Hello Hive Community.
Most of my posts in the worldmappin community will be based on places showing the beauty of nature. In which mountains will be covered with beautiful lakes and places that are endowed with natural beauty. But something different from that, in today's post I have presented a beautiful and magnificent temple with you through a post. The name of this temple is Bayon Temple, about which I will talk to you in detail in today's post. Along with this, I will give you information about how to visit this temple and the facilities to reach here in detail here in today's post. So I will start my post here.
The courtyard of this temple starts from where the huge doors are visible in the two photographs above. I will give basic information about this temple at the beginning. Bayon Temple is one of the most famous and beautiful temples of Cambodia. It is located in the ancient city of Angkor Thom. Which was the capital of the Khmer Empire many years ago. And this temple is also known by many as Angkor Thom Temple. This temple is very special because of its many smiling stone faces and detailed carvings. You can see the photographs of the smiling stone faces in my post. People from all over the world visit the Bayon Temple to see the beauty of it and learn about its history.
Every wall of the Bayon Temple has fine carvings. These carvings can be seen in the two photographs above. The carvings in the Bayon Temple are pictures that have been carved into the stone walls. Because in the past there were no cameras to capture and take pictures. So the people of that time could preserve their memories for a long time by carving on the stones. These pictures are not just decorations. This is a kind of story made of stone. Many scenes are shown in the carvings above. In which the battles between the Khmer army and their enemies are carved. So religious rituals and legends can also be seen in these carvings. The royal life and events in the king's court are also preserved through these carvings.
Bayon Temple was built by King Jayavarman VII in the late 12th century or early 13th century. You might think that this temple has been built for 800 years, but this temple is still standing. And each wall of this temple tells its own story. If I talk a little about history, Jayavarman VII was one of the most powerful kings of the Khmer Empire. At that time, the Khmer Empire was very large and prosperous. And during this time, many great buildings were built. Bayon Temple was built in the middle of the king's capital city of Angkor Thom. It was a state temple and also a place of worship.
In the first photograph of the four photographs above, a statue similar to the symbol of Buddhism is seen. There are many statues of this type here. The reason is that Bayon was originally a Buddhist temple. Because King Jayavarman VII followed Mahayana Buddhism. But later when other kings came to power, they changed it to a Hindu temple and then back to a Buddhist temple. This shows how many times religion has changed in the history of Cambodia. As seen in the photographs above, Bayon Temple has many stone doors. Which go to different rooms and parts of the temple. These doors are not like modern doors made of wood. These doors are large openings made of stone. And many of them are decorated with carvings.
As I told you earlier, this temple is also known for its huge smiling face carvings made on the stone. As can be seen in the four photographs I have presented above, there are many towers with smiling stone faces. Which are also very famous for their beautiful wall carvings. These carvings are seen on the outer and inner walls of the temple. But the huge carvings are special in the upper tower of the temple. These carvings are full of detail. These carvings tell stories about life during the time of the Khmer Empire. And they show us a lot about the history, culture, religion, and daily activities of the people who lived hundreds of years ago.
As you can see in the photographs above, there are about 50 such towers here. And each of these towers has four faces. If we count the 50 towers, then there are more than 200 faces in total. These faces are calm, peaceful and smiling. The locals here say that the faces are of Avalokiteshvara. Who was a kind and loving Buddhist person. While some people also say that this face looks like King Jayavarman VII. I don't know if this is true or not. All these stories are from this temple.
The Bayon temple is built in three levels. The lower two levels have long galleries with carvings. While the upper level has towers with faces. The design of the temple here is not very regular. And that makes it different from other temples like Angkor Wat. Which is more symmetrical. Bayon Temple is not just a building made of stone. But it can be said that the stones of this temple speak. These stones also show the skill and intelligence of the Khmer people. If I talk about the carving of these faces, the faces on the towers seem to represent kindness and peace.
As can be seen in the four photographs above, the Bayon Temple complex is surrounded by walls. It can also be said that Bayon Temple does not have large outer walls like other temples. But it is located inside Angkor Thom. Which is a large walled city. The walls of Angkor Thom protect the entire area. Which also includes the Bayon Temple at its center. These walls are about 3 kilometers long. These walls are made of a type of red stone. I have forgotten the name of this stone. And they are about 7 meters high. These walls have many stone galleries with beautifully carved walls next to the Bayon temple. The carvings made on these walls can be seen in the first and second photographs above. The carvings on these inner walls depict scenes of war, religion and daily life.
To visit the Bayon Temple, you have to do this in Siem Reap. The city of Siem Reap is the gateway to the Angkor Archaeological Park. The Angkor Ticket Center is located about 4 km from the center of Siem Reap. This is where all Angkor Passes are sold - no other places are valid. There is no separate ticket just for Bayon. Admission is included in the Angkor Pass. Which covers all the main temples including Bayon, Angkor Wat, Ta Prohm and others. The Angkor Pass for foreign visitors costs USD37 for 1 day. But the complex is so large that three-day and seven-day passes are also available. The 3-day pass costs USD62 while the 7-day pass is available for USD72.
As can be seen in the photographs above, visitors can see many statues and small temples around the Bayon temple. These statues show the Buddha sitting in meditation or standing in a peaceful posture. While some statues can also be seen in the Buddhist religion helping other people. Many statues can also be seen of Hindu gods such as Shiva and Vishnu. There are also many guardian statues here, which appear to be lions, snakes and other mythical creatures protecting the temple. Some of the statues are broken or damaged. But many are still standing and are respected by visitors and locals.
I believe that the Bayon temple complex is full of amazing things to see. From the smiling stone faces and detailed carvings to the statues, towers and quiet shrines, every part of the temple tells a story. Bayon is more than just stone, it is a place of history, religion and life. Visiting Bayon is like walking through the heart of the ancient Khmer Empire. That’s all I’ll say to end my post today.
I hope you will like my post today about BAYON TEMPLE CAMBODIYA.
I sincerely thank you for visiting and reading my post.