Gedung Songo Central Java's refreshing trendsetter

Gedung Songo Central Java's refreshing trendsetter

Jock Paul, Contributor, Semarang, Central Jakarta

Though the structures are not as famous as their younger Javanese
successors, the Hindu temples of Gedung Songo offer a mind-
clearing and picturesque walk through the mountains of Central
Java.

In fact the scenery, temples, clear mountain air and
outstanding views of this area in Central Java create a setting
that Borobodur, Prambanan or any of Java's more celebrated
temples struggle to match.

The beauty of visiting Gedung (known locally as "Gedong")
Songo lies in being able to slowly meander up and down the
hillside, appreciating each temple individually, at just the pace
you want.

The six temples interact with visitors, and with each other,
as each offers a new perspective on the rest. They are more or
less evenly spaced out, about 100 meters to 200 meters apart, on
individual plateaus and ridges that project horizontally out of
the sloping hillside.

The structures, among Java's oldest Hindu temples, are direct
successors to the temples in the Dieng Plateau. The temples show
great unity and were built between 750 and 775 AD, except for the
first one you come to as you walk up the path, which may have
been built 30 years later.

The name is not the original, nor is it a literal meaning, but
given because songo (nine in Javanese) is associated with good
fortune in Java.

Gedung Songo highlights how, in Hinduism, the location of the
temples is as important as the structures themselves. Standing on
any of the plateaus and looking out toward west central Java
lends a feeling of power, or control over the landscape below.
The site, chosen to flatter the gods and be close to the gods,
exudes tranquility.

The mountainside site also ensures cool, clean air that makes
walking the kilometer of path that weaves up and down the
hillside a pleasure rather than a struggle.

This site is best appreciated if you have at least a few hours
to meander around, laze about and take in the views.

In the distance beyond the villages and rice fields, a line of
volcanoes can be seen along the horizon, Mt. Lawu in the east,
and Mt. Sumbing, Mt. Sundoro and Dieng in the west.

The temples are numbered one through six, and most are in
quite good and original shape. The youngest temple, number one,
is the first you come to and stands alone. The footpath that
leads from the first to the second temple preserves part of the
original pavement of the eighth century.

The largest group of structures is clustered around temple
three.

The main temple here is dedicated to Siva, the one to the
north Visnu and the one to the south Brahma. Inside, the statues
of Nandiswara on the north and Mahakala on the south are still in
place.

It is this temple that demonstrates that Javanese Hindu
iconography had reached its mature form at this time: Ganesh is
placed on the wall opposite the door, Durga on the north and
Agastya on the south.

This pattern is the earliest example of the distribution that
was standard throughout the rest of the Central Javanese
classical period, and demonstrates that it was here at Gedung
Songo that Javanese architects formulated a style that persisted,
with refinements, for centuries, according to Jacques Dumarcay
and John Miksic.

Those keen on ancient architecture will want to pay close
attention to the edifice in front of the Siva sanctuary. It shows
that a manual was used to design the building. Because the
proportions were designed for a larger structure, the entrance
would have only been one meter high. To avoid this, the architect
lowered the base of the opening by cutting through the temple
foot. This details shows, according to Dumarcay, that the
architects wished to conform to Indian texts of architecture.

Leaving Gedung Songo, it is worth stopping about 10 minutes
down the road in the flower market in Bandungan. Beautiful,
locally grown fresh and dry flowers are on sale here. The market
overflows into the main road and cannot be missed: It is worth a
stop even if you can't take flowers with you.

The spot also provides a great view of the valleys of Central
Java below. On a rare, cool clear day, the legendary volcano, Mt.
Merapi, near Yogyakarta can be seen in the distance.