Jago Temple is located in Jago Hamlet of Tumpang Village, Tumpang Subdistrict, Malang Regency, or 22 km to the east of Malang. Because it is located in Tumpang village, the temple is also called Tumpang Temple. Local villagers call the temple Cungkup.
According to Negarakertagama and Pararaton, the original name of this temple is Jajaghu. Verse 41 phrase 4 of Negarakertagama describes that King Wisnuwardhana who ruled Singasari was a Buddhist Shiva, a religious sect that combines the teachings of Hindu and Buddhist. The teaching flourished during the ruling of Singasari Kingdom, a kingdom located 20 km from Jago Temple. Jajaghu, which means 'greatness', is a term used for referring a shrine.
Still according to Negarakertagama and Pararaton, Jago Temple was built between 1268 and 1280 AD, as a tribute to the 4th King of Singasari Sri Jaya Wisnuwardhana. Although the temple built during the ruling of Singasari Kingdom, the two books mentioned that in 1359 AD Jago Temple was one of the places most frequently visited by King Hayam Wuruk of the Majapahit Empire. The connection between Jago Temple and Singasari Kingdom can also be traced from lotus carvings, which ramble upwards from their stems and decorate the statues’ pedestals. Such lotus motif was highly popular during Singasari Kingdom.
Important to note from temple history is the habit of past kings to restore temples erected by their predecessors. Jago Temple had probably been restored in 1343 AD as ordered by King Adityawarman of Melayu, who had blood relation to King Hayam Wuruk.
Today Jago Temple is still in ruined condition and yet to restore. The whole structure of the temple is a square, 23 m x 14 m in dimension. Its roof has gone, so it is not possible to find out the exact height of the temple. It is estimated that the temple stood 15 m high.
Facing west, the temple sits on a 1-meter high base and three-terraced feet. Going upward, the temple feet are getting smaller, providing a walkway on the first and second floor where people can walk around the temple. Graba ghra (main room) is shifted slightly to the back.
This temple is pyramidal in structure with walkways and shifted rearward, a common shape of building found during megalithic age, which is called punden berundak (pyramidal shrines). The shape was generally applied in the construction of a shrine to worship ancestral spirits. The shape indicates that Jago Temple was built as a shrine to worship ancestral spirits as well. However, further research and study are still required to prove the truth of it. Important to consider is that during the ruling of kingdoms in East Java, there are many variations in shape and function of building. This can be related to the deviation in religious practices which, by itself, affects the arts in holy shrines, including temple.
To go to the upper floor, there are two narrow stairs to the left and right hand side of the front part (west). The most important and holiest floor is the highest, of which the construction is shifted rearward.
Jago Temple is full of relief panels carved skillfully from the feet up to the walls of the highest room. There is virtually no vacant space, because they are all decorated with various ornaments that tell interrelated stories conveying a message of a “release”. This has reinforced the assumption that Jago Temple was built in close relation to the death of Sri Jaya Wisnuwardhana. In line with the religion followed by King Wisnuwardhana, i.e. Shiva Buddhist, reliefs on Jago Temple contain the elements of both Hindu and Buddhist teachings.
Buddhist teaching is reflected in reliefs telling the story of Tantri Kamandaka and the story of Kunjarakarna, which are carved on the lowest terrace. The walls on the second terrace are carved with the next sequence of Kunjarakarna story and parts Mahabharata story that contain Hindu teachings, Parthayajna and Arjuna Wiwaha. The third terrace is full of reliefs telling the next sequence of Arjunawiwaha. The temple body’s walls are also carved with Hindu stories of Krishna and Kalayawana war.
In the middle of the front yard, around 6 m from the temple’s feet, there is a big carved stone, 1 m in diameter, which resembles the shape of giant pedestal. On top of it, there is a relief of lotus flower rambling out of its stem.
On the west side of temple front yard is the statue of eight-armed Amoghapasa in the foreground of giant-head-shaped thrones in a position of one opposing the other. The statue’s head is missing and the arms broken. Around 3 meters to the south of the statue is a giant head 1 m high. No information is available whether the objects in the temple yard are in their original places.
According to Negarakertagama and Pararaton, the original name of this temple is Jajaghu. Verse 41 phrase 4 of Negarakertagama describes that King Wisnuwardhana who ruled Singasari was a Buddhist Shiva, a religious sect that combines the teachings of Hindu and Buddhist. The teaching flourished during the ruling of Singasari Kingdom, a kingdom located 20 km from Jago Temple. Jajaghu, which means 'greatness', is a term used for referring a shrine.
Still according to Negarakertagama and Pararaton, Jago Temple was built between 1268 and 1280 AD, as a tribute to the 4th King of Singasari Sri Jaya Wisnuwardhana. Although the temple built during the ruling of Singasari Kingdom, the two books mentioned that in 1359 AD Jago Temple was one of the places most frequently visited by King Hayam Wuruk of the Majapahit Empire. The connection between Jago Temple and Singasari Kingdom can also be traced from lotus carvings, which ramble upwards from their stems and decorate the statues’ pedestals. Such lotus motif was highly popular during Singasari Kingdom.
Important to note from temple history is the habit of past kings to restore temples erected by their predecessors. Jago Temple had probably been restored in 1343 AD as ordered by King Adityawarman of Melayu, who had blood relation to King Hayam Wuruk.
Today Jago Temple is still in ruined condition and yet to restore. The whole structure of the temple is a square, 23 m x 14 m in dimension. Its roof has gone, so it is not possible to find out the exact height of the temple. It is estimated that the temple stood 15 m high.
Facing west, the temple sits on a 1-meter high base and three-terraced feet. Going upward, the temple feet are getting smaller, providing a walkway on the first and second floor where people can walk around the temple. Graba ghra (main room) is shifted slightly to the back.
This temple is pyramidal in structure with walkways and shifted rearward, a common shape of building found during megalithic age, which is called punden berundak (pyramidal shrines). The shape was generally applied in the construction of a shrine to worship ancestral spirits. The shape indicates that Jago Temple was built as a shrine to worship ancestral spirits as well. However, further research and study are still required to prove the truth of it. Important to consider is that during the ruling of kingdoms in East Java, there are many variations in shape and function of building. This can be related to the deviation in religious practices which, by itself, affects the arts in holy shrines, including temple.
To go to the upper floor, there are two narrow stairs to the left and right hand side of the front part (west). The most important and holiest floor is the highest, of which the construction is shifted rearward.
Jago Temple is full of relief panels carved skillfully from the feet up to the walls of the highest room. There is virtually no vacant space, because they are all decorated with various ornaments that tell interrelated stories conveying a message of a “release”. This has reinforced the assumption that Jago Temple was built in close relation to the death of Sri Jaya Wisnuwardhana. In line with the religion followed by King Wisnuwardhana, i.e. Shiva Buddhist, reliefs on Jago Temple contain the elements of both Hindu and Buddhist teachings.
Buddhist teaching is reflected in reliefs telling the story of Tantri Kamandaka and the story of Kunjarakarna, which are carved on the lowest terrace. The walls on the second terrace are carved with the next sequence of Kunjarakarna story and parts Mahabharata story that contain Hindu teachings, Parthayajna and Arjuna Wiwaha. The third terrace is full of reliefs telling the next sequence of Arjunawiwaha. The temple body’s walls are also carved with Hindu stories of Krishna and Kalayawana war.
In the middle of the front yard, around 6 m from the temple’s feet, there is a big carved stone, 1 m in diameter, which resembles the shape of giant pedestal. On top of it, there is a relief of lotus flower rambling out of its stem.
On the west side of temple front yard is the statue of eight-armed Amoghapasa in the foreground of giant-head-shaped thrones in a position of one opposing the other. The statue’s head is missing and the arms broken. Around 3 meters to the south of the statue is a giant head 1 m high. No information is available whether the objects in the temple yard are in their original places.
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