Cambodia 2020 - 22. Bayon Temple

22. Bayon Temple

Bayon Is In the Centre of the Angkor Thom City, One of the Largest Khmer Cities Ever Built at 9 Square Kilometers

I am having difficulties writing about this Temple. It is one of the most enigmatic and powerful religious temples in the world. The temple is extremely complex both in structure and religious meaning. I needed help, so I looked up books, articles and videos on line, anything I could find only made it more and more complex. Going from Hindu worship to Buddhism and having more and more additions put on by various kings over decades and centuries just compounded the complications of this Bayon Temple.

A Pair of Lions Guard the Entrance to the Many Towers of Bayon

Originally Bayon had 49 towers, but some experts think it should have been 54 towers. Today ‘only’ 37 towers are still standing. 

Can You Find 8 Faces In This Picture? (Some Are in Profile)

Another of the Many Faces

Most of these towers had 4 faces carved in each tower, each face looking out in one of the cardinal directions.

The central tower had many more faces carved in it.

It’s just overwhelming; I am open-jawed staring at it all.

Devata - Female Deity

Ah, yes, all those face carvings… It is said those faces are Jayarman VII, the man and the King who built this temple. He was, after all, God on Earth as he made his underlings believe. Here he is looking down at everyone, from above or are these faces representations of ‘other’ gods?

Nose to Nose With a God

I faced off against one of those gods, nose to nose with a god; now that is a picture you don’t see every day.  Never mind that my nose looks weird.

Apsara = Divine Dancers, Over the Door to the Main Tower

Ah the stories those walls hide, the people in the past were like us, but some, of course see deeper mysteries in things, too.

Dancing on Lotus Flowers

One man I found on line who proclaims Bayon and other temples were way more advanced than what people actually were at the time. You can be the judge, it’s a good little link, and it explains a bit more about some of the stories of the bas-reliefs that abound here at Bayon, too. 

Narrow Corridors

The complex of Bayon is a maze, narrow corridors, dim lighting and low ceilings. Bas-reliefs run along walls, crammed full of details. What I found most interesting were the depictions of daily life, of markets, fishing, battles but also processions. The inner walk along the bas-reliefs is full of mystical scenes.

Linga = Stylized Phallus Representing
the Essence of Shiva

This Bayon Temple is in the center of the larger, huge complex of Angkor Thom which was the center of the Empire of the Khmer. 

Elephant (South) Gate. 3 Trunks Remain Each Side of
Entrance But Heads Have Been Obliterated

Everything you see is mystical and has carvings related to the Hindu, and/or Theravada Buddhist belief. The complex of Angkor Thom is walled in by 8 meter high walls, laid out into a square. The grid is 3 km on each side. The area is huge, incomprehensible, and impossible to walk in just one day. To study the details would take a devoted lifetime.

The entrance gates (gopuras) to Angkor Thom are 23 meters high. Those are superstructures that have faces on each of its 4 sides. Indra, a god, is situated above each of those faces, with her consorts on each side.

A 100 meter wide moat surrounds the outer walls. A causeway across this moat is flanked by 54 large stone figures on each side of this bridge. When you enter Angkor Thom, gods are on the left and demons on the right. Both guard this approach into the city of Angkor Thom. All the demons have down turned facial expressions, look grim and wear military head dresses. The gods wear conical headdresses, have almond shaped eyes and appear very serene.

The Gods Holding the Body of a 7-Headed Naga

Demons (Most With New Heads) Also Holding the Body of Naga

Both gods and demons hold the scaly body of a Naga, a snake with 5, 7 or 9 fan-shaped heads, on their knees. The Naga, the snake, guards each side of the causeway leading to a 3 headed Elephant who guards the main gate. Symbolism, everything has a deeper meaning, nothing is plain and unadorned. Everything is carved; everything is in some way related to a religious part of the Hindu or Buddhist faith.

One of the Gods on the Bridge Over the Moat - Just Before the Gopura

How can I possibly represent this here in a few words?

Bayon is a must see part of the attractions of the Angkor area. Bayon was the State Temple. The center or capital of the Khmer Empire’s Universe was Angkor Thom in the center of which was the Bayon Temple.

Everything started from here and ended here; this city, complex was the nerve center of it all.

Demons on the Bridge

The organization of the Khmer power started and ended right here.

It is difficult to comprehend, difficult to grasp.

What I learned and is intriguing to me is that not only here, but already a few hundred years before they built Bayon, some mysteries have not been answered yet. If you are intrigued you are not alone.

Bayon in Angkor Thom, is a definite must see temple, a must see part of your trip to the Angkor Wat area.