Angkor

Explore The Ancient City of Angkor 

History

Angkor is one of the most important UNESCO World Heritage & Archaeological sites in South-East Asia, stretching over 400 acres.  Angkor Archaeological Park contains the magnificent remains of Khmer Empire from 9th to 15th century which includes the famous Temple of Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, Bayon Temple and countless other ancient temples and structures dotted across the park. Angkor Wat is one of the worlds biggest religious monuments with a rich historical and cultural heritage full of myths, legends and wonders.

For several centuries Angkor was the centre of the Khmer Kingdom. Built in the early years of the 12th century by Khmer king Suryavarman II this temple was dedicated to the Hindu deity “Lord Vishnu”. Breaking from the Shaiva tradition of previous kings, Angkor Wat was dedicated to Vishnu. Angkor Wat is a West facing temple, a reflection of its dedication to Vishnu, who resides over the western quadrant of the compass. Angkor Wat is a standing testimony of Khmer’s meticulous planning and execution methods to create this greatest feats in human engineering - No mortar or nails were used in building Angkor Wat and all the laterite and sandstone pieces stay together purely based on perfect fits with incredible carving of narrative and decorative details almost every surface of the temple. With over 300,000 workers it took over 30 years to built Angkor Wat, but was never completely finished. During the verge of the declining civilization, Buddhist monks continued to preserve this temple and its monuments and with time it  gradually transformed into a Buddhist temple.

Cultural Influence

Angkor Wat means 'City of Temples' and is a testament to ancient urban planning  which consists of numerous temples, impressive monuments, intricate sculptures and large water reservoirs. It's a unique concentration of features testify to an exceptional civilization. Angkor not only exemplifies the cultural, religious and symbolic values of the Khmer Empire, but also contains high architectural, archaeological and artistic significance which is admired by the whole world.

Spiritual Significance

Angkor Wat’s sacred part is its Sanctuary where the idol of Lord Vishnu is kept. The plan symbolizes the four stages to enlightenment Sotapanna, Sakadagami, Anagami and Arahant that enables humans to attain salvation or Moksha . The most salient characteristic is the temple’s cosmological connection. Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva are considered as holy trinity of Hinduism. While Brahma is the creator of the universe and Shiva is the destroyer, Vishnu is responsible for the upkeep of the world.

Astonishing sophistication with which the geometry of the temple is created to align with the constellation in the sky called “Draco”. Even the measurements of this temple were associated with the astrological measurements making the architectural plan act as a tool to help humans connect with the divinity. Astronomy had a significant influence on the structure of Angkor Wat, the main temple has an observation deck to watch the Sun and the Moon. The outer wall axis around the complex is precisely equal to the solar years in days, and its perimeter is equal to the lunar year in days. Angkor Wat is a mini-scale replica of the spatial universe in stone. Indeed, watching sunrise and sunset at Angkor Wat is an once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Architectural Feat

Angkor Wat, which is dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu is a recreation of heaven on earth. Angkor Wat is a microcosm of the Hindu universe. The moat surrounding the complex represents mythical oceans surrounding the earth and the succession of concentric galleries resembling 'Mount Meru” - a sacred sanctum believed to be located beyond the Himalayas is considered as god’s abode.  As per Hindu mythology Mount Meru, is a golden mountain that stands in the centre of the universe and is the axis of the world. As the world axis, Mount Meru reaches down below the ground, into the nether regions and extends into the heavens. All of the principal deities have their own celestial kingdoms on or near it where their devotees reside with them after death, while awaiting their next reincarnation.  

Built on rising ground and surrounded by an artificial moat, the temple of Angkor Wat is laid out symmetrically on tiered platforms in quincunx arrangement with central tower that ascend to height of 65 metres, encircled by the outer 4 towers which are connected by long colonnades at each stepped level in concentric rings of rectangular galleries. An interesting feature of Angkor Wat is that it is encompassed by a moat which is 200 meters wide, 4 meters deep and have the perimeter of around 5 km. This moat is of great help in keeping the groundwater not rising or falling to the extreme. 

The Angkor Wat temple is world famous for its stone sculpture and carvings that illustrate scenes from Indian mythology like Ramayan, Mahabharata, Sagar Manthan, 37 heavens and 32 hells and featuring a bewildering array of designs made up of human figures, Budddhas, Bodhisattvas, devatas, asurs, griffins, animals lions, garudas, snakes, dancers, warriors, motifs, flowers and much more. 

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