Topic: Tenacity

[Nichi]

Ta Prohm is a temple at Angkor, Cambodia, built in the Bayon style largely in the late 12th and early 13th centuries. Located approximately one kilometre east of Angkor Thom and on the southern edge of the East Baray, it was built by King Jayavarman VII as a Mahayana Buddhist monastery and university. Unlike most of the other Angkor temples, Ta Prohm has been left in much the same condition in which it was found: the photogenic and atmospheric combination of trees growing out of the ruins and the jungle surroundings have made it one of Angkor's most popular temples with visitors. The trees growing out of the ruins are a distinctive feature of the temple for the modern visitor.

Ta Prohm was one of the first temples begun in Jayavarman VII's massive building program. The temple's modern name means "old Brahma", but the original name was Rajavihara (royal temple). It was centred on veneration of the king's family: the main image was modelled on his mother, while the two satellite temples in the third enclosure were dedicated to his guru (north) and his elder brother (south). Expansions and additions continued as late as the rule of Srindravarman at the end of the 13th century. The temple's stele recorded that the site was home to more than 12,500 people, with a further 80,000 in surrounding villages helping to supply the institution. The temple amassed considerable riches, including gold, pearls and silks.

After the fall of the Khmer empire, the temple fell into neglect for centuries. When the effort to conserve and restore the temples of Angkor began in the early 20th century, Ta Prohm was chosen by the École Française d'Extrême-Orient to be left largely as it was found as a "concession to the general taste for the picturesque" (Glaize). Glaize writes that this temple was chosen because it was, "one of the most imposing and the one which had best merged with the jungle, but not yet to the point of becoming a part of it - as but one specimen typical of a form of Khmer art of which there were already other models". Nevertheless much work has been done to stabilise the ruins and to permit access, in order to maintain "this condition of apparent neglect"

http://www.flickr.com/photos/-lucie-/3177339736/

[Nichi]

[Nichi]

[Nichi]

[Michael]

those are great pics V

[Firestarter]

Thats really cool how the roots grow over those temples. Makes you think of tree worship for some reason. Really interesting place.

[Nichi]

http://biginjapan.org/asia/wp-content/gallery/cambodia/20060708-ta-prohm-roots-2.jpg

[Nichi]

[Nichi]

Off-topic to the "wild" aspect of the temple, here is a carving found on the temple:  it's a dinosaur. 

[Nichi]

TA PROHM

Unlike most of the temples of Angkor, Ta Prohm has been largely left to the clutches of the living jungle. With its dynamic interaction between nature and man-made art, this atmospheric temple is a favorite for many.

History

Construction on Ta Prohm began in 1186 AD. Originally known as Rajavihara (Monastery of the King), Ta Prohm was a Buddhist temple dedicated to the mother of King Jayavarman VII.
A rare inscription at Ta Prohm provides statistics on the temple's workers. Allowing for some exaggeration to honor the king, the inscription's report of around 80,000 workers, including 2700 officials and 615 dancers, is still astounding.
Sadly, Ta Prohm was looted quite heavily in recent years due to its relative isolation, and many of its ancient stone reliquaries have been lost.

What to See

Great trees tower above Ta Prohm, their leaves filtering the sunlight, providing welcome shade and casting a greenish light over the otherwordly site. Delicately carved reliefs on the walls sprout lichen, moss and creeping plants.
Some as wide as an oak tree, the vines at Ta Prohm cleave massive stones in two and spill over the top of temple ramparts. The effect is striking, especially at the strangulating root formation on the inside of the easternmost gopura (entrance pavilion).
Another popular site is the "Tomb Raider tree" in the central sanctuary, where Angelina Jolie picked a jasmine flower and was sucked beneath the earth.

Ta Prohm is extensively ruined, but you can still explore numerous towers, close courtyards and narrow corridors, discovering hidden gems of stone reliefs beneath the encroaching foliage. Many of the corridors are impassible, thanks to the jumbled piles of carved stone blocks that clog their interiors.

There are 39 towers at Ta Prohm, which are connected by numerous galleries. Visitors are no longer permitted to climb onto the crumbling galleries, due to the potential damage to both temple and visitor.
The exterior wall of the compound is 1km by 600m (1/2 mile by 1,969 feet) and the entrance gates have the classic Jayavarman face. Most visitors enter from the west gate, and some drivers will agree to pick you up on the other side.

Quick Facts

Names: Ta Prohm
City: Angkor
State/Region: Siem Reap
Category: Buddhist Temples; World Heritage Sites
Faith: Buddhism
Denomination: Khmer
Status: ruins
Architecture: Khmer
Features: Spectacular Setting
Coordinates: 13.434871° N, 103.889208° E
Address: Angkor Archaeological Park, Siem Reap, Cambodia
Hours: Daily dawn-dusk
Cost: Archaeological Park: US$20 for one day, US$40 for three days, US$60 for one week

excerpt from www.sacred-destinations.com

[Nichi]

[Nichi]

TA PROHM

History

Construction on Ta Prohm began in 1186 AD. Originally known as Rajavihara (Monastery of the King), Ta Prohm was a Buddhist temple dedicated to the mother of King Jayavarman VII.

I just watched a documentary on this temple and the Khmer Empire: interestingly, their version was that this temple was originally a temple to Vishnu, and that the great abundance of the carvings are Hindu. Later, as Buddhism took over in Cambodia, Buddha-statues were added (and more temples were built.)

The Khmer Empire had an astonishing level of technological advancement, for societies pre-Industrial era. It was all founded on their techniques of water-delivery. Rivers were diverted to fill reservoirs, and the population is speculated to have been over a million.  What happened to the Khmer Empire, per this documentary, was over-deforestation, which accelerated erosion: the rivers began to deliver silt and not water, undoing the system which had been built. In light of this possible reason, it seems fitting somehow that the forest took over these temples, eh?

Where the river begins, the carvings of Shiva and linga still survive: the river flows over the carvings, as a waterfall.

(What wasn't addressed was that carving of a dinosaur shown a few posts back, something I find very intriguing.)