Magnificent Angkor Vat: Bridging The Gap

When we talk about knowing our past; we talk about our ancient history, culture, lifestyle, what were the life patterns of everyday people etc. We have always been fascinated by our past, which has been historic, mysterious, glorious, culturally enriched and simply wonderful! This has further been proved by the evidence left at numerous places across the world! Be it in the form of our amazing story of human evolution and progress, or, monumental historic events, or be it in the form of amazing, breathtaking historic architectural monuments and places around the globe. These monuments and places have become the national, political, cultural and social icons of the countries to which they belong and are found. They are also the most important representatives of national identity and origin. Now that may be ‘The Sphinx and Pyramids of Egypt’, ‘The Stonehenge of England’, ‘Gobekli Tepe of Turkey’, ‘Machu Picchu of Peru’, or the magnificent temples, castles and forts of India. All of them have played a significant and decisive role in determining the shape of a nation. Moreover, the grandeur and splendid beauty of ancient engineering marvel and architectural brilliance cannot be pinned down in a few words!

Today, we are going to talk about another of these ancient and breathtaking historic monuments found in the South East Asian country of Cambodia. Did you know that Cambodia was known by its ancient name of Khmer? We will be talking about Angkor Vat! This ancient and huge temple complex draws thousands of tourists from all over the world and is known as one of the most important cultural and historic landmarks of Cambodia. We will know a little bit more about this ancient beautiful monument and its history.

Angkor Vat translates into city-temple. It is said to be the largest temple complex found anywhere in the world. Measuring up to 162.6 hectares it is believed to be three times the size of Vatican City. According to historical records, it was built in the early 12th century by King Suryavarman II of the Khmer Empire, within the imperial capital of Yasodharapura. It was also according to records originally built as a temple dedicated to Hindu God Lord Shiva Later on, it was dedicated to Lord Vishnu, as according to early inscriptions found on the walls. Its original name has not been discovered but some experts believe that it may have been known as “Varah-Vishnu-Lok”, dedicated to the presiding deity. Later on, it was converted into a Buddhist temple at the end of the 12th century. Angkor Vat lies around 5.5 kilometres north of the modern town of Siem Reap. According to legends, it is still believed that Angkor Vat is still the residing place of many devas and asuras. Also, according to another myth, it was originally built on the instructions of Lord Indra, as a palace for his son Precha Ket Mealea. Also, according to Chinese traveller Zhou Daguan, a famous 13th Century traveller, some believed that this grand temple was constructed in one single night by a divine architect.

The most significant aspect of Angkor Vat is its beautiful architecture which can be seen in its magnificent sculptures and carvings dedicated to various Hindu gods and goddesses. As mentioned earlier, it was built by King Suryavarman II as a temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu; at the end of Suryavarman’s reign, it was ransacked by a rival clan. It was later restored by King JayavarmanVII, who converted to Buddhism.

Angkor Vat was believed to be a powerful possession of the Khmer empire and its two most significant assets are the temple mountain and the concentric galleried temple. The construction of the temple is done in such a way that it displays the grandeur and splendid magnificence of the collusion of Hindu and Buddhist Cosmology. The architectural plans are such it has baffled even modern-day architects and engineers! The whole temple complex is a series of concentric squares. The outer wall is 1,024 by 802 metres in height and is surrounded by 30 metres of open ground and a moat that is 190 metres wide covering a stretch of 5 kilometres range. Another unique aspect of Angkor Vat is that it was designed completely on plans which underlined practicality. As, the moat was designed to decrease the pressure pushing outwards towards the outer structure. As it was thought that without this the entire structure would collapse. The unique points of Khmer architecture include cross-shaped terraces which appear along the main axis of the temple, the galleries that run along the axis that connects an enclosure, partial galleries to broaden passageways. The most splendid part are the decorative relics of apsaras, the bas-relief friezes, the iconic lotus bud-shaped towers and extensive narrative scenes all along its ancient stone walls. It is made all the more grand and beautiful by all the stories of the Hindu epics (Ramayana and Mahabharata) being depicted in a unique Khmer style. In other Hindu Mythologies like the ‘Great Samudra –Manthan’, the churning of the ocean is also depicted most beautifully. Yet, on another wall, the blood-curdling portrayal of Hell is tempered somewhat with the promise of Heaven. You can also find breathtaking Buddhist carvings and sculptures alongside Hindu gods and goddesses in this magnificent temple. The art and architecture of Angkor Vat are such that it would lead you to believe that celestials were involved in its design and planning!

Angkor Vat is unusual among all the other Cambodian temples in the manner that it was neglected after the 12th century, but never completely abandoned. According to historians, 14 inscriptions dated from the 17th century discovered in Angkor testify that Japanese Buddhist pilgrims had also established settlements alongside the Khmers. As, it was believed by the Japanese that the famous Jetavana Garden of Buddha, which was originally located in the Kingdom of Magadha, was situated at Angkor Vat. One of the first western visitors to the temple was Antonio De Madalena, a famous Portuguese friar who visited this magnificent temple in 1586. He has described the Khmer architecture as that which cannot be described just with a pen; as no such western architecture is present in the world with such beautiful decorations and refined sculptures of which the human genius can conceive of! In 1860, the temple was rediscovered by the French naturalist and explorer Henri Mouhot, who brought the world’s attention to this splendid piece of architecture. He also described one of the temples as a rival to that of Temple of Solomon; and erected by some ancient Michelangelo! He also went on further by saying that this magnificent piece of architecture should take place above the great Greek and Roman architectural marvels. One of the important reasons for France to take over Cambodia as a protectorate in 1863 was to protect and preserve the great Khmer artistic legacy and traditions.

It was during the early period of the 20th century, that restoration and revival steps were introduced by the French government. Huge numbers of labourers gradually were steadily successful in pushing back the encroachment of the forests over so many centuries. Thus the dark corners of the temple were illuminated after a long time during the 1930s. Unfortunately, the Cambodian civil war of the 70s and 80s had halted the restoration work but it had picked up speed again during the 90s thus restoring Angkor Vat to its previous magnificence and splendour.

Today, Angkor Vat is recognised as the national, spiritual and cultural icon of Cambodia. Millions of tourists and Buddhist pilgrims every year visit this great and breathtaking piece of architecture. Angkor Vat has also been described as one of the Seven Wonders of the World and has been declared as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

Finally, all we can say is that we should feel proud of all our ancient cultural heritage and past and strive towards protecting and promoting it as this is how we can show our identity and our existence as equals on the world map.