Tulungagung (literally “The Great Water-Source”) is a regency of East Java, situated to the south of Kediri. This region is well off-the-radar of travellers and only a handful of Western travellers are likely to pass through each year; in numerous trips through Java, it never made it onto our itinerary. But there are some minor sites from the Hindu-Buddhist era, and one of these sites is related to the Singosari kingdom, which I have been blogging about a great deal in recent posts, so I thought I would dedicate a post to this ruin, Candi Gayatri– an intriguing site that I have yet to visit.
Candi Gayatri is located in Boyolangu, a small village located about five kilometres from Tulungagung town. We know that the village dates back to at least the Majapahit era, because it is mentioned in the 14th century poem the Negarakertagama as the site of an important shrine (presumably Candi Gayatri). In 1914 villagers digging into a mound of earth accidentally re-discovered the site. It appears that what they discovered was the funerary monument of Gaytri, also known as Sri Rajapatni. Gayatri was the daughter of King Kertanegara, the last king of Singosari. Like all the other daughters of King Kertagama, she became the wife of Raden Wijaya, the first king of Majapahit, after her father was killed in a revolt by a restive vassal. She was the grandmother of Hayam Wuruk, the greatest of the Majapahit kings, and it was during his reign that a funerary temple was built here in her honor. According to Mpu Prapacna, the author of the Negarakertagama, the scared building that he built in her honor was known as Prajnaparmitapuri. It was very likely the ruins of that tomb complex which are known today as Candi Gayatri.
At the site there are the ruins of three temples: a main temple (candi induk) and two satellite temples (candi perwara). All that remain are the foundations of the temple, portions of which are in reasonable condition. In one section the walling is decorated with diamond motifs. This may well be some kind of Buddhist motif, as the diamond shape was sometimes used as a meditational device. It seemed likely to me that there had never been a roof on top of these foundations. Instead, they would once have held up a wooden roof on carved pillars. Such a structure would have been similar to the pendopo pavilions, which can still be found in association with royal courts and government buildings throughout Java. There is an especially beautiful example at the Keraton Kesephuan in Cirebon. The purpose of these structures would have been as shrines in a royal cult. The proof of this is in the main statues which remain at the site.
Queen Gayatri was known as a devout Buddhist and is sometimes even described as a bhiksuni– a female monk or asectic. This association of the queen with Buddhism is further reinforced by the main statue which is enshrined in the mother temple (candi induk). The main statue here is more than one metre wide and long and reaches a height of 1.2 metres. Sadly, it has been decapitated by looters. The queen is seated on a giant lotus blossom in the lotus position and to her left, he see the stem of a lotus plant rising sinuously. Yet clear as the Buddhist iconography is here, Hinduism and Buddhism were complexly interwoven in the Majapahit era. Therefore, it should not have come as too much of a surprise that the satellite temples (candi perwara) enshrined statues of Hindu figures such as Ganesha (the god of knowledge) and Nandi (the mount of Shiva). The two religions co-mingled peacefully, with both being sponsored and revered by the royal family.
While the temple ruins at Candi Gayatri are relatively scant, they do offer a window on a fascinating period in history. They show the close relationship between the royal families of Singosari and Majapahit and they also show how Buddhism and Hinduism peacefully co-habited during the Majapait era. It is also interesting to see how religious piety was used to justify political authority in 14th century Java. This mixing of religious and political authority is still a feature of Indonesian society today. Few Indonesian politicians would want to be seen as slack in the area of religious observance. Understanding the old Indonesian kingdoms can be quite illuminative about features of modern Indonesia too.
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