Muara Jambi
The Largest Ancient Temple Complex In South East Asia By Area Roughly 3,900 Hectares Of Brick Candi In Riverside Forest, Barely Excavated And Barely Visited · Jambi, Jambi
Spread along the BATANGHARI RIVER in Jambi is THE LARGEST ANCIENT TEMPLE COMPLEX IN SOUTH EAST ASIA BY AREA - somewhere around THREE THOUSAND NINE HUNDRED HECTARES, which is several times the extent of Angkor's central zone and many times Borobudur's. Dozens of BRICK CANDI stand in forest and rubber plantation, most of them still buried under mounds, and YOU CYCLE BETWEEN THEM ON SANDY PATHS. It was almost certainly a MAJOR BUDDHIST LEARNING CENTRE associated with SRIVIJAYA AND MALAYU between roughly the seventh and thirteenth centuries - ATISHA, the Bengali master who carried Buddhism to Tibet, studied for twelve years in Sumatra under a teacher who was very probably here. IT IS ON THE UNESCO TENTATIVE LIST, HAS NEVER BEEN INSCRIBED, AND IS THREATENED by coal barges and plantation on the river. Almost nobody comes, including most Indonesians, which for a site of this size and significance is remarkable and a little sad.
Muaro Jambi, Muaro Jambi Regency, Jambi, Jambi, Jambi, Indonesia
OPEN IN DAYLIGHT with a small entry fee; there is a MUSEUM at the entrance which is worth the twenty minutes before you go in. IT IS ABOUT AN HOUR FROM JAMBI CITY, which has flights from Jakarta and Batam. THE SITE IS ENORMOUS AND THE CANDI ARE SPREAD OVER KILOMETRES - BICYCLES ARE HIRED AT THE ENTRANCE and are how everyone gets around; walking the whole thing is not realistic. THE MAIN EXCAVATED TEMPLES - GUMPUNG, TINGGI, KEDATON, GEDONG - are signed and connected by sandy tracks; THE REST REMAIN AS MOUNDS UNDER FOREST AND RUBBER. GUIDES ARE AVAILABLE AT THE ENTRANCE and are worth taking. There is very little shade on the tracks and Jambi is hot and humid. It floods in the wet season.