Nirvana

After climbing a few sets of steep stone steps, you emerge blinking into the open top level of the temple of Borobudur - Nirvana.

Each of these stupas contains a Buddha statue, many missing parts of themselves after all these centuries but still majestic. The diamond shaped gaps represent the instability of human existence; the square ones, the perfect equilibirum of enlightenment. One stupa's statue is known as the Lucky Buddha, as my guide Aisyah tells me. When terrorists hid 10 bombs in the temple complex, only this one, tucked right into the stupa, failed to explode. She tells me to touch the Buddha and make a wish.

I feel a bit unsure about touching such an ancient monument, but I do anyway. I lean precariously on the rough lip of the stupa and reach my arm through the gap between the interlocking stones, wrap my fingers around the stone thumb, close my eyes and wish.