The Monastery of the King

A couple of years ago, I took a great interest in the Ta Prohm temple after seeing pictures of trees and plants twisting and encasing the walls and artwork within and around the temple. After a fair amount of research, I found that the history of the temple is almost opulent in its nature, contradicting the current shape of Ta Prohm.

                              http://www.meros.org/en/wonder/view?id=371

Ta Prohm was built in the 12th Century, formerly known as Rajavihara, or "Monastery of the King." I was a center of culture and commerce, home to thousands of people as well as a considerable amount of gold and silks. It was also a center of religion, home to stone carvings and artwork depicting Buddhist tales and monks. However, it was abandoned in the 15th Century and proceeded to be neglected for centuries before restoration began again only a few years ago. as a result, the shining, glittering hub it used to be is now being taken back by the jungles around it. 

                               www.matthewlees.com

I am excited to have the opportunity to visit a temple I have always longed to visit, remembering its past and witnessing its present, imagining what it must have been like in its heyday so long ago when before it was left to the jungle.