Diary of "a mass of stones": Borobudur in people's experiences

Abstract

Up till the present time, scholars have been mostly dealing with either the architectural aspect of Borobudur or speculating about its functions in the past. The author argues that many scholars placed an enormous amount of emphasis on speculating what Borobudur was and what it was for. It seems that the discussion of what Borobudur is and what it is for in our contemporary world completely escapes the attention of many scholars. This thesis is therefore an attempt to fill the gap in existing literature by researching on human activities at Borobudur. Through observing and participating in major events such as the upacara Waisak and acara Sejuta Pelita Sejuta Harapan festivals, the author uncovers how Buddhism in Java/Indonesia is being divided among rival factions. The author also sheds some light on the relation between ethnicity and Buddhism in Indonesia, and she describes how the current tourism phenomenon brings about certain kinds of activities at the religious site which may be deemed a??un-sacreda??.