A
short distance from Bedulu stands the mysterious Goa Gajah or Elephant
Cave. A fantastically carved entrance depicts entangling leaves, rocks,
animals, ocean waves and demonic human shapes running from the gaping
mouth which forms the entrance to the cave.
The monstrous Kala head that looms above the entrance seems to part the
rock with her hands. Similarly decorated hermit cells are also found in
Java. The large earrings indicate that the figure is that of a woman.
The T-shaped interior of the rock-hewn cave contained niches which probably
served as compartments for ascetics.
Recent excavations carried out in 1954 unearthed bathing places in front
of the cave with six female figures, representing. nymphs or goddesses
holding water spouts. An energetic clamber down rocks and rice terraces
fifty meters behind the cave leads to the fragments of a fallen cliff
face with the enshrining two ancient Buddha statues.
An old Javanese chronicle written in 1365, some twenty years
after the Majapahit conquest of Bali, says that one of the two Buddhist
bishops in Bali at that time had his hermitage at Gwa Gajah, the "elephant
river", which probably alludes to the Petanu River which flows nearby
in its deep gorge.
However, Goa Gajah dates back certainly to the 1 1 th century. Whether
it was originally a Buddhist or Hindu hermitage cannot be answered with
certainty, for there are both Hindu and Buddhist sculptures
inside or outside the cave. Perhaps monks of both religions had hermitages
close to one another. In pre-Majapahit Java and Bali, the two religions,
both influenced by Tantric beliefs and practices, had begun to amalgamate
into what is called the Siwa- Buddha cult. Buddhist practices and doctrines
survive to this day amongst a small segment of the Brahmana broken bas-reliefs
of stupas and a tiny cavern priests who are mostly found in East Bali.
short distance from Bedulu stands the mysterious Goa Gajah or Elephant
Cave. A fantastically carved entrance depicts entangling leaves, rocks,
animals, ocean waves and demonic human shapes running from the gaping
mouth which forms the entrance to the cave.
The monstrous Kala head that looms above the entrance seems to part the
rock with her hands. Similarly decorated hermit cells are also found in
Java. The large earrings indicate that the figure is that of a woman.
The T-shaped interior of the rock-hewn cave contained niches which probably
served as compartments for ascetics.
Recent excavations carried out in 1954 unearthed bathing places in front
of the cave with six female figures, representing. nymphs or goddesses
holding water spouts. An energetic clamber down rocks and rice terraces
fifty meters behind the cave leads to the fragments of a fallen cliff
face with the enshrining two ancient Buddha statues.
An old Javanese chronicle written in 1365, some twenty years
after the Majapahit conquest of Bali, says that one of the two Buddhist
bishops in Bali at that time had his hermitage at Gwa Gajah, the "elephant
river", which probably alludes to the Petanu River which flows nearby
in its deep gorge.
However, Goa Gajah dates back certainly to the 1 1 th century. Whether
it was originally a Buddhist or Hindu hermitage cannot be answered with
certainty, for there are both Hindu and Buddhist sculptures
inside or outside the cave. Perhaps monks of both religions had hermitages
close to one another. In pre-Majapahit Java and Bali, the two religions,
both influenced by Tantric beliefs and practices, had begun to amalgamate
into what is called the Siwa- Buddha cult. Buddhist practices and doctrines
survive to this day amongst a small segment of the Brahmana broken bas-reliefs
of stupas and a tiny cavern priests who are mostly found in East Bali.
No comments:
Post a Comment