Pawon Temple

Pawon Temple

Pilgrim on their way to Borobudur walked 1150 meters after leaving Mendut temple, and crossed the two rivers Elo and Progo before coming to Pawon temple. Later they would walk another 1750 meters to reach Borobudur. Pawon is much smaller than Mendut, which it resembles in style and decoration, and is presumed to be a Buddhist structure of approximately the same age, since, as has been remarked already, all three temples are believed to have been ritually linked. The single inner chamber no longer contains a statue, but the decorations indicate that it was once dedicated to Kuvera, the Buddhist God of Fortune. Dwarves shower down rings and other jewellery from above the entrance, while Kalpataru Wishing Trees are a central feature of the panels on the outer walls. Some fine single figures adorn shallow niches. An unusual element at Pawon temple is the small windows high on the walls that are reminiscent of Sari and Plaosan, even though there is no second story here. The windows are too small to let in much light, but they serve to ventilate the inner chamber. Some people say that the name Pawon comes from Pa+awu+an, meaning a place for (cremation) ashes. This temple is also called Brajanalan, which comes from the Sanskrit words Vajra, meaning thunder (bolt), and Anala, meaning fire. If we accept these interpretations, we can say that, besides being a place for devotions on the way to Borobudur, there was also a place here, perhaps, for the cremation of notable people.

• Sukuh Tample
• Sari Temple
• Sambisari Temple
• Ratu Boko Palace
• Prambanan Temple
• Plaosan Temple
• Pawon Temple
• Mendut Temple
• Kalasan Temple
• Gedongsongo Temple
• Dieng Temple
• Borobudur Temple

The central cella originally had a pair of male and female deities at each corner of the building. When following the raised path around the main cella in the clockwise direction, the first pair of standing deities to either side of the north corner are no longer in evidence. However, the six remaining figures in the serial are remain intact.

This is a carving of the Hindu wishing tree. Above this you can see the small windows of Pawon.