Cambodia Angkor Wat Cambodia

Cambodia

• Angkor Wat

Cambodia

• Angkor: old kingdom (7th-13th centuries)

• Capital city: Phnom Penn

• Religion: Hinduism (7th-12th centuries), Mahayana Buddhism (12th-14th centuries); Theravada Buddhism (15th-present)

• Khmer ethnic

• Mon-Khmer language

Hinduism

• Polytheistic religion (worship many gods and goddesses)

• Goal is to achieve moksa--by praying, worshipping (darsana) and giving offering to gods

• Each god has a female companion and rides on vehicle such as bull (Nandi), lion, goose; each holds some attributes (Siva: tridents and Vishnu: conch shell and wheel)

Triad

• Brahma-God of Creator

• Vishnu-God of Preserver (has many incarnations such as Rama and Krishna)

• Shiva-God of Destroyer (also the protector of animals)

• Devi-goddess (e.g., Laksmi (“Good Fortune”) and Parvati); symbolizing beauty, benevolent, and wealth as well as power and wrath

Angkor Wat

• King Suryavarman II (c. 1112-1150 CE)

• Hindu temple, facing West (direction of death), associates with Vishnu

• It symbolizes the center of the universe, Mount Meru

• The moat symbolizes the oceans surrounding the earth

• The succession of concentric galleries represent the mountain ranges that surround Mount Meru

• The towers (Gopura) represent the mountain’s peaks

• It was converted to Theravada temple in the 15th century

Plan

• Square shape with cruciform cloister

• Enter on the West side through the causeway

• Made of sandstone; foundation was made of laterite

• Upper level carries five towers and surrounding galleries

• The summit is enclosed by continuous gallery (60m square); the center shrine tower is 42m high.

Interior

• sculpture: 8 arm Vishnu may have been located in the main sanctuary

• Interior decorated with bas-relief

• Themes: Ramayana and Mahabartha epics

• Historic procession of King Suryavarman II and court

• The West and East sides depicted the Heavens and Hells

• Apsaras (celestial beings): approximately 2000

The Churning of the Sea of Milk

• Story taken from the Bhagavata-Purana

• Gods and demons (asuras)

• Naga Vasuki used as a robe for the churning

• Produce the amrita, the elixir of immortality