DIENG PLATEAU

DIENG PLATEAU

The lofty plateau of Dieng (2093m above sea level) is home to some of the oldest Hindu temples in Java. Its name comes from Di-Hyang (Abode of the Gods), and it’s thought that this was once the site of a flourishing temple-city of priests.

More than 400 temples, most of which were built between the 8th and 9th centuries, covered the highland plain, but with the mysterious depopulation of Central Java, this site, like Borobudur, was abandoned and forgotten. It was not until 1856 that the archaeologist Van Kinsbergen drained the flooded valley around the temples and catalogued the ruins. The eight remaining temples are characteristic of early Central Javanese architecture – stark and quite squat.

These simple temples, while of great archaeological importance, are not stunning. Rather, Dieng’s beautiful landscape is the main reason to make the long journey to this isolated region. Any number of walks across the volcanically active plateau, the marshy caldera of a collapsed volcano, are possible – to mineral lakes, steaming craters or even the highest village in Java, Sembungan.

You can either stay in Dieng village, or commute up from Wonosobo, which has better facilities. The route up to Dieng is stunning, climbing through vertiginous hillsides of terraced fields planted with potatoes, spring onions and asparagus (all judiciously sprayed with pesticides). Vegetables have replaced pine forests, leaving little to bind the top soil together; inevitably, landslides are common in the rainy season.

The temples and the main ‘natural’ sights can be seen in one day on foot – arrive in Dieng in the morning, before the afternoon mists roll in. It’s a pleasant three- or four-hour loop south from Dieng village to Telaga Warna (Coloured Lake), Candi Bima (Bima Temple), Kawah Sikidang (Sikidang Crater), and then back to Candi Gatutkaca, the Arjuna Complex and the village. Many other lakes and craters around Dieng are scattered over a large area and are difficult to reach.

Information

Entrance prices have risen recently for the temples and natural sights in Dieng. A cost-saving ticket used to exist that covered you for the main sights, but at research time this appeared to have been discontinued – expect to have to pay for each attraction separately.

TEMPLES

The five main temples that form the Arjuna Complex (20,000Rp) are clustered together on the central plain. They are Shiva temples, but like the other Dieng temples they have been named after the heroes of the wayang stories of the Mahabharata epic: Arjuna, Puntadewa, Srikandi, Sembadra and Semar. All have mouth-shaped doorways and strange bell-shaped windows and some locals leave offerings, burn incense and meditate here. Raised walkways link the temples (as most of this land is waterlogged), but you can see the remains of ancient underground tunnels, which once drained the marshy flatlands.

Just southwest of the Arjuna Complex are Candi Gatutkaca, two small museums (admission incl in Arjuna ticket price; 8am-3pm) and a modest cafe. The site museum contains statues and sculptures from the temples, including Shiva’s carrier, Nandi the bull – with the body of a man and the head of a bull, it is a unique representation in Hindu iconography. There’s also a headless image of Shiva himself, depicted in the lotus position, while a gargoyle sporting an erection is distinctly animist. The second museum, a new building directly behind the site museum, has lots of information about the geology of Dieng, the folklore associated with the plateau and more carved statues. All the display information here is in Bahasa Indonesia only.

Further south, Candi Bima is unique in Java, its kudu (sculpted heads) looking like spectators peering out of windows.

The restored Candi Dwarawati is on the northern outskirts of the village. Near the entrance to Dieng at the river, Tuk Bima Lukar is an ancient bathing spring. It was once a holy place and is said to be a fountain of youth.