Neak Pean

The next temple we visited was Neak Pean (“the entwined serpents") which stands on an artificial island in the middle of the enormous northern baray.
The temple consists of a single tower sitting in the center of a large pool, connected to four subsidiary pools at the cardinal points. Neak Pean was originally designed for medical purposes (the ancients believed that going into these pools would balance the elements in the bather, thus curing disease); it is one of the many hospitals that Jayavarman VII built. It is based on the ancient Hindu belief of balance. Four connected pools represent Water, Earth, Fire and Wind.
The main sanctuary is difficult to see well due to the size of the pool, but has carvings of Lokesvara on each of its four faces and two stone serpents curling around the base of the platform on which it stands. The heads of the two serpents rise to the east of the tower. Emerging from the waters of the pool close by is a large statue with tiny figures clinging to its sides: this is a depiction of Lokesvara in the form of a horse, Balaha, rescuing merchants from ogresses on an island off Sri Lanka.Les mer