The Bayon Temple Inside The Walls Of Angkor Thom

• The Bayon Temple in Angkor Thom is the second most important monument to visit in Angkor. It was constructed in late 12th C under the reign of Jayavarman VII. The Bayon is made of sandstone and represents a temple mountain representing Mount Meru. From the outside it appears like an intricate labyrinth, but in fact it follows a plan based on a Yantra, which is a geometric diagram of the Indian Buddhists which demonstrates the mandala, or concentric diagram supposedly symbolizing the universe and the places of divine powers within it.
• The Bayon has three levels, the first of which has eight doorways and between these are walls covered with bas-reliefs. These bas relief carvings are some of the finest at Angkor. It will take several hours to see them and a good understanding of Khmer history and beliefs will enrich your understanding of these works.
  
• The Bayon is at the geometric center of Angkor Thom which is 1.5 kilometers north from the South Gate and it lies on the axis to the North Gate.
• The main features to see are; [ 1 ] the 37 towers and 216 sandstone faces on the tops of the towers, [ 2 ] the east entrance & the Outer Gallery with murals of everyday life and historical events, [ 3 ] the Inner Gallery and the bas relief murals of Hindu mythology, [ 4 ] the upper terrace and the multiple images of the Buddhist '' Lokesvara ''. [ 5] the Central Tower.
• The other art features, which include the Devatas, the Apsaras bas-relief murals and the free standing stone statues of the Nagas and guardian Khmer lions.
  

The Architecture and Design of the Bayon Buddhist Temple Angkor Thom

From the outside the architecture of the Bayon looks confusing and is best understood as follows.

The key points about the Bayon Temple are as follows;

• The Bayon faces east inside enclosures on an east to west axis.
• The Bayon is positioned in the exact center of Angkor Thom.
• The Bayon has no walls or moats close to it as its walls and moats are those of the total Angkor Thom complex comprising a total area of 9 square kilometers.

[1] The building is a Buddhist Temple, hence the 216 stone faces of the serene Buddha image on each of the towers. It does not have the Hindu gods present as with the other Angkor Temples however it does portray in statues and bas reliefs many Hindu legends and mythologies.

[2] The structure of the Bayon Temple is as follows;

• The Bayon has three levels, the Outer Gallery on the ground, the Inner Gallery on the first level and the Upper Terrace. These are often referred to as the Third enclosure, the Second enclosure and the First enclosure [ referring in order from the top down to the ground ].

The Outer Gallery at the Bayon is covered in bas relief murals.

• These are of contemporary times in the 13th century and show much about dress, war fare, international groups, art and clothing, etc.
• One should purchase a detailed guide for details of these works and where to find them, but the following is an introduction about the murals.
• ''From the east and still in the eastern gallery, on the other side of the doorway leading into the courtyard, another procession followed by domestic scenes depicting Angkorian houses, some of the occupants of which appear to be Chinese merchants;
• in the southeast corner pavilion, an unfinished temple scene with towers, apsaras, and a lingam;
• in the eastern part of the southern gallery, a naval battle on the Tonle Sap between Khmer and Cham forces, underneath which are more scenes from civilian life depicting a market, open-air cooking, hunters, and women tending to children and an invalid;
• still in the southern gallery, past the doorway leading to the courtyard, a scene with boats and fisherman, including a Chinese junk, below which is a depiction of a cockfight; then some palace scenes with princesses, servants, people engaged in conversations and games, wrestlers, and a wild boar fight; then a battle scene with Cham warriors disembarking from boats and engaging Khmer warriors whose bodies are protected by coiled ropes, followed by a scene in which the Khmer dominate the combat, followed by a scene in which the Khmer king celebrates a victory feast with his subjects;
• in the western part of the southern gallery, a military procession including both Khmer and Cham, elephants, war machines such as a large crossbow and a catapult;
• in the southern part of the western gallery, unfinished reliefs show an army marching through the forest, then arguments and fighting between groups of Khmer;
• in the western gallery, past the doorway to the courtyard, a scene depicting a melee between Khmer warriors, then a scene in which warriors pursue others past a pool in which an enormous fish swallows a small deer, then a royal procession, with the king standing on an elephant, preceded by the ark of the sacred flame;
• in the western part of the northern gallery, again unfinished, a scene of royal entertainment including athletes, jugglers and acrobats, a procession of animals, ascetics sitting in a forest, and more battles between Khmer and Cham forces;
• in the northern gallery, past the doorway to the courtyard, a scene in which the Khmer flee from Cham soldiers advancing in tight ranks;
• in the northeast corner pavilion, another marching Khmer army;
• in the eastern gallery, a land battle between Khmer and Cham forces, both of which are supported by elephants: the Khmer appear to be winning. The outer gallery encloses a courtyard in which there are two libraries (one on either side of the east entrance).''

The Inner Gallery at Bayon Temple is between the Outer Gallery on ground level and the Upper Gallery which houses the ''Faces''.

• It is one level up above the ground. Here one can see the bas reliefs added during the subsequent time of Jayavaraman VIII who sought to replace Buddhism with the former religion, Hinduism.
• The Inner Gallery is one level up above the ground. Here one can see the bas reliefs added during the subsequent time of Jayavaraman VIII who sought to replace Buddhism with the former religion, Hinduism.
• The Inner Gallery bas reliefs all have Hindu related subject matter in this art form. Here the figures depicted come from Indian mythology and include, numerous Asparas, the three Hindu Gods, Vishnu, Brahma and Shiva and the mythological creatures Garuda and Ravana.
• There are also depictions in murals connected with the ''churning of the sea of milk '' Hindu myth and scenes from the legend of the Leper King.
• The Inner Gallery is not as rich in mural art as the Outer Gallery where on should spend more time, but it is the way up to the Upper Gallery and the temples of the ''Faces''.

The top of the Bayon Temple comprises the Upper Bayon Terrace and the numerous ''face'' towers of the Bayon.

• The top of the Bayon Temple comprises the Upper Bayon Terrace and the numerous ''face'' towers of the Bayon. Each of these towers has two, three and sometimes four faces. These faces are all similar and have the same serene smile looking down. Hence the name '' Lokesvara '' [ as explained below ].
• There is a master central tower and numerous smaller towers located along the Inner Gallery each either above the entrances or above its corners and also above the chapels on the Upper Terrace. There is no recorded reason for the number of towers. Presently there are 37 but previously there were up to 49.
• The Central Tower was originally cruciform in shape but was later altered to its present circular form. The Bayon Tower height reaches 43 meters above the ground. When first constructed this Tower housed a stone image of Buddha which depicted Buddha seated in meditation beneath the Naga, ''Mucalinda'' shielding him with its many heads. When the Hindu resurgence destroyed much of Buddhist icons in the time of Jayavaram VIII, this image was removed, broken and dumped in a nearby well until recovered in 1933 by the French.
• The Bayon Temple and its surrounding Gates, walls and moats is Khmer Hindhu. The face on all these structures is probably that of the King, a God King, Jayarvarman VII, not that of Buddha and it portrays none of the classic art form styles of the Buddha. However the Temple originally did house a traditional Khmer Buddha stone image.

The Art and Murals of the Bayon Buddhist Temple Angkor Thom

• The Bayon Tower is surrounded by two concentric galleries each sculpted with extensive bas reliefs. The outer Gallery on the ground level is sculpted with scenes of historic battles and every day life of the Khmer people of the time.
  
• Also here are the usual stone statues of the Khmer Temple Lion and Naga.
• These bas reliefs are more incised than those at Angkor Wat and the images are larger and less refined. They do provide excellent historical records of the events, ethnic diversity, costumes, instruments of war, etc and as such offer tourists a lot to see.
• As with most early art from Southeast Asia the artists did not understand perspective and hence tourists will see separate lower panels representing the foreground, and the upper panels representing the horizon in the distance.

The meanings of ''Lokesvara'' and ''Bodhisattvas''

• Foreign Tourists from Thailand, China, Korea and Japan will find Angkor guide books on the meaning of Southeast Asia religious concepts confusing. This is because they parrot the writings of others whose minds are also constrained by the meanings of words and the scope of their imagination.
• The explanation of the Bayon faces is one such example. The Buddha was a teacher, not a God, who preached that there are no Gods. However many human beings can not accept this simple proposition as it leaves a vacuum in their structure of Society. This was particularly so in the Khmer Empire.
• Basically the ''Lokesvara'' is an Indian term to mean "Lord who looks down" and who is a member of the group of beings termed a ''Bodhisattva''. The origins of the term are Pali [ an ancient Indian language ] from the word ''Bodhisatta'' which was actually used by Buddha to refer to himself prior to his enlightenment.
  
• The term ''a Bodhisattva'' therefore connotes a being who is "bound for enlightenment", in other words, a person whose aim is to become fully enlightened. In the Pali canon, the Bodhisattva is also described as someone who is still subject to birth, illness, death, sorrow, defilement and delusion.
  
• The other issue of importance is that the face is always the same and many historians believe it also incorporates the image of Jayavarman VII himself. It was the practice of Khmer kings to mold their own images into the faces of images of the gods. In the Paris Museum, ''Musee Guimet'', is a contemporary Khmer image of Jayavarman VII which bears great similarity to the Bayon faces.
  
• So a modern day Buddhist tourist might wonder, what sort of ''Buddhist'' Temple is it ?
• Mainstream Theravada Buddhism, as in Thailand, does not worship any of the Mahayana Bodhisattvas. For them, this is not Buddhism. The Tower did house a classic Buddha statue being that in the form of Buddha Under Naga, always very popular in Thailand and other parts of Southeast Asia.