Po Klong Garai Temple is a

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

Cham Cham or CHAM may refer to: Ethnicities and languages *Chams, people in Vietnam and Cambodia **Cham language, the language of the Cham people ***Cham script *** Cham (Unicode block), a block of Unicode characters of the Cham script *Cham Albania ...

religious complex located in the Cham principality of Panduranga, in what is now

Phan Rang Phan may refer to: * Phan (surname), a Vietnamese family name * Phan District, Chiang Rai Province, Thailand * Phan River, Bình Thuận Province, Vietnam * Phan (tray) Phan ( th, พาน, ) is an artistically decorated tray with pedestal. It ...

in southern

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

. It was built in honor of the legendary king Po Klaung Garai, who ruled Panduranga from 1151 to 1205, by the historic King

Jaya Sinhavarman III Jaya may refer to: Media *''Jaya'', self titled albums by Jaya (singer), released in 1989, 1996 and 2001 * ''Jaya'' (film), a 2002 Indian Tamil film Mythology *''Jaya'', a name of Karna in Mahabharata; the core portion of the ''Mahabharata'' ...

Legend of King Klong Garai

According to legend, Po Klong Garai (

Cham language Cham (Cham: ꨌꩌ) is a Malayo-Polynesian languages, Malayo-Polynesian language of the Austronesian languages, Austronesian family, spoken by the Cham people, Chams of Southeast Asia. It is spoken primarily in the territory of the former Kingdo ...

: ''Dragon king of J'rai people'') started life as a lowly cowherd, but became king of Champa by destiny, ruling wisely and for the good of the people. When the Khmer of

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 Thailan ...

invaded his kingdom, he challenged them to settle the matter peacefully in a tower-building contest. Po Klong Garai prevailed in the contest, thereby obliging the invaders to return home. After his death, Po Klong Garai became a god and protector of the people on earth; it is said that the tower he built in his contest with the Khmer is the tower that today is known by his name.

History of the Temple

The Cham King

Jaya Simhavarman III Jaya may refer to: Media *''Jaya'', self titled albums by Jaya (singer), released in 1989, 1996 and 2001 * ''Jaya'' (film), a 2002 Indian Tamil film Mythology *''Jaya'', a name of Karna in Mahabharata; the core portion of the ''Mahabharata'' ...

(Viet: Chê Mân) is credited with constructing the tower in honor of Po Klaung Garai toward the end of the 13th century. However, the presence of several steles from an earlier period suggests that Jaya Simhavarman may merely have restored and added to structures that were already in place. An inscription, dated 1050, at Po Klong Garai commemorated the military victory of two Cham princes (presumably representing the northern dynasty of Indrapura headquartered near

Mỹ Sơn Mỹ Sơn () is a cluster of abandoned and partially ruined Hindu temples in central Vietnam, constructed between the 4th and the 14th century by the Kings of Champa, an Indianized kingdom of the Cham people. The temples are dedicated to the wor ...

) over the people of Panduranga in southern Champa. According to the inscription, the victorious princes celebrated by erecting two

linga A lingam ( sa, लिङ्ग , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism. It is typically the primary ''murti'' or devotional ...

s and a victory column.

Site of the Temple

The temple of Po Klaung Garai belongs to what is known as the Thap Mam Style of Cham art and architecture. It consists of three brick towers: a main tower with three stories, a smaller gate tower, and an elongated tower with a saddle-like roof. The group of buildings is well preserved, and "is distinguished by the purity of its outlines and the austerity of its decor." Over the front door of the main tower is a sculpture of the god Siva that is regarded as one of the masterpieces of the Thap Mam Style. The remaining images are less impressive, revealing "an art in terminal decline, due to its stiffness and arid workmanship." The tower with the saddle-like roof is said to be dedicated to the God of Flame, Thang Chuh Yang Pui. The primary religious image in the temple is a

mukhalinga In Hindu iconography, Mukhalinga or Mukhalingam (literally "''linga with a face''", ) is a linga with one or more human faces. The linga is an aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva. Mukhalingas may be of stone or can be made of a meta ...

of the 16th or 17th century. A mukhalinga is a

with a human face. In general, the linga is the emblem of the

god Siva, but the Cham say that this one is a statue of King Po Klaung Garai. The temple is still the site of Cham religious festivals.Ngô Vǎn Doanh, ''Champa: Ancient Towers'', p.241.

Legend of King Klong Garai

History of the Temple

Site of the Temple

See also

References

Further reading