Day 42 - Fri - Preah Khan

On Friday, 12 July, I was on my own as some had returned to Phnom Penh or were shopping or changing hotels! I started the day with a visit to the Blue Pumpkin for a croissant. Yum yum. Then Kue and I set off on our tour. It was a clear beautiful day.  I'd decided to go to Preah Khan, a large temple just north of Angkor Thom, then up to Banteay Srei, about 40km away and finally back to Banteay Samre, actually Kue's suggestion. To get there we motored past Angkor Wat and through Angkor Thom again, getting briefly stuck behind an elephant.

 

There are two Preah Khans, this is the one that is not 'of Kompong Svay'. This one however suited me fine however, being big and relatively deserted. I loved it! 

 

Preah Khan is the 'city of the sacred sword' or 'victorious emblem' ("Jayashri"). It was built in 1191AD by Jayavarman VII on the site of a battle against the Chams ( from the Kingdom of Champa, what is now the middle of Vietnam). The similarity of ancient and modern names is unusual. This temple was dedicated to the king's father and held a huge statue of the bodisvatta Lokeshvara (one of the most important divinities of Mahayana Buddhism). It also has parapets covered with nagas and the Churning of the Ocean of Milk over the moat. 

In the iconography of the temple there are allusions to the battles on this site with mythological representation of the Khmers as 'devas' (gods) and the Chams as 'asura' (demons). Much of the carving is of high standard and very beautiful. There were also 515 other statues and 18 major festivals a year took place here. My wrist was seized and I received a blessing from the nun (and made a donation!).

 I wondered off to the right of the main axis at one point and found myself completely alone on one of the four processional walkways. I recorded some sounds here. 

In the the third enclosure there may be found a two-storey Grecian style building with rounded columns. It's purpose is entirely unknown. There are other similar buildings at Banteay Srei and Ta Prohm and many of the temples feature stand alone structures in the enclosures referred to as 'libraries', including Angkor Wat. This is the only one with rounded columns.

The eastern outer wall has a tree conquering it still. There are more than one in fact. As well as lichen covered art, crumbled stone, vines and bushes easing through the cracks and joins. It was so mind-glowingly beautiful.