Angkor Wat - Ta Prohm 12/31/06

Following Angkor Wat and Bayon the most well-known temple in the complex is Ta Prohm built in the mid-12th to 13th centuries and apparently dedicated to the mother of Jayavarman VII. This temple is often referred to as the jungle temple because the trees are the main attraction rather than the temple. Throughout the temple the octopus tentacle-like roots and branches of the massive trees have enveloped the temple and in many places have destroyed the man made structure.

Initially I thought that the strength of the trees are a reminder of the power of nature and caused me to feel humble in view of their magnitude and power. Another interpretation might be that these trees exemplify the power of life, I think I like this concept better.

Here you can see the tree's roots cascading in a sense over the stone structure like a waterfall.






















Just to give you a sense of how strong and embedded into the stone structure these roots are.





















A wonderful woman, Kai, who is subletting part of our apartment right now saw this picture, that I love, and said it reminded her of a woman reaching up to the sky. Given that the temple was dedicated to a women this interpretation seems particulary fitting.