The people who built Angkor could do anything, the tyrant Pol Pot thundered. Having said that, the megalomaniac set upon himself the task of rebuilding Cambodia by forcing its people to unaccountably hard labour. When the people rose in rebellion he indulged in genocide and turned Cambodia into a mass killing field. Pol Pot obviously missed detecting in the Khmer people, as Cambodians are known, their kernel of unshakable faith in their gods and kings. By building the vast conglomerates of the Angkor temples, they thought they were providing abodes to the gods and the spirits of departed kings who protected them from misfortunes. Apart from drawing such lessons from the Angkor monuments, now reduced to near ruins, the visitor is simply left to marvel at their architecture.
The Angkor temples are situated in Siem Reap a small town in northwest Cambodia. They are about 70 temples big, medium and small, dotting the vast clearance that was a huge jungle until the turn of 20th century. But who built these Hindu and Buddhist emples in the far away Cambodia and why?
In ancient times, Cambodia was divided into north and south and there were frequent battles between the regions. Indian traders who were settled there seized the opportunity to rule. A part of Cambodia was under Java. A Java (or the neighbouring Chams) prince of Indian origin by the name of Jayavarman II proclaimed it a separate country. Historians are of the view that during his reign in the eighth century CE, Khmer civilisation began. The Khmer dynasty lasted until the 16th century but the building of temples had come to an end by the 14th century.
Angkor Wat, the most famous of all the shrines in Angkor region is not only the biggest Hindu temple, but the biggest temple anywhere in the world. Its construction was begun by Suryavarman II in 12th century CE but completed only in the 13th century CE by Jayavarman VIII. It is a westward looking Vishnu temple but there are many Buddha statues in it. That was because even though the rulers succeeded one another by right of birth, they alternated their faith between Hinduism and Buddhism according to their individual predilections. Angkor Wat, meaning temple city, is surrounded by a moat. Its walls are decorated with bas reliefs depicting the stories from the Ramayana and Mahabharatha. There are depictions of the churning of the sea, the Kurushetra war, the procession of the King, apsaras and every day events of Khmer life. The events of the epics are the same but the faces of the characters are modelled on the Khmer people. There were vast differences between the Hinduism of India and the Hinduism of the Khmers. The visualising was also unique to their culture. For instance the Lankan king Ravana in India is portrayed with 10 heads on a horizontal axis. But here Ravana’s heads are
arranged in three vertical rows like a tower. The temple is a concentric structure on three tiers or levels each leading closer and closer to the god’s abode. The second structure, an elevated gallery from the first, has basins or ponds on all four sides. The third and final level ends on a gallery of five towers commanding a breath taking view. Here and elsewhere in Angkor all the gopuras are pyramid shaped which is quite unlike anything we find in Indian temples.
The next in importance is the temple Bayon in the area called Angkor Thom, meaning big city. Again this was begun and finished over a period of two centuries across two dynasties. Bayon too is a three-level structure. Each level is squarish but within it a circle formed with steps that lead you to the next level. There are about 37 gopuras and each is fronted with the huge face of Lokeshwara, the supreme God or as some believe the face of the King Jayavarman VII, who was responsible for this edifice. While walking along the circular path you get the strong feeling that you are being watched by those faces. It is like experiencing the maya in its pure form. Bayon, though the celestial abode of Buddha, also has a good share of Shiva lingas.
Besides these there are at least half a dozen very important monuments like Ta Prohm, Banteay Srei, Thommanon, Bakong, Neak Pean and Leper King Terrace which has the replica of the Leper King statue (its original is kept in the National Museum in Phnom Peng, the capital of Cambodia). Some are of the view that the Leper King was the image of none other than the indomitable Jayavarman VII. The many hospitals that he built during his reign (1181-c1220 CE) could be due to his earnestness to eradicate the disease which he had contracted. But there were also schools that came up in large numbers in his time. Several temples have bare pillared structures called libraries where the king used to consult astrologers.
Though Angkor temple site is yet to be recognised as a world wonder the number of visitors to it at 25 lakhs per year equals the number of visitors to the Taj Mahal. But one does not find many Indians among the crowd and still fewer from south India whose architecture has in no small way influenced the Khmer temples. The visitors to Angkor will evince equal interest in our temples as well if they are properly introduced to our heritage. The whole region is kept clean and even the ruins have a pristine look about them thanks to the wonderful renovative work by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre.
Factfile
Getting there: Siem Reap can be reached by air from Bangkok. But reaching it through the well-laid road from Bangkok to Siem Reap is a viable option for tourists. The journey from Bangkok ends at its border at Aranyaprathet which finds you at Poipet the entry point to Cambodia. Visa to Cambodia can be had across the counter at Poipet. Taxis at affordable rates take you further to Siem Reap, which is a tourist centre.
Accommodation: The hotels are plenty and good double bed accommodation can be got by paying as little as 20 USD per day. The hotels also
provide cycles for tourists. The pollution-free roads winding through forests are ideal to ply the bicycles.
Currency: Riel is the official currency of Cambodia. But the people in the stores and hotels demand payment from tourists in dollars.
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