Chapter 5
Angkor Wat - The city temple
The sun rose over Kampuchea, calling aloud, in golden ribbons of light, the birth of a new day. The clouds in the sky moved away as the sun made its way in the sky and calling all the nature back to waken. My day started quite early. This was a good beginning of my second day of exploration of the Angkor area. In my plans, this was the day of my visit to the Angkor Wat. It was long time that I had been waiting to go and see this place, and I was looking forward to it. So, after a breakfast on the open-air terrace of my hotel, the Ta Prohm hotel, I packed my backpack and I was ready to go.
It's quite common to go and see the sunrise at the Angkor Wat, but it meant that I should wake up at 5.00 a.m.. So, the previous day, I had listened to the suggestions of the receptionist of the hotel and I had decided to go later. In fact, she said that, beside waking at an extremely early hour, I wouldn't have chance for breakfast in the hotel (the kitchen would be still closed) and the light for the pictures wouldn't be so good. In fact, at sunrise even if I were so lucky to have a clear sky, I'd have the light against me, and all the pictures would be too dark. Beside this, the girl even told me that forecasts said that the next morning could be cloudy, and there wouldn't even be a good probability of seeing a good sunrise. So, the previous day, I had told my driver to come the next day to pick me up later, at 8.00 a.m.. He was on time, and my exploration started, entering again into the chaotic Siem Reap traffic. The small city, although it has good streets, they are covered with the dust from the battered-soil outer streets. The Khmers also have a crazy way to drive and the first times, it can feel confusing to be in the traffic of Kampuchean cities.
The way from Siem Reap went straight up to the north. The first stop was at the Archaeological Park gate, where I was asked for my entrance ticket. After the short wait for my time, I was allowed to enter. So, we kept following the straight street in the forest until we met the moat of the Angkor Wat. We turned left, following the moat, and after short distance we turned again north, still following the bend of the moat. While going north, you can see on your left the dense forest, while on your right the majestic walls of the Angkor Wat, welcoming you from behind the large moat. After about half kilometre, you reach the bridge that crosses the moat. On the left side of the street opens a large soil parking lot. Here all the drivers park their motorbikes and tuk-tuks and wait for their customers. In this parking area you can also see some small shops that sell books, souvenirs, food and drinks. Many children are wandering around asking the tourists to buy something from them, but you don't notice them. Her majesty is calling you, and she's on the other side of the moat. You can see the moat in the third picture of this group. Angkor Wat is at a few steps away from you, and you can't wait to go and meet her. So, you cross the street and you make your way on the bridge guarded by Singa lions and Nagas. You can see the stone bridge and the "West Gate" in the second picture of this group. Some man from the security will ask you again to show them your entrance ticket and then, you're free to enter.
The stone bridge will lead you though the moat toward the first line of the defensive walls. You can see the plan of Angkor Wat in the first picture. Starting from the outside-right of the map, you'll see the moat and the bridge that crosses it. The massive stones of the bridge are there to tell you a story about one thousand years long. An ancient mystery lived, and still lives, beyond the old moat and this bridge. Like the walls that shield you the sight of the Angkor Wat, an ancient curtain of mystery lay upon this temple. An ancient language and the mistaken words about it, made thought about as something different than it really is.
The Buddhist monks, after the abandonment of the city in 1431 A.D., turned this place into a Buddhist temple. That's why this place was called "Wat", that means "Temple". Some other people even thought that it was the house of the king, but something was still missing. In fact, Angkor Wat has some building peculiarities that wouldn't make it considered as a royal palace. There were two things that the scholars asked themselves. The first is why, even if this gorgeous palace was built in the first half of the XII century, the kings kept on living in the Phimeanakas. One theory is that soon after came the Cham-Balinese invasion that destroyed the city, and not much later the king Jayavarman VII build the new city of Angkor inside new massive walls. So, the kings, fearing new invasions, could have moved into the Phimeanakas, within the walls of the city. But still something didn't match. In fact, the whole place was built facing west, while the others were built facing east, toward the sunrise. This palace, instead of facing the sunrise, as a symbol of a new life, was facing west, where the day dies. The main gate, from where you enter, as a comment to the purpose of this building, is still the "West Gate". So, this couldn't be a palace, but, for the most could still have been a temple. But the answer was hidden beyond the massive walls, below the heavy rocks, and above the same temple.
It's quite common to go and see the sunrise at the Angkor Wat, but it meant that I should wake up at 5.00 a.m.. So, the previous day, I had listened to the suggestions of the receptionist of the hotel and I had decided to go later. In fact, she said that, beside waking at an extremely early hour, I wouldn't have chance for breakfast in the hotel (the kitchen would be still closed) and the light for the pictures wouldn't be so good. In fact, at sunrise even if I were so lucky to have a clear sky, I'd have the light against me, and all the pictures would be too dark. Beside this, the girl even told me that forecasts said that the next morning could be cloudy, and there wouldn't even be a good probability of seeing a good sunrise. So, the previous day, I had told my driver to come the next day to pick me up later, at 8.00 a.m.. He was on time, and my exploration started, entering again into the chaotic Siem Reap traffic. The small city, although it has good streets, they are covered with the dust from the battered-soil outer streets. The Khmers also have a crazy way to drive and the first times, it can feel confusing to be in the traffic of Kampuchean cities.
The way from Siem Reap went straight up to the north. The first stop was at the Archaeological Park gate, where I was asked for my entrance ticket. After the short wait for my time, I was allowed to enter. So, we kept following the straight street in the forest until we met the moat of the Angkor Wat. We turned left, following the moat, and after short distance we turned again north, still following the bend of the moat. While going north, you can see on your left the dense forest, while on your right the majestic walls of the Angkor Wat, welcoming you from behind the large moat. After about half kilometre, you reach the bridge that crosses the moat. On the left side of the street opens a large soil parking lot. Here all the drivers park their motorbikes and tuk-tuks and wait for their customers. In this parking area you can also see some small shops that sell books, souvenirs, food and drinks. Many children are wandering around asking the tourists to buy something from them, but you don't notice them. Her majesty is calling you, and she's on the other side of the moat. You can see the moat in the third picture of this group. Angkor Wat is at a few steps away from you, and you can't wait to go and meet her. So, you cross the street and you make your way on the bridge guarded by Singa lions and Nagas. You can see the stone bridge and the "West Gate" in the second picture of this group. Some man from the security will ask you again to show them your entrance ticket and then, you're free to enter.
The stone bridge will lead you though the moat toward the first line of the defensive walls. You can see the plan of Angkor Wat in the first picture. Starting from the outside-right of the map, you'll see the moat and the bridge that crosses it. The massive stones of the bridge are there to tell you a story about one thousand years long. An ancient mystery lived, and still lives, beyond the old moat and this bridge. Like the walls that shield you the sight of the Angkor Wat, an ancient curtain of mystery lay upon this temple. An ancient language and the mistaken words about it, made thought about as something different than it really is.
The Buddhist monks, after the abandonment of the city in 1431 A.D., turned this place into a Buddhist temple. That's why this place was called "Wat", that means "Temple". Some other people even thought that it was the house of the king, but something was still missing. In fact, Angkor Wat has some building peculiarities that wouldn't make it considered as a royal palace. There were two things that the scholars asked themselves. The first is why, even if this gorgeous palace was built in the first half of the XII century, the kings kept on living in the Phimeanakas. One theory is that soon after came the Cham-Balinese invasion that destroyed the city, and not much later the king Jayavarman VII build the new city of Angkor inside new massive walls. So, the kings, fearing new invasions, could have moved into the Phimeanakas, within the walls of the city. But still something didn't match. In fact, the whole place was built facing west, while the others were built facing east, toward the sunrise. This palace, instead of facing the sunrise, as a symbol of a new life, was facing west, where the day dies. The main gate, from where you enter, as a comment to the purpose of this building, is still the "West Gate". So, this couldn't be a palace, but, for the most could still have been a temple. But the answer was hidden beyond the massive walls, below the heavy rocks, and above the same temple.
Angkor Wat - The sacred causeway
Once you cross the bridge over the moat, you find yourself before the West Gate. In order to compel the people that come to see the monument in an orderly way, you can't enter the West Gate straight. You have to cross the walls through a side entrance. So, you make your way to one of the smaller gates at the side of the main one, you climb your way up a few steep steps and you reach the gate. From here, you can't still see the other side. In fact, a very tall statue of Vishnu, the Hindu God is before you. Many incense sticks and flowers are around the statue. On your sides two galleries are open and you can walk down them. Behind the statue of Vishnu the strong morning light, coming from the doorway facing east, prevents you from seeing clearly what lies ahead. So, you walk across the incense cloud, like it were a purifying mist, you walk toward the sun light that comes from the door in front of you. And there she is. As soon as you walk through the door, you see a very large park before you, and there, in the distance, the Angkor Wat stands still, high and proud, in her ageless beauty. You can see how the inside of the walls appear from this door in the first picture of this group.
The bridge that crosses the moat has its natural continuation through the "West Gate". In fact, behind the gate a causeway starts that leads toward the Angkor Wat, and continues behind it, again through the enclosure, the "East Gate" and on again through the moat. On both the sides of Angkor War two more ways also start, one up to the north and one heading to the south, but these two paths don't lead to any bridge across the moat. Once crossed the gate through the first line of walls, you can chose how to reach the Angkor Wat. In fact, you can take the main causeway, or you can walk around the park. In the park you'll not meet other ancient buildings other than two libraries. You can see one of the libraries in the second picture of this group. As you can see, there are some columns that are in lighter colour than the others. These were made in modern times, when the site was restored, even if, the Angkor Wat is the monument that requested the least restoration of all. When I saw the beauty of the causeway, I decided to reach the Angkor Wat through this way. The causeway is higher above the ground by about one and half metre. It was built like this, probably for both aesthetic reasons and to prevent it being flooded in the rainy season. In all its length, the causeway is flanked by Nagas. You can see it in the third picture of this group. This picture was taken about 2/3 of the length, where there are also two stairways that lead again to the ground of the park. It was really pleasant to walk along this way. The rain of the previous night had made the air a bit fresher, but with the passing of time, the humidity made me drenched in sweat. Anyway, the smell of the grass and flowers, the bright sun on my face, and this wonderful scenario were absolutely astonishing. When you reach this point of the causeway, where you can walk down to the park, you can also see two ponds. These two ponds were full of pink Lotus flowers and were very pretty. The one on the right of the way was looking very quiet, while the one on the left, with more flowers, was surrounded of people picturing it and also many Khmers selling things. You can see the ponds and the Angkor Wat across the ponds in the fourth and fifth picture of this group. After some pictures of this place, I went back to the main causeway, and went down it. Toward the Angkor Wat, and it was the time to touch the legend for real.
The bridge that crosses the moat has its natural continuation through the "West Gate". In fact, behind the gate a causeway starts that leads toward the Angkor Wat, and continues behind it, again through the enclosure, the "East Gate" and on again through the moat. On both the sides of Angkor War two more ways also start, one up to the north and one heading to the south, but these two paths don't lead to any bridge across the moat. Once crossed the gate through the first line of walls, you can chose how to reach the Angkor Wat. In fact, you can take the main causeway, or you can walk around the park. In the park you'll not meet other ancient buildings other than two libraries. You can see one of the libraries in the second picture of this group. As you can see, there are some columns that are in lighter colour than the others. These were made in modern times, when the site was restored, even if, the Angkor Wat is the monument that requested the least restoration of all. When I saw the beauty of the causeway, I decided to reach the Angkor Wat through this way. The causeway is higher above the ground by about one and half metre. It was built like this, probably for both aesthetic reasons and to prevent it being flooded in the rainy season. In all its length, the causeway is flanked by Nagas. You can see it in the third picture of this group. This picture was taken about 2/3 of the length, where there are also two stairways that lead again to the ground of the park. It was really pleasant to walk along this way. The rain of the previous night had made the air a bit fresher, but with the passing of time, the humidity made me drenched in sweat. Anyway, the smell of the grass and flowers, the bright sun on my face, and this wonderful scenario were absolutely astonishing. When you reach this point of the causeway, where you can walk down to the park, you can also see two ponds. These two ponds were full of pink Lotus flowers and were very pretty. The one on the right of the way was looking very quiet, while the one on the left, with more flowers, was surrounded of people picturing it and also many Khmers selling things. You can see the ponds and the Angkor Wat across the ponds in the fourth and fifth picture of this group. After some pictures of this place, I went back to the main causeway, and went down it. Toward the Angkor Wat, and it was the time to touch the legend for real.
Angkor Wat - The galleries of the bas-reliefs
When you reach the real gate of the Angkor Wat, you can decide if to enter it straight, or you can walk through the galleries of the bas-reliefs. The galleries are about 3 metres above the ground and are also the second defensive line of Angkor Wat. When you reach the gate that could lead you inside Angkor Wat, you see before you another stairway, that would lead you to the inner cloister. But here, inside Angkor Wat, where the legend is finely blended with history and the reality, you don't need to rush. This place has many things to tell to you, and you need to slow down, and, with a smile, welcome him to tell you it all. A very good way to learn a lot about the Angkor times, is to walk through the bas-relief galleries. You can see a map of where the galleries are located in the first picture of this group. The scholars also believe that this was the innermost place that normal people could reach. No-one that wasn't close to the king would be allowed beyond. The historians think that this place was used for ceremonies, and the people walked along the bas-relief galleries in a processional manner. I think that it's hard to understand what the bas-relief galleries look alike or what they are, just from the name. So, let me give you some more information about them, before showing you them. This line of defensive walls was built like galleries, with an opened part on the external side. You can see how they look in the second picture of this group. The wall of these galleries was all carved in continuous bas-reliefs. The galleries are four, one per each cardinal direction. Each gallery has a gate at half way, that leads to the ground of the park. These gates divide the galleries in two sub-galleries, one in the first part of the wall, and one in the second part. So, while you're there, you can see eight "scenes" carved into the walls. In the corners that work as junctions between the galleries of each sides, you can see still more carvings.
Inside Angkor Wat was also found much information about the life in Angkor times, as much of it was carved on the pillars. The rhetoricians, studying the scenes of the galleries and the way in which they were carved, understood that people visited them in counter-clockwise way. It's probably because the North galleries were the last to be made (and for the scholars they are also the less important). Usually in other temples, the processions were made in clockwise way. Only the funerals ceremonies involved processions in opposite way, the counter-clockwise way. This was another mystery, that could be connected with the western orientation of the building. The galleries surround all the inner palace and are about 1.300 metres long. You can imagine almost one and half kilometre of continuous bas-reliefs. This is a delightful peculiarity that you can't miss when you reach Angkor Wat. Almost all the carvings had religious theme and seemed like they were informative for the people that performed the religious procession here.
Like somebody from the ancient times, I also decided to start my visit to the galleries from the western one, and do it in counter-clockwise way. The high roof, the long carvings were already amazing me from far, but the best was seeing them from close up.
Inside Angkor Wat was also found much information about the life in Angkor times, as much of it was carved on the pillars. The rhetoricians, studying the scenes of the galleries and the way in which they were carved, understood that people visited them in counter-clockwise way. It's probably because the North galleries were the last to be made (and for the scholars they are also the less important). Usually in other temples, the processions were made in clockwise way. Only the funerals ceremonies involved processions in opposite way, the counter-clockwise way. This was another mystery, that could be connected with the western orientation of the building. The galleries surround all the inner palace and are about 1.300 metres long. You can imagine almost one and half kilometre of continuous bas-reliefs. This is a delightful peculiarity that you can't miss when you reach Angkor Wat. Almost all the carvings had religious theme and seemed like they were informative for the people that performed the religious procession here.
Like somebody from the ancient times, I also decided to start my visit to the galleries from the western one, and do it in counter-clockwise way. The high roof, the long carvings were already amazing me from far, but the best was seeing them from close up.
West South gallery - The Battle of Kurukshetra
When you start your visit of the Angkor Wat bas-relief galleries, the first one is the West-South one. In fact, the main causeway ends with the gate in the middle of the Western walls. So, on your left will be the West-North gallery, while on your right will be the West-South one. The bas-reliefs of this gallery are a representation of the final battle described in the Indian epic tale Mahabharata (in sanskrit महाभारत). This battle is known as "The Battle of Kurukshetra" where the two clans Pandava and Kaurava faced each-other in the bloodiest battle of the Mahabharata. In this bas-relief you can see the two opposite clans marching one against the other from the opposite ends of the bas-relief, and in the middle, is shown the clash of the two armies. In the picture of this group, you can see the regular soldiers, the battle chariots, the weapons and head-gears used in the Angkor times. The interesting thing is that the ancient Khmer culture was much related to the Hindu one, and many cultural aspect were based on the epic tales such as Mahabharata and the Ramayana (in Sanskrit रामायण), but some of this knowledge got lost as soon as the Angkor times finished, while others, like the Ramayana, are still alive in our days. When somebody comes to Kampuchea, in the beginning they may be surprised to see people praying both before Buddha and Hindu Gods, as much as other references to both the religions. I wasn't surprised, but interested to see how these two very different religions lived, blended together, into a peaceful life. On the other side of the West frontier, the Thais aren't much different as the Thai king (that I deeply respect) is called Rama, in memory of the main hero of the Ramayana. When you walk down the gallery, it's amazing to see the beauty of this craftwork. The very detailed figures come out of the stone like they are alive, and you expect to see them moving in every moment. Now a low fence keeps people out of the arms-reach to prevent the carvings being touched by the hands of the people. In fact, the touching and caressing of the stone, made them, in some points, as smooth as glass. You can see this smoothness on the horse in the middle of the picture of this group.
South West gallery - The gallery of the king Suryavarman II
The second gallery that I visited on my trip to Angkor Wat was the South-West one. This one doesn’t represent a religious episode, but it's dedicated to the king Suryavarman II, the constructor of Angkor Wat. Some inscriptions found by the scholars tell that this king was the son of a prince, and he was raised in a far province, located in where, in the present days, is the Thai province of Lopburi. Growing up, he claimed the throne as he was the rightful descendant of the crown, but he had two contenders. One was the ruler of the southern provinces and the other was the new and ineffective king Dharanindravarman I, his great uncle. He decided to take what belonged to himself, and as Mr. Briggs tells (in his book "The Ancient Khmer empire"), he went "Leaving on the field of combat the ocean of his armies, he delivered a terrible battle" and then "Bounding on the head of the elephant of the enemy king, he killed him, as Garuda on the edge of a mountain would kill a serpent". The Garuda (in Sanskrit गरुड) was an Hindu deity shaped like a bird-man, that was the bitter enemy of the snakes. So, the story tells about a fight in which Suryavarman killed his enemy with extreme fury. In this very long bas-relief the king Suryavarman II was portrayed a few times, both sitting and riding his elephant in battle. When I was there I didn’t have many chances to pick which one was the king between his generals and other court personnel. furthermore, in my books I didn’t have a picture of the king Suryavarman II to help me. So, I decided to search for the king among the bigger figures. In fact, in Khmer ancient art, the bigger the portrait was, the more important was the person pictured.
Then, all of a sudden, I remembered what my reference from the past reported. In fact, once he had seen the king himself. Of course, he didn't see the king Suryavarman II, but a posthumous one. Mr. Zhou Daguan described the king with these words while describing a parade "Last came the king, standing on an elephant, the gold sword in his hand and the tusks of his elephant encased in gold. He had more than twenty white parasols decorated with gold filigree, their handles all made of gold". In another chapter, Mr. Zhou Doguan even wrote that in both the army and the court, the people with higher ranks were recognisable because as the rank was higher, the more parasols were around them. So, looking at the bas-relief I just noticed that in few figures the man portrayed had more parasols than the others. In this way, I found the king Suryavarman II. I took a photo of him (you can see him in the first picture of this group). At the beginning of the gallery was a board describing the meaning of the bas-relief, and there was written that next to the king would be an inscription. I checked carefully the surrounding of the king's figure and I found the inscription. I was very excited by this, and I decided to photograph it (you can see it in the second picture of this group). As I wasn't still sure that this was the king, I decided to look for an answer later. In my research I discovered that in this bas-relief the ranks of the people were described by 28 small inscriptions like the one that I found. I kept on looking for more information, and in the end I noticed that in the most of the references where they were talking about the bas-relief of Suryavarman II, they describe him exactly as in the picture of this group. So, I'm pretty sure that the one that you can see, is king Suryavarman II for real.
Now you can imagine how one of the best kings of the Khmer history looked, and also the constructor of this wonderful place called Angkor Wat. By the way, I also found this information. From the inscription it was understood that the bas-relief was made after the death of the king. In fact, in the ancient Kampuchea, there was custom that when somebody became a king changed his name (Suryavarman II chose this name when he became a king), and there was also the custom that when a king died, he would be given another name. In the inscription that I found, he is called with his posthumous name that is Paramavishnuloka. Again another hint taking you back to the death. Anyway, in this bas-relief I noticed another interesting thing that reminded me of something that I read inside the book by Mr. Zhou Daguan. In fact, I noticed there the court of the women. In fact, although the women didn't have high ranks in the Khmer society, they were still very important in other sectors. Many laws were protecting the women and they had many important roles. For example, most of the commerce was done by the women. As Mr. Daguan describes "The local people who know how to trade are all women. So, when a Chinese goes to this country, the first thing he must do is take a woman, partly with a view to profiting from her trading abilities". In this bas-relief you can see how the court was made and also some small parts of everyday life. This is a very important heritage that allows us to understand the ancient past of this land.
Then, all of a sudden, I remembered what my reference from the past reported. In fact, once he had seen the king himself. Of course, he didn't see the king Suryavarman II, but a posthumous one. Mr. Zhou Daguan described the king with these words while describing a parade "Last came the king, standing on an elephant, the gold sword in his hand and the tusks of his elephant encased in gold. He had more than twenty white parasols decorated with gold filigree, their handles all made of gold". In another chapter, Mr. Zhou Doguan even wrote that in both the army and the court, the people with higher ranks were recognisable because as the rank was higher, the more parasols were around them. So, looking at the bas-relief I just noticed that in few figures the man portrayed had more parasols than the others. In this way, I found the king Suryavarman II. I took a photo of him (you can see him in the first picture of this group). At the beginning of the gallery was a board describing the meaning of the bas-relief, and there was written that next to the king would be an inscription. I checked carefully the surrounding of the king's figure and I found the inscription. I was very excited by this, and I decided to photograph it (you can see it in the second picture of this group). As I wasn't still sure that this was the king, I decided to look for an answer later. In my research I discovered that in this bas-relief the ranks of the people were described by 28 small inscriptions like the one that I found. I kept on looking for more information, and in the end I noticed that in the most of the references where they were talking about the bas-relief of Suryavarman II, they describe him exactly as in the picture of this group. So, I'm pretty sure that the one that you can see, is king Suryavarman II for real.
Now you can imagine how one of the best kings of the Khmer history looked, and also the constructor of this wonderful place called Angkor Wat. By the way, I also found this information. From the inscription it was understood that the bas-relief was made after the death of the king. In fact, in the ancient Kampuchea, there was custom that when somebody became a king changed his name (Suryavarman II chose this name when he became a king), and there was also the custom that when a king died, he would be given another name. In the inscription that I found, he is called with his posthumous name that is Paramavishnuloka. Again another hint taking you back to the death. Anyway, in this bas-relief I noticed another interesting thing that reminded me of something that I read inside the book by Mr. Zhou Daguan. In fact, I noticed there the court of the women. In fact, although the women didn't have high ranks in the Khmer society, they were still very important in other sectors. Many laws were protecting the women and they had many important roles. For example, most of the commerce was done by the women. As Mr. Daguan describes "The local people who know how to trade are all women. So, when a Chinese goes to this country, the first thing he must do is take a woman, partly with a view to profiting from her trading abilities". In this bas-relief you can see how the court was made and also some small parts of everyday life. This is a very important heritage that allows us to understand the ancient past of this land.
South East gallery - The Hells and the Heavens
The gallery near the one where is portrayed the king Suryavarman II is the one of the Hells and of the Heavens. This is another religious themed gallery. In this one, a bas-relief of about 60 metres is describing in three stages one above the others, what people expected in the afterlife. In this bas-relief are described, with some small inscriptions the 37 Heavens and the 32 Hells. It's interesting how it was made. In fact, the Heavens are quite monotonous and not even much detailed, while the masterpiece is the description of the Hells. In the Hindu Hells, many punishments are awaiting the sinners, even if, different from the western religions, they'll not stand an eternal damnation. The punishments are given by the demons, that, somehow, are also suffering a punishment living in the Hell. You can recognise the demons in the picture as they are taller than other people. The punishments are many, and change depending on what the sinner was guilty of. So, for example, the people that damaged other people's property have their bones broken, the rice thieves have their bellies swollen as they are filled with molten iron, the other thieves are exposed to the cold, those that stole the flowers in the garden of Shiva have their heads pierced with a nail, and those that fished where they weren't allowed would be bound to a table and impaled. The variety of tortures was impressive, and for an Italian, the memory went straight to the Dante's masterpiece, the "La Divina Commedia", about the description of journey through the Hell, the Purgatory and the Heaven. Again, the bas-relief was impressive, the twisted bodies of the people in pain give a really stirring feeling. The interesting thing is that in spite that this scene was pictured in this bas-relief almost 1000 years ago, the tradition of these Heavens and Hells is still alive in the beliefs of the local people. It was really interesting to see it.
East-South gallery - The churning of the ocean of milk
Just behind the corner after the junction at the end of the South-East gallery starts the East-South one. Now this gallery is undergoing a profound restoration. In fact, in 1950s some serious work of restoration of the entire complex started. Many structures were collapsing, and the archaeologists had to document, chart and study the whole structure before disassembling it to install a proper drainage system. Later in the 1970s in Kampuchea a bloody civil war started, and the archaeologists had to run away from the country leaving the bas-reliefs without a roof. Later, in 1988, new works started to complete the works and to correct some that had been already done with outdated technology. Now this bas-relief is half hidden as there are some works in progress. Anyway, you can still see half of it. The scene pictured is the most famous of all Kampuchea. In fact, here is described the episode of "The churning of the ocean of milk" from the "Bhagavata Purana" (also called "The Book of the Gods") one of the most important books of the Hindu religion. In the picture of this group you can see the Lord Vishnu coordinating the Gods (in the right hand side of the picture) and the Demons (in the left hand side of the picture) in the act of churning the ocean of milk. Above the Lord Vishnu you can see many Apsaras, born from the ocean of milk, dancing as if to cheer the teams on during the churning process. After such a long time seeing this bas-relief in pictures, it was a truly strong emotion to see it for real. Moreover, being freshly restored, made it even more beautiful.
East-North gallery - The victory of Lord Vishnu over the demons
When you cross the middle way gate of the eastern wall, you reach the east-north part of the wall. On this part there is a quite recent bas-relief. In fact, this bas relief and the two in the northern wall are quite recent. In fact, these bas-reliefs were carved in the XVI century. The scholars say that these carvings from the XVI century aren't as good as the others. Of course, for me, they were still masterpieces. This bas-relief shows a battle, probably from the Hindu Harivamsha, in which Lord Vishnu defeats almost alone all the demons. The interesting thing is that, although when it was carved Kampuchea was already a Buddhist nation, the Hindu beliefs were still alive enough to make this work. Furthermore, when these works were completed, the city was already falling into ruin as the court left Angkor Thom in 1431 A.D.. So, the reasons that brought about the completion of these works are still a small mystery.
North-East gallery - The Battle of Krishna against the demon Bana
The north-eastern section is just showing a battle between two armies, one belonging to Khrisna and the other to the demon Bana. The craftsmanship of this work isn't as good as that of the other bas-reliefs. Also the scene is quite confused as it's just picturing the actual battle, while the most important parts of the tale were at the end of it, when the demon has it’s life spared and becomes a worshipper of Lord Shiva. Anyway, this bas-relief, beside for the size which makes it impressive, is not as good as the others.
North-West gallery - The battle between the Gods and the Demons
The gallery of the second part of the northern wall is carved a bit better than the previous one. The scholars believe that when it was made, probably it wasn't picturing a particular battle, but it was some kind of a parade of the Gods and the Demons showing a battle between them. One of the most important scholars regarding Angkor Wat, Mr. Cœdes said about this work "a precious iconographic document, in which all the main gods of the Brahmanic Pantheon parade, carrying their classic attributes and riding their traditional mounts". So, it looks like this bas-relief was made with informative purpose, just to let the people know the characterising symbols of the Hindu Gods.
West-North gallery - The battle of Lanka
This is the last gallery that a visitor will meet in Angkor Wat after all the way around the sculptured walls. With this gallery we come back to the golden age of Angkor Wat, when the city was still alive and powerful. The bas-relief is about "The Battle of Lanka", one of the most important chapters of the Hindu book "Ramayana". In this episode is told that Sita, the Rama's loved girl was kidnapped by Ravana, the king of Lanka, as a revenge. In fact, the brother of Rama, during an assault on Sita from Surpankha, the sister of Ravana, had cut Surpankha's nose off. So, Ravana kidnapped Sita and brought her into his kingdom, Lanka (in sanskrit लंका) that is in our day Sri Lanka.
Rama (in sanskrit राम) was the king of the city Ayodhya and had divine nature. In fact, he was one of the incarnations of the God Vishnu. In Hindu the meaning of the name of his city is "The invincible one". The interesting thing is that also the Hindu religion had had a profound influence on the Thais, and they also named their capital Ayodhya, that later became Ayutthaya. The kingdom of Ayutthaya, later, became one of the bitter enemies of the Khmers and was also the one that defeated definitely the Khmers. After the last defeat, the Khmers moved the capital from Angkor Thom to Phnom Penh.
On the other part, for the Thais wasn't much better. In fact, later the capital Ayutthaya was invaded by the Burmese troops who turned it into ruins and ashes. That's when the Thais moved to a new location for a new capital, which will be named Bangkok.
Coming back to the meaning of this bas-relief, after Sita was kidnapped, Rama asked the help of Hunuman (in sanskrit हनुमत्), the king of the monkeys. You can see them both in the second picture of this group (with Rama standing on the shoulders of the mighty Hunuman). Hunuman also had divine powers as he was one of the incarnations of the God Shiva. Both Rama and Hunuman are still worshipped in our day, as both symbolise many virtues. So, both Rama and Hunuman moved with their armies to Lanka. They defeated the army of Ravana and set Sita free again. More than a battle, this bas-relief symbolise the power of the devotion of Hunuman to his king Rama and it's one of his more esteemed virtues. At the end of the bas-relief, you meet the gate in the west wall. On your right you can see the causeway that led you to the Angkor Wat, while on the left there is a short gallery that will lead you to the central structure of the Angkor War, where only the kings and the people near to them were allowed to enter. And now it's time to enter this sacred place.
Rama (in sanskrit राम) was the king of the city Ayodhya and had divine nature. In fact, he was one of the incarnations of the God Vishnu. In Hindu the meaning of the name of his city is "The invincible one". The interesting thing is that also the Hindu religion had had a profound influence on the Thais, and they also named their capital Ayodhya, that later became Ayutthaya. The kingdom of Ayutthaya, later, became one of the bitter enemies of the Khmers and was also the one that defeated definitely the Khmers. After the last defeat, the Khmers moved the capital from Angkor Thom to Phnom Penh.
On the other part, for the Thais wasn't much better. In fact, later the capital Ayutthaya was invaded by the Burmese troops who turned it into ruins and ashes. That's when the Thais moved to a new location for a new capital, which will be named Bangkok.
Coming back to the meaning of this bas-relief, after Sita was kidnapped, Rama asked the help of Hunuman (in sanskrit हनुमत्), the king of the monkeys. You can see them both in the second picture of this group (with Rama standing on the shoulders of the mighty Hunuman). Hunuman also had divine powers as he was one of the incarnations of the God Shiva. Both Rama and Hunuman are still worshipped in our day, as both symbolise many virtues. So, both Rama and Hunuman moved with their armies to Lanka. They defeated the army of Ravana and set Sita free again. More than a battle, this bas-relief symbolise the power of the devotion of Hunuman to his king Rama and it's one of his more esteemed virtues. At the end of the bas-relief, you meet the gate in the west wall. On your right you can see the causeway that led you to the Angkor Wat, while on the left there is a short gallery that will lead you to the central structure of the Angkor War, where only the kings and the people near to them were allowed to enter. And now it's time to enter this sacred place.
Angkor Wat - The forbidden garden
The walls of the bas-relief galleries had many functions, for example, they defended the core of this building, they guided the processions of the people all around the galleries, sheltering them with their roofs, and also separated the "outer world" from the part that was allowed only to the king and his entourage.
Beyond the walls, there is a garden that encircles the core structure. This garden, reminiscent of an ocean surrounding a sacred mountain, is a plain lawn. In this garden there are no other structures than two libraries. The first picture of this group was taken from one of the gateways that lead to the central structure, while the second picture was taken from one of the many typical windows that you can see in Angkor Wat. The style of these windows with these pillars is very common also in the other temples of the archaeological park. When you enter the gate in the western wall, you find yourself just before another covered stairway that will lead you up to the central structure. This is the time to climb up it.
Beyond the walls, there is a garden that encircles the core structure. This garden, reminiscent of an ocean surrounding a sacred mountain, is a plain lawn. In this garden there are no other structures than two libraries. The first picture of this group was taken from one of the gateways that lead to the central structure, while the second picture was taken from one of the many typical windows that you can see in Angkor Wat. The style of these windows with these pillars is very common also in the other temples of the archaeological park. When you enter the gate in the western wall, you find yourself just before another covered stairway that will lead you up to the central structure. This is the time to climb up it.
Angkor Wat - Preah Poan, the gallery of one thousand Buddhas
The core structure has the shape of a square connected with a smaller part to the galleries-walls. The core, the most important area, is a square in the perfect centre of the square of the walls, while, on the western side there is a cloister, that connects the structure with west galleries-walls. From the lower level that surrounds the central structure, you have to take some steep stairs that will take you up many metres.
On the top of the stairs there is the entrance of the cloister. The cloister is like a step halfway up from the ground behind the galleries-walls and the real central structure. This cloister is shaped like a square with covered walkways all around it, and two more covered walkways that go through it like a cross. These central walkways separated four deep pools. You can see one of the pools in the first picture of this group. As you can see, they were about two metres deep. When you enter, you can see these walkways all around you. The gallery on your left is called "The galley of the echo", while the one on your left is called "Preah Poan" or "The gallery of one thousand Buddhas" as in the past, many votive Buddhas were displayed here, some in stone, others in metal while others were in wood. With time, many were lost, but still many survived and, beside the few that were left in this place, the others that survived were taken to museums or kept in conservation chambers.
On the pillars that surround you, you can see many inscriptions. But, although they look ancient, they are quite recent and don't give many clues about the ancient Angkor times. In fact, the most of them come from the XVI-XVIII centuries, and are about "good actions" done by some powerful people, like setting a servant free. The cloister is majestic. The scholars say that the pools, probably, weren't used to bathe, but were filled with water to use it as a mirror and make the place to look even more magical. The architecture is wonderful, and you can feel like this was a real palace of a king, and every particular looks perfectly in place.
From the opposite side of the entrance to the cloister, more stairways lead up to one higher terrace that is waiting to meet you.
On the top of the stairs there is the entrance of the cloister. The cloister is like a step halfway up from the ground behind the galleries-walls and the real central structure. This cloister is shaped like a square with covered walkways all around it, and two more covered walkways that go through it like a cross. These central walkways separated four deep pools. You can see one of the pools in the first picture of this group. As you can see, they were about two metres deep. When you enter, you can see these walkways all around you. The gallery on your left is called "The galley of the echo", while the one on your left is called "Preah Poan" or "The gallery of one thousand Buddhas" as in the past, many votive Buddhas were displayed here, some in stone, others in metal while others were in wood. With time, many were lost, but still many survived and, beside the few that were left in this place, the others that survived were taken to museums or kept in conservation chambers.
On the pillars that surround you, you can see many inscriptions. But, although they look ancient, they are quite recent and don't give many clues about the ancient Angkor times. In fact, the most of them come from the XVI-XVIII centuries, and are about "good actions" done by some powerful people, like setting a servant free. The cloister is majestic. The scholars say that the pools, probably, weren't used to bathe, but were filled with water to use it as a mirror and make the place to look even more magical. The architecture is wonderful, and you can feel like this was a real palace of a king, and every particular looks perfectly in place.
From the opposite side of the entrance to the cloister, more stairways lead up to one higher terrace that is waiting to meet you.
Angkor Wat - The Bakan, where the secret was revealed
The central structure is on a terrace higher than the cloister and it's made of two more structures. A central unit, called Bakan, looking like a mountain-temple and a terrace at the base of it. The terrace is all made of stones and has no grass like the one behind the walls with the bas-relief galleries. You can see it in the first picture of this group.
On this terrace, beside the central structure, there are two more smaller buildings. They are two libraries that are on the sides of the central walkway coming from the cloister. You can see one in the picture 7. Now there are some work in progress and you need to take one of the side entrances form the cloister. All around the terrace, on the walls surrounding it, there are many sculptures of Devatas. The Deavatas are everywhere in Angkor Wat, but in this part there are the most. You can see some of them in the pictures 2, 3 and 4 of this group. It's believed that these sculptures are showing the way women of the court were dressing in the Angkor times.
The most important is the central structure. You can see it in the pictures 5 and 6. In fact, the central structure is on a much higher floor than the terrace that surrounds it, and it represent the Mountain Meru. It's like a pyramid, with on the top of it, another cloister, similar to the previous one, but without the pools and with four towers, one per each corner, and one higher in the middle. Here is where the king had his rooms for the ceremonies. Now profound restoration work is going on in this central structure and people can't go up there. But at the foot of it, a board explains what there is up there. At the beginning, in the uppermost rooms a Vishnu statue was placed. Later, when Kampuchea became a Buddhist country, and Angkor Wat became one of the most important Asian places of pilgrimage, the gates to the topmost level were sealed with sandstone blocks and sculptured with Buddha figures. In the most recent researches some Buddhas were found like the one sitting on a Naga that is now worshipped in the Bakan's eastern gallery. But here one more thing was found. Here was found a sarcophagus. So, probably the Angkor Wat, wasn't a temple, but a mausoleum. Also my reference from the past, Mr. Zhou Daguan in his Travel Diary described the Angkor Wat as the resting place of the Chinese architect Lou Ban (the same man that Mr. Daguan gave credit for building the Phnom Bakeng). So, it looks like when he went to Kampuchea, it was known that it was a mausoleum. Some king, and I like to believe that was the great king Suryavarman II, built this wonderful place as his own final resting place. The orientation to the west, the reminders of the death, now matched with the sarcophagus found in the top of the structure, where maybe the great king took his resting place, in the core of a wonderful temple, watching over his beloved country.
After this stirring feeling of being up there, there comes the time to make your way back. You look one more time at the stone terrace around you. It's packed with tourists, some interested others less. Many Khmer kids wander around and some Khmers dressed like Devatas, Apsaras and ancient mythical warriors ask you for some money to take pictures with them. Sometimes you can feel that there are too may people up there, but in the end, you don't care much about it, as the overwhelming beauty of the Bakan takes all the attention. When you reach the end of your visit to the Angkor Wat, from the terrace, you go toward the gate that will lead you down to the cloister, you look one more time up the Bakan, and you promise to come to see her again soon. Then you make your way through the cloister and you look again at the pools, then again through the garden and through the bas-relief galleries. Here you turn to look one more time at the bas-reliefs from far, and again you go down to the park and you take the causeway that goes to west, and will lead you to the moat. But along the causeway, you'll turn still more times to look again at her, the Angkor Wat, in a way to picture it in your memory as strongly as you can, to not ever forget the feelings of being there.
On this terrace, beside the central structure, there are two more smaller buildings. They are two libraries that are on the sides of the central walkway coming from the cloister. You can see one in the picture 7. Now there are some work in progress and you need to take one of the side entrances form the cloister. All around the terrace, on the walls surrounding it, there are many sculptures of Devatas. The Deavatas are everywhere in Angkor Wat, but in this part there are the most. You can see some of them in the pictures 2, 3 and 4 of this group. It's believed that these sculptures are showing the way women of the court were dressing in the Angkor times.
The most important is the central structure. You can see it in the pictures 5 and 6. In fact, the central structure is on a much higher floor than the terrace that surrounds it, and it represent the Mountain Meru. It's like a pyramid, with on the top of it, another cloister, similar to the previous one, but without the pools and with four towers, one per each corner, and one higher in the middle. Here is where the king had his rooms for the ceremonies. Now profound restoration work is going on in this central structure and people can't go up there. But at the foot of it, a board explains what there is up there. At the beginning, in the uppermost rooms a Vishnu statue was placed. Later, when Kampuchea became a Buddhist country, and Angkor Wat became one of the most important Asian places of pilgrimage, the gates to the topmost level were sealed with sandstone blocks and sculptured with Buddha figures. In the most recent researches some Buddhas were found like the one sitting on a Naga that is now worshipped in the Bakan's eastern gallery. But here one more thing was found. Here was found a sarcophagus. So, probably the Angkor Wat, wasn't a temple, but a mausoleum. Also my reference from the past, Mr. Zhou Daguan in his Travel Diary described the Angkor Wat as the resting place of the Chinese architect Lou Ban (the same man that Mr. Daguan gave credit for building the Phnom Bakeng). So, it looks like when he went to Kampuchea, it was known that it was a mausoleum. Some king, and I like to believe that was the great king Suryavarman II, built this wonderful place as his own final resting place. The orientation to the west, the reminders of the death, now matched with the sarcophagus found in the top of the structure, where maybe the great king took his resting place, in the core of a wonderful temple, watching over his beloved country.
After this stirring feeling of being up there, there comes the time to make your way back. You look one more time at the stone terrace around you. It's packed with tourists, some interested others less. Many Khmer kids wander around and some Khmers dressed like Devatas, Apsaras and ancient mythical warriors ask you for some money to take pictures with them. Sometimes you can feel that there are too may people up there, but in the end, you don't care much about it, as the overwhelming beauty of the Bakan takes all the attention. When you reach the end of your visit to the Angkor Wat, from the terrace, you go toward the gate that will lead you down to the cloister, you look one more time up the Bakan, and you promise to come to see her again soon. Then you make your way through the cloister and you look again at the pools, then again through the garden and through the bas-relief galleries. Here you turn to look one more time at the bas-reliefs from far, and again you go down to the park and you take the causeway that goes to west, and will lead you to the moat. But along the causeway, you'll turn still more times to look again at her, the Angkor Wat, in a way to picture it in your memory as strongly as you can, to not ever forget the feelings of being there.