Candi Asu is one of three temples with Candi Pendem and Lumbung generally called Candi Kuning and locally Candi Sengi. These three temples are a few hundred meters to each other, in the Candi Pos hamlet, Sengi village, Dusun district, at 5 km in the northeast of Muntilan.
Candi
Asu is a well restored small hindouist temple, but of which it
misses the higher part. This temple is 100 m on the left road, at
the edge of a path, opposite a school. Besides some panels
decorated with abstracted signs, there are no sculptures. The
three usual statues, which had been added after the construction
of the building (according to J. Dumarçay) disappeared.
A
staircase makes it possible to reach the higher platform where
one can see the well of deposit of foundation, in the center of
the structure.
This temple is lost in the rice plantations, to a few hundred meters of Candi Asu, by prolonging the path which passes in front of the school until the end, then on the right. It is invisible from the path because it is posed to approximately 2 m under the level of the surrounding ground, and all the higher part misses.
Larger
than the previous one , its platform is also bored in its center
with a square hole of approximately 1 m wide. One sees some
drafts of sculptures there - in particular a small Gana
- but it is clear that the decoration of these temples was never
completed nor,
perhaps, the monuments themselves.
The
access to this third temple is not simple, because to reach it
since the preceding temple, it is necessary to cross a stony
river, with 60 cm of water and a fort running, in dry season, for
at the rain season, it is impossible.
The effort nevertheless is rewarded because, of the three temples forming Candi Kuning, it is the most whole, and especially the most decorated with design of offering pots and birds.
This site is on Gunung Wukir's hill - 10 mn of walking on foot from the hamlet of Canggal- situated at the south of the road axis Yogya Muntilan, opposite Semen, km 21.
The
site, now clear, presents the bases of a ruined main sanctuary,
surrounded with three small temples, following a plan identical
to that of Candi Sambisari to Prambanan.
These
small buildings consisted of a base surmonted by a balustrade.
In the center of the base a statue trônait on a pedestal. The
character sivaic of the temple is mentioned by the yoni. A stele
was discovered in the temple and an inscription gone back to 732
was found in the mountain. It commemorates the erection of a
lingam in this place by king Sanjaya.
This site very little known, is located on a hill in the village of Ngasem at the west of Gulon - where one turns left - city located a little before Muntilan. In the village of Ngasem, a panel indicates the way which carries out, to foot, until Candi Gunung Sari.
There does
not remain large any more thing of the temple if not of the groupings of stones
surrounding the base of the principal sanctuary which measures 10 m X 10 m.
In the center of the base is a foundation well of 1,50 m in diameter. In front
of the principal building was three small sanctuaries in a configuration identical
to that of Candi Gunung Wukir, which is not far from there on another
hill. We are again in the presence of a sanctuary dedicated to Shiva. One found
on the site a yoni as well as a statue of Durga. Many decorations, stringcourses
and edgings in particular, are still visible.
Built to
the 9th and 10th
century. It is a whole of five sanctuaries divided into two categories. Temples
1, 3, 5 are of square plans, aligned on the same platform. They are similar
to those of group III of Gedong Songo, dedicated to hindu Trimurti.
Between these three temples, two cruciform temples dedicated to the worship
of the five Jina of Buddhism. There
is thus here the perfect example of the fight of influence between the two religions
through the two reigning dynasties, Sailendra and Sanjaya, and who will succeed,
later, under Mojopahit with the syncretism hindo-buddhistic. Some think that
the five structures could have contained images of the five Jina.
At present,
the majority of the temples are limited to their base; only one, number 2, is
almost whole. It was entirely restored
except for the roof in 1927. The base of the sanctuary measures 12 m X 12 m
and its height was to be practically idendentic. The entry consists of a hall
decorated with two niches on both sides of the door of entry.
At the interior of the
two buddhistic sanctuaries are still the statues of two Dhyani Buddha Amitabha and Ratnasambhava.
Candi Ngawen, although ruined, profited from an exceptional decoration which makes all the interest of its visit.
The corners
of the base of the temples are marked superb lions drawn up on their back legs
- single case in Java - and which is not without recalling the ornamentations
of the Pallawa temples of Kanchipuram in the south of Madras in India, and which
dates from the same time.
The tops of the doors consist of splendid heads of Kala.
Innumerable
small Gana with raised arms form an edging
under the roof of the temples giving the impression thus to support the superstructures.
Very many floral
low-reliefs or with representations of animals, but also some scenes with characters,
always decorate the remainders of the monuments. One can also see a great quantity
of them in the stone field facing the temples.
This monument, him also far from known, is in more difficult to find. It is necessary, in the north of Magelan, to follow on approximately 10 km the road, on the right, which leads to Grabag, then to fork in direction of the village of Retno.
One is still
in presence here of a shivaïc sanctuary , proven by the beautiful yoni which
is in a corner. Although ruined, its form is easily recognizable according to
its base, quite well preserved. Of size similar to Candi Gunung Sari,
it presents, on the other hand, no trace of decorations.
Candi Umbul (source) or differently called Candi Roto (flat)
is in fact a large basin of approximately 10 m X 20 m (to which was juxtaposed
another smaller basin), which would have built at the same time as Borobudur,
located at 60 km from there. This basin belongs to a great complex of one hectare
including other spring water basins, heats and cold, with curative values. The
site is in the north of Magelang, 7 km after Secang, on the road of Semarang.
A panel indicates the access, to 500 m on the right, of Candi Umbul,
located downwards in the valley, close to a river.
