The Role of Astronomy at Angkor Wat

Dr Uday Dokras PhD Stockholm SWEDEN

Angkor Wat is surrounded by a 200-m.-wide moat, crossed by a bridge on the west. At the end of the
bridge is a 200-m. long entrance structure: three central towers flanked on the north and south by a long,
pillared corridors that end in entrance gateways opening flat on the ground. An enclosing wall stretches
from these gateways around the temple compound.

The temple is built with incredible accuracy. Dated Khmer inscriptions begin with an elaborate
description of the location of the planets, sun, and moon in both the solar zodiac signs and lunar
constellations on the day the event in the inscription took place. This system also mentions whether the
date in question was in the waxing or waning half of the lunar month, and on which day of the week.
Astronomy is listed more than once among the subjects taught to Khmer kings. Based on the evidence of
stone inscriptions then, it would have been clear even to the most casual reader that astronomy played an
important role in the elite strata of Khmer society.

There is a 352-m. western causeway that leads from the main entrance of the temple (just cited) to the
central three galleries. The outer (third) gallery is decorated with bas-reliefs and dedicated to the history
of the king. The next (second) gallery has bare walls and was dedicated to the god Brahma and the moon.
The last (first) gallery surrounds the central tower and was dedicated to Vishnu as a Supreme Deity. We
do not know the name of the image of Vishnu that was once in the central tower. Both the first and second
galleries of the temples have towers over their corner pavilions, the third gallery has corner pavilions
without towers.

The Role of Astronomy at Angkor Wat

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Synopsis

The temple of Angkor Wat was constructed in the first half of the twelfth century by King Suryavarman II
(r. 1113-ca. 1150). Astronomy enters into the meaning, format, and bas-relief decoration of the temple in
three different ways. First of all, when the measurements of Angkor Wat are translated into the cubit unit
used in the temple's construction, lunar and solar calendrical cycles are revealed in axial and
circumference lengths. Secondly, there are several solar and lunar alignments between western points
along the axis and the towers in the central galleries. Both the calendrical dimensions and the alignments
were definitive elements in determining the format of the temple. In addition to actual sight lines, the
solstice sun casts light onto specific segments of the bas-reliefs and corridors, planned so as to literally
illuminate the selected segments with solar meaning. Finally, the composition and content of the panels of
bas-reliefs further define solar and lunar periodicity. In particular, the scene of the Churning of the Sea of
Milk (Milky Way) has been chosen here to demonstrate its calendrical function. In the end, we find that
the king himself, in conjunction with the solar god Vishnu in the central sanctuary, is an integral part of
the solar and lunar symbolism revealed in the measurements, alignments, and bas-reliefs.

The temple of Angkor Wat at the site of Angkor in northwestern Cambodia was started in 1113 CE when
King Suryavarman II rose to power. Suryavarman died around 1150, at which time all work on the temple
came to a halt. In this brief span of 37 years, the king endowed a monument that is now recognized as one
of the world's most notable architectural achievements.

Several excellent and erudite papers and research articles have been written on the Astronomy of
Angkor including several of mine.
1. Time, Space, and Astronomy in Angkor Wat
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/2889330_Time_Space_and_Astronomy_in_Angkor_W
at

2. Amelia Carolina Sparavigna. Solar Alignments of the Planning of Angkor Wat Temple Complex.
Philica, Philica, 2016, pp.591. ffhal-01312473f

3. THE ROLE OF ASTRONOMY IN THE “ANOMALOUS” ORIENTATIONS OF TWO

KHMER STATE-TEMPLES Giulio Magli School of Civil Architecture, Politecnico di Milano,
Italy Giulio.Magli@polimihttps://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1601/1601.01473.pdf

4. The Solar Numbers in Angkor Wat

Subhash Kak, Indian Journal of History of Science, vol. 34, 1999, pp. 117-126
https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/9811040

5. Stencel, R., Gifford, F., & Morón, E. (1976). Astronomy and Cosmology at Angkor
Wat. Science, 193(4250), 281–287. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1742346
6.
7. Archaeoastronomy in the Khmer Heartland, GIULIO MAGLI, Politecnico di Milano, Italy,
https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/sdh/article/view/22846/29089

8. Solstice Alignments at Angkor Wat and Nearby Temples-Connecting to the Cycles of

Time,William F. Romain, https://journal.equinoxpub.com/JSA/article/view/10647

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 9. Astronomical Myths in India1 Mayank Vahia Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Homi
BHabha Road, Mumbai 400 005, INDIA
vahia@tifr.res.inhttps://www.tifr.res.in/~archaeo/papers/Astronomy%20and%20Sanskrit%20liter
ature/Astronomical%20Myths%20in%20India.pdf

10. Equinox at Angkor Wat (ព្រឹត្តិការណ៏សមរាព្ត្ីនៅអង្គ រ),Sophia,

https://www.localguidesconnect.com/t5/General-Discussion/Equinox-at-Angkor-Wat

11. Solstice Azimuths as Design Elements at Angkor Wat and Nearby Temples, William F Romain

12. Astronomy and Cosmology at Angkor Wat,Parag

Mahajani https://www.scribd.com/document/162933027/Astronomy-and-Cosmology-at-Angkor-
Wat
And other’s referred to, quoted from and mimicked in this article. So, this attempt is just to simplify the
matter of how astronomy was used to build the temples and what role it played in order to behave as an
observatory. A condition created for posterity to marvel at.

PlanetQuest: The History of Astronomy

Angkor Wat

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Background:
One of the most spectacular structures of astronomical significance that has ever been built is the temple
of Angkor Wat in what is now Cambodia.

Angkor Wat is the most famous temple at Angkor, a former capital of the Khmer empire. It was built by
King Suryavarman II in the 12th century, and is as immense as it is beautiful. Surrounded by a rectangular
moat 1.5 kilometers (0.9 mile) long and 1.3 kilometers (0.8 mile) wide, the structure itself consists of two
rectangular walls enclosing three nested rectangular galleries that culminate in a central spire surrounded
by four smaller towers. The straight lines of its moat, walls and galleries are oriented along the north-
south, east-west directions, and unlike most temples in the area its entrance faces west, being approached
by way of a long bridge that spans the moat.

The origins of the temple lie in what may be the world's oldest religious text, the Rigveda, one of the
four Veda Samhitas of Hindu literature. This text describes the gods of heaven and earth, including the
earthly god Vishnu, "The Preserver." It is to Vishnu that Angkor Wat is consecrated, and with more than
mere symbolic intent. Hindu temples were built to be earthly abodes for the gods. The central sanctuary
was the most sacred place, directly inline with the vertical axis of the central spire that provided the
connection between the realms of heaven and Earth. The surrounding architecture of the temple would
then mirror Hindu cosmology, being essentially a mandala in stone—a diagram of the cosmos itself.
Furthermore, the Khmer civilization had by the time of Angkor Wat's construction incorporated the idea
that a king would, after his death, be transmuted into one of the gods. Hence, it was at Angkor Wat that
Suryavarman II, after his death, was believed to reside as Vishnu.

Astronomical significance:
Astronomy and Hindu cosmology are
inseparably entwined at Angkor Wat. Nowhere
is this more evident than in the interior
colonnade, which is dedicated to a vast and
glorious carved mural, a bas-relief illustrating
the gods as well as scenes from the Hindu epic
the Mahabharata. Along the east wall is a 45-
meter (150-foot) scene illustrating the
"churning of the sea of milk," a creation myth
in which the gods attempt to churn the elixir of
immortality out of the milk of time. The north
wall depicts the "day of the gods," along the
west wall is a great battle scene from Photo courtesy of www.andybrouwer.co.uk
the Mahabharata, and the south wall portrays
the kingdom of Yama, the god of death. It has
been suggested that the choice and arrangement of these scenes was intended to tie in with the seasons—
the creation scene of the east wall is symbolic of the renewal of spring, the "day of the gods" is summer,
the great battle on the west wall may represent the decline of autumn, and the portrayal of Yama might
signify the dormancy, the lifeless time of winter.

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 The architecture of Angkor Wat also has numerous
astronomical aspects beyond the basic mandala plan that is
common to other Hindu temples. As many as eighteen
astronomical alignments have been identified within its walls.
To mention but three of them: when standing just inside the
western entrance, the Sun rises over the central tower on
the spring (vernal) equinox; it rises over a distant temple at
Prasat Kuk Bangro, 5.5 kilometers (3.4 miles) away, on
the winter solstice; and on the summer solstice it rises over a
prominent hill 17.5 kilometers (10.9 miles) away.

Finally, some researchers have claimed that the very dimensions of many of the structures at Angkor Wat
have astronomical associations. These associations emerge from consideration of the unit of length that
was in use at that time, a unit known as the hat or "Cambodian cubit." There is some question as to how
long a hat was, and indeed its definition may not have been uniformly applied; but a value of 43.45
centimeters (17.1 inches) for the length of a hat is suggested by the structures themselves.

Using this value, archaeologists discovered numerous dimensions of the temple that seem to have
astronomical and cosmological significance—for example, the following:

 The dimensions of the highest rectangular level of the temple are 189 hat in the east-west
direction and 176 hat in the north-south direction. Added together these give 365, the number of
days in one year.

 In the central sanctuary, the distances between sets of steps is approximately 12 hat. There are
roughly 12 lunar cycles, or synodic months (from full Moon to full Moon, say—the basis for our
modern month) in one year.

 The length and width of the central tower add up to approximately 91 hat. On average, there are
91 days between any solstice and the next equinox, or any equinox and the next solstice.

Because of its orbit around the Earth, the Moon's apparent position in the sky relative to the background
stars will appear to shift from night to night. Since it takes the Moon just over 27 days to complete one
orbit (known as its sidereal period), it will during this time appear to move through 27 successive regions
of the sky. In Hindu cosmology, these regions were known as the naksatras, or lunar mansions. In some
contexts there were 27 lunar mansions, while in other contexts an additional naksatra containing the star
Vega was included, giving 28 lunar mansions.

 The central tower at Angkor Wat contains nine inner

chambers. If you total the dimensions of all of these chambers it equals 27 hat in the north-south
direction and 28 hat in the east-west direction, corresponding to the possible number of lunar
mansions. Also, the libraries have lengths measured along their interiors of 16 hat in the east-west
direction, and either 12 or 11 hat in the north-south direction, depending upon whether or not the
doorways are included. Added together, these also give either 28 or 27 hat. Finally, the north-
south width of the libraries measured from the exteriors of the walls is again 28 hat.

Hindu cosmology recognizes four time periods, or Yugas, that are represented in the dimensions of the
temple:

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  The length of the Kali-Yuga, our current time period, is 2 x 603 years, or 432 thousand years. The
width of the moat that surrounds the temple, measured at the water level, is approximately
432 hat.
 The length of the Dv apara-Yuga is 4 x 603 years, or 864 thousand years. The distance from the
entrance to the inner wall is 867 hat.

 The length of the Treta-Yuga is 6 x 603 years, or 1,296 thousand years. The distance from the
entrance to the central tower is 1,296 hat.

 The length of the Krita-Yuga is 8 x 603 years, or 1,728 thousand years. The distance from the
moat bridge to the center of the temple is 1,734 hat.

Rarely in history has any culture given rise to a structure that so elaborately and expansively incorporates
its concept of the cosmos. Angkor Wat stands as a striking and majestic monument in honor of the
Universe and our place in it.

1. References:
Kelley, D., and E. Milone, Exploring Ancient Skies: An Encyclopedic Survey of
Archaeoastronomy, Springer, New York, 2005.
2.
Krupp, E.C., Skywatchers, Shamans & Kings: Astronomy and the Archaeology of Power, John
Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, 1997.
3.
Space and Cosmology in the Hindu Temple, by Subhash Kak

Cambodia 2014: Ancient Astronomy, Angkor Wat, City built with astronomic measurements to
mimic the Gods in the Universe.

Aspara in Moon light Central tower of Angkor Wat, Cambodia

with full Moon.

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Angkor Wat was built by the Khmer King Suryavarman II in the early 12th century in Yasodharapura
present-day Angkor, the capital of the Khmer Empire, as his state temple.
Breaking from the Shaivism tradition of previous kings, Angkor Wat was instead dedicated to Vishnu. As
the best-preserved temple at the site, it is the only one to have remained a significant religious center
since its foundation. The Khmer's adhered to the Indian belief that a temple must be built according to a
mathematical system in order for it to function in harmony with the universe. Distances between certain
architectural elements of the temple reflect numbers related to Indian mythology and cosmology.

The sheer size of the place leaves visitors in awe and the complex designs illustrate the skills of long gone
priest architects. Every spare inch has been carved with intricate works of art. The scale of Angkor Wat
enabled the Khmer to give full expression to religious symbolism. It is, above all else, a microcosm of the
Hindu universe. As a brilliant example of the synthesis of astronomy and architecture at Angkor Wat, the
solar axes of the temple lead directly to the central sanctuary, a sanctum sanctorum devoted to the
supreme solar god, Lord Vishnu. Vishnu manifests as one of the solar months, and the sun itself is
thought to be his emanation.

Although the Sun gains stature through its conjunction with the center of Angkor Wat, Vishnu, and the
king, it is worth noting that lunar alignments are also recorded along the western and eastern axis of the
temple. As the measurements of solar and lunar time cycles were built into the sacred space of Angkor
Wat, this divine mandate to rule was anchored to consecrated chambers and corridors meant to perpetuate
the king's power and to honour and placate the deities manifest in the heavens above.
The solar and lunar alignments at Angkor Wat were alignments with the gods, alignments that tied the
nation to the heavens above, and alignments that imbued the king with the power to rule by divine
association.

Here are concrete astronomical observations you can see at Angkor Wat:
1. The rising sun aligning on equinox days with the western entrance of the state temple, Angkor Wat.
2. The movements of the moon can be observed from a variety of positions within the temple, and lunar
cycles may have been recorded in the three sets of libraries in the interior court.
3. The bas reliefs of the third gallery can be understood in relation to the movements of the sun, which
establish their counterclockwise direction.
4. The measurements of the temple appear proportional to calendric and cosmological time cycles.

The Temple is built as a concept of making these temples an observing platform, in other words an
Observatory.When you settle your feet at a specific location, the Universe, in a sense revolves around
you. With some patience and time you can start to notice patterns and Recursions that you can calculate
and even predict. In conclusion for me, the most amazing aspects of the ancient Khmer Civilization
was their understanding of their place in the cosmos, and how the placement of the temples mirrored so
many of the celestial movements.

Angkor Wat did not rise up from a tabula rasa- the theory that individuals are born without built-
in mental content, and therefore all knowledge comes from experience or perception. The Khmer
architect-priests, also fully trained as astronomers, had been building temples since the sixth century. This
building activity culminated in the move to Angkor around 900, and in the final architectural perfection of
Angkor Wat. Never again would Khmer architecture reach the same level of attainment and precision.
Only 70 years after the death of Suryavarman, all monumental building activity at Angkor stopped and by
the mid-fifteenth century, the site was abandoned due to economic reasons and the repeated invasions of
Thai armies.

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We know that long before the Khmers moved their capital southward to Phnom Penh, they had turned
away from the gods that populated the stone and brick temples of Angkor. The people of Cambodia were
converting to Hinayana Buddhism in large numbers during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. As
devotees of this widely-practiced form of Buddhism, they rejected the ancestral and regional gods that
once filled the temples and unified the nation. With this rejection, the Brahmanical (Hindu) architect-
priests lost their constituency. This decline in priestly support caused a slow but inexorable loss of
knowledge. Decade after decade, the priests diminished in number and the practice of building
astronomical alignments and data into the temples receded in memory. It is likely that by the time the
Khmers moved to Phnom Penh, the architectural coding that lay hidden in Angkor Wat for eight centuries
was already forgotten With the move of the Capital to Phnom Penh, Angkor and its secrets remained
dormant until brought into the consciousness of the western world in the mid-nineteenth century by
French explorers.

The temple is built with incredible accuracy. Dated Khmer inscriptions begin with an elaborate
description of the location of the planets, sun, and moon in both the solar zodiac signs and lunar
constellations on the day the event in the inscription took place. This system also mentions whether the
date in question was in the waxing or waning half of the lunar month, and on which day of the week.
Astronomy is listed more than once among the subjects taught to Khmer kings. Based on the evidence of
stone inscriptions then, it would have been clear even to the most casual reader that astronomy played an
important role in the elite strata of Khmer society.

“When I first translated the measurements of Angkor Wat from meters into the original cubit length used
in the construction of the temple, my suspicions about the role of astronomy were startlingly confirmed.
The axes of the outer enclosing wall around Angkor Wat equal 365.24 cubits repeated 12 times. In other
words, the exact length of the solar year in days and in solar months is defined by the north-south and
east-west axes of the temple grounds. The circumference of the enclosing wall is 354.36 cubits repeated
24 times. That is equivalent to the exact length of the lunar year in days, and to the 12 waxing and 12
waning halves of the lunar month each year. (Because the phenomena of the waxing and waning moon is
a dominant lunar feature, the half-months were individually named since the inception of astronomy in
India. This practice was passed on to Cambodia from India long before the Angkor period.)”

As the analysis of the measurements of Angkor Wat unfolded over the next ten years of my research, it
became more and more apparent that the circumferences of the temple were primarily dedicated to the
moon while the axes of the galleries, enclosures, and individual chambers tended to focus on the sun. This
is one of many patterns that characterize the temple's measurements. Another such pattern is the steady
progression from measurements embodying the largest time cycles around the periphery of the temple to
measurements focusing on smaller time cycles in the central galleries. A full exegesis of these patterns is
not possible in the short space of this essay, however, it is worth noting that the measurements of Angkor
Wat are highly systematized and logical. They include all time measurements known to the Cambodians
in the twelfth century.

“As a brilliant example of the synthesis of astronomy and architecture at Angkor Wat, the solar axes of
the temple lead directly to the central sanctuary, a sanctum sanctorum devoted to the supreme solar god,
Lord Vishnu. Vishnu manifests as one of the solar months, and the sun itself is thought to be his
emanation. As we walk along the solar axes toward the god Vishnu, we encounter two major solar
alignments.”

First of all, if we stand at the beginning of the bridge into Angkor Wat on the solstice days, at the
intersection of the triad of western staircases, we will see the sun rise directly over the two end gateways
of the main western entrance. Although observation has not been studied from this juncture on the

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equinox days, the central entrance tower acts as an architectural pivot for the north-south oscillation of the
sun, and by its central position between the solstice gateways, is a symbol for the two equinoxes. As we
shall see, there is reason to believe that Suryavarman was crowned king of Cambodia at the time of the
spring equinox.

On the morning of the vernal equinox day (roughly March 21st each year), once we have passed through
the main western entrances and stand facing the interior grounds of the temple, we encounter a
spectacular solar alignment. At 6:35 a.m., the sun can be seen rising dead-center over the top of the
central tower of the temple - about 500 m. away - when observed from the top of the first northern
staircase of the western causeway. Three days later, the sun can be seen rising over the central tower for
the second and last time, from the center of the western causeway at a point just a few meters south of the
first observation position. We know that the Khmers celebrated their new year for three days. The new
year began on the spring equinox, but the first day of the new year in an actual count did not begin until
three days after the equinox. This three-day new year period is both reflected and corroborated in these
two consecutive spring equinox alignments that occur just after entering Angkor Wat.

The sun was thought to begin its yearly journey on the vernal equinox day. Therefore, as the Khmers at
Angkor watched the sun rise up from the central tower, it would seem as though the god Vishnu inside
the sanctuary were emanating upward and outward as the solar orb. It is highly likely that music,
chanting, and ritual invocation inaugurated the new year at this annual event.

The central image of Vishnu - lost long ago - may have been sculpted in the likeness of King
Suryavarman. Statements in the stone inscriptions refer to images in the likeness of real people, not just
kings. The statue of Vishnu would have been sculpted with royal jewelry and clothing, and the name of
this image - also lost to us - would have been combined with the name of the king according to Khmer
tradition. If Suryavarman was not exactly an incarnation of Vishnu, he still partook of some aspect of
Vishnu's sacred nature. The name of the sun god is Surya, and "Suryavarman" translates as "protected by
the sun." With the union of the king and Vishnu in the central sanctuary of Angkor Wat, the king becomes
an unspoken third component in the spring equinox alignment.

Angkor Wat - like all royal pyramid-temples - was at the conceptual center of the king's capital. The city
and the nation extended outward from the union of the king and his deity in the main sanctuary of this
temple. For all 37 years of the reign of King Suryavarman then, the Khmer nation was particularly joined
to the sun god and to Vishnu, through the temple of Angkor Wat and the king. More than just the king
alone, the entire nation was "protected by the sun." The solar measurements and solar alignments at
Angkor Wat were concomitantly much more meaningful as their influence and importance extended from
the hub of the nation outward.

Although the sun gains stature through its conjunction with the center of Angkor Wat, Vishnu, and the
king, it is worth noting that lunar alignments are also recorded along the western axis of the temple. If we
look again at the dimensions noted above, we see that the western causeway measures out two ways of
defining the lunar month. These are the actual days in a synodic month (29.53), and the maximum number
of days of lunar visibility (28) - numerically equivalent to the maximum number of lunar constellations
crossed by the moon each month. This causeway that was used for lunar observation thereby records
lunar measurements at the same time. The causeway's overlay of multiple functions is typical of the
measurement patterns at Angkor Wat.

Finally, there is a bas-relief of the Churning of the Sea of Milk on the east side of the third gallery that is
actually a calendar in disguise. The story behind the churning of the Milky Way begins with the gods
losing battle after battle to their enemies, the asuras. Worried that they would be hopelessly decimated,

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the gods supplicated Lord Vishnu to help them churn up the elixir of immortality from the Milky Way.
Once they drank the elixir, they could never "lose" a battle again. But the task of churning the Milky Way
was of epic proportions. Ironically, once Vishnu agreed to their request, the gods had to trick the asuras
into joining in the churning effort by promising them a part of the elixir.

Mount Mandara, a mountain to the east of the central, cosmic mountain, Mount Meru, was uprooted and
brought to the Milky Way to act as a churning pivot. The snake Vasuki who lives in the Milky Way was
wrapped around the pivot, with the gods pulling on the north side of the snake and the asuras on the south
side. Vishnu took his place at the center to help with the churning, and also emanated both one asura form
and one god form to further help on each side of the snake. His avatar or incarnation as Kurma, the
legendary tortoise, placed itself under the base of the churning pivot so it would not sink. With everyone
in place, the great churning event began.

Many auspicious objects were churned up from the Milky Ocean, including the goddess of good fortune.
But when the elixir finally emerged, the gods and asuras began to battle over its possession. Lord Vishnu,
in his wisdom, took the elixir away with him for safekeeping, but when the battle ended the elixir
remained forever out of reach. Both the gods and the asuras were destined to be mortal. Once the battle
was over and the dust had settled, Indra was crowned king of the gods and the story ends.

Astronomical or geophysical realities are woven like invisible threads throughout the preceding narrative.
For example, the cosmic mountain, Mount Meru, is conceived as the axis of the earth. The Khmers knew
the earth was a round sphere moving through space because they had inherited that knowledge from
India, where it was first recorded in the sixth century CE. The gods reside at the north celestial pole,
including the summit of Mount Meru - the location of Indra's royal palace. The summit has been flattened
to accommodate the palace. At the south celestial pole, on the opposite end of Mount Meru, are the
asuras. When Mount Mandara is used as a churning pivot, the gods pull the pivot to the north and the
asuras pull it to the south, creating a north-south oscillation. This accounts for the north-south oscillation
of the sun and moon each year, while the axis of the earth, Mount Meru, remains stable (precession
notwithstanding, "stable" is a good descriptive word for the axis in comparison to the oscillation of the
sun and moon). In most Khmer - and indeed, in most Asian depictions of the cosmic mountain, the sun
and moon are shown in space at some distance to the right and left of the mountain's peak. This seems to
be either a conscious or unconscious memory of the astronomical significance of the mountain in the
churning scene. For whether it is logical or not, due to human fallibility the pivot of the churning scene
tended to become identified with Mount Meru. This obfuscation is more commonly found than the actual
recognition of Mount Mandara as the churning pivot.

According to evidence from Thai records and Khmer inscriptions, the churning of the Milky Way was
performed at the coronation of Khmer (and occasional Thai) kings. The inauguration ceremony of a new
king took place at the vernal equinox. Therefore, the coronation of King Suryavarman most likely
occurred at the equinox day in March (the year remains in question) soon after he came to power.
Although King Suryavarman was crowned before the central tower of Angkor Wat was anywhere near
finished, future equinox risings of the sun at dead center on the top of the main tower would forever recall
the exact moment when Suryavarman became king. The equinox, the sun, the temple, Vishnu, and the
king were therefore joined in a moment of history that was to be recalled, year after year, at the spring
equinox sunrise over Angkor Wat.

The calendrical meaning of the churning relief is equally inseparable from its association with the spring
equinox coronation of King Suryavarman. In fact, the number of gods and asuras in the relief count out
the days between the winter and summer solstices, and the three-day equinox celebration at the beginning
of the new year is symbolized by the central pivot. The god Bali, the king of the asuras holds the heads of

10
Vasuki on the south side of the relief. During the winter solstice, the rising sun illuminates Bali
completely. This agrees with the 24-hours of sunlight at the south pole at this time of year. Meanwhile,
the monkey-god Sugriva who holds the tail of Vasuki on the north end of the relief panel remains in
darkness at the winter solstice, in a shadow cast by a pillar. Since the gods reside above the north pole of
the earth, they would be in darkness at this time of year. On the summer solstice, the sunlight and shadow
effect is reversed for Bali and Sugriva, as it should be to match the light and dark at the north and south
poles, respectively. On the equinox days, the center of the scene with Vishnu and Mount Mandara is
bathed in full sunlight. Some solar alignments that can be observed in the planning of the Angkor Wat
temple complex in Cambodia. This complex was originally constructed in the early 12th century as a
Hindu temple for the Khmer Empire and gradually transforming into a Buddhist temple. To illustrate the
solar alignments we use SunCalc.net software and Photographer’s Ephemeris on Google Earth satellite
images.( Amelia Carolina Sparavigna. Solar Alignments of the Planning of Angkor Wat Temple
Complex. Philica, Philica, 2016, pp.591. ffhal-01312473f)

the temples by themselves were not isolated units but were ideally linked with pre-existing monuments,
constructing a series of visually recognizable, dynastic lines which are particularly evident in the case
of the Mebons, the island temples. It is thus the hope of the author that the present research can contribute
to clarify historical aspects of the Khmer architecture and king's succession. On the opposite side, the
same results show that claims about the existence of scores of inter-connecting, almost esoteric lines
between the Angkor monuments must be taken with the utmost care, if not definitively refused.
(ARCHAEOASTRONOMY IN THE KHMER HEARTLAND Giulio Magli School of Architecture,
Urban Planning and Construction Engineering, Politecnico di Milano, Italy)

A deva is flying down to steady the pivot of Mount Mandara and is most likely representative of the god
Indra before he was crowned king. Only an important god could be placed in this high position, above the
other gods. This figure also provides an alternate count of one extra day when needed to complete the
calendar.

In Indian texts, the coronation of Indra occurs just before the coronation ceremony outlined for an earthly
king, at the time of the spring equinox. This bas-relief itself, in fact, appears to symbolize the coronation
of King Suryavarman and the churning event that was enacted at that time.

In summary, the solar axis of Angkor Wat takes us visually and physically in a straight line from the main
entrance to the central tower. As we walk along the numerical symbol for the solar year, we would see the
sun and moon oscillate from north to south and back again, on either side of the axis. Once the axis
reaches the central galleries, it visually ascends upward at an ever-increasing angle until it merges with
the vertical height of the central tower. On the vernal equinox day, as the sun appears to rise up from the
top of the tower, it is joined to us along the axis of the temple.

Vishnu lies hidden inside the tower, looking very much like the king of Cambodia in both his
physiognomy and his refined jewelry and clothing. Thus, the merging of Vishnu and the king at the
symbolic center of the Khmer nation was especially celebrated at the symbolic center of the solar year,
when the sun is midway between its northern and southern extremes. When this profound solar, divine,
and royal union was given its architectural expression in the central tower of Angkor Wat, astronomy and
architecture were joined in homage to divinity and royalty. As mentioned earlier, the tower is the axis of
the temple and by extension, the axis of the Khmer nation. The king and Vishnu are joined at this same
axis, likened to the axis of the earth in the cosmological design of Angkor Wat. That very equinoctial axis
slices through the center of the sun's oscillating movement each year. At dawn on the vernal equinox day,
the union of the king and Vishnu at the heart of the Cambodian nation was celebrated with the rising sun
at the heart of the annual solar journey, and at the heart of Angkor Wat. Astronomy was thus inextricably

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conjoined to the most profound expression of the meaning of kingship and divinity accorded in Khmer
sacred architecture. The solar and lunar alignments at Angkor Wat were alignments with the gods,
alignments that tied the nation to the heavens above, and alignments that imbued the king with the power
to rule by divine association. As the measurements of solar and lunar time cycles were built into the
sacred space of Angkor Wat, this divine mandate to rule was anchored to consecrated chambers and
corridors meant to perpetuate the king's power and to honor and placate the deities manifest in the
heavens above. Rarely has a temple achieved such an overwhelming conjunction of time, space, and
kingship through the perfect union of architecture and astronomy.

https://dsal.uchicago.edu/huntington/seasia/angkor.html

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