The Temple Mounts of Man

We as a species have produced some pretty awesome things. The Egyptian Pyramids, the Templo Mayor, the Roman Coliseum, and the Mayan Temples of Tikal, Guatemala my father, brother, and I viewed back in 2001.

(http://www.mayatikal.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/tikal2.jpg)

The GMU group had the privilege to see a number of temples in Cambodia that match the vastness, design, and wonder of the aforementioned. The first was Angkor Wat.

This temple is a classic example of Khmer architecture with both Hindu and Buddhists influences and was built in the 12th century for King Suryavarman II as a place of worship and government. Slaves played a role in building all of these temples, which was par for the course,  but what I found most interesting was the level of detail and the placement of the structures to the west, which was unusual in this collection of temples. Most of the them were orientated to the east, but Angkor Wat is orientated to the west, in honor of Vishnu, the Hindu God. What I found most striking was the detail in the huge bas-reliefs, that ran around the perimeter in epic fashion.

No need for words, just respect of the skill of those who came before us.

The Ankor Thom has hundreds of faces inscribed in sandstone:

Ta Prohm is known for hosting numerous movies, including the aforementioned Tomb Raider.

It is being restored as the jungle reclaims it, and the largest saw I have seen was cutting the sandstone blocks typical to this area to be used for replacements.

The most interesting thing I ran into at Ta Prohm, was four young boys playing marbles in the dust of the ruins. Their mother was working, picking up trash the tourist had left behind and using a palm broom to sweep the dusty paths inside the walls of the temple.

They didn't ask for money, but for pencils. So in return for taking their picture, I gave them the a few treats, and the ink pens and mechanical pencils I had in my backpack, along with a number of erasers and a lesson in how to use them. They have never seen a mechanical pencil, but I wager it will be the talk of the school when they take it to class. It is good to know you can find kids have other interests at heart besides making making money.

After our adventures, I stopped by another temple to play a round of cards with a few monkeys...needless to say, I lost.

This was an advance civilization at the time, and created beautiful structures that reflected their success. I think it behooves us to learn from these temples to former success and recognize that much that has been built throughout the years has eventually fallen into history and disrepair. It makes me wonder if what we have built here will one day be history and what we will leave behind.