- Prime Minister Modi visited Indonesia's Prambanan Temple during his state visit
- Prambanan is Indonesia's largest Hindu temple complex and a UNESCO World Heritage Site
- The temple complex was built in the 9th-10th centuries under the Sanjaya dynasty
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to Indonesia is centred on strengthening diplomatic and strategic ties, but one stop on the itinerary carries a deeper cultural message.
During his visit to Yogyakarta, Modi visited the iconic Prambanan Temple complex, one of Southeast Asia's finest examples of Hindu architecture.
The visit also highlights a proposed India-Indonesia collaboration on the conservation of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, reinforcing the centuries-old civilisational links shared by the two nations.
While Indonesia is the world's largest Muslim-majority country, monuments like Prambanan stand as enduring reminders of its rich Hindu past.
The Largest Hindu Temple Complex In Indonesia
Located on the plains of Central Java, just outside Yogyakarta, Prambanan is the largest Hindu temple complex in Indonesia and among the most significant in Southeast Asia. It is also the second largest in Southeast Asia after Angkor Wat in Cambodia.
Built during the 9th and 10th centuries under the Sanjaya dynasty of the ancient Mataram Kingdom, the monument was dedicated to the Hindu Trimurti: Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma.
Located on the plains of Central Java, just outside Yogyakarta, Prambanan is the largest Hindu temple complex. Photo: Unsplash
Often compared with the nearby Borobudur Temple, which represents Indonesia's Buddhist heritage, Prambanan reflects the country's equally significant Hindu legacy.
Together, the two monuments showcase the religious and cultural diversity that flourished in Java more than a thousand years ago.
In recognition of its architectural and historical importance, the Prambanan Temple Compound was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991.
An Architectural Masterpiece
The first thing visitors notice about Prambanan is its striking vertical design.
Unlike many temples with broad, sprawling layouts, Prambanan's towers rise sharply into the sky, creating an imposing skyline that can be seen from afar.
At the heart of the complex stand three towering temples dedicated to Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma. The Shiva temple, the tallest at around 47 metres, dominates the site and houses several chambers containing statues of Shiva, Durga, Ganesha and the sage Agastya.
The first thing visitors notice about Prambanan is its striking vertical design. Photo: Unsplash
The temples are arranged in a carefully planned square layout inspired by Hindu cosmology.
Around the main shrines once stood hundreds of smaller temples known as pervara shrines, many of which remain in ruins today.
Altogether, the complex originally comprised around 240 temples across nearly 40 hectares, making it one of the grandest religious sites built in ancient Java.
Stone Tells Stories
Prambanan is admired not just for its soaring architecture but also for its intricate stone carvings.
The galleries surrounding the temples feature beautifully preserved bas-reliefs (a sculpting technique where the figures or designs project only slightly from a flat background surface) depicting episodes from the Ramayana, one of Hinduism's most revered epics.
Visitors traditionally walk clockwise around the temple corridors while following the narrative carved into the walls, almost like reading an ancient graphic novel in stone.
Prambanan is admired not just for its soaring architecture but also for its intricate stone carvings. Photo: Pexels
These reliefs demonstrate the influence of Indian literature while also incorporating local artistic styles unique to Java.
Even today, the temple complex hosts open-air Ramayana ballet performances, blending dance, theatre and music against the dramatic backdrop of the illuminated temples.
The Legend Of Roro Jonggrang
Like many ancient monuments, Prambanan is closely associated with folklore.
According to the famous Javanese legend, Princess Roro Jonggrang was asked to marry the warrior Bandung Bondowoso after he defeated her kingdom. Unwilling to marry him, she challenged him to build 1,000 temples in a single night.
Using supernatural forces, the prince nearly completed the impossible task. To stop him, the princess tricked the spirits into believing dawn had arrived by asking villagers to light fires and pound rice. The spirits disappeared before the final temple was finished.
Enraged, Bandung Bondowoso cursed Roro Jonggrang, turning her into stone as the thousandth statue. Local tradition identifies the Durga statue inside the Shiva temple with the princess, although historians regard the tale as folklore rather than a historical fact.
Despite its mythical origins, the story has become inseparable from Prambanan's identity and continues to be retold across Indonesia through literature, theatre and cultural performances.
From Ruins To Restoration
Prambanan's glory did not last uninterrupted.
Following shifts in political power during the 10th century, the temple complex gradually fell into decline.
Volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and centuries of neglect left much of the site buried beneath ash and dense vegetation.
It was rediscovered during the 19th century by colonial-era scholars, after which extensive restoration work began. Conservation efforts have continued for decades, including rebuilding collapsed structures stone by stone using archaeological records.
Following shifts in political power during the 10th century, the temple complex gradually fell into decline. Photo: Unsplash
The 2006 Yogyakarta earthquake once again damaged several parts of the complex, but restoration projects have helped preserve the monument for future generations.
While many of the smaller shrines remain partially reconstructed, the central temples have been carefully restored to much of their former grandeur.
Indonesia's Living Hindu Heritage
Although Indonesia today has a predominantly Muslim population, Hindu culture remains an important part of the country's identity.
Hindu influence first reached the Indonesian archipelago through trade and cultural exchange with the Indian subcontinent over 1,500 years ago.
Several Hindu and Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms flourished across Java, Sumatra and Bali, leaving behind temples, inscriptions and literary traditions that continue to shape Indonesian culture.
Today, Bali is the country's most prominent centre of living Hinduism, where temples, daily offerings, festivals and rituals remain woven into everyday life. Meanwhile, Java's temple complexes, including Prambanan, preserve the monumental legacy of Indonesia's Hindu past.