Sister Khmer Temples could they represent Children of SHIVA?

Very few people know that Lord Shiva had a total of 9 children. Yes, all of them included a
daughter and 8 sons. Some of them are said to have been adopted and some originated
miraculously about which very few people know. So, at the moment, let's know who were the
wives of Lord Shiva.

It is said that the first wife of Lord Shiva was the daughter of Raja Daksha, Sati and when Sati
jumped into the fire of Yagya and lost her life, she later took birth as Parvati and then married
Shivaji. At the same time, it is said that the third wife of Shiva God is named Kali, the fourth
Uma, and the fifth Ganga Mata. Parvati ji had two sons and a daughter, and her first son was
named Kartikeya and the other was named Ganesha. The daughter was named Ashok Sundari. In
fact, she says, "Mother Parvati built this daughter only to eliminate her loneliness. Let's know
now about all the kids.

1. Karthikeya: Kartikeya is also known as Subramanian, Murugan and Skanda.

2. Ganesha: The Puranas contain contradictory tales of Ganesha's origin. They are worshipped
first.

3. Sukesh: There was the third son of Shiva named Sukesh. The story is that there were two
demon brothers: 'Haiti' and 'Praheti'. Praheti became a godly man and Heti married Kaal's
daughter 'Bhaya' to expand his empire. A son called his electric kesh was born from Bhaya.
Vidyutkaish was married to Sandhya's daughter Salkata. The 'Salkatankata' is believed to be an
adulterer. So when his son was born, he was left unclaimed. Even Vidyutkaish did not care to
know of the son who he was his son. According to the Puranas, Lord Shiva and mother Parvati
saw the orphaned child and provided him with protection. He named it Sukesh. It was from this
sukesh that the total of demons went on.

4. Jalandhar: There was the fourth son of Shivaji whose name was Jalandhar. It is said that
according to the Srimad Bhagwat Purana, once Lord Shiva threw himself into the sea, it
produced Jalandhar. Jalandhar is believed to have immense power and his power was due to his
wife Brinda. Because of Brinda's patriarchal religion, all the deities were unable to defeat
Jalandhar. Jalandhar had planned to defeat Vishnu and snatch Goddess Lakshmi from Vishnu.
Then Vishnu broke down Brinda's patriarchal religion. Brinda's husband's religion was broken
and Shiva killed Jalandhar.

5. Ayyappa: Lord Ayyappa's father is Shiva and Mata Isherini. It is said that Lord Shiva had
ejaculate after seeing the siren form of Vishnu. His semen was called parad and his semen was
later born with a son called Sastav, who was called Ayyappa in South India. Because of the
origin of Shiva and Vishnu, they are called Hariharputra. The famous temple of Ayyappa Swami
is located at Shabarimalai in the Indian state of Kerala, where people from all over the world
come to visit the temple of this son of Shiva. A light is seen near this temple on the night of

1
Makar Sankranti in dense darkness. Millions of devotees from all over the world visit this light
every year.

6. Bhuma says: At a time when Lord Shiva was sitting in the Samadhi on Mount Kailash, three
sweat drops from his forearm fell upon the earth. With these drops, the earth gave birth to a
beautiful and beloved child, who had four arms and blood color skin. This son began to nurture
the earth. It was only then that because he was the son of the land, he called Bhooma. When
something big went, Mangal Kashi reached and performed a severe penance of Lord Shiva. Then
Lord Shiva was pleased and gave him the Mars Lok.

7. Andhak: There is also a son called Andhak.

8. Khuja: According to the mythological description, the khujas came out of the earth like
strong rays and went straight to the sky.

Prolific grandchildren of a deity is the literal translation of Chau Say

Tevoda  which is a temple at Angkor, Cambodia. It is just east of Angkor
Thom, directly south of Thommanon across the Victory Way. It pre-dates
Angkor. Built in the mid-12th century, it is a Hindu temple in the Angkor
Wat period. It is dedicated to Shiva and Vishnu with unique types of female
sculptures of devatas enshrined in it. The Buddha images have been
interpreted to have been built during the reign of Dharanindravarman, father
of Jayavarman VII, who ruled from Preah Khan of Kompong. The temple was in
a dilapidated state with 4,000 of its elements lying scattered on the
embankment and in the Siem Reap River. Many of these elements were used in
the restoration work carried out by a Chinese team between 2000 and 2009
under a project sponsored by the People's Republic of China. The temple was
reopened in late 2009.
The word Tevoda is corruption of the Sanskrit word DEVATA. But whereas a
Devata is a female celestial pooprotecting being, a Tevoda is a non-sexual or bi-
sexual being- an ANGEL could be both male or female
Chau Say Tevoda has another sibling – the Thommanon and these 2 are small monuments
close together (on the left and right sides of the road) and similar in plan and style. Although the
precise dates of these monuments are unknown, they belong to the best period of classic art
stylistically and represent two variations of a single theme of composition. Chau Say Tevoda has
deteriorated more than Thommanon.

Chau Say Tevoda is a temple at Angkor, Cambodia just to the northeast of the
ancient capital Angkor Thom's east gate, directly south of Thommanon across
the Victory Way (it pre-dates the former and post-dates the latter). It is on a
road which has the Thomannon temple on its opposite side, 500 metres
(1,600 ft) from the east gate and 200 metres (660 ft) to a bridge built with
carved stones from temple ruins in the vicinity. The bridge is without a river
flowing beneath it in view of the shifting nature of the course of the Siem Reap
River.

2
Wide view
Originally Chau Say Tevoda was partly built in the mid-12th century under the
reign of King Suryavarman II. Further supplementation of structures was done
under the reign of Jayavarman VII. Though the temple was built under Hindu
kings during the 11th and 12th centuries with predominantly Hindu deities
such as Shiva and Vishnu, representation of Buddha images was interpreted
to have been built during the reign of Dharanindravarman, father of
Jayavarman VII, who ruled from Preah Khan Kompong Svay
The temple was reconstructed on the basis of about 4,000 elements of the
temple that were found lying around at the site. This restoration was done by a
Chinese team between 2000 and 2009 under a project sponsored by the
People's Republic of China. Both Buddhist and Hindu carvings are displayed in
failry minute and well preserved states

A R C H I T E C T U R E

Gopura.

3
LAYOUT
Chau Say Tevoda is rectangular in plan, with a Central Sanctuary opening to east, an enclosing
wall with an entry tower in the middle of the enclosing wall at the east entrance.

Walking towards the temple one can see traces of a moat and vestiges of a laterite base of an
enclosing wall.

ENTRY TOWERS
The entry towers are mostly demolished except for traces of the bases and stair ways with
sculpted steps. A raised causeway (3) on three rows of octagonal supports (later than the
monument) and a terrace link the east entry tower to a nearby river to the east.

PEDIMENTS
At the south of the passage a scene depicts the combat of Sugriva and Vali, at the north of the
passage (East Side) the reliefs include monkeys, Siva and Parvati on a bull, and apsaras.

CRUCIFORM- The Tevoda is built to a cruciform plan and linked to an

entrance hall, similar to the Hindu temples built in India, particularly
in Odisha. The temple has four gopuras or towers on the four cardinal signs
with an entrance from the east through a raised bridge. The long hall, which
links the gopuras and central chamber of the temple, has very elegant flower
decorations. The temple consists of a central tower with an attached mandapa,
which is achieved through an antarala chamber of small size, and with two
libraries on its southern and northern sides.
ENCLOSURE WALL-It is enclosed by a compound wall which has four gopuras
or towers. To its east, there is a raised causeway that leads to the Siem Reap
River. Many of the sculptures depict Vishnu and are in a fairly good condition.
However, the main deity of the temple is Shiva. [7] Some of the sculptures are
also of Buddha but disfigured totally. With time the ceiling has collapsed and
led to further deterioration. The defaced Buddhas, which are deified in a lotus
posture, flanked by devotees, are in a mandapa behind a pediment from the
entrance door which leads to the antarala.
The incomplete eastern Gopura I, which is oriented in the western direction,
has a roof which is part of the second "pediment of the lateral southern
extension" which is not fully restored. The main figure here is of Buddha in a
cross legged posture seated on a high platform flanked by disfigured carvings
which are interpreted as that of Garuda and the king of Nagas. The top
pediment of this Gopura I with figure of Buddha has an umbrella cover of
a Bodhi tree.[8] Carvings depicting episodes from the life of Buddha are seen on
the northern door of the eastern Gopura I. A notable bass relief here is
of Sita (heroine of the epic Ramayana) in a seated posture over an altar flanked
by rakshasis (female demonesses). Hanuman, in a small monkey form, is
carved in sitting posture facing Sita and offering her Rama's ring. A wall built
with laterite stones enclosing the temple, which had existed in the past, has
disappeared.

4
The temple was in a dilapidated state with 4,000 of its elements lying scattered
on the embankment and in the Siem Reap River. Between 2000 and 2009 some
of these elements were put together under a restoration project initiated by
the People's Republic of China. The temple reopened in late 2009 and is fully
accessible.

Chau Srei Vibol Temple, Siem Reap Province, Cambodia

The Chau Srei Vibol Temple- Sister Temple to Chau Say Tevoda  -
Chau Srei Vibol, also known by its modern name Wat Trak, is a large hilltop
temple complex about 17 kilometers due east of Angkor Wat. Due to
its distance from the bulk of the monuments in the Angkor archaeological
zone, the site is rarely visited by tourists and remains shrouded in mystery. No
stelae or epigraphic inscriptions have ever been found to attest to its
significance or lineage.
Construction of the temple probably dates to the reign of Suryavarman I (r.
1006-1050?), a prolific builder who was responsible for a number of large-scale
building projects along the fringes of the empire including Preah Khan
Kompong Svay, Preah Vihear, and Phnom Chisor (near present-day Phnom
Penh). Closer to home, he also erected the temple-mountain Phimeanakas, Ta
Keo, and the enormous western baray reservoir (measuring 2.1 x 8 kilometers).
Chau Srei Vibol was built on a similar monumental scale with a moat
measuring 1 x 1.5 kilometers, enclosing an artificial 'island' measuring roughly

5
650 x 1050 meters. The temple sat alongside the eastern branch of the great
royal road linking central Angkor to the iron-smelting center at Preah Khan
Kampong Svay, about 80 kilometers due east. Like pearls on a necklace,
a variety of royal rest houses and other important temples—such as Beng
Mealea—dotted the roadside at regular intervals. Though Chau Srei Vibol was
not the reason for the road's existence, it clearly benefited from its presence.
In Suryavarman's time the temple probably stood at the heart of a vast
metropolis or one which was planned, as the temple's inner enclosure
occupies less than 1% of the land contained within the moat. Nothing remains
of the city's residential structures, as these were typically made of perishable
materials. The only surviving structures, apart from the inner sanctuary and
the perimeter walls, are a laterite-lined reservoir to the southwest and a
curious cruciform-shaped building to the south. The purpose of the latter
structure is not known, though it strongly resembles a similar (though more
refined) hall at Beng Mealea.
The temple has never been restored and is now in a precarious state. As early
as 1903 Lunet de La Jonquire remarked on the temple's poor condition,
noting signs of deliberate damage (particularly on the east gopura of the 2nd
enclosure). Vittorio Roveda notes that "The locals blame foreign invaders,
presumably the Siamese" (p. 362). Petrotchenko, on the other hand, suggests
that Cham armies may have inflicted harm as they burst upon the empire from
the east, passing by (or through) Chao Srei Vibol as they marched on Angkor to
the west. 
The heart of the temple is its innermost enclosure, measuring about 40 x 50
meters. It stands on the summit of a natural hillock about 30 meters above the
surrounding plain, suggesting that the location of the temple was determined
foremost by topographic factors. In plan it strongly resembles Chau Say
Tevoda or the inner enclosure of Banteay Samre, though the central tower
lacks a mandapa (long antechamber). Like other temples built by Suryavarman
I, the stonework exhibits a high degree of craftsmanship with particularly
refined carvings visible on the rear of the south 'library', the best preserved
building.

6
Plan of Chau Srei Vibol

Detail of Inner Enclosure and Central Sanctuary/Cruciform Building to

the South of the Inner Enclosure

7
Why Chau Srei Vibol is special ?

Chai Say Vibol is the vastest temple complex in the Angkor plains that is situated outside the
Archaeological Park. It lies to the east of Angkor and to the north-east of Roluos. It is an "off the
beaten track" monument. It is most probably from the Angkor Wat period in the first half of the

What to explore at Chau Srei Vibol?

At the basis of Chau Say Vibol there is a new pagoda belonging to a Buddhist monastery. It is
situated within the medieval temple compound, but you will scarcely notice that: The original
outer enclosure wall and the moat are not visible any more. What you see at the car park - and
what seems to be large enough for an outer temple wall of considerable length - , indeed, is only
the second enclosure. It is a laterite wall with sandstone Gopuram gates at the cardinal points.
Some lintels are preserved.

Inside this vast compound there are two completely different structures worth a visit, one is on
the top of the natural hillock in the very centre, the other one is at its southern basis. Both are in
ruins, but well recognizable.

On the top of the hill there is an ensemble of sandstone edifices with a more common layout. An
enclosure gallery surrounds a central Prasat and a library, which is one of the few intact
buildings.