Cambodia: The Southern gate of Angkor Thom

GPS Coordinates:
13°25’35.38″N
103°51’33.97″E

The ancient city of Angkor Thom was the heart of the Khmer Empire. The location where the capital city was settled, was far from the sea, so this could prevent any invasion of this city from the
sea. On the same time, the defensive walls provided a solid shield against the enemies that tried to hit the Khmer Empire from the land. The Empire provided many defensive lines across its
territory, and here all was made to prevent the enemies to hit the most vital places. So, inside these unbreakable walls, were built the houses of the kings and the government palaces.

According to my plans, I decided to start my visit with the main buildings inside the city of Angkor Thom. So, on the first day of my trip I hired, thanks also to the help of the hotel personnel,
a tuk-tuk that brought me to see these places. While coming from Siem Reap, I first passed by the Angkor Wat, then next to the Phnom Bakeng, and then also before another temple called Banksei
Chamkrong. I planned the visit to this temple in another day, so I went straight toward Angkor Thom.

The ancient city is surrounded by an huge moat and massive defensive walls. In our days, both the moat and the walls are still impressive, in spite that, through the centuries, most of the moat
filled with soil. Now the moat has water only in the rain season, and it’s still a good place only for the water buffaloes. I went there on the end of October, when the rain season was just over,
so I had the good luck to see the moat filled with water. Coming from Siem Reap, I had to go through the Southern Gate of the walls. My reference from the past, Mr. Zhou Daguan (1295 A.D.),
described this place with these words “The walls of the city are about twenty li (about 10 Kilometres)in circumference. There are five gateways, each of them with two gates, one in front of the
other. There are two gateways facing east, and one gateway facing in each of the other directions. Around the outside of the city walls there is a very large moat. This is spanned by big bridges
carrying large roads into the city. On either side of every bridge there are fifty-four stone deities. They look like stone generals, huge and fierce-looking.

The five gateways are all alike. The parapets of the bridges are all made of stone and carved into the shape of snakes, each snake with nine heads. The fifty-four deities are all pulling at the
snake with their hands, and look as if they are preventing it from escaping. Above the gateways in the city wall there are five stone Buddha heads. Four of them face toward the four cardinal
points, and one of them is placed in the middle. It is decorated with gold. On either side of the gates the stone are carved into the shape of elephants”.

His description matches perfectly to what people see while coming here. His words look like suspended in the time, and, whispering them while stepping on the bridge, among the statues of the
Deities, sound like a timeless charm. But for me it was also interesting to know what meant those statues. Why the Khmers were repeating this scene in every bridge of Angkor Thom and recalled it
in other temples? What it meant to this ancient people? So, I looked inside my books, and I discovered that it’s the representation of an Hindu legend called “The churning of the ocean of milk”.

The legend of The churning of the ocean of milk
The legend says that once the Gods, after a curse, lost all their powers. This brought the Demons to win over them and to rule the world. So, Indra, the king of the Gods, told to the Gods to
ask for help to his brother, Lord Vishnu (an higher rank God). Vishnu agreed to help them, and told them a plan to gain a new power. The Gods had to treat the Demons in a diplomatic way, as the
Gods couldn’t afford a battle. So, they asked to the Demons, to work alongside with the Gods to obtain the Nectar of Eternal Life, and after achieving it, they would have shared it.

The nectar could be only obtained churning the ocean of milk, but none of the two armies could do it alone. On the same time, Visnu assured the Gods, that, when would come out the Nectar, he’d
manage that it’d be only for the Gods. So, the Gods aligned on a continent while the Demons on the other. In the middle was placed the Mountain Mandarachar and it would be the dasher for the
churning process. Then was asked the help of Vasuki, the king of the Nagas (deities shaped like many-headed serpents) that became the churning rope. So, the Gods and the Demons started to pull
alternatively under the guidance of Lord Vishnu.

From the churning of the ocean of milk came out many treasures, like, for example, the Moon. In the churning process, also appeared the Asparas (a very common figure in the temples, as it’s
both in Hindu and Buddhist religions), that could be compared to the Westener Muses and Nymphs. On the end came out the Nectar of Eternal life, and after a struggle among the deities, the Gods
seized it and drunk it, gaining new power and winning over the demons.

For the Khmers was also very important the figure of the Naga snake, and also for this reason, they felt like this legend meant much more for them. So, in many temples you find the Nagas
guarding them (always with less than nine heads, as there is only one, the king of Nagas to have nine heads and it can’t be used so easily for every temple). In more, many temples and citadels
are crossed from one side to the other from an ideal line, usually like the opposite gates, just to remember the episode of the “Churning of the ocean of milk”. While the streets that lead to
the opposite gates, are representing the Naga, while the temple is the central mountain. So, in spite that Angkor Thom has these ideal lines crossing it, also every gate is shaped to remember
the same episode.

As you can see in the first picture of this group, it looks like the gate is the mountain in the middle of the two parties. While in the second picture you can see some Demons pulling the Naga.
In the short description made by Mr. Zhou Daguan, the gate is described like having the sculptures of elephants on its pillars. When you come close to the gate, you can see the outline of three
elephants heads. In fact, on the pillars of the Angkor Thom gates was sculptured the sacred three-headed elephant Airavata, that Lord Indra is used to ride.

While walking on this place, you can be surprised how many feelings can give you such a small place. I mean, the size is still huge, but it’s still very little compared to the temples. The Angkor
Thom welcomes you in this extraordinary way, and make sure that it’s just little compared to the wonders that you can see later.

Francesco Benvenuti per Newsfood.com