Angkor Wat Equinox

The solar alignment of equinox at Angkor Wat is attracting a growing number of tourists, in a new trend of tourism connected to solar phenomena, also seen in such places such as Luxor and Vezelay Abbey. The Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, Cambodia has been ranking Number One as the Best Place in the World to Watch Sunrise and Sunset, in part because of the Angkor Wat Equinox Phenomenon.

The Angkor Wat equinox is a solar phenomenon considered as a hierophany that happens twice a year with spring and autumn equinox, as part of the many astronomical alignments indicative of a fairly elaborate system of astronomy and of the Hindu influence in the construction of the vast temple complex of Angkor Wat, in Cambodia. The sunrise on Angkor Wat during the equinox is such that someone standing in front of the western entrance on the equinox is able to see the sun rising directly over the central lotus tower. In fact, it would be more correct to describe the phenomenon as the exact match of the shadow formed by the sunrise on Angkor Wat's central prang and the western entrance bridge.

Angkor Wat Equinox ព្រឹត្តិការណ៍សមរាត្រី

The sunrise on Angkor Wat during the equinox is such that someone standing in front of the western entrance on the equinox is able to see the sun rising directly over the central lotus tower. In fact, it would be more correct to describe the phenomenon as the exact match of the shadow formed by the sunrise on Angkor Wat's central prang and the western entrance bridge.

The spring equinox, which receives such a special treatment at Angkor Wat, evidently marked the onset of the calendar year. However, during the thirteenth century, many years after the reign of Suryavarman II, the Khmer New Year was moved to the fifth lunar month, Chate, which corresponds to mid-April, in order for farmers to have more time to celebrate once the dry season was over. The astrological New Year that was celebrated before then occurred when the constellation of Aries or Ram appeared. This phenomenon occurred on the vernal equinox on March 21, but because of the precession of the equinoxes, the sun at the vernal equinox is not seen in the constellation of Pisces and enters Aires around April 13 or 14.

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