Angkor Wat

Welcome to Angkor Wat, the largest religious monument ever built on Earth. As you stand here today at this temporary access point in Siem Reap, you are entering a space that has lived through nearly nine hundred years of devotion. This structure is the heartbeat of Cambodia, so vital that its silhouette appears on the national flag.^[2] Built in the early twelfth century by King Suryavarman the Second, it was first dedicated to the Hindu protector god Vishnu. Unlike most other temples in the region that face east toward the rising sun, Angkor Wat gazes westward. This unusual orientation has led many scholars to believe the king intended it not just as a temple, but as his own grand mausoleum—a final resting place aligned with the setting sun. Over the centuries, it gracefully transitioned from a Hindu sanctuary into a center of Theravada Buddhist worship, remaining an active site of prayer to this very day. Take a moment to breathe in the scale of the architecture before you and prepare to walk through a literal map of the cosmos.