Cambodia's Most Famous Sacred Temple

Their population today is around 7,000,000 people who are mostly Buddhists. At the center of the ancient kingdom of Khmer is its capital city, Angkor. In 1953, all of the power was handed to Prince Sihanouk but he was overthrown by his own Lieutenant-General Lon Nol in 1970. Lon Nol was made president of the new Khmer Republic and Prince Sihanouk and all of his followers joined forces with a communist guerrilla group known as the Khmer Rouge soon after the civil war started. The actions of the Khmer Rouge which was actually “genocide” began shortly after they got power from Lon Nol in 1975. The article on the Cambodian Genocide also says the genocide lasted until the Khmer Rouge got overthrown by the Vietnamese in 1978. The genocide itself self-destructed from a harsh climate of political and social turmoil. The atmosphere of the general unrest in Cambodia arose during the French decolonization of Southeast Asia in the early 1950s and continued to devastate the region until the late 1980s. Under Prince Sihanouk, Cambodia had remained neutral during the war by giving support to both sides. The Viet Cang was allowed to use the ports and the U.S. was allowed to bomb Viet Cong hideouts in Cambodia. The allowed U.S. troops to roam freely in and out of Cambodia while battling with the Viet Cang. For the Next four years American led B-52 bomb attacks to destroy suspected North Vietnamese forces. Around 156,000 Cambodians died

Although the complex was never fully finished, the additions constructed to the Temple that began with Senuseret 1 show the major effect of religion on the empire. Karnak’s significance comes from the rich history engraved into the stone. From stories of battles and pharaohs to gods and wishes of good luck that are inscribed into the sandstone. (Karnak Temple, 2017). This proves the significance of Karnak temple by focusing on the power of religion in ancient Egypt. Furthermore, the effect the gods and the religion had on the way pharaohs ruled and the effect it had on politics, the sway it had in everyday life and the civilians, and the advancements it held in architectural importance all proves the significance of the Karnak Temple. Therefore, despite the ruination of The Karnak Temple, the site remains of importance in further the notion of the effect religion had on ancient

In just three years of its power in control, Pol Pot and Khmer Rouge turned the country of Cambodia into a living hell. “By 1976 approximately twenty-five hundred prisoners had passed through the bloody corridors of S21, and each year that followed saw increased numbers of tortured prisoners, until they totaled around seventeen thousand by 1979, when the Vietnamese Army liberated Phnom Penh.”（8 Asma) Most prisoners brought to S21 was innocent, they were brought here only because the people in power believe they were enemies of the revolution or associated with western culture. Ironically, the torture chamber used to be a school. People associate hope and bright future with school, especially with

The temples are all so symbolic, which helps us understand their cosmology and religious ideologies (Freeman & Jacques 47). It has also been recorded that the temple contained a statue of Vishnu, but at some point, temples were converted to Theravada Buddhist worship. Suryavarman however, chose Hindu sources as the subject matter- Ramayana and Mahabharata epics, were specifically carved on the two panels. Meanwhile, the Heavens and Hells were carved on the W and E parts of the S gallery (Freeman & Jacques 54). Other temples such as Chao Say Tevoda was built during Suryavarman as well, but recently, Chinese began to restore it. In some ways, this symbolically represents the profound effect Suryavarman and his creation of temples had on the religion and ideology in the Eastern world, and the future between Cambodia and China. As a result of Suryavarman’s dedication to create reflections of gods and religion, it is inferred that religion and society were intimately linked throughout the Angkorian period.

The Khmer Rouge forces took over Cambodia, and evacuated the nation's cities. They emptied schools, hospitals, factories and abolished all forms of money and wages. Religion, popular culture, and all forms of self expression were forbidden. They were forced into the countryside to do forced labor, and got less than 90 grams of rice a day. Where most people died from fatigue, disease, execution, and starvation. Now people of Cambodia are exchanging this terrible genocide for healing. Trying to find peace and a resolution for all those who have lost loved ones, or encountered this terrible genocide

Participants of this march walked through areas in Cambodia affected by deforestation. In addition to there pilgrimage, participants planted up to 2,000 trees as they continued their march (Piseth). Ghosananda continuously advocated to villagers along the way to respect the environment and preached about, how it is our job as beings to respect nature for all it provides in return. Not only did he encourage unity among beings but among nature. Knowing that non-violence also applies to nature since it provides invaluable gifts that must be protected. It is mans responsibility to continue searching for ways to improve natures sustainability in order to avoid disastrous consequences. This pilgrimage addressed the problem Cambodia faced with deforestation throughout regions and partook in morally righteous actions to improve future generations from its negative effects. Finally, throughout continuous efforts there managed to be reconciliation between Khmer Rouge and government forces. During this milestone, Maha Ghosananda raised above existing issues and forgave Khmer Rouge and place emphasis that ‘Buddha forgives all who wish to be forgiven’ (Mahatthanadul). Compassion is an essential part of Buddhist philosophy. In order to respond to social problems, means theres need to be this interplay between the issues at hand and Buddhist teachings. By forgiving Khmer Rouge, Ghosananda portrays

Unfortunately, set aside all of those captured beauty that Cambodia has, at one point in time in its

Cambodia is a small country of Southeast Asia, less than half the size of the state of California (“World Without Genocide: Cambodian Genocide”). The Cambodian government in the mid 1970’s was unstable as Lon Nol, the Cambodian prime minister, and his forces were being stretched dealing with conflicts of Vietnamese communists, and a rising group of Cambodian communists called the Khmer Rouge Party. (Peace Pledge Union) As the government grew weaker and began to loose control, The Khmer Rouge Party overthrew the country. They began killing for their cause in 1975. The Khmer Rouge Party, under the rule of a man called Pol Pot, enforced a new way of life following values and rules similar to Maoist-Communism (“World Without Genocide: Cambodian Genocide”). The Khmer Party attempted, in simplistic terms, to nationally centralize the middle or farming class of Cambodia (“World Without Genocide: Cambodian

This project will allow me to provide insight into the tragedy that has taken place in Cambodia during the

The planet that we reside on has a long, enduring history. Today, remnants can still be found that tell the history of the land, and of its inhabitants; many of these remnants, however, have been destroyed over time. The Bamiyan Valley in Afghanistan has a rich and complicated history that continues up to the present day. The residents of Bamiyan live neighboring a wall of cliffs, speckled with caves. Bordering the city on each side, two abandoned niches are carved into the cliff face, each towering over 100 meters. These great niches once held two Buddha statues that looked out over the Bamiyan Valley, but now stand empty. Once a witness to the history of the area, these Buddhas were destroyed in 2001 when the Taliban, a terrorist group, destroyed them due to their religious imagery.

As a scholar taking the class ‘Introduction to World Religions”, I had the opportunity to take part in a culture that is not normally found in the western world. I entered the Mon Buddhist Monastery in Akron, Ohio on October 2nd, 2016 only to be amazed at their way of life. Going into the temple, I knew of the basic religious practices and traditions that the monks and Buddhists had participated in daily. When I was coming up to the monastery, it did not look like anything other than an old brick building, but once we were inside it looked like a recreational area. Somewhere where they would meditate, hold daily activities, and teach the younger Buddhist about their way of life. On the far back wall, there was a stunning shrine dedicated to the Buddha where one would pray. Many figurines were displayed as well as flowers and offerings along it.

On the one hand, Youk Chhang was a survivor when the Khmer Rouge came to power in Cambodia. One of his opinions was “Some Cambodians are anxious to forget and forgive. Others are angry and searching for justice” (Hyde 2). Chhang lost everything, and tells us this story. He was 13 years old when the Khmer

Though architecture is something that we see and observe daily, to truly get to know a building we must observe it from all angles and view every detail to understand its beauty and the purpose of why it was created. Many unique buildings have been constructed all over the world, however, the most unique structures and its bold design will catch the eye of bystanders more often, such as The Dome of the Rock. This building, which is located in Jerusalem, caught the eye of many people due the huge golden dome structure that sits on top of the building and the decorative colors and tiles that surround the building. The historical significance of this building is upheld by the religion of its local people, the location site of the building, along with the structure and the design of the building itself.

Vishnu is also related with the west which now makes Angkor Wat accepted to serve as a temple and a mausoleum for Suryavarman II. This monument is also famous for having over 3,000 charming apsaras (nymphs) carved into the walls. Even though there are over 3,000 each one of these are unique and there are 37 different hairstyle on each. Unfortunately, many of these apsaras were damaged while trying to clean the temples with certain chemicals. The German Apsara Conservation project is still restoring them as much as possible. (Source C).

And yet, despite their traumatic lives, they never taught me to resent my heritage. Paintings of Angkor Wat line my house while multiple Buddha statues comfort