Reject Taj Mahal, Vote for Angkor Wat Temple

[Guest guest]

Reject Taj Mahal, Vote for Angkor Wat Temple

6/16/2007 3:51:30 PM HK

 

The world wide contest is underway to find new Seven Wonders of the World by a

Swiss philanthropist Bernard Weber, a Swiss filmmaker and curator.

 

One of the Kerala based television channel is campaigning heavily for Taj

Mahal, even without mentioning that World’s largest and best-preserved Hindu

Temple Ankor Wat is in this contest with third position as on date.

 

We appeal to the all Hindus to vote for Angkorwat Temple in Cambodia without

promoting the Taj Mahal which is a symbol of oppression and cruelty of Mughal

invaders.

 

Here is the brief history of Taj Mahal & Angkor Wat Temple for comparison and

to decide which is the true wonder and think twice before casting the vote that

should promote a symbol of Barbarism by voting to Taj Mahal.

 

'TAJ MAHAL'

'Taj Mahal' was constructed by destroying a Siva Temple - Tejo-mahalaya by a

5th Generation of Mughal invader Shah Jahan, who was a cruel tyrant, a great

womaniser and a drug and drink addict.

 

(For More Details on the Historical Revealation by Eminent Historian P.N.Oak

http://www.hindunet.org/hindu_history/modern/taj_oak.html)

 

ANGKOR TEMPLE

World’s largest sacred temple dedicated to Lord Maha Vishnu

 

Built during the reign of King Suryavaman II, at the beginning of the 12th

century,

 

The Angkor Wat temple is a classical example of Mount Meru, central in Hindu

cosmology (For More info http://home.wxs.nl/~bellaart/html/cambodia/awtsub3.htm

)

 

 

Please visit http://www.new7wonders.com & vote for Angkor Wat Temple.

 

 

http://www.haindavakeralam.org/PageModule.aspx?PageID=3922 & SKIN=W

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.hinduwisdom.info/Sacred_Angkor.htm

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angkor_Wat

 

http://www.angkorwat.org/

 

Seven “new wonders”

Angkor Wat too deserves your vote

 

By K.G. Suresh

 

The most important monument of the Khmer Empire and the world’s largest sacred

temple complex, Angkor is famous for its complex ornamentation and striking

beauty. The temples at Angkor are spread out over 64 kms around the village of

Sien Reap, about 308 kms from the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh.

Indian television channels and websites have of late launched a campaign

asking people to vote for the inclusion of the Taj Mahal as one of the seven

“new wonders” of the world. With barely three weeks left for the nominations to

close, hectic efforts including celebrity endorsements are on to get the most

perfect jewel of Muslim art in India into the elite club through sms, internet

and phone voting. Music wizard A R Rahman has even composed a theme song for the

Taj to canvass support for the historic monument in Agra built by Mughal Emperor

Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved wife Persian born princess Arjuman Bano

Begum popularly known as Mumtaz Mahal.

 

Notwithstanding the controversies surrounding the Taj, including claims by some

Hindu groups that it was built over a temple dedicated to Goddess Yamuna and the

alleged atrocities perpetrated on the workmen (whose hands were reportedly

cut-off by the Emperor who did not want them to build any such grand mausoleum),

the Mughal tomb remains an integral part of our composite heritage and attracts

tourists from the world over, providing employment to lakhs of our countrymen

and millions of dollars in foreign exchange.

 

And as Indians, we should also undoubtedly join this campaign to enable this

enduring symbol of our country to make it to the top seven. But equally

significant, both for all Indians and Hindus across the globe is the presence of

the world’s largest Hindu temple, Angkor, among the 21 finalist candidates in

the campaign to choose the New Seven Wonders of the World.

 

The most important monument of the Khmer Empire and the world’s largest sacred

temple complex, Angkor is famous for its complex ornamentation and striking

beauty. The temples at Angkor are spread out over 64 kms around the village of

Sien Reap, about 308 kms from the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh.

 

Like many other aspects of their culture, the Cambodians adapted Indian

architectural methods and styles. The Hindu religion played an important part in

the Khmer temples. In fact, the Hindu monarch Jayavarman II introduced the cult

of ‘Devaraja’ into Cambodia, which saw the King as a representative of Lord

Shiva. From then on, the temples were built to honour both the Lord and the

King. However, the Angkor Wat temple was originally dedicated to Lord Vishnu

though later it was converted to a Buddhist temple.

 

Angkor is a vernacular form of the word nokor which comes from the Sanskrit word

nagara (city), while wat is the Khmer word for temple.

 

The most famous temple in Angkor is Angkor Wat, a huge pyramid temple built by

King Suryavarman II between 1113 and 1150, generally seen as the masterpiece of

Khmer architecture. It is surrounded by a 570 feet wide and about 6.4 km long

moat. With its water moats, concentric walls and great temple mountain in the

center, Angkor Wat symbolizes the Hindu cosmos, with its oceans at the periphery

and the Meru mountain at the centre of the universe.

 

Other impressive temples include Ta Prohm in the midst of still dense jungles

and the Bayon built by King Jayavarman VII in the later part of 12th century

that features among other things 3,936 feet of beautiful bas-relief carving.

 

There are other temples located in the area and Khmer temples can also be found

in many other parts of Cambodia, as well as China, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam.

 

For the Cambodians, the Angkor Wat has become a matter of national pride with

the temple appearing even on its national flag, the only building to appear on

any national flag. In fact, riots erupted in the capital city after a Thai

artist claimed that the temple belonged to Thailand.

 

For us Indians too, Angkor not only reminds us of our ancient glory but also

symbolizes the deep impact Indian culture had across the globe, particularly

South-East Asia. After the destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas by the

fundamentalist Taliban in Afghanistan, Angkor remains the most potent symbol of

the glory of Hindu culture outside of India.

 

The shortlist was chosen by a panel of world remowned architects and ex-UNESCO

Chief Federico Mayor in January 2006, out of 77 public nominations.

 

In fact, only one of the seven ancient wonders of the world, the Great Pyramid

of Giza in Egypt, survives to this date.

 

The internet contest for the new seven wonders is aimed at raising global

awareness about the world’s shared cultural heritage and was conceived by Swiss

film maker, curator and traveler Bernard Weber, following the destruction of the

giant Buddha statues at Bamyan in 2001.

 

Though Indian television channels are running a campaign for the inclusion of

the Taj in the list appealing to the nationalist sentiments, much of the

internet and phone text message voting so far has avoided national preferences.

 

A visit to the site ‘ www.new7wonders.com ’ would reveal that any visitor can

vote for any seven monuments of his or her choice. So, if Taj deserves your

vote, click the mouse for Angkor Wat too. It is as much ours as is the Taj.

 

http://www.organiser.org/dynamic/modules.php?name=Content & pa=showpage & pid=189 & pa\

ge=6

 

ONLY FEW DAYS MORE TO VOTE ....VOTE NOW FORWARD THIS TO YOUR FRIENDS KEEP

VOTING ...

 

 

 

Here’s a new way to find what you're looking for - Answers