Vishnu and Lakshmi

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Vishnu is very popular in Khmer art and widely depicted in both sculpture and reliefs. In the pre-Angkor period Vishnu wears a cylindrical headdress, whereas later he wears a diadem. He is most frequently depicted in his four-armed form and carries characteristic items; a small globe (the earth), a disc (a throwing weapon, but also a symbol of the sun and which alludes to the samsara – ‘the cycle of human destines’), a conch shell (symbol of the links between god and ocean) and a club (a weapon but also a symbol of sovereign power). Vishnu, like Shiva, could assume various forms. Some of his avatars or manifestations appear in epic myths – Rama or Krishna. He can also appear in other manifestations, most popularly: Kurma (the tortoise, associated with creation. In the most famous Khmer relief – The Churning of the Ocean of Milk – Vishnu, in the form of a tortoise, serves as a pivot whilst the ocean is churned.), Narasimha (the man-lion), Matsya (a fish,Vishnu saved mankind from a flood in the form of a fish), the Buddha, and Kalki (a horse, or human figure with a horse’s head. This, Vishnu’s last incarnation, has not happened yet. Kalki will emerge at the end of our present time cycle).

Lakshmi is the consort of Vishnu and the goddess of good fortune, abundance and prosperity. She was born of the Churning of the Ocean of Milk and is often depicted on a lotus (her symbol) pedestal with two elephants sprinkling water over her with their trunks. The number of her arms and attributes vary, but she is usually seen with a lotus and conch. Her mount is a tiger. Each Hindu god is accompanied by its shakti, the female projection that symbolises creative energy.