The Great Trinatha Temple of Central Java (1)

The Hindu temple complex at Prambanan is based on a square plan that contains a total of three yards, each of which is surrounded by four walls pierced by four large gates. The outermost walled perimeter, which originally measured about 390m per side, was oriented in the northeast, southwest direction. However, except for its southern gate, not much else of this enclosure has survived down to the present.
The two walled perimeters that surround the remaining two yards to the interior are oriented to the four cardinal points. The second yard's walled perimeter, which measures about 225m per side, surrounds a terraced area that consists of four rows containing 40, 48, 56, and 64 temples, respectively, each with a height of 14m and measuring 6m x 6m at the base, or 224 structures in total. The sixteen temples located at the corners of the rows face two directions; the remaining 208 structures open to only one of the four cardinal directions.
The monument's remaining walled perimeter, which measures 110m x 112m, surrounds an even higher terraced courtyard that supports an additional sixteen shrines. The central yard's three largest temples, which face the cardinal direction east, feature large stone deities of the Trinatha, Vishnu (north), Shiva (centre) and Brahma (south).
The centrally-located Shiva temple has a height of 47m and measures 34m x 34m at its base. The Brahma and Vishnu shrines to the south and north of the Shiva temple are 33m in height and measure 20m x 20m at the base. The inside facing walls of the balustrades that surround the central structures of these three shrines are covered with bas-reliefs that present episodes from Krishna-lila (the Vishnu temple) and Ramayana (the Shiva and Brahma temples).
The Shiva shrine is the only building at Prambanan that has entranceways that open to all four cardinal directions. The doorway that faces the cardinal direction east leads into the shrine's central cella, which contains a deity of standing four-armed Lord Shiva. His two upper hand, hold mala and camara fan. His lower right hand displayed abhaya-mudra and the left one put in his navel level, in jnana-mudra with palm facing up. The remaining three doors lead into three ancillary chambers that contain deities of Agasthiya (south) our Mula-guru, Vinayaka (west) and Durga (north). Guru Agasthiya’s deity was in standing pose. His right hand hold a mala at chest level and his left hand hold a kamandala (water jug with sprout). He has a staff adorned with trident and a camara showed on his left shoulder. The deity form of Sri Vinayaka was unique. He sat with his two palms of his feet joined together. He has four arms. The two upper hands hold an axe and mala, his lower right hand hold his broken tusk and the left one hold a kalasha of nectar. His trunk was dipped in the kalasha, as drinking the nectar. This form of Vinayaka was one of the most unique deities I ever seen. The deity of Mother Durga was depicted in her Mahismardhini form with eight arms, holding various weapons and standing on a buffalo.
Immediately to the east are three auxiliary shrines, each with a single staircase and doorway facing west. The shrine to the immediate east of the Shiva temple, which contains a statue of the sacred bull Nandi, is 25m in height and measures 15m x 15m at the base. The remaining two shrines, which face the Brahma and Vishnu temples, are 22m in height and measure 13m x 13m at the base. These shrines were for Hamsa-vahana of Brahma and Vishnu’s Garuda-vahana.
On the outside-facing walls of the Shiva temple's central cella there are a total of 24 relief panels. Eight of these figures collectively represent a group of Hindu deities called the Lokapalas--the guardians of the eight directions of space.

History and spiritualism of Bali

After the fall of great Bilvatikta, the Hindu Javanese nobilities and Brahmin communities fled to Bali. Bali before was an independent country, with independent rulers, but in the reign of Kritanagara of Singhasari and later Rajasanagara-Gajamada of Bilvatikta, Bali was subdued. Bali has her own ruling dynasties for centuries, apart from Java, though there was a very deep connection between the two islands.
While Tarumanagara was a Hindu kingdom in West Java, there was also one kingdom of Kalinganagara in Central Java. By the name we could guess this was a kingdom built by certain nobilities of Orissa. The kingdom ruled by Maharani named Simha. This kingdom might be shifted to East Java by the growing power of Sailendras and Sanjayas. There in East Java we found inscription about Kanjuruhan Kingdom of Dinaya. Then in the reign of Sri Isvarakesavotsavatunga or Balitung (Raka i Watukura) of Sanjaya, both Central and East Java was came under his control. Probably the Kanjuruhan aristocracies again shifted to the neighbour island of Bali. We found similarities between Kanjuruhan and early kingdom of Bali.
After the growing maritime force of Srivijaya in Sumatra, Bali was also come under their power. And we found the ruling family of Bali has same name as the rulers of Srivijaya i.e. The Varmadevas. The Varmadevas then became the sole rulers of Bali. The Mahayana-Vajrayana Buddhism also introduced to Bali for the first time. So Bali at that time was applying the same religious practices as in Central Java, a religious system similar to Jagannath culture of Kalinga. Vedic in thought but Agamic or Tantric in practice, in the form of Trinatha worship. The form of Saivism at that time was in accordance with Vedic Vaishnavism. They worshipped Lord Siva as direct representation of Supreme God in material world. Because the Vishnu worship at that time has a concept of Niskala-Sakala, similar with Vaikhanasas system today. The Vaikhanasas worships Mula-bheram as Niskala aspect of Narayana and Utsava-bheram as Sakala. Similarly, the Balinese at that time worshipped Lord Narayana as Niskala and Lord Siva as Sakala. So this is very unique faith! Could you imagine Lord Siva considered by them as Sakala aspect of Narayana? Thus worship of Narayana and Siva were not differentiated by them. They worshipped Narayana as Paramatma of Siva and Sun as enunciated in the Atharvaveda Sirah. These tenets were believed as preached by the lineage of the great sage Agasthiya of South, the mula-guru of Nusantara and developed in Dihyang of Central Java, by Siddha-rishis from Agasthiya’s lineage. One of them called Markandeya (might not same person with Markandeya Rishi of Puranas) came to East Java and organized his hermitage in Ravang. From this place he came to Bali and was the origin of Brahmanic communities of ancient Bali, the royal priesthood of the ruling Varmadevas. Till this very day, his descendants called themselves Vaishnava Brahmins and continuing these spiritual thoughts. Their practices and theological concepts remind me so much with the Vaikhanasa Vaishnavas of South India, rather than more widespread Pancaratrika Vaishnavas. Other sects of Saivism, Buddhism, etc. independently practised their teaching and equally patronized by the same Varmadeva kings.
By the invasion of Singhasari under Kritanagara’s troupe, the Kalachakrayana was introduced to Bali. Then came the time of Bilvatikta’s invasion. The Bilvatikta religion of Saiva-buddha-agama also became widespread in Bali. By the coming of the greatest Saiva high priest of Bilvatikta, Dvijendra, after the fall of Javanese Hinduism, this new form of Saivism attained its peak achievement. The Bilvatikta nobilities tried to preserve everything they have in Bali, to save them from Islamic influence. The Balinese faith and spiritual culture at present day was shaped by various form of Vedic and Buddhist thoughts through a long evolutionary process.
Bali and some remote parts of Java still preserved their Hindu belief. Many literatures of Hindu and Buddhist teaching from past centuries were studied by priestly class of Bali and some aristocratic family. But the whole religion of Balinese, as I observed, was practices in two different ways. The Tantric Saiva-buddha-agama of Bilvatikta was limited to Brahminical lineages of more recent Bilvatikta transmigration. As the last Javanese origin peoples of Bali, they mainly became today’s Balinese nobility and religious elite. The practices of Saiva-buddha-agama in its pure form only limited to them. The hereditary Saiva Brahmin high priests and so called hereditary “Buddhist” Brahmins, who practicing Vajrayana and Saivite influenced Tantra, were their leading authorities. In other part we have common people’s religion. Similar with an older form of Kalinga influenced Balinese-Javanese Hinduism. They have priestly orders came from common people, administering the temple affairs, though considered lower than Saiva-buddha ordained high priests, but actually more influential in peoples religious life. The earlier Javanese incomers were the Brahmanic descendant of Markandeya and his follower. They have become inseparable part of Balinese common peoples, stay apart from the Bilvatikta newcomers. Their high priests practicing Tantric Vaishnavism and preserving their own unique literatures. But they have influenced each other so deeply for centuries. Finally just by superficial observation, we could only see a whole unique and distinct form of Balinese Hinduism.