The Wall of Karmawibhangga

Welcome to Borobudur, one of the sacred buildings of Buddhism as a World Cultural Heritage site. The splendor and beauty of Borobudur has its own historical value for Indonesian people. The Indonesian government has designated Chandi Borobudur as a major tourist attraction, and also a priority tourist destination for domestic and foreign visitors.

Chandi Borobudur attracts extraordinary enthusiasm to visit and explore several narrative sources in thematic tours, with the aim of getting to know more closely the history, architecture and fine arts of this building.

A friendly tour guide will accompany you on this interesting opportunity, providing narratives and explanations as a form of appreciation for the study and participation in maintaining, protecting and preserving ancestral cultural heritage.

The southeast corner of Hidden Foot, Relief of Karmawibhangga

The beauty of the Karmawibhangga relief carving, a script depicting the teachings of karma on the wall of the Hidden Foot of Kamadhatu, Borobudur. Source: Guidance Technique Chandi Borobudur arisguide. Photo arisguide.

Borobudur as a sacred building is the largest Buddhist temple in the world in Indonesia. Many historians have put forward theories about the beginnings of the history of ancient Javanese cultural civilization and the beginning of the construction of Borobudur, especially during the Hindu and Buddhist eras. Indian culture which entered Indonesia had a considerable influence on religious life and was the background to the existence of the ruling kingdoms on the island of Java at that time.

Chandi Borobudur is the largest Buddhist temple in the world. The splendor, unique architecture, and beautiful art displayed by Borobudur are displayed on its exquisite walls and balustrades, possessing high artistic value.

The carvings on Borobudur's walls, deeply meaningful to Buddhists, depict stories about worldly life. These stories are deeply rooted in Buddhist culture and are taken from the text of Karmawibhangga. One of the hidden and currently obscured stories on the Borobudur reliefs at the base of the temple is written in a story about worldly life and the law of cause and effect.

Relief of Karmawibhangga

Borobudur's reliefs can be divided into two types: narrative and decorative. A total of 1,460 narrative relief panels are arranged in eleven rows surrounding the monument, with a total length of over 3,000 meters. The 1,212 decorative panels, although arranged in rows, are treated as individual reliefs.

In keeping with the symbolic meaning of the temple's base, relief panels adorn the batur (stone wall), which is currently covered and hidden. They depict the law of karma. The name of Karmawibhangga is a text that describes the teachings of karma, namely cause and effect, and good and evil deeds.

The series of reliefs is not a series of narratives, but each frame depicts a story with a cause-and-effect relationship. These reliefs not only depict human misdeeds, accompanied by the punishments they will receive, but also depict human good deeds and the rewards they will receive.

The first series of 160 narrative panels is located at the hidden, unseen foot. Fortunately, a complete set of photographs was taken shortly after Borobudur's rediscovery, and these photographs can be identified as depicting the workings of the law of karma according to the text of Karmawibhangga. The reliefs at the "hidden foot" are devoted to the inescapable law of karma. The 160 panels do not tell a continuous story, but each provides a complete illustration of cause and effect.

The first 117 panels depict various actions that produce the same result, while the remaining 43 panels show the many results that can follow from a single action. Both blameworthy activities, from gossip to murder, with their corresponding punishments in purgatory, and praiseworthy activities, such as charity and pilgrimages to holy places, and their subsequent rewards, are depicted. The sufferings of hell and the pleasures of heaven, and scenes of everyday life are represented in a full panorama of samsara, the endless cycle of birth and death, the chain of all forms of delusional existence from which Buddhism liberates them.

The base of the Borobudur temple enclosure was removed to reveal the hidden feet, and the relief was photographed by Casijan Chepas in 1890. During restoration, the foot covering was reinstalled to cover the Karmawibhangga relief. Currently, only the southeast corner of the hidden feet is open to visitors.

Overall, it depicts human life in the never-ending cycle of birth, life, and death (samsara), and it is this cycle that Buddhism strives to end in order to achieve perfection. Now only the southeastern part is open and visible to visitors.

Kamadhatu

The symbolic meaning and significance of the temple's foot wall are relief panels that adorn the batur wall, but are currently covered and hidden. They depict the law of karma. This foot or base symbolizes a world still dominated by kama, or base desires.

This section is largely invisible and is covered by piles of stones believed to have been built to strengthen the temple's construction. The Karmawibhangga is a text that illustrates the teachings of karma, namely cause and effect, and good and evil deeds.

The original foot contains 160 relief panels depicting stories taken from the Karmawibhangga text, which is currently hidden. A small portion of the additional structure in the southeast corner has been opened, allowing some of the reliefs to be seen. The additional andesite stone structure that covers the original foot has a volume of approximately 13,000 cubic meters.

The reliefs on the "hidden foot" are devoted to the inexorable law of karma. The 160 relief panels do not tell a continuous story, but each provides a complete illustration of cause and effect. The first 117 relief panels show various actions producing or resulting in the same result, while the remaining 43 panels show the many results that can follow from a single action.

Worthy activities, from gossip to murder, are punished by the corresponding purgatory, and praiseworthy activities, such as charity and pilgrimages to holy places, and the subsequent rewards, are both depicted. The pains of hell and the pleasures of heaven, and scenes of everyday life are presented in a full panorama of samsara, the endless cycle of birth and death, the chain of all forms of delusional existence from which Buddhism liberates.

The relief of Hidden Foot, described in the Karmawibhangga manuscript, is a Borobudur relief carving which depicting about teaching karma on the southeast corner wall of Borobudur.

Source: Guidance Technique Chandi Borobudur arisguide.

Traveling and visiting with the aim of getting to know Borobudur better, learning about its history, participating in themed tours, and exploring Borobudur as a sacred Buddhist structure is truly special. Admiring its grandeur and architectural beauty is a form of appreciation and participation in preserving and protecting Borobudur, a world cultural heritage site. Chandi Borobudur is the largest monument in the world.

In the historical narrative of Borobudur, the carved relief panels on the walls of the temple's base are mentioned in the Karmawibhangga text, concerning the offering of footwear called 'Upanat' to the brahmanas.

'Upanat' Borobudur.

Upanat Borobudur

One of the reliefs on the wall at the foot of the temple in the Karmawibhangga text, is about offering footwear with the name 'Upanat', footwear offered to Brahmins, in order to obtain rewards and prosperity in life. Source: Guidance Technique Chandi Borobudur arisguide. Photo arisguide.

Explaining that 'Upanat' is the footwear worn when visiting the terraces of Borobudur Temple. This visit aims to learn more about Borobudur, learn about its history, take a thematic tour, and admire the monument's splendor and fine art. This is a form of appreciation and understanding of Borobudur, as well as a role in preserving and protecting the world cultural heritage site in Borobudur, Indonesia.

Traveling and visiting with the aim of getting to know Borobudur better, learning about its history, participating in themed tours, and exploring Borobudur as a sacred Buddhist structure is truly special. Admiring the grandeur and beauty of its architectural value is a form of appreciation and also a contribution to preserving and protecting Borobudur, a world cultural heritage site. Chandi Borobudur is the largest monument in the world.

Read the complete narrative and materials about Chandi Borobudur by visiting and make your trip even more enjoyable. Explore the detailed thematic narrative of Borobudur culture with Pamong Carita. Reading becomes more enjoyable, delving into the narrative in more detail. Reading in English is fun and also seems very interesting when translated into easy and flexible language. Find detailed reading in Welcome to Borobudur Temple, the fabric of life in the Buddhist culture. Explore and admire the beauty of fine art in images and photographs at PHOTO IMAGE BOROBUDUR.

Borobudur

Chandi Borobudur is a Mahayana Buddhist temple built in the 9th century. It consists of six square terraces and three circular ones, topped by a central dome, surrounded by 72 stupas and decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. Source: Guidance Technique Chandi Borobudur arisguide. Foto arisguide.

Chandi Borobudur, a magnificent and little-known temple—a majestic mountain—was first and foremost a landscape that, over a thousand years ago, greeted those who came on pilgrimage here in search of the inner peace all Buddhists aspire to.