Beng Mealea Temple, Cambodia

Today, Cambodia may be a small seemingly powerless country, but a millennium ago the ancestors of these soft-spoken people were the masters of South-East Asia. For seven hundred years their Empire stretched through the region encompassing modern day Cambodia, and Laos, as well as parts of Thailand and central Vietnam. In the years between 900-1200 AD the great Khmer (Cambodian) Empire constructed some of the most impressive temples in the region, many of which are concentrated in the area surrounding Siem Reap, Cambodia.

The temple of Beng Mealea was constructed in the early 12^th century during the height of the Khmer Empire. It is situated approximately 40km east of Angkor Wat, along a rough, and rusty dirt road. Until recently it was virtually unknown to tourists due to it's isolation, but today can be reached by car with relative ease.

The majority of this temple's once grand super-structure now lies in ruins. It's mighty walls are choked by a spider's web of trees and branches. Large sandstone blocks that used to form the ceilings have fallen into tall, mossy heaps on the jungle floor. Once the dominion of man this stone structure was abandoned long ago to be swallowed up by the jungle. Worn away by elemental forces more powerful and permanent than then the men who created it.

It's an unbelievably hot day. Through the thick canopy of the jungle I can feel the sun beat down against my neck. All around me the forest hums with the sounds of birds and insects. As I stop to wipe the sweat from my forehead and glasses, a small lizard scurries across my path. He pauses for a moment, incredibly still besides his bulbous throat which pulses like a tiny hyperactive heart. Springing to life again he bolts across the road, and disappears into the surrounding brush.

In some ways it's sad to see a huge, historical artifact like this in such a state of disrepair. In other ways it's quite liberating. The sense of mystery that surround citadels like this can often be dampened by reconstruction. Cleaned and cataloged by archaeological experts their secrets become fact and not fancy. The gaps in their stones filled by information, rather than imagination.

But here, besides the plank wooden platform that winds it's way throughout the site, this temple has been left mostly as it was rediscovered. Exploring it's grounds therefore elicits from the traveler, a unique sense of discovery. One can almost begin to imagine how French archaeologists must have felt when they stumbled across the remains of Angkor Wat in the 1800's.

Looking down to my left I notice a faded rock panel on the ground, carved to depict a mythical tug of war between men and demons. The “rope” in this battle is actually a seven headed snake, or naga as the Khmer call it, it's middle wrapped around a mountain which is surrounded by a Sea of Milk. According to the legend, man and demon pulled the naga back and forth for a thousand years, churning the Sea of Milk in an effort to create an elixir which would grant them everlasting life. This story is seen represented time and time again on the walls of many Angkorian temples. A Hindu myth, it is Indian in origin, brought over by explorers from the great sub-continent as they traveled eastward in pursuit of wealth and knowledge.

Though many of the carved panels here have faded, their meanings now indistinct, there is another larger story that is told by the building itself. The story of a once great people, who faltered, and fell. In 1431 the Kingdom of Angkor was sacked by Siamese (Thai) forces. Many of it's greatest treasures were stolen and carried away to the rival capitol of Ayutthaya. Spoils of war for the next great empire. Over the following hundred years these temples were abandoned, and eventually lost. The Khmer empire shrank and it's power and influence quickly disappeared.
Buildings like this are a harsh reminder of the transience of all powerful nations. Nations a combination of fate and circumstance can conspire to bolster or destroy. And though they stand in humble ruins, all it takes is a simple stroll within their walls to see that an element of their once great majesty still remains. Just as the strength and spirit of the people who built them still remains within the hearts and minds of the Cambodian people.