島

dynasty
王朝(おうちょう)

Sanskrit 
サンスクリット(の)、梵語(ぼんご)(の)

stupa
仏舎利塔(ぶっしゃり とう)

Pilgrim
巡礼者(じゅんれいしゃ)
Web Sites

Wikipedia
UNESCO
Borobudur
インドネシア・ジャワ島・ボロブドゥール仏教寺院遺跡(Japanese)〜写真説明多数
4travel.jpボロブドゥール観光(Japanese)〜旅行会社のサイト
ウィキペディア「Borobudur 」(English)
BOROBUDUR TEMPLE(English)


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by OHBA HIROTAKA, Aoyama Gakuin College of Economics

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