HTML clipboardTaken from the Bhagavata-Purana, this great Hindu creation myth is here spectacularly realised in one continuous 49m panel. By pulling alternately on the body of the giant naga Vasuki, which is coiled around Mount Mandara, the gods and asuras rotate the mountain for 1,000 years to churn the cosmic sea - the Sea of Milk - and so produce amrita, the elixir of immortality. In the event, this cooperation between gods and asuras is shattered as soon as the amrita begins to be produced. The gods go back on their promise to give half to the asuras, who then try to steal it. The scene shown here, however, is the actual churning.
For the first 5m, the army of asuras is lined up with horses and elephants; the churning begins directly after this, and the first you see is a giant multi-headed asura - Ravana - holding the five heads of the giant naga Vasuki. Beyond him stretches the team of 92 asuras pulling in unison on the serpent's body. The cosmic sea is represented by a swirling mass of marine life, caught up in the turbulence, all enclosed by a second representation of the naga, lying flat on the bottom of the ocean, its heads rearing up at the far left. In the sky above fly large numbers of apsaras, created as part of the process.
As you walk along, note the variety of marine life, most real, some mythical. It includes, among many kinds of fish, crocodiles, dragons. nagas, and turtles. Close to the centre of the panel the churning is so violent that many of them are sliced into pieces. In the middle, on the pillar-like Mount Mandara, four-armed Vishnu directs operations. He also appears below, as his turtle avatar Kurma, supporting the rotating mountain as it threatens to sink below the sea. The treatment here is full of incident and detail: above, a flying Indra helps to steady the top oUta mountain, while close to Vishnu's discus are tiny images of the elephant Airavata and the horse Ucchaissravas, both created by the churning, like the apsaras. Notice that the area surrounding Vishnu is incompletley carved. The presence of Ravana and I lanuman on either side is quite unique and not part of the original legend. It represents the Khmer combining the ancient Vedic legend with characters from the Ramayana.
On the N side, as you continue, 88 gods pull the naga's body in the opposite direction, commanded at the tail by a giant Hanuman. The last 5m of the bas-relief are taken up by the army of the gods.

Other Angko Temples:

• Angkor Temples

• Symbolism

• The bas-reliefs

• Battle of Kurukshetra

• SW Corner Pavilion

• Procession of Suryavarman II

• Judgement of Yama, and Heavens and Hells

• Churning of the Sea of Milk

• Vishnu's Victory over the asuras

• Krishna's Victory over the asura Bana

• Battle between gods and asuras

• Battle of Lanka

• NW Corner Pavilion

• Visit Angkor Temples

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Thanks for the email. Everything was okay with the passport in the end. There was some confusion at the police station but Mr Giang was able to convince the local authorities that everything was in order. The tour itself was amazing. We both had a really good time and enjoyed every ...

Debbie, Australia, 12 Jan 2017

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