Introduction

Kedah is the northernmost state on the Malaysian Peninsula

The state of Kedah located on the Northwestern tip of the Malaysian Peninsula is considered by historians to be one of the most ancient Buddhist sites in Southeast Asia, even predating sites in Thailand and Cambodia. Archaeological research is gradually revealing a very large cluster of sites in the area between the Muda River and Gunung (Malay: mountain) Jerai which may have been in existence as early as 2,000 years ago.

The highest peak in Kedah is Gunung Jerai, formerly known as Kedah Peak. Rising to 1,175 metres (3,854 feet) above sea level, it has been recognised as a site of early Buddhist influence, brought by spice traders from the Indian continent. The flat topography of the land surrounding present-day Gunung Jerai and archaeological evidence of ancient ruins seem to support this theory. Gunung Jerai has its fair share of stories and myths.

Gunung Jerai, formerly known as Kedah Peak, rising to 1,175 metres (3,854 feet) above sea level. Image credit: fiksyenshasha.com. Click on image to enlarge.

History of Gunung Jerai

The introduction of Buddhism to the ancient Malay Peninsula is linked to the ancient spice trade routes. These routes passed through the Straits of Malacca between present-day Sumatra and the Malaysian Peninsula. The routes facilitated trade between the Eastern Regions of the Indian continent and Southeast Asia and China in the Far East.

It is believed that during the 1^st Century CE when sea levels were much higher, Gunung Jerai was actually an island called Pulau Serai; as sea levels receded over the centuries, Gunung Jerai transformed into a mountain. This is recorded in the Hikayat Marong Mahawangsa, a famous Malay chronicle in the history of Kedah, which says that Gunung Jerai was once an island which became joined to the mainland.

King Marong Mahawangsa, looking to the shore, saw how Pulau Lada had already ceased to be an island so that in the end it was to be called Bukit Lada. Pulau Djambul had shared this fate and was in the end called Bukit Djambul. Pulau Seri was on the point of merging with the land and was to bear the name of Gunung Djerai, because of its height.

– Ras, J. J. (1968). Hikajat Bandjar: a study in Malay historiography, pp. 193

According to the chronicle, Marong Mahawangsa (believed to be the descendant of Alexander the Great) landed near Pulau Serai, and built a palace and fortress. A legendary warrior and ruler, he is said to be the first king of Langkasuka, or modern-day Kedah.

Granite slab setting out the historical significance of Gunung Jerai as the ideal navigation beacon. Click on image to enlarge.

Thus, Gunung Jerai’s height relative to the surrounding area, as well as its geographically strategic location at the northern entrance to the Straits of Malacca, made it the ideal navigation beacon for Indian traders and seafarers travelling east from the Indian continent to trade with Southeast Asia and China. The area was also significant to those pursuing overland access from the West to the East Coast of the Malay Peninsula, which opens onto the South China Sea.

With its role as a strategic port of call, Gunung Jerai was frequently visited by Chinese and South Indian traders who brought their culture and religion with them. The discovery of ceramics, sculptures, inscriptions and monuments in this area, all dating from the 5^th to 14^th Century CE, offers proof of this. Over time, Gunung Jerai became a popular holy site considered sacred by ancient Hindus and Buddhists from India who built temples from the base of the mountain all the way to its summit. Confirming this hypothesis are the many archaeological sites that have been discovered in the Bujang Valley, located on the southern reaches of Gunung Jerai where a broad estuary called Merbok is found.

Hence, ancient Buddhist influence in Malaya has long been attributed to Indian influence and especially to the Kingdom of Srivijaya which was based in Indonesia. The Srivijaya Kingdom was a powerful maritime empire whose influence was strongly felt all over Southeast Asia; at one point in history, the Bujang Valley was even administered by them. Not only did Srivijayan traders and merchants bring government, commerce and trade all over the region, but they also spread their Buddhist faith as well.

This influence was to last for centuries. In Indonesia, it was during the Srivijaya Kingdom that the mammoth Borobodur complex was constructed. In Northern Malaya, it is Lembah Bujang (or Bujang Valley), Kedah which bears testimony to this Srivijayan influence, although some scholars assert that a Hindu and Buddhist community existed in the Bujang Valley long before the Srivijaya Kingdom.

Location of archeological sites at Bujang Valley. Click on image to enlarge.

A sprawling ancient complex of approximately 86 square miles (224 square kilometres), Bujang Valley is located near Merbok, between Gunung Jerai to the north and Muda River to the south. In Sanskrit, ‘bujhanga‘ means ‘serpent‘ so the name ‘Bujang Valley’ is roughly translated to ‘Serpent Valley’. This valley has become the richest Buddhist archaeological area in Malaysia, with anywhere from 50 to 100 ancient temples and settlements having been discovered, along with items of worship and Buddha images. These ancient tomb temples are called candi (pronounced “chandi”), an Indonesian term used to refer to a Hindu or Buddhist temple.

Time has not been kind to these temples; over the past 1000 or so years, their wooden roofing has rotted away, along with many of the scriptures and writings which would have provided more details about the design and use of the temples, as well as the daily lives of the people there. There is an existing site that has been restored known as Candi Bukit (Malay: hill) Batu Pahat, consisting of a foundation for a large wooden superstructure. However, the most impressive and well-preserved of these candis is located in Pengkalan Bujang, Merbok.

Candi Bukit Batu Pahat. Built in the 6^th Century CE, this candi is the most well-known ancient Hindu temple found in Bujang Valley, Kedah, Malaysia. Click on image to enlarge.

Believed to have built some time between the 10^th to 14^th Century CE, Candi Pengkalan Bujang has been identified as an entrepôt (a hub to which goods are brought for import and export, and for collection and distribution). The site was discovered by Dr. H.G. Quaritch Wales during his 1936-1937 expeditions. It was another 40 years before formal excavation works began in 1974, led by the Malaysian government’s Department of Museum and Antiquities.

In the following decades, from 1986 to 1991, the Bujang Valley Archaeological Museum collaborated with professors and students from the History Faculty of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (National University of Malaysia) to carry out excavations at the site discovered in Mukim Bujang. This excavation led to the discovery of six stupas in an area of 3.5 hectares.

Candi Pengkalan Bujang is perhaps the most well-preserved example of Hindu-Buddhist architecture in the Bujang Valley. Click on image to enlarge.

Hence excavation works, while slow-going, are still taking place in the Bujang Valley. And while comparatively little is known about the civilisation there, what these ancient sites definitely prove is the existence of a thriving Hindu and Buddhist community in the area as far back as the 1^st Century CE. The sheer number of places of worship reflect how large the civilisation would have been to have necessitated or inspired the construction of so many temples where Hindu-Buddhist priests would have worshipped and prayed for the safety of the Bujang Valley.

Other archaeological expeditions, notably to Sungai Batu in Bujang Valley, have also uncovered jetty remains and iron-smelting sites, as well as a clay brick monument. This monument dates back to AD 110, making it the oldest man-made structure to be recorded in Southeast Asia.

Most of the information and discoveries made about Bujang Valley and Gunung Jerai can be found at the Bujang Valley Archaeological Museum, as well as in the National Museums of Malaysia and Singapore.

Sungai Batu archaeological site. Click on image to enlarge.

Religious Significance of Gunung Jerai in the Buddhist Context

The announcement in 2011 by the Malaysian government of archaeological findings of what appears to be the base of a pagoda dating back to 1^st Century CE is unprecedented, as this finding predates all archaeological sites in South East Asia to date! It has been reported that only 10% of the 90 identified archaeological sites in Lembah Bujang has been excavated, fueling fresh debate as to the actual site of the great Indian Buddhist Emperor Asoka’s Dharma missionary to Suvarnabhumi (the Land of Gold). Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, Sumatra, Malaya and Cambodia are possible Suvarnabhumi, one of the 9 destinations emissaries were sent by the court of the great Indian Emperor Asoka in the 3^rd Century BC to carry the message of the Buddha. The emissaries to Suvarnabhumi were the Venerable Sona and Uttara.

Extracted from: http://www.tbcm.org.my/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Buddhism-in-Malaysia-by-Bro-K-Don-Premseri.pdf

The history of Gunung Jerai and Bujang Valley clearly has a connection to early Buddhist expansion into the region during the 1^st Century CE but very little documented evidence has been found due to the effect of the tropical climate which caused the deterioration of the buildings and artefacts.

One document which does link the presence of Buddhism to Kedah is a collection of Sanskrit manuscripts. Found in Nepal, this collection includes the Prajñāpāramitāstotra, Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā and Vajradhvajapariṇāmanā texts. Of particular interest is the Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā which was copied and adorned in 1015 with depictions of famous statues and sanctuaries. The manuscript, thought to be the oldest dated Indian manuscript in existence, contains three Buddhist images from the ancient Malay realm: the Lokanatha (Avalokiteshvara) on Valavati Mountain in Kedah, another Lokanatha at Srivijayapura and a Dipangkara from Java.

The Astasahasrika Prajnaparamita

Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/Jerai-India-unboxed.mp4

Lokanatha is, in fact, another name used to refer to Avalokiteshvara. In this manuscript, the illustration of Avalokiteshvara, the Buddha of Compassion, is accompanied by the phrase “Katahadvipe Valavatiparvate Lokanathah”. The phrase has been translated to mean “Avalokitesvara, Bodhisattva of the Valavati Mountain of Kaṭāha”, with Kaṭāha identified as today’s Kedah State in Malaysia.

It has therefore been speculated that Valavati is the iconic Gunung Jerai; others have posited that Valavati might be Bukit Meriam, which is also in Kedah. Either way, it would be reasonable to conclude that at some point in history, one of these peaks in Kedah was revered as a holy site for or abode of Avalokiteshvara.

Furthermore, Dipangkara’s inclusion in the manuscript is unsurprising given his background. Dipangkara, sometimes spelled Dipankara, is the previous Buddha before Shakyamuni and is viewed as the patron protector of sailors and anyone else who works at sea. Hence the mention of a Dipangkara from Java indicates the people there relied on this Buddha and as a matter of fact, their having done so is perfectly logical, given Java was the centre of the thalassocratic Srivijaya Kingdom.

Other artwork supporting an association between Avalokiteshvara and Kedah is that of an interesting statue, circa early 9^th Century, currently located in in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. It implies the possibility that Avalokiteshvara was worshipped in the South Thailand region, as described below:

In the Astasahasrika Prajnaparamita Sutra, Avalokiteshvara is widely evoked as Lokanatha, “Lord of the universe, he who protects the world.” Here he holds a lotus bud in his raised hand, while his lower hand dispenses boons. Over his waistcloth is a tiger-skin hip-wrap, typical of these images.

Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara Lokanatha Granting Boons,
early 9^th Century Southern Thailand,
Copper alloy; H. 14 3/16 in. (36 cm)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, (LK.036)
http://www.metmuseum.org/Collections/search-the-collections/77741

The fact Avalokiteshvara in this Indian style was being worshipped in South Thailand, makes it very possible that it too was a practice in Kedah which borders Thailand.

Present-Day Bujang Valley and Visitor Information

Archaeological research in Bujang Valley first began in 1864, when Colonel James Low started excavations in this area. This work continued between the years 1936-1939 when Dr. H.G. Quaritch Wales and his wife Dorothy documented 30 candi. Since then many more sites have been discovered. More research has been done in the past two decades by students from universities in Malaysia. Much of the relics discovered in Bujang Valley are now on display at the Lembah Bujang Archaeological Museum.

Some of the artefacts excavated within Bujang Valley which are exhibited at the Bujang Valley Archaeological Museum. Click on image to enlarge.

Since 2013, the Bujang Valley is has been in the process of being nominated by Malaysia into the UNESCO World Heritage List. This nomination has been backed by diplomats from nations throughout Asia such as India, Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Singapore, the Philippines, Timor-Leste, Bangladesh, Japan, Bhutan, Nepal, Myanmar, Laos, Brunei, Papua New Guinea, Maldives, and Sri Lanka.

The Bujang Valley’s nomination to be listed as UNESCO World Heritage site was shortly followed by news in December 1, 2013 that a 1,200-year old candi had been demolished by a local land developer. One of the oldest sites of the ancient Kedah Kingdom, its destruction was deeply felt by the archaeological community and prompted public outcry. As a result of this controversy, in 2017, the Malaysian government announced that more research initiatives and greater conservation efforts will be launched in the valley, in order to preserve its outstanding cultural and historical value.

How to get to Bujang Valley

Address: 242 A, Bangunan Dispensari Lama 08400 Pekan Merbok, Kedah
Tel: +604 457 2005

The location is marked on the map on the Top Kedah Attractions page. Once you reach the town of Merbok, the museum is clearly signposted.

(An interesting article on the legend of Raja Bersiong and Gunung Jerai can be found here: https://travelingbytes.com/mount-jerai/)

 
Sources and References:

• https://dapuntahyang2018.wordpress.com/three-mountains-in-malay-history/
• https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/77741
• http://www.tuvienquangduc.com.au/English/WorldBuddhism/14malai.html
• From: Ancient Indian Colonies in the Far East, Vol II Suvarnadvipa (published in 1937) R C Majumdar
• https://travelingbytes.com/mount-jerai/
• http://www.tbcm.org.my/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Buddhism-in-Malaysia-by-Bro-K-Don-Premseri.pdf

For more interesting information:

• Malaysia A-Z: Everything You Need To Know
• Wonderful Kedah, Malaysia
• Why Malaysia
• The Lost City of Kota Gelanggi – In Malaysia
• 7 Lost Cities of the World
• Amazing Angkor: A Guide to the Buddhist Temples of Siem Reap
• Top 10 Spiritual Power Places in Malaysia
• 8 Holy Buddhist Pilgrimage Sites – Part 1
• 8 Holy Buddhist Pilgrimage Sites – Part 2
• The Mystical Land of Shambhala
• Excellent travelogue of holy places in Tibet
• Four Sacred Sites of Vajra Yogini in Nepal

Please support us so that we can continue to bring you more Dharma:

If you are in the United States, please note that your offerings and contributions are tax deductible. ~ the tsemrinpoche.com blog team