The foreground area of Goa Gajah (Elephant Cave)
has a steep staircase to a river of Petanu. The big rocks lie
at the bottom of the stair was thought to be some form of relic
and the staircase eventually leads to an altar of Buddha and the
Buddha caves where people meditate and honour the Buddha. Since
Hindu thought Buddha as one of the God Wishnu manifest, it is
not an uncommon sight for Balinese Hindu to pray in the Buddha
stupa (statue).
The story told that the original statue was in fact made in couple.
One of the statue (the female) was stolen and the male ones was
left without its head and hand pieces. Remarkably, after many
years of searching it is now found in Jakarta and today preserved
in Jakarta's museum, unfortunately not allowed to be returned
to Bali. Nonetheless, those who seeks the buddha statue may still
be able to see the overal shape of him without dimishing the true
meaning of the appreciations. |
