The Khmer civilization, today embodied by the
temples and ruins of Angkor, one of mankind's most
astonishing and enduring architectural achievements,
flourished from 802-1431 A.D. From the great citadel
of Angkor, the kings of the Khmer Empire ruled over a
vast domain that reached from what is now southern
Vietnam to Yunan, China and from Vietnam westward
to the Bay of Bengal. The original city was built
around the Phnom Bakeng, a temple on a hill
symbolizing the mountain that stands in the center of
the world according to Hindu cosmology. Successive
kings enlarged the city, building other temples
devoted to various Hindu deities and large reservoirs
used for irrigation, which also symbolized the ocean
surrounding the holy central mountain.
Elephant-headed Ganesha, also known by the title
Vighnesvara (the lord of obstacles) during the
Angkor period, is probably the most popular and
easily recognizable deity in the Brahmanic pantheon.
Here he is represented seated in the posture of a
yogin with his characteristic potbelly, a
feature that may relate back to the Indian legend
where Siva, his father, allowed him to be the first to
partake in the offerings of food brought by believers.
He is worshipped as the protector of new enterprises
and the surmounter of obstacles. His relation to the
elephant, the largest land animal in the world, no
doubt suggests the origin of his powers to triumph
over difficulties, whether physical or mental. He
holds in his upturned right hand a round object that
may be a modaka, or sweet, that Ganesha is
typically shown holding in the pre-Angkor period,
derived from earlier Indian iconography. In his other
hand, he probably holds a broken fragment of his
tusk, which is consequently missing from his jaw.
This attribute symbolizes his mutilation and rebirth.
The decapitation of his human head and the
placement of its elephant substitute imbued Ganesha
with magical powers and divine enlightenment,
literally the powers of man and animal merged into
one being. This sculpture, dating from the golden
age of Khmer culture, likely would have served as a
private idol to be worshipped on a small shrine in the
home.
- (FZ.420)
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