Ankor Wat, Cambodia - the largest temple in the world

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

The Angkor Wat temple complex is the largest Hindu temple not only in Cambodia, but also in the World, the largest religious building of mankind, created according to the traditional version by the Khmer king Suryavarman II about a thousand years ago. (1113-1150 AD)

The construction of the Angkor Wat temple lasted 30 years; it became the largest temple in the ancient capital of the Khmer empire - Angkor. Angkor Wat area - 2.5 sq. Km. (This is almost 3 times more than the area of the Vatican), and the size of the entire ancient Khmer capital of Angkor with a population of more than 1 million inhabitants exceeded 200 square kilometers. For comparison, for example, the second largest known city of the same ancient era was the city of Tikal - the largest city of the Mayan civilization, located on the territory of modern Guatemala. Its size was about 100 square kilometers, that is, 10 times less, and the population was only 100 to 200 thousand people.

Angkor Wat is the largest temple in the ancient capital, but far from the only one. The city of Angkor - being the capital of the Khmer Empire from the 9th to the 14th centuries, included many Hindu and Buddhist temples, many of which are fairly well preserved to this day. Each of them is beautiful in its own way and characterizes different periods of the heyday of the power of the Khmer Empire. Later historians will call this period of Khmer history Angkorian.

The construction of Angkor took about 400 years. It was started by the founder of the Angkor dynasty, the Hindu prince Jayavarman II in 802, who declared himself the "universal ruler" and "Sun King" in Cambodia. The last temple complexes were built in the 12th century by King Jayavarman VII. After his death in 1218, construction ceased. The reason for this, according to one version, was that in the Khmer Empire the deposits of sandstone-stone simply ended, according to the other - the empire found itself in conditions of a fierce war and it was impossible to continue construction. The Angkorian period of Khmer history ended in 1431 when Thai invaders finally captured and plundered the Khmer capital and forced the population to move south to the Phnom Penh region, which became the new Khmer capital. However, historians are still looking for evidence of the true reasons for the fall of the Khmer Empire.

In Angkor, the largest temple complexes stand out - Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom (which includes several temples at once, the largest of which is the Bayon Temple), Ta Prohm, Banteay Srei and Preah Kan. The most notable temple was and remains Angkor Wat, which is still the largest religious building in the world. Its height is 65 meters. The temple is surrounded by a giant moat 190 meters wide, measuring 1,300 meters by 1,500 meters. Built during the reign of Suryavarman II (1113-1150) in 30 years, Angkor Wat became the largest sacred building in the world. After the death of King Suryavarman II, the temple accepted him into its walls and became a tomb-mausoleum.

Angkor Wat - The history of the discovery of the lost city of Angkor

Ankor Wat gained wide popularity in the modern world after the publication in 1861 of the diaries and reports of the French traveler and naturalist Henri Muo about his expeditions to Indochina. In his diary, you can find the following lines:

Henri Mouhot was born in 1826 in France, and from the age of 18 he taught French and Greek at the Russian military academy in St. Petersburg. After returning to his homeland, he married the daughter of a famous English explorer and moved to Scotland. And already in 1857, Henri Muo decided to go on a trip to Southeast Asia (Indochina) to collect zoological samples. During his time in Asia, he traveled to Thailand, Cambodia and Laos. Perhaps he had a premonition of something, a few months after his last visit to Angkor Wat, in 1861 he died of malaria on his fourth expedition to Laos. He was buried there, near the capital Luang Prabang (Luang Prabang), the location of his tomb is known even now. Henri Muo's diaries are kept in London, in the archives of the Royal Geographical Society, London.

The greatness of the Angkor Wat temple he saw for the first time shocked Anri Muo, in his notes he wrote the following about Ankor Wat:

Etymology of the name of the temple of Angkor Wat

"Angkor Wat" is not the original name of the temple, since neither the steles of the foundation of the temple, nor any inscriptions regarding the name of that time have been found. It is not known how the ancient city-temple was called then, and it is likely that it was called "Vrah Vishnulok" (literally "Place of Saint Vishnu"), in honor of the god to whom it was dedicated.

Most likely, the name "Angkor" comes from the Sanskrit word "nagara" meaning "city". In Khmer it is read as "noko" ("kingdom, country, city"), but in common parlance, Khmers are much more convenient to pronounce "ongko". The latter is very consonant with the concept of harvest, which is close to the peasants, and can be literally translated as “harvested rice grains”.

Over the centuries, the reduced common people "ongko" acquired the meaning of a proper name, which was fixed in the name of the ancient capital region of Angkor (or Ongkor), the former capital of the Angkor Empire. Angkor Thomas well as the Angkor Wat temple.

The word "Wat" comes from the Pali expression "watthu-arama" ("the place where the temple is built"), which meant the sacred land of the monastery, but in many countries of Southeast Asia (Thailand, Laos, Cambodia) it has long carried a broader meaning, referring to any Buddhist monastery, temple or pagoda. In Khmer "voat" can mean both "temple" and "veneration, admiration". Indeed, Angkor Wat - the largest temple of the city of the gods of Angkor, is a symbol of the national pride of the Khmers.

In Khmer, the name of the Angkor Wat temple is pronounced "Ongkovoat". In the overwhelming majority of sources, it is interpreted as a "city-temple". Since the name "Angkor" has been used in the meaning of a proper name since the 15th-16th centuries, a more accurate translation can be assumed - "the temple of Angkor".

Why did people leave the largest temple in the world?

The reason why the Khmers left the largest temple in the world, Angkor Wat, at the mercy of the jungle about 500 years ago, and left Angkor to develop the new capital of their kingdom, Phnom Penh, is still a subject of debate among historians and archaeologists. For more than 100 years, hundreds of archaeologists from all over the world have been trying to lift the veil of secrecy over the ancient Khmer capital - the city of the gods, Angkor. The fact is that the past has left us with a negligible amount of written evidence related to the history of the construction of temples in Angkor. The painstaking long-term work of researchers gradually reveals to us the secrets of the sacred temple of Angkor Wat, introducing new adjustments to various historical theories related to its origin and purpose.

Khmer temples were never intended for gatherings of believers, they were built as a dwelling place for the gods. Access to the central buildings of the complexes was open only to priests and monarchs. The largest temple of the city of the gods, Angkor Wat also had an additional function: it was originally planned as a burial place for kings.

It is noteworthy that the successors of Jayavarman II followed his building principles. Each new ruler completed the city in such a way that its core was constantly moving: the center of the old city was on the outskirts of the new one. This is how this giant city gradually grew. Each time a five-tower temple was erected in the center, symbolizing Mount Meru, the center of the world. As a result, Angkor turned into a whole city of temples. The splendor of the Khmer empire dimmed somewhat during the hard and prolonged wars with the Tami and Tayas. In 1431, Thai (Siamese) troops completely captured Angkor: the city became depopulated, as if a merciless epidemic had swept over it. Over time, the humid climate and lush vegetation turned the capital into ruins and the jungle completely engulfed it.

Hard times (external and internal wars) in the history of Cambodia (Kampuchea) did not allow foreigners to visit the brilliant masterpiece of Asian architecture. For a long time, the temples of Angkor were inaccessible for a wide range of researchers, archaeologists and historians. The situation changed in December 1992, when the temples of Angkor, including "Angkor Wat", deservedly added to the list of one of the largest temples in the world, were included in the list of world cultural heritage sites by UNESCO, and a year later, the International Coordination a committee that has set itself the goal of reviving the former splendor of Angkor. Sources of funding for the project were found and active restoration work began. Huge trees are cut down, which destroy walls, entrances, ceilings, walls, paths are restored. Scientists from different countries are taking an active part in restoring the history of Angkor. There will be enough work for everyone for many decades.

The mysterious connection of Angkor with the spiral of the constellation Draco

In 1996, British archaeologist and historian John Grigsby, exploring Angkor, came to the conclusion that the Angkor temple complex is a terrestrial projection of a certain section of the Milky Way, and the main structures of Angkor simulate the undulating spiral of the northern constellation of the Dragon. To begin research in the direction of searching for correlations of heaven and earth in relation to Angkor, he was prompted by the mysterious inscription of the times of Jayavarman VII, the Khmer king during whose time Angkor Thom and Bayon were built in the XII century. On a stele dug out on the territory of the Bayon temple, it was inscribed - "the country of Kambu is similar to the sky."

A certain connection with the stars was also indicated by the inscription made by the builders of the large pyramidal temple Phnom-Bakeng, built during the time of King Yasovarman I (889-900 AD). The inscription says that the purpose of the temple is to symbolize "with its stones the heavenly movements of the stars." The question arose whether there existed in Cambodia a correlation of heaven and earth similar to the Egyptian (connection of the pyramids of Giza with the constellation Orion)?

The fact is that the projection of the constellation of the dragon by the main temples of Angkor on Earth turned out to be not entirely accurate. The distances between the temples are proportional to the distances between the stars, but the relative position of the temples, that is, the angles between the segments connecting the temples, does not exactly repeat the picture in the sky. In addition, it should be noted that Angkor is not a projection of the constellation of the Dragon onto the earth's surface, but a projection of a whole area of the sky around the Dragon, including several stars from the Northern Crown, Ursa Minor and Big Dippers, Deneb from Cygnus. All sacred places on Earth reproduce this or that part of the sky along the Milky Way.

In the same 1996, another British amateur researcher, John Grigsby, joined the scientific and historical work on Angkor. Having set themselves the goal of establishing the exact date when the picture of the sky corresponded to the given location of the temples in Angkor, they carried out a lot of research work with the help of computer technology. The results of their research shook the world archaeological community. Computer research has shown that the main temples of Angkor are indeed terrestrial reflections of the stars of the constellation Draco and that it was in this position that the stars were on the vernal equinox in 10500 BC. e.

Few now doubt the fact that Angkor was actually built between the 9th and 13th centuries. AD, however, how could the subjects of the Cambodian kings know the picture of the sky more than 10,000 years ago, because by their time the precession had already hidden part of the projected picture beyond the horizon. It was hypothesized that all the main temples of Angkor were erected on more ancient structures, as evidenced by the huge slabs of lining of artificial canals made of megaliths, the presence of polygonal masonry, high skill of stone processing, stone castles, but it is not known when those were built. However, if they already projected the constellation of the Dragon …

Covered with kilometers of fine carvings, the huge stones of the masonry of the temples are perfectly matched to each other, are not fastened by anything and are held only by their own weight. There are temples where it is impossible to put a blade between the stones, moreover, they are of irregular shape and curvature, like puzzles, where none of the modern technologies is able to recreate the time-honored beauty of these temples.

Stegosaurus at Angkor Wat. Could Khmer see dinosaurs?

The hypothesis of the creation of Angkor in the XI century BC does not contradict the fact that the temples as we see them today were erected between the 9th and 12th centuries A. D. e. famous Khmer monarchs, but not everything is so simple. For example, the Ta-Prohm temple is full of intricately carved statues and stone columns with bas-reliefs carved on them. Along with the images of gods and goddesses of mythological plots of ancient Hinduism, hundreds of bas-reliefs depict real animals (elephants, snakes, fish, monkeys). Almost every inch of gray sandstone is covered with decorative carvings. What was the surprise of the scientists who discovered in Ta-Prohm on one of the columns an image Stegosaurus- a herbivorous dinosaur that existed 155-145 million years ago.

The researchers proved that this bas-relief is not a fake. Where did the Khmers see the stegosaurus? How can this be explained?

Sacred numerology of Angkor - a coincidence or a prophecy?

What is this mysterious date - the vernal equinox of 10500 BC? It was on this day that the stars of the constellation of the dragon were in the projection that the Angkor temple complex reproduces on earth, if you look at it from above. This date is associated with the process of precession of celestial bodies. The Earth is like a giant top, under the influence of the gravity of the Sun and the Moon, it makes a slow circular rotation. The Moon and the Sun, by their attraction, tend to rotate the axis of the Earth, as a result, the phenomenon of precession arises.

Astrologers believe that the precession cycle is 25,920 years, the so-called Great Year (the period during which the pole of the celestial equator makes a full circle around the pole of the ecliptic). During this time, the earth's axis goes a full circle along the zodiac. In this case, one astrological era is equal to 1/12 of the cycle (25920: 12 = 2160) and is 2160 years. One month of the Great Year, with a duration of 2160 Earth years, is the astrological epoch. Each cosmic epoch (2160 Earth years) represents a whole stage in the development of mankind, associated with the sign of the Zodiac through which the Earth's axis goes. This period in some mystical way was known to the famous Greek philosopher Plato, who believed that this (25920 years) is the period of existence of earthly civilization. Therefore, the precession period is also called the Great Platonic Year (Great Year of Plato). One day of the Great Year is theoretically equal to our 72 years (25920: 360 = 72 years - the earth's axis passes 1 ecliptic).

Today, the North Pole of the world is, as you know, the North Star, but it was not always so, and in the III millennium BC. The North Pole of the world was where the star α (Alpha) - Dragon is located. The precession of the earth's axis is known to cause an apparent change in the position of stars with a period of 25,920 years, that is, 1 degree is 72 years. In 10,500 BC. at the lowest point of the trajectory was the constellation Orion, and at the highest - the constellation Draco. There is a kind of "Orion-Dragon" pendulum. Since then, the precessional process managed to rotate the celestial pole by half a circle relative to the pole of the ecliptic, and today the Dragon is near the lowest point, and Orion is the highest. MIT history professor Giorgio de Santillana and his colleague, Dr. Gerta von Dehehand, based on their research, concluded that the whole of Angkor is a huge model of precession. The following facts also speak in her favor:

• Angkor Wat depicts 108 naga pulling a huge top in two directions (54 by 54);
• On both sides of the 5 bridges leading to the gate to the Temple of Angkor Thom, there are huge sculptures in parallel rows - 54 Devas and 54 Asura. 108x5 = 540 statues x 48 = 25920;
• Bayon Temple is surrounded by 54 massive stone towers, on each of which are carved four giant faces of Lokeshvara, oriented to the north, south, east and west, for a total of 216 faces - (216: 3 = 72), (216: 2 = 108). 216 - 10 times less than the duration of one precessional era (2160 years); 108 is 216 divided by two;
• The central sanctuary of Phnom Bakheng is surrounded by 108 turrets. 108, one of the most sacred in Hindu and Buddhist cosmologies, is equal to the sum of 72 and 36 (that is, 72 plus half of 72);
• A regular pentagon has an angle of 108 degrees, and the sum of its 5 angles is 540 degrees;
• The distance between the pyramids of Giza in Egypt, where the sages who walked the astronomical "Horus road" ruled, and the sacred temples of Angkor in Cambodia, is, with a slight rounding off, an important geodetic value - 72 degrees of longitude. From the ancient Egyptian language "Ankh-Khor" literally translates as "the god Horus lives";
• There are 72 main stone and brick temples and monuments in Angkor.
• The length of the main road sections in Angkor Wat reflects the duration of the four yugas (the great world eras of Hindu philosophy and cosmology) - Krita Yuga, Treta Yuga, Dvapara Yuga and Kali Yuga. Their duration is, respectively, 1,728,000, 1,296,000, 864,000 and 432,000 years. And in Angkor Wat, the length of the main sections of the road is 1728, 1296, 864 and 432 huts.

The cosmic meaning of the number 72 and its power over humanity

Let us dwell in more detail on the sacred number - 72 in more detail, because there are too many coincidences associated with it in our life:

• The number 72 is considered a sacred number in all religions.
• The Khmer alphabet has 72 letters and the same number of sounds.
• The ancient Indian language "Sanskrit" (the language of classical Indian literature, sacred texts, mantras and rituals of Hinduism, Jainism, and partly Buddhism) uses the Devanagari alphabet. Devanagari means "writing of the Gods" or "City language" and in the Devanagari of classical Sanskrit there are 36 letters-phonemes (72: 2 = 36). In Devanagari, 72 basic ligatures are used (combinations of consonants, depicted as an independent symbol).
• The most ancient runic system, the so-called "Elder Futhark" consists of 24 runes, each rune can represent a letter, syllable, word or image. Moreover, the image is of priority importance. But one rune can hide up to three images, depending on the context (24x3 = 72). Moreover, all these images will be connected in one way or another. The ancient runic alphabet became the root for almost all existing Indo-European alphabets. Those 24 runes that are known today are the third part of the real language, because if you multiply 24 by three, you get just 72 runes. Since the ancients taught that the world is threefold. One of them is the earthly world of Getig, the second is the intermediate world of Ritag, and the third is the upper world of Menog. There are three rune shapes.
• In the ancient Avestan language (the language of the Avesta, the holy book of Zoroastrianism) there were 72 letters to designate all possible variants of pronunciation of sounds;
• The most significant book of the Avesta - Yasna, which is a text read in the main Zoroastrian liturgy "Yasna", contains 72 chapters;
• The number 72, both in Sanskrit and in the original Avesta, found its manifestation in 72 threads of the sacred belt of Kushti, which every Zoroastrian has, as a symbolic adherence to religion, or rather, as an umbilical cord connecting a person with the Lord God.
• In Judaism, the number 72 is considered sacred and is inextricably linked with the name of God, the forbidden name to which the universe is subject. These are 72 sequences of letters of the Hebrew alphabet, each of which corresponds to a specific sound, which have an amazing power to overcome the laws of nature in all forms, including human nature. According to legend, the name of God encompasses everything that exists, which means that the one who is able to pronounce it correctly will be able to ask the Creator for whatever he wants.
• The unpronounceable name of God is the main subject of the study of medieval Kabbalists. It was believed that this name contains all the forces of nature, it contains the very essence of the universe. The name of God is also depicted by the Tetragrammaton - a triangle with letters inscribed in it. If you add up the numerical values of the letters placed in the Tetragrammaton, you get 72.
• In the legend about the Tabernacle (Temple), the ancient Jews mention 72 almond buds, with which they decorated the candlestick used in the sacred rite, it is a combination of 12 and 6 (that is, half of 12) and personifies realized harmony. The mystical root of number 72 is also the legendary nine.
• The number 72 is the number of the mother of God. She left this world at the age of 72. No wonder Vysotsky sings in one of his songs: "girl, 72nd, don't leave the altar!";
• The human DNA molecule is a rotating cube. When the cube is rotated sequentially by 72 degrees according to a certain model, an icosahedron is obtained, which, in turn, is a pair of a dodecahedron. Thus, the double strand of the DNA helix is built according to the principle of two-way correspondence: the dodecahedron follows the icosahedron, then the icosahedron again, and so on. This sequential 72-degree rotation through the cube creates the DNA molecule.

Three-level structure of the Angkor Wat temple

The Angkor Wat temple complex has three levels. It consists of a series of concentric, rectangular enclosed spaces that include three rectangular galleries, each towering over the next with open courtyards linked by cruciform galleries. In fact, Angkor Wat is a huge three-stage pyramid.

Climbing the stairs and passing through the first two of the three consecutively rising galleries, you find yourself in the third gallery, famous for its bas-reliefs, most of which are magnificent in their performance.

Apart from the bas-reliefs in the corner pavilions, they stretch for almost 700 meters and are almost 2 meters high, making them the longest bas-reliefs in the world. Thousands of figures depict scenes from the Hindu epic Bhagavad Purana, palace and military life in the days of Suryavarman II - the founder of the Angkor Wat temple.

Since the perimeter of the main entrance to Angkor Wat is surrounded by a moat with a width of 190 meters, forming a square-shaped island, the territory of the temple can only be accessed via stone bridges on the western and eastern sides of the temple. The main entrance to Angkor Wat from the west is a wide sidewalk built of massive sandstone blocks. Crossing the cruciform terrace, which is a later addition to the complex, we see in front the entrance to the western gopura with the remains of three towers.

Now the entrance to the gopura is from the right, through the sanctuary under the south tower, where the eight-armed Vishnu statue fills the entire space. This statue, which clearly lacks space in this room, may have originally been located in the central sanctuary of Angkor Wat.

After passing through the gopura, there is a magnificent view of the main temple towers at the end of the road. They are surrounded by the glowing silhouette of the morning sky at sunrise, and glow orange at sunset. Continuing our way into Angkor Wat, we observe from both sides of the main road - two large, so-called "libraries" with four entrances on each side of the world. They were a kind of sanctuary, not a storehouse of manuscripts, as the name suggests.

Closer to the temple, on both sides of the road, there are two more reservoirs, dug later, in the 16th century. Inside the temple you will be greeted by 1,800 apsaras (celestial dancers).

Climbing to the second level of the temple, you can see a breathtaking sight - the peaks of the central towers, rising from behind the courtyard. From the entrance, to all the central towers, as well as two internal libraries of the second level, you can walk along pedestrian bridges on short round posts.

Gradually climbing the stone steps to the highest, third level of the Angkor Wat temple - the heart of the complex, huge conical towers are revealed, located in the center and corners of the square, symbolizing the five heavenly peaks of the sacred Mount Meru - the center of the universe.

The highest level of Angkor Wat and its galleries only emphasize the perfect proportions of the famous towers of the temple and make the overall view unforgettable. The central tower or altar was the abode of the god Vishnu, and since Angkor Wat was originally a Vishnu temple, and only later turned into a Buddhist one, a statue of Vishnu once stood in it, possibly the one that now stands at the entrance to the western gopur. The Khmers had an ancient custom of making offerings to the god in the form of gold sheets or small precious stones, which were left in the recess below the statue of the god. Unfortunately, these offerings have been plundered over the centuries.

Today, only a few of the statues of the god Vishnu or Buddha are displayed in the southern part of the galleries. The Big Reclining Buddha is still the subject of worship for local and Asian visitors.

The entire temple capital of Angkor and the largest temple of Angkor Wat in particular is the soul and heart of the Khmer people, the people of free Kampuchea, a symbol of the prosperity of Khmer civilization, which had a huge impact on the cultures of all states of Southeast Asia. The image of the Angkor Wat temple adorns the national flag of Cambodia (Kampuchea) and is its symbol.

The era of Angkor lasted seven centuries. Many believe that the founders of the city of the gods of Angkor were descendants of a previous civilization and this is a direct legacy of the great and mysterious Atlantis. The battles of historians about the officially announced dates for the construction of temples in Angkor and Angkor Wat have not ceased to this day. There are more and more facts indicating that people in these places settled long before the flourishing of Khmer culture, but in the dates, many sources contradict each other, and quite significantly.

However, all figures fairly accurately reflect the peak of the flourishing and greatness of the Khmer Angkorian era, in which the highest cultural achievements were achieved. The history of this period, which did not leave us paper manuscripts, is being reconstructed with the help of inscriptions in Pali, Sanskrit and Khmer, found on the monuments and sculptures of Angkor Wat and other temple complexes of Angkor. Active archaeological and historical research in Angkor continues to this day, continuing to amaze the world with all the new discoveries of the secrets and mysteries of the great temple of Angkor Wat.

Documentary film "Angkor Wat - House worthy of the gods"

"Angkor Wat - Home Worthy of the Gods" - This is a popular science documentary from National Geographic in the series "Superstructures of Antiquity", dedicated to the world famous Angkor-Wat temple in Cambodia (Kampuchea). The authors of the film made an attempt to show all the grandeur of the city of the gods Angkor and reveal the secret of the construction of the largest temple in the world, Angkor Wat. Abandoned by people under unclear circumstances more than 500 years ago, the Cambodian city of Angkor impresses with its scale - it is a giant stone map of the universe and one of the most wonderful creations of mankind.

Photo of Angkor taken in 1906, 46 years after its opening.

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