blog@Yantrajaal

Angkor Wat, that we have described in the previous post , was primarily a temple complex measuring 1.2 km x 1.2 km. Angkor Thom on the other hand, was a city, the capital city of the Angkor empire with a walled area of approximately 3 km x 3 km.  This city was built in the 12th century by Suryavarman VII and his successors who lived there till the eventual collapse of the Angkor empire. As a city it had multiple palaces, numerous temples and many other structures. Like all Angkor structures, Angkor Thom is surrounded by a moat, walls and four gates (plus one funeral gate for dead bodies) This is where we enter the city through the South Gate. [ Please click on the images to enlarge them] These large faces are characteristic of Angkor Thom The moat is crossed over a causeway that has a row of Gods on one side and a row of Demons, Asuras, on the other At the centre of the city is the temple of Bayon, that is a similar to Angkor Wat but smaller. A...

Angkor Wat is the crown jewel of the architectural monuments built by the Vaishnav kings of Angkor in what is now Cambodia. In the previous post we have seen how the ruins looked like when they were first "discovered" by Europeans in the 19th century and here we see how the great temple looks like today. Angkor Wat was built by Suryavarman II in the 12th century, between 1113 and 1150 AD, and it represents the Hindu world view. At the centre is the main temple, 65 metres high, and represents Mount Meru, the centre of the Universe. This is where the main Vishnu idol was installed but it was subsequently moved, though not destroyed, by subsequent Buddhist kings.  Surrounding this temple are two layers of terraces containing bas relief panels depicting the story of Ramayana, Mahabharat, tales from the Puraanas and stories from the life of the king. The outer wall of the temple spans an area of 1 km x 1 km square and then you have a huge moat, filled with water, that re...