The Tallo Royal Grave

While capacity of human intelligence and memory may be unlimited, it's just impossible for a person to have knowledge on or information about everything. There the function of words similar to that of why, where, how, what, when, etc or certain gestures and symbols that serve the same purpose. Some people prefer to shut their mouths up and explore. It may take longer time and more efforts to arrive at a destination, but there maybe satisfactions and unforgettable experiences afterward, and they may find new routes and new things along the way. It's a choice, sometimes, and it's a mission on other occasions.

The last time I was in Makassar, South Sulawesi, a feeling that I knew very little about the city was still there. Ignorance was simply the reason, as information were abundance and time to explore would certainly be available had I ever put a little more thought about it. Traveling around the Indonesian archipelago was in fact one of a few wishes that I wrote down on a piece of paper more than 30 years ago, but I've never taken it seriously, until lately.


Maybe because of age factor, that these days I tend to rely more on a driver of a rental car company or to a friend to go around a city or a place, rather than to explore. In Makassar, it was a local driver who provided the knowledge of the area, and brought me to, among others, Makam Raja-raja Tallo (a royal tomb complex of Tallo rulers). The royal grave compound is located at Tallo village, about seven kilometers to the north of Makassar.


There the graves with old trees that provided convenient shelters from the merciless Makassar's sun . The complex that was built around 17th century served as graves of Tallo rulers until 19th century. Tunatengkalopi, King Gowa VI (1445-1460), split Gowa into two kingdoms, i.e. Tallo and Gowa, which then formed a strong alliance and became a dominant power in the region, until the Dutch colonial forces under Speelman command ended Gowa's supremacy through Bungaya treaty following series of wars that the Dutch won with the help of La Tenri Tatta Arung Palakka, King of Bone. It was one of the dark episodes in the history of the region and the country.


The shapes of the tombs looked quite unique to me. The majority of them were made from stones and a few others were bricks. Among about 78 tombs in the complex, only 20 of them could be identified, such as the tombs of Sultan Mudhafar (Tallo King VII), Karaeng Sinrinjala, Syaifuddin (XI), Siti Saleha (XII), La Oddang Riu Daeng Mangeppe (XVI) and I Malingkaang Daeng Manyonri (the first Tallo King who converted into Islam).


The above dome-type of tomb is one of the three shapes that we can find in the serene compound. This type of tomb is said can be found as well at the areas of Timor and Tidore . Another shapes include temple-like shape, which suggested an influence of Hindu culture, and stone-board type of tombs that looks like a rectangular frame house.


Walking around the shady and placid complex, admiring the shapes and ornament of the tombs, gave peace of mind and heart, while the soul tour the eternal life behind the curtain of the present. The complex was relatively well maintained, and only a mild improvements were needed, e.g. to fix the hut below the big tree, to provide convenient resting area for the visitors, and to restore some of the damaged tombs.

Readings (in Indonesian)
Makam Raja-raja Tallo (Sulawesi Selatan)
Objek Wisata Sejarah Makam Raja-Raja Tallo

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Kelenteng Sanggar Agung

Kelenteng Sanggar Agung or Hong San Tang Temple is another place of interest within the compound of Pantai Ria Kenjeran, Surabaya, exactly in front of Patung Buddha Empat Muka, or at Jl. Sukolilo 100 to be precise. Kelenteng is always a favorite place that I would love to see whenever I'm visiting a city. It is a Chinese community temple, with its distinctive shapes, colors and ornaments, intended to worship deities for followers of Taoism, Buddhism and Kong Hu Cu, all in one place. The teachings seem influence each other with cross followers among them.

The good thing about visiting Kelenteng is that nobody will ask you any stupid questions, and in general you are free to roam wherever you want around the place for taking pictures and admiring the statues and their costumes, etc.


A woman was about leaving the main place to perform worship, located in the middle of the building. On the left and right wing of the main hall, the statues of deities were displayed inside wooden frames.


Kwan Im Pouw Sat statue with the four guardians of heaven and the two dragons, are the most impressive works in the compound. The Kwan Im statue stands about 20 meters high. The low lighting posed a challenge to get a good picture, besides the short distance as I brought a 24-70mm lens only, and left my ultra-wide angle lens at home. It's a bad idea to go out there without complete weapons...


The above picture was taken from within the temple compound.
I haven't really explored enough the temple collections, as the place was rather dark at night. I would certainly consider to visit the place again at daylight the next time I'm in Surabaya, and explore further scenes along Pantai Ria Kenjeran.

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Buddha Empat Muka

Wealth does not create culture. Creative minds do, dedicated hearts refine it, and inspired souls transform it into greatness. The advancement of science, technology, communication, transportation, computing and engineering, as well as the abundant virtual knowledge databases, have made creation, preservation, improvement and innovation of cultural works become easier, faster, and can be a lot more impressive than before. That kind of thought popped up whenever I visited a spiritually inspired great cultural works, such as Patung Buddha Empat Muka (Four-Faced Buddha Statue) in Surabaya that I visited a few weeks back.

Patung Buddha Empat Muka is located at one of the corners of the famous Pantai Ria Kenjeran, a beach area in the city of Surabaya traditionally known as an intimate place for lovers, similar to that of Bina Ria beach at Ancol. While the strong, and somewhat dirty, image remains at its place, visitors have now a better reason to visit the area.


The statue looked quite impressive at night, and perhaps even better during daylight. The construction work of the statue was started in July 2003, occupying a total land of 1.5 hectares. The main building that houses the statue measured at 9x9 meters, a symbolically important figures for the Buddhist community.


The first face of Buddha is shown above.
The four faces represents the four good traits of Buddha, i.e. loving, generosity, just and meditating. It's rather different philosophy from that of similar statue at Erawan Shrine in Bangkok, which represents Face of Peace and Health, Face of Good Relationships, Face of Fortune and Face of Protection Against Evil.


The second face of Buddha. The monument was very quite that evening, but probably it was also because of a working day that many people would prefer staying at home.

There were only a middle-aged couple doing a certain kind of ritual around the monument, and a security person on duty in a plain cloth was seen guarding the entrance fence.


The third face of the Buddha. While the monument was inaugurated in November 9, 2004, I just knew its existence during that visit, which is five years later.
When I asked a couple of persons about places of interest in the city during my previous visit, none mentioned the statue. Well, people certainly have different opinion on what places of interests are.


The fourth face of Buddha. The height of the statue is 9 meters with overall height of 36 meters including the dome. MURI (Indonesian Record Museum) has recorded the monument as the highest and the biggest Buddha monument in the country.



Buddha Empat Muka is certainly a nice place that you'd like to visit when you are in Surabaya, and hopefully you will be inspired by the loves that had been poured to support the construction of the monument. Wealth is certainly an important factor in the creation of great cultural works, but it comes last after the mind, heart and soul have accomplished their jobs.

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Masjid Cheng Hoo

I thought it was going to be a boring evening as when I checked my watch it was almost six thirty p.m. already, and I was a bit tired for a long photo hunt. A rental car company that I called earlier offered a minimum of 4-hour rental service which was a bit too long for my low hunting appetite, and the rental fee was a little bit expensive too. A phone call to a receptionist of a hotel at the city of Surabaya that I stayed that day, however, has changed the night to a bit more colorful one.

She said that Suramadu bridge, my main purpose for the photo hunt, was only several minutes away from the hotel, and with her assistance I found a 3-hour rental car with more reasonable price. A few moments later I hit the streets of Surabaya, accompanied by a driver from the rental car company.

I got a couple of good recommendations from friends for nice places to eat, but for the sake of time we just had a quick dinner at Soto Pak Sadi, located around Ambengan area. The taste was good, quite the same as the one at Santa, Jakarta. It was the visit to this warung that brought me to Masjid Cheng Hoo (Cheng Hoo Mosque) as the location is quite near to Soto Pak Sadi.


A view from the outside when the lamps inside of the mosque were turned off.
Cheng Ho, also known as Mǎ Sānbǎo or Haji Mahmud Shams (1371–1435), was a famous Chinese Muslim diplomat and a strong fleet admiral under Ming Dynasty, who made the legendary voyages to several ports across Southeast Asia, South Asia, and East Africa from the year of 1405 to 1433. His fleet visited the Indonesian archipelago several times, and left traces such as a giant bell "Cakra Donya" at Aceh Sultan; a plate with Kursi verses inscribed on it at Cirebon Sultanate, and many others.


It's the two Arabic calligraphic works on the left and right walls of the building that differentiates this unique Chinese style mosque with an ordinary Chinese temples, that normally characterized by its unique shapes and the dominant colors of red, golden yellow and green. The mosque was built as a representation of a dream of the Chinese Muslim community in Surabaya to have a place to perform religious activities.


The interior parts of the mosque is shown above. The 231 square meters mosque was built at PITI's compound, using architectural design of Niu Jie Mosque at Beijing which was built in 996 as reference. PITI is the abbreviation of Persatuan Islam Tionghoa Indonesia (Indonesian Chinese Muslim Association), which is also known as Pembina Iman Tauhid Islam.


The shape on the wall at the above picture is similar to that found in churches, and according a mosque's staff it represents a harmony value with other religions. The construction work of the mosque was started in October 15, 2001 and it took about six months for completion. The inauguration ceremony took place in October 13, 2002.


The octagon shape of the ceiling in the middle of the mosque, circling the hanging crystal lamps, represents the Chinese Pat Kwa philosophy, a symbol of luck and greatness.


The area of the main building, measured at 9 x 11 meters, has symbolic values. The number 9 symbolizes Wali Songo, the 9 revered saints of Islam who were widely respected because of their important roles in spreading the teaching of Islam among Indonesians, especially in Java. While the number 11symbolyzes the size of Kaaba when it was first built.


A replica of the Admiral Cheng Ho's ship was built at the right wing of the mosque. It was a work of Abadaeng, a local artist born in Sulawesi, a region famous with its abundant world-class talents in ship-building.


A close look at the Arabic letters of "Allah" and "Muhammad", as well as the name of the mosque in both Latin and Chinese characters. The overall architectural design of the mosque was done by Azis Johan, an engineer from city of Bojonegoro.



The mosque was captured when the lights inside the building were all turned on.
Masjid Mohammad Cheng Hoo is located at Jl. Gading, Surabaya, just behind Kusuma Bangsa Heroes Cemetery complex, across Taman Remaja recreation center Surabaya. The easiest way to get there is by taxi, or rent a car if you want to explore other places around city of Surabaya. It shouldn't be that difficult to ask for direction, considering the popularity of the mosque among local people.

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A Trip to Pulau Lae-lae

Makassar still occupies a special place in memory. Back in 1983, there was a pre-congress of Indonesian Pharmacy Student Association, held at Hasanuddin University. I attended the congress to present a paper on behalf of "Ars Praeparandi" Student Association of ITB. A friend who came along was Bambang Sapto Nugroho. We took train from Bandung to Surabaya, then went to Garuda airline's office at Surabaya and got student's price for a flight to Ujung Pandang (previous name of Makassar). It was the scorching sun that burnt my skin when my feet touched Makassar's soil that's still fresh in memory.

The Makassar's visit awarded my friend with a girlfriend who was a student of Hasanuddin University and a member of the organizing committee of the congress. He finally married her and gave him two beautiful daughters. I was a loyal man back then, for I didn't dare to look for an opportunity as I had already mine who later married me and gave birth of a daughter and two sons. My friend had been resting in peace for sometime now, while I'm still wandering around, looking for my final destiny.


A traditional boat was seen approaching the Island. I visited Makassar several times since then, but it was only in my last visit that I got a chance to visit Pulau Lae-lae (Pulau means Island).


The water was calm, but taking pictures from a small boat that kept on moving piercing the sea water was still a challenge for me. The burning sun which was already low on the horizon posed another challenge.


One of the tips of the Island was captured with a beautiful arrangements of trees on its soil. The boat circled the small Island before it finally landed on its shore.


The above structure is probably intended to provide protection to the Island from raising sea water during rainy seasons.


The flash of sunlight and silhouette of the trees with ships floating at the background gave a nice view.


Silhouette of the Island's kids were shot among the beautiful shapes of the Island's trees.


Pulau Lae-lae is just a around 15 minutes away from the famous Losari Beach, Makassar. Rental fee for a motor-powered duck-shaped boat was at IDR.225,000 for a round trip, lasted about an hour, with a short stop at the Island. Regular boat service is also available at a cheaper price.

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Maha Vihara Mojopahit

It was a visit to a couple of temples and traces of the Majapahit Kingdom at Trowulan, Mojokerto, East Java, a few weeks back that brought me as well to Maha Vihara Mojopahit, a Buddhist monastery and temple, located somewhere at the Trowulan area. Thanks to the driver of a rented car who advised me to make a stop at the shrine. The Vihara was built by Bante Viriyanadi Mahathera in 1989 on an area of 20,000 m2 with the unique Javanese Joglo architecture.



The Javanese Joglo architecture design shown at the above picture is at the main building of the shrine.


Inside the main building there are three altars, each to serve the believers of Hinayana, Mahayana and Tantrayana sects. The middle part, shown above, is the statue of Buddha Sakyamuni.


Statue of Avalokitesvara Kwan Se Im Phosat in the above picture is intended for followers of Mahayana sect.


While statue of Tara Goddess at the above altar is intended for the Tantrayana sect.


The huge Sleeping Buddha statue shown in the above picture is said to be the third largest in the world, after similar statue in Thailand and Nepal. It measures 22 m in length, width of 6 m and 4.5 m in height. The exact location of the Maha Vihara Mojopahit can be found at the Vihara's website.

There are several interesting cultural and archeological sites around Trowulan for those who want to explore the ancient Javanese glories during Majaphit era. The great Majaphit Kingdom was the last Buddhist-Hindu kingdom in Java. By mid of the 15th century it was replaced by Demak Sultanate, the first Islam Sultanate in Java, founded by Raden Patah, who was then crowned as Sultan Hadiwijaya.

With a rented car, it took me a little more than an hour to travel the 63 km distance from Surabaya to Trowulan in a relatively smooth traffic. Trowulan is certainly a must place to visit for those who have interests in the history of the ancient Java.

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