If you have entered the Siwa temple from the east and you turn to left , you will found the relief of Ramayana story, the relief story of ramayana will continued in the Brahma temple. It's mean to understanding the story of ramayana in prambanan temple, you must see the relief in siwa temple firts and then continue to see relief story in brahma temple.



The Prambanan temple was known again when a Dutchman had a name C.A.Lons visited Java during 1733 and reported about the existence of temple ruins that were overgrown scrub. But the first effort to rescue the Prambanan Temple was carried out by Ijzerman during 1885 by cleansing temple rooms of stone ruins. During 1902 just was begun by the work to take care Prambanan Temple that was led by Van Erp for the Siwa temple, the Wisnu temple and the Brahma temple.

Attention to the Prambanan temple continued to develop. After experiencing various obstacles, on December 23 1953 the Siwa temple was finished to restored. The Brahma temple began to be restored in 1978 and was declared 1987. The Wisnu temple began to be restored in 1982 and was finished in 1991. The following restoration activity was carried out against 3 temples perwara that was in front of the Siwa temple, Wisnu and Brahma. 4 Candi Kelir on four cardinal direction of the entrance, and 4 Candi Patok on four corner.

The Hindu religion knew Tri Murti that consisted of the Brahma as God of Creator, Dewa Wisnu as God of Guard , Dewa Shiwa as God of Destroyer . The main room was from the parent temple occupied by the Shiwa God as Maha Dewa so as to be able to be concluded that the Prambanan temple was the Shiwa temple.

The Prambanan temple or this Shiwa temple also often was acknowledged as the Loro Jonggrang temple regarding the legend that told all about Loro jonggrang, the daughter Prabu Boko, that built his kingdom on the hill on the south of the Prambanan temple complex.

The legend tells of the story about Prince Bandung Bondowoso who fell in love with Princess Loro Jonggrang, the complete story was. Previously in this Prambanan area had two Hindu kingdoms that is the Pengging Kingdom and the Boko palace. The Boko's king wanted to be in charge of Pengging then together with his primeminister Patih Gupolo , he attacked the Pengging kingdom. King of Boko and Patih Gupolo both of them were in the form of the giant. Evidently Prabu Boko could be overcome by Bandung Bondowoso, the son of Damar Moyo King or Pengging's King . And then Patih Gupolo ( prime minister of Boko ) went back to Boko Palace to tell Loro Jonggrang about her father was killed by Bandung Bondowoso. Both of them waiting for Bandung Bondowoso in Boko Kingdom. After arrived at the boko kingdom , Bandung Bondowoso was suprised with the beauty of Loro Jonggrang . He wants to marry her. But the princess rejected his proposal of marriage because Bandung Bondowoso had killed her father and ruled her kingdom. Bandung Bondowoso insisted on the union, and finally Lara Jonggrang was forced to agree for a union in marriage, but she posed one impossible condition: Bandung must build her a thousand temples in only one night.

The Prince entered into meditation and conjured up a multitude of spirits (demons) from the earth. Helped by supernatural beings, he succeeded in building 999 temples. When the prince was about to complete the condition, the princess woke her palace maids and ordered the women of the village to begin pounding rice and set a fire in the east of the temple, attempting to make the prince and the spirits believe that the sun was about to rise. As the cocks began to crow, fooled by the light and the sounds of morning time, the supernatural helpers fled back into the ground. The prince was furious about the trick and in revenge he cursed Lara Jonggrang to stone. She became the last and the most beautiful of the thousand statues. According to the traditions, the unfinished thousandth temple created by the demons become the Sewu temple compounds nearby (Sewu means ?thousands? in Javanese), and the Princess is the image of Durga in the north cell of the Shiva temple at Prambanan, which is still known as Lara Jonggrang .