Borobudur is a ninth-century Mahayana Buddhist monument in Magelang , Central Java , Indonesia . The monument comprises six square platforms topped by three circular platforms, and is decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues . [ 1 ] A main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues seated inside perforated stupa . The monument is both a shrine to the Lord Buddha and a place for Buddhist pilgrimage . The journey for pilgrims begins at the base of the monument and follows a path circumambulating the monument while ascending to the top through the three levels of Buddhist cosmology , namely Kāmadhātu (the world of desire), Rupadhatu (the world of forms) and Arupadhatu (the world of formlessness). During the journey the monument guides the pilgrims through a system of stairways and corridors with 1,460 narrative relief panels on the wall and the balustrades . Evidence suggests Borobudur was abandoned following the fourte...