Borobudur is the name of a Buddhist temple located at Borobudur , Magelang , Central Java , Indonesia . The location of the temple is approximately 100 km south-west of Semarang , 86 miles to the west of Surakarta , and 40 km northwest of Yogyakarta . Stupa temple was founded by the Mahayana Buddhists around the year 800 AD during the early reign of the Sailendra dynasty . The monument comprises six square terraces upon which there are three circular courtyard , the walls decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues are original . The main stupa in the middle of the biggest teletak once crowned this building , surrounded by three rows of 72 circular perforated stupas in which there is a statue of Buddha sitting cross-legged in the lotus position perfectly with the mudra ( hand gesture ) Dharmachakra mudra ( turning the wheel of dharma ) This monument is a model of the universe and built as a shrine to venerate Buddha also functions as a place of pilgrimage to lead mankind to switch from natural lust to enlightenment and wisdom according to the teachings of Buddha . The pilgrims enter through the east side start at the base of the temple ritual to walk this sacred building circling clockwise , while continuing to go up to the next steps in the sphere through three levels of Buddhist cosmology . The third level is Kamadhatu ( the realm of lust ) , Rupadhatu ( the realm of intangibles ) , and Arupadhatu ( intangible realm ) . In this journey of pilgrims walking through a series of hallways and stairs with no less than 1,460 watched the beautiful relief panels carved on the walls and balustrades . According to historical evidence , Borobudur was abandoned in the 14th century as the weakening of the influence of Buddhist and Hindu kingdoms in Java and started the influence of Islam . The world began to realize the existence of this building since it was discovered in 1814  by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles , who was then serving as Governor-General of British over Java . Since then it has undergone a series of Borobudur rescue and restoration efforts . The largest restoration project was held in the period 1975 to 1982 for the efforts of the Indonesian government and UNESCO , and the historic sites in the list of World Heritage Sites . Borobudur is still used as a place of religious pilgrimage ; each year Buddhists who come from all over Indonesia and abroad gather at Borobudur to commemorate Vesak Trisuci . In the world of tourism , tourism Borobudur is Indonesia's single most visited tourist .