The Angkor Wat equinox is a solar phenomenon considered as a

hierophany A hierophany is a manifestation of the sacred. The word is a formation of the Greek adjective ''hieros'' ( gr, ἱερός, 'sacred, holy') and the verb ''phainein'' (φαίνειν, 'to reveal, to bring to light'). Mircea Eliade The word ''hier ...

that happens twice a year with

spring Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season), a season of the year * Spring (device), a mechanical device that stores energy * Spring (hydrology), a natural source of water * Spring (mathematics), a geometric surface in the shape of a ...

and

autumn equinox Autumnal equinox or variations, may refer to: * September equinox, the autumnal equinox in the Northern Hemisphere * March equinox, the autumnal equinox in the Southern Hemisphere Other uses * Autumnal Equinox Day (Japanese: 秋分の日, ''Shūbu ...

, as part of the many astronomical alignments indicative of a "fairly elaborate system of

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies astronomical object, celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and chronology of the Universe, evolution. Objects of interest ...

" and of the Hindu influence in the construction of the vast temple complex of

Angkor Wat Angkor Wat (; km, អង្គរវត្ត, "City/Capital of Temples") is a temple complex in Cambodia and is the largest religious monument in the world, on a site measuring . Originally constructed as a Hinduism, Hindu temple dedicated ...

, in

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...

Description

The sunrise on Angkor Wat during the equinox is such that someone standing in front of the western entrance on the equinox is able to see the sun rising directly over the central lotus tower. In fact, it would be more correct to describe the phenomenon as the exact match of the shadow formed by the sunrise on Angkor Wat's central ''prang'' and the western entrance bridge.

Architecture

Like most celestial cities, Angkor Wat contains many astronomically inspired symbols and alignments. Angkor Wat was built by Suryvarman II, literally the Sun-King, during his reign for 1113 to 1150 with "astronomical and cosmic rhythm". It was dedicated as a tribute to

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...

, a solar deity according to the ''

Rigveda The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' ( ', from ' "praise" and ' "knowledge") is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canonical Hindu texts (''śruti'') known as the Vedas. Only one Sh ...

.'' In fact, it appears that the most of the vast complex of Angkor Wat was determined by the equinox. In the ''

bas-relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that the ...

'' at Angkor Wat, the position of the churning pivot would correspond to the position of the spring equinox. The 91 asuras in the south represent the 91 days from equinox to winter solstice, and the 88 northern devas represent the 88 days from equinox to summer solstice. In fact, there are either 88 or 89 devas in the scene, 89 if the deva atop Mount Mandara is counted with the others. There are 88 or 89 days from the spring equinox, counted from the first day of the new year, to the summer solstice. In fact, the solar alignment is not limited to Angkor Wat, but includes many other temples of the Khmer civilization, as it connects Angkor Wat with other temples on the

Ancient Khmer Highway The Ancient Khmer Highway was a roadway going northwest between Angkor (in Cambodia) and Phimai (Vimayapura) (now in Thailand). While it was not the only such road built by the Khmer, it was the most important one. Most of the road is overgrown ...

from the

West Mebon The West Mebon ( km, មេបុណ្យខាងលិច, , ) is a temple at Angkor, Cambodia, located in the center of the West Baray, the largest reservoir of the Angkor area. The temple's date of construction is not known, but evidence s ...

to the Preah Khan of Kompong Svay.

Interpretation

An eternal reminder of Suryavarman II's ascension to the throne

Scholars theorize that Suryavarman II was crowned sovereign in Angkor Wat during the equinox. The temples' calibrated use of equinox sunrises to highlight the central tower and the bas-relief of the

churning of the ocean of milk The Samudra Manthana ( sa, समुद्रमन्थन; ) is a major episode in Hinduism that is elaborated in the Vishnu Purana, a major text of Hinduism. The Samudra Manthana explains the origin of the elixir of eternal life, amrita. Nom ...

would have served as an eternal reminder of this king's "ringing in a new golden age."

A solar city

While Angkor is also known as an hydraulic city since Bernard Philippe Groslier, the Angkor Wat equinox manifests how Angkor was also a solar city. According to Eleanor Manikka, "measurements of the temple recorded data, fixed solar and lunar alignments, defined pathways into and out of sanctuaries, and put segments of the temple in precise association with rays of sunlight during the equinox and solstice days". Accordingly, the gigantic representation of the churning of the sea actually works as a calendar: it positions the two solstice days at the extreme north and south, counts the days between them, and measures 54 units for the north- and southbound arcs of the sun and moon, emulating the symbolism on the bridge or in the western entrances, which repeat the 54/54-unit pairs several times.

An ancient Khmer New Year

The spring equinox, which receives such a special treatment at Angkor Wat, evidently marked the onset of the calendar year. However, during the thirteenth century, many years after the reign of Suryavarman II, the Khmer New Year was moved to the fifth lunar month, ''Chate'', which corresponds to mid-April, in order for farmers to have more time to celebrate once the dry season was over. The astrological New Year that was celebrated before then occurred when the constellation of

Aries Aries may refer to: *Aries (astrology), an astrological sign *Aries (constellation), a constellation of stars in the zodiac Arts, entertainment and media * ''Aries'' (album), by Luis Miguel, 1993 * ''Aries'' (EP), by Alice Chater, 2020 * "Aries" ...

or Ram appeared. This phenomenon occurred on the

vernal equinox Spring equinox or vernal equinox or variations may refer to: * March equinox, the spring equinox in the Northern Hemisphere * September equinox, the spring equinox in the Southern Hemisphere Other uses * Nowruz, Persian/Iranian new year which be ...

on March 21, but because of the precession of the equinoxes, the sun at the vernal equinox is not seen in the constellation of Pisces and enters Aires around April 13 or 14.

Tourism

The solar alignment of equinox at Angkor Wat is attracting a growing number of tourists, in a new trend of tourism connected to solar phenomena, also seen in such places such as

Luxor Luxor ( ar, الأقصر, al-ʾuqṣur, lit=the palaces) is a modern city in Upper (southern) Egypt which includes the site of the Ancient Egyptian city of ''Thebes''. Luxor has frequently been characterized as the "world's greatest open-a ...

and Vezelay Abbey. In 2022, Angkor Wat ranked No. 1 as the best place in the world to watch sunrise and sunset, in part because of the Angkor Wat equinox phenomenon.

References

Bibliography

*{{Cite journal , last1=Stencel , first1=Robert , last2=Gifford , first2=Fred , last3=Morón , first3=Eleanor , date=1976-07-23 , title=Astronomy and Cosmology at Angkor Wat , url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.193.4250.281 , journal=Science , volume=193 , issue=4250 , pages=281–287 , doi=10.1126/science.193.4250.281 , pmid=17745714 , bibcode=1976Sci...193..281S , issn=0036-8075