Holiday Ayo - Maybe we are already familiar with hearing the word " Angkor Wat ". Which country do you think of when you hear that word? Thailand? or Cambodia? For more details, let's look at the following explanation.

Angkor Wat is one of the temples in Siem Reap City, Cambodia. Angkor Wat was built in the early 12th century (1113-1149M) by Suryavarman II.

He was the third ruler of the Mahidharpura dynasty at Angkor and came to power through violence, killing his uncle Dharanindravarman I, and reuniting the Khmer Empire.

The uniqueness of Angkor Wat with other Angkor temples is that the building faces west, possibly because this temple was originally dedicated to Lord Vishnu. While the original name of the temple is still unknown.

source: Wikipedia

Historians assume that Angkor Wat is the last name, because there was an urban area in the vicinity which was called Yasodharapura from the late 9th century, and became known as Angkor only after the 15th century.

At that time Angkor Wat was basically used as a Theravada Buddhist temple. The name Angkor Wat was only used in 1632.

The Angkor Wat complex is much bigger than expected. The temple has many more components than previously imagined and is bounded on its south side by a unique and massive square-shaped structure.

But the function of this structure is not yet known. The construction of the Angkor Wat Temple was never fully completed. Some of the gallery walls are impeccably carved or decorated. Part of the outer wall decoration is also not finished.

source: Aneka Tempat Wisata

Given that the primary construction of such a temple most likely occurred during the reign of a single ruler and it is estimated that the construction of Angkor Wat may have taken around 40 years.

Since its inception until today, the temple area has been used for Hindu religious ritual purposes in the 12th to 13th centuries. Then for Buddhist rituals which most likely took place in the 14th or 15th century to the present.

In the following period, the Angkor Wat temple underwent major renovations to the west gate and central tower cluster. This included closing the four doors to the central shrine, whose walls were carved in the shape of a standing Buddha.

In the 16th century many inscriptions were added to its walls. The foundations and installation of the relief sculptures at the east end of the north outer corridor and the north end of the east outer corridor were completed in the mid-16th century.

source: Rencana Liburan

The stone structure of the temple is built on a platform with a volume of about 3 million cubic meters. This platform is built from layers of sand and clay. The stone structure of the central temple consists of a sand core, encased in a pyramid of precisely placed laterite blocks, which are then covered by sandstone blocks and intricately carved.

The causeways of Angkor Wat correspond to the proportional duration of the Yugas which are Hindu cosmology. Physically, the entire layout of Angkor Wat, as is the case with the pyramidal mountain surrounded by a moat, is thought to be similar to the cosmology of Mount Meru and the surrounding Milky Sea which is a blend of gods and demons.

In the western part of the temple there is a large reclining Vishnu statue. It is known to have replaced an earlier configuration consisting of a large, upright, cylindrical stone statue, conventionally ascribed to the mid-11th century because of its Baphuon style.

source: Heritage India Images

It was then placed in the early 12th century as part of the resumption of water management rituals and landscapes during the reign of Suryavaraman II.

The main temple consists of a raised central group of five towers forming a square with four 75 × 75 meter towers surrounding a central tower which are placed symmetrically.

Around it is a rectangular gallery that encircles the four sides of the temple and forms like a fence. The main temple is located in the middle of the open area and is connected to the western entrance by a 15 meter wide shortcut.

The 4th enclosure measures 1000 × 815 meters and is bounded by laterite walls over 4 meters high which were constructed in the form of four gapuras, or roofed gates and were completed during the final stages of the temple's construction.