SW Corner Pavilion

The interior spaces available for carving are the four bays that each surround a doorway. The themes are principally mythological, with a bias to the Ramayana and the Life of Krishna (both, therefore, featuring avatars of Vishnu). For convenience, we describe the scenes in anti-clockwise order, beginning with the W bay, on your right as you enter the pavilion:

W bay, N side
A god-like figure stands in a doorway, surrounded by adoring women. One interpretation of this scene is when Shiva comes among the hermits disguised as a beggar to test their pride in having overcome the world of the senses (Shiva Bhikshatanamurti). The wives of the hermits, however, are all attracted to Shiva, causing the hermits to be jealous. Another possibility, suggested by the reptile over the door, is the demon Ravana taking the form of a chameleon in order to insinuate himself into the women's quarters of Indra's palace. Against this, the reptile looks very much like a crocodile, and compares with the equally enigmatic crocodile over the image of Vishnu on the W wall of the central sanctuary of Prasat Kravan

W bay, over door
From the Life of Krishna: The child Krishna crawls on the ground, his foot tied to a stone by his loster mother Yashocla, who has had enough of his mischief. He uproots two trees (in fact two gods transformed into this state until they should see Krishna) by dragging the stone between them, and they transform back into gods. The scene is framed in a naga arch.

W bay, S side
A 20-armed, multi-headed Ravana shakes Mount Kailasa, enraged when his path had been barred by Nadikeshvara on the instructions of Shiva who was spending time there with Uma.

S bay, Wside
Kama, the God of Love, at the request of Uma, fires an arrow at Shiva, in order to wake him from meditation. Shiva, who appears here as a hermit with beard and rosary, is understandably annoyed at being so disturbed, and kills Kama. At the bottom, next to the image of him firing the arrow, you can see Kama lying dead, mourned by his wife Rati. According to the legend Kama was reduced to ashes and would have had no body. This representation shows the Khmer sculptors adapting the legend lor their own purposes.

S bay, over door
From the Life of Krishna: two consecutive scenes framed in a naga arch. At left, Krishna is seated with a hermit as a figure emerges from a wall of flames; at right, he fights with the same figure, who is unidentified. These scenes have not been linked to exact episdodes in Krishna's life and again may be a Khmer adaptation.

S bay, E side
From the Ramayana: The fight between the monkey brothers Valin and Sugriva. At the top Rama comes to the aid of his friend Sugriva by shooting Valin with an arrow. Below, Valin on his death-bed, mourned by his wife Tara (whom he had taken from Sugriva) and other monkeys. In four panels below, next to the window, are more monkey mourners with wonderfully expressive faces and gestures.

E bay, S side
Badly damaged bas-relief with Shiva seated in meditation.

E bay, over door
Framed in a naga arch, a four-armed Vishnu receives offerings held on trays by different kneeling worhsippers, while apsaras tly overhead.

E bay, N side
The water festival at Dvaravati. On two registers, heavily decorated boats are rowed across water full offish. In the upper boat a chess game is in progress (you can even make out differences between the pieces on the board; in the lower boat ladies play with their children).

N bay, E side
From the Life of Krishna: wearing a three-pronged headdress, and with his brother Balarama at his side, Krishna lifts Mount Govardhana to shelter herdsmen and their cattle from a torrential downpour sent by Indra (the cause of Indra's anger was that the people had mistakenly made a first offering to the Govardhana mountain rather than to him). Hermits pray in the forest of the mountain; cattle and villagers shelter below.
N bay, over door
From the Ramayana: At Sita's request, Rama fires an arrow at a golden deer-the demon Maricha in disguise so that Ravana can abduct Sita while she is alone in the forest. The scene is framed in a naga arch.

N bay, W side
The Churning of the Sea of Milk (partly damaged). At the bottom, over waves and fish, the asuras (left) and gods (right) pull alternately on the body of the serpent Vasuki, which is coiled around a pole which is Mount Mandara, to churn the ocean and eventually release amrita, the elixir of immortality. The mountain rests on the back of the turtle Kurma, an avatar of Vishnu, while Vishnu in human form controls the operation above with his leg around the pole. Indra sits on top of the pole to steady it, and the discs of the sun and moon appear on either side.