GOPAS AND THEIR COWS

TALES OF KRISHNA’S CHILDHOOD

BABY KRISHNA DRAGGING THE HEAVY MORTAR

KRISHNA DEFEATING TWO ASURAS

KRISHNA KILLING A DEMON

KRISHNA ON GARUDA

ANIRUDDHA BOUND BY BANA’S SNAKE ROPES. Central door of the southern gopura. 3RD ENCLOSURE

KRISHNA FIGHTING BANA TO RESCUE HIS

GRANDSON.Central door of the northern gopura.

3rd enclosure

DEVAS versus ASURASDEVAS versus ASURASS versus ASURA

KRISHNA ON GARUDA FIGHTS THE ASURA BANA

DEVAS VERSUS ASURAS

KRISHNA LIFTING MOUNT GOVARDHANA

KRISHNA LIFTING MOUNT GOVARDANA

KRISHNA AND BALARAMA

KRISHNA KILLING CANURA AND MUSHTIKA

KRISHNA KILLING KAMSA

BANTEAY SREI

ANGKOR WAT

NORTH LIBRARY EAST PEDIMENT, ANGKOR WAT. EPISODE FROM MAHABHARATA .

INDRA TRIES TO PUT OUT A FIRE IN THE KHANDAVA FOREST BY SENDING RAIN. KRISHNA’S ARROWS PREVENT THE WATER REACHING THE GROUND

VISHNU IN HIS HORSE INCARNATION AS HAYAGRIVAHOLDS THE HEADS OF THE DEMONS MADHU AND KAITABHA.

West lintel of the inner entrance pavilion

VISHWAROOPA, ANGKOR WAT

VISHWAROOPA,PRASAT KRAVAN

MULTI-FACED IMAGES, BAYON, ANGKOR THOM

WHO IS THE 4-FACED FIGURE OF ANGKOR THOM?

JAYAVARMAN? PROBABLY, IN ORDER TO BE IDENTIFIED WITH…

1. BRAHMA? – Unlikely. No stories or attributes of the Creator are associated with the 4 faces.

2. SHIVA? – Likely, because Bayon was a Shiva temple, but no other Shaivite attributes.

3. BUDDHA – LOKESHVARA? Likely, because Jayavarman became a Buddhist, but no Buddhist attributes.

4. VISHNU? – Most likely, because…

THE 4-FACES TOP MOUNT MERU, WHICH MAKES UP THE 5 GATES OF ANGKOR THOM. IN THE STORY OF THE SAMUDRA MANTHANA, MERU IS THE CHURNING STICK. IT IS THE STORY OF VISHNU’S KURMA AVATARA

THE 4-FACED MERU IS FLANKED BY THE DEVAS AND ASURAS PULLING THE 7-HEADED SNAKE ROPE VASUKI

IN ANGKOR WAT AND ALL RELIEFS OF THE SAMUDRA MANTHANA, VISHNU STANDS ABOVE THE TORTOISE KURMA,

WHO IS THE CHURNING STICK

4- FACED HEADS MOST LIKELY TO BELONG TO VISHNU

•

• ON THE WALLS OF THE BAYON IN ANGKOR THOM, THERE ARE SCENES OF A 4-FACED, MULTI-HEADED VISHNU STEALING THE AMRITA DURING THE SAMUDRA MANTHANA.

• THE CULT OF VISHNU HAD OBVIOUSLY ATTAINED GREAT INFLUENCE THAT KINGS IDENTIFIED WITH HIM.

IN THE WAR WITH BANA, KRISHNA HAS MANY FACES AND HEADS

• THE MAHABHARATA REACHED ENORMOUS POPULARITY IN SOUTH EAST ASIA. IT BECAME LARGER THAN LIFE

• EVEN TODAY, THE CITY CENTRES OF JAKARTA, CAPITAL OF INDONESIA, AND BALI HAVE A HUGE SCULPTURE OF THE BHAGAVAD GITA.

• DANCE, DRAMAS AND PUPPET SHOWS ON THE MAHABHARATA KEEP THE STORY ALIVE AS AN EXAMPLE OF GOOD BEHAVIOUR

ARJUNA VIJAYA - BALI

ARJUNA VIJAYA - JAKARTA