Angkor Wat

I don’t really believe in the idea of having a bucket list. But, if I had one, visiting Angkor Wat — which is considered to be one of the seven wonders of the world — would have been near the tip top of the list. And, as much as I had read about the complex, and thought that I understood the size and scope, I was still completely unprepared for the actual majesty of the site.

Angkor Wat was built between 1113 and 1151, during the reign of King Suryavarman II. It is estimated that between 500,000 and a million people worked on the structure, with the assistance of 3000 elephants and 6000 horses. It was originally built as a Hindu temple, honoring both the God Vishnu, as well as to the greater glory of the King. It is the largest religious monument in the world — covering approximately 500 acres. The complex consists of an enormous, man made moat with a length of approximately one-half mile on each side. To enter the complex, you must cross the moat on a bridge that is almost 1000 feet long. Once you cross the moat, you enter into a set of buildings/corridors that form the outer wall of the complex. Every surface that you see is covered with carvings. As you pass out of the buildings, you cross an enormous “square” or “plaza,” which has both open spaces and buildings. It is believed that the buildings were libraries that held sacred texts, and that the open spaces were for pilgrims. You then come to the main part of the temple, which is comprised of enormous galleries, enclosing courtyards and five towers. The central tower is 65 meters tall. Adorning the outside of every tower were hundreds of statutes, most of which have been eroded by time. But, inside the buildings are elaborate carvings, many of which tell Hindu stories, such as the Ramayana. (There are four enormous galleries which have long friezes running the length of each gallery.). The carvings are comparable to the Elgin Marbles in terms of complexity, but are far, far larger.

Over its vast history, the temple complex has served many, many purposes. Originally, the complex was built to honor Vishnu. Approximately 300 years later, it was later turned into a Buddhist temple, and 1000 statutes of Buddha were erected — either as carvings, or as separate statutes. Sometime thereafter, the complex was transformed back into a Hindu temple, and the statutes of Buddha were either entirely destroyed, or the heads were knocked off. For many years the site fell into disrepair, and the forest began to overgrow the site. However, it was always used by pilgrims and worshipers. During the years of the Khmer Rouge, the complex was used as a hospital, and a battleground. Today you can actually see bullet holes in many of the outer walls. Fortunately, the site was never bombed, so it is remarkably well preserved.

I found the site to be unbelievably beautiful . . .so much so, that we actually went three times over the course of three days, including early one morning so that we could watch the sunrise. (Maya opted out of getting up at dawn to see the sunrise, as a friend had told her that there were 1000 people who were there at sunrise. Maya’s friend was wrong — there must have been 10,000 people there at sunrise!). On each of our three visits, I was able to appreciate a different aspect of Angkor Wat. The first time, I was impressed by the size and splendor of the entire complex, and completely intrigued by the history. When we want for sunrise, I was amazing by the beautiful buildings, and the contrast between the forest beyond the site and the complex that was built almost a thousand years ago. On our last visit, I marveled at the carvings that adorned every surfaced, and wondered at the number of workers that it took to build and decorate the structure.

Although I could have spent many more days exploring the complex, it was time to visit the other temples. But, this was definitely a site that surpassed all expectations.Read more