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Bayon

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alan_nesbit
alan_nesbit
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5 out of 5
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Editor Pick

Bayon

  • June 16, 2008
  • Rated 5 of 5 by SeenThat from Tel Aviv, Israel
Bayon

At the very center of Angkor Thom, the distinctive Bayon is one of the few originally Mahayana Buddhist temples and the last state temple to be built in Angkor.

Location

North of Angkor Wat and facing the east, the temple is located at Angkor Thom’s center, with broad roads connecting it to the city’s gates. Its location at the downtown area center hints at is importance.

Dedication

The Bayon was built by King Jayavarman VII and dedicated to the Buddha; additional contributions by this king include Ta Prohm, Preah Khan, Banteay Kdei and Angkor Thom’s walls and naga-bridges. After his death, the temple was modified first to meet Hindu standards and later Theravada Buddhist ones. The Hindu and Buddhist Theravada additions include the eastern terrace, parts of the upper terrace, the libraries and the inner gallery square corners. The Hindu Jayavarman VIII destroyed the courtyard’s sixteen chapels.

The Face

Resembling an elaborate pyramid, the Bayon is unforgettable due to its many towers displaying four faces each. The face is always the same one: King Jayavarman VII; watching on the four different directions and featuring a tower for each Khmer province, the king hinted his people in a not very subtle way that he was watching them. Modern surveillance bubbles have indeed deep roots; these activities were never neither a sign of democracy nor of societies respecting human rights.

The wide, square face featuring a very broad nose is typical of Cambodian people. The face represents also the bodhisattva of compassion called Avalokitesvara or Lokesvara, reminding us that the Khmer kings regarded themselves as "devaraja" (god-king); being Buddhist, Jayavarman VII pictured himself as one of the bodhisattva.

Not Only a Face

Beyond the towers, the Bayon includes two massive bas-reliefs, representing mythological and historical scenes. The temple is remarkable within the complex due to its density: the towers are next to each other in sharp contrast to the leisure setup of Angkor Wat and other temples in the area.

The outer gallery’s outer wall, features bas-reliefs of historical events; despite their richness, they do not include any texts. The scenes include a marching Khmer army, a naval battle against the Cham, market scenes, scenes of daily life in Angkor Thom, the construction of temples, victory celebrations, a land battle against the Cham which includes fighting elephants, and others.

The raised inner gallery shows bas-reliefs added later by the Hindu king Jayavarman VIII, depicting scenes from the Hindu mythology. Shiva, Vishnu, and Brahma, as well as beautiful Apsara dancers and other deities are its main themes. Atop the gallery is the upper terrace, were the face-towers are located. Some researchers conjecture that the towers were not part of the original low temple; their addition created the distinctive density of the Bayon. The towers concentration – with higher ones by the center - creates the illusion that the structure was originally constructed in a pyramidal shape and then carved in to create the towers. Nowadays only thirty-seven towers remain, most of them feature four faces, but records tell forty-nine and fifty-four towers existing in different periods. Smaller towers are located along the inner gallery, at its corners and entrances.

The central tower is forty-three meters tall; at the temple’s early days it featured a big meditating Buddha seated and shielded by the serpent Mucalinda. Jayavarman VIII, removed and destroyed the statue; in 1933 it was recovered and pieced back together; nowadays it is in display nearby.

From journal Godless Angkor

Editor Pick

Bayon - The One With the Heads

  • March 7, 2006
  • Rated 4 of 5 by alan_nesbit from Singapore, Singapore
Bayon - The One With the Heads

As you approach Bayon from the distance, it really doesn’t have much of a distinctive shape and it’s not unfair to say that it looks like a pile of rubble. What you don’t see until you get closer, are the carved heads on the towers at the highest level. About 1.5m tall, they look in all directions—serene and gently smiling. When you’re at the top level, you can’t get away from them.

Just below the top is an intriguing system of corridors. Cool and dim, there are no long views to distant doors and windows. Instead, they twist and turn, leaving you with no clear sense of where you are or the direction you are heading.

Considering its central position and the fact that this is one of the most popular temples, there were very few people around. Perhaps that’s because we were there during the hottest part if the day.

From journal The Temples at Angkor

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