Presentation about visiting Angkor Wat

2. ANGKOR WAT TEMPLE

3. INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY TOUR
On a special occasion, our school create an opportunity for
FAHFL, English class junior and senior students to have a
study tour to Angkor region. We started our journey to Siem
Reap on the early morning of the 1st March, and along way to
Siem Reap we are all happy together, singing, clapping, telling
joke,… are the way we’re all make fun. In order to go to Siem
Reap we have to across 3 provinces: Prey Veng, Kam
Pongcham, and Kam Pongthom. At last with joy and smiling
face we’re arrived in Siem Reap province. For our study tour in
Siem Reap, we have visited Bayon temple, Banteaysrei temple,
Banteaysamre, and Angkor Wat temple,

4. INTRODUCTION TO ANGKOR WAT TEMPLE
Angkor Wat is a temple which
is located in Siem Reap
province. The Angkor Wat
temple was constructed by
king Suryavarman II, in the
beginning of 12th century in
the year of 1113 AD.
The temple is at the top of the high classical style of Khmer
architecture. It has become a symbol of Cambodia, appearing
on its national flag, and it is the country's prime attraction for
visitors. Angkor Wat is a great temple in Angkor area and it is
one of the seven wonder in the world and a temple which
become the world heritage in December 15, 1992.

5. HISTORY OF ANGKOR
The whole Angkor period spans for more than VI centuries, and
more precisely from IX till XV century. During this period the
Khmer empire reached its maximum splendor as one of the
most powerful southeast asian kingdoms. In this period the
whole area of Angkor was built. We can consider Jayavarman II
as the man that started everything. He defines himself
Devaraja (good king) and he established the Khmer empire in
802.
Angkor Wat lies 5.5 kilometres north of the modern town of
Siem Reap. It is in an area of Cambodia where there is an
important group of ancient structures. It is the southernmost
of Angkor's main sites. The initial design and construction of
the temple took place in the first half of the 12th century,
during the reign of Suryavarman II (ruled 1113 – c. 1150).
Dedicated to Vishnu, it was built as the king's state temple and
capital city.

6. ANGKOR WAT
The Angkor Wat is also considering
as one of the largest religious Hindu
temples in the world, and
considering as the most using stone
temple in the world as well. Angkor
Wat estimated to use the sandstone
and laterite approximately 300,000
million tones and took to build
about 35years and saying that they
used 4000 elephants including
people suggested one person each
family in around the kingdom, come
to carry the sandstone from a quarry of Phnom (mountain )
Kulen which its distend about 55 km to northeast from
Angkor.

7. Angkor Wat was originally served
as a Hindu temple, which
dedicated to honor of Vishnu. It
is only temple in the Angkor
area, which built facing to the
west. Normally, all the religious
temples built facing to the east.
The reason that Angkor Wat
facing west, because due to this
monument constructed to honor
of God Vishnu, rather than the reason that this monument
served as a funeral temple. Suryavarman II took Lord Vishnu as
his God, and when he died they cremated his body and then
collected some his ashes to keep in a golden urn to burry
underneath of a golden Vishnu statue riding on Garuda, that
originally installed in a central chamber of the main tower of
the Angkor Wat.

8. This concept was the same concept to all the Khmer kings in
the Angkor period. Because kings as gods, if he was a god he
must has his posthumous name due to the name of god whom
he believed, liked Suryavaman II had his posthumous name as
Parama Vishnu Loka.
Angkor Wat temple has a moat,
which measured of 1300m by
1500m, and about 5.5 km
surrounding its compound. The
moat also has 190m cross and
has water all year-round. From
that reason, Khmer temple has
so fancy decorated detail
carving everywhere from the bottom to the top of its
structure. Because for the gods, they must live so fancy and
sophisticated decoration.

9. When you visit to the Khmer
temples, you may see lion
statues at the first sight.
According to the Hindu myths,
Brahma God of Creator took lion
as
his
palace's
doorway
guardian. When Khmers build
temples, and as their temples
were symbolized of Mt Meru,
(Home of the Hindu Gods), that is why they put the lion
statues for guarding at the front of their temples in order to
follow a concept of a lion was guarding to the home of the
Gods. Behind the lion statues, they put the naga statues to
serve as the balustrade always along the causeway on the both
sides.

10. The naga is a mythical snake
and according to the Hindu
myth, the naga was a god of
the underworld. We notice
that the Naga of Angkor Wat
designed liked a fan form and
appearing
with
seven
heads. This only head of
Naga in the first causeway is
still good intact. The seven
headed naga is symbolic of
the seven days of week, and seven colors of rainbow. By the
way, to have number seven is standing on the theory with the
odd number, because the odd number is lucky number.

11. For those who have plenty of time, suggested to come to the
third level of Angkor Wat, is a very nice one. To have a sit at a
quiet doorway and facing to ever green densely jungle, then
imagine to an excellent inspiration of the Khmers who created
such a fabulous architecture on earth. In addition, imagine how
powerful to the Khmers who could carry stones from dozens
kilometers away in order to build such a wonderful temple on
planet. One more thing, to make us feel so mysterious and magic
to the Khmer Kings who left for us such a considerable value
legacy which now here on earth can compare. Then making our
heart bloom of proud for being as a Khmer. As we see with our
eyes this last temple are traces of a high level civilization. An
enormous job that involved not only an army of
thousands workers doing the hard job, building, moving rock and
materials and so on. We will never know their names, or their
faces, but what they left us fulfills our hearts with something
magic.

12. In conclusion, because
of this study tour we have
learnt many things more about our culture especially the
history of each temple we had visited. It was the great building
which every people in the world want to visit because it is the
world heritage. And beside the history of great temple we have
learnt, we met many foreign tourist and we can practice
speaking English and ask them what they think about Angkor
Wat and Cambodia. And this study tour also build-up good
relationship between teachers who led us and between all
student.