Customs of Cambodia: Angkor in 1296
Dec 1, 2004 -
© John Walsh
Between 1296 and 1297, the Chinese diplomat Chou Ta-Kuan (also spelt Zhou Daguan) travelled to Angkor, the capital of the Khmer Empire as part of an embassy. During his visit, he witnessed many of the scenes of daily life of the empire at the height of its power. He then recorded his sights and opinions on his return to China and a version of his account is still available, although difficult to find. In this article, I will introduce just a few of the sights and sounds tat he observed.
The City
These days, we can see the majestic remains of the Angkor Wat complex and marvel at them. Chou Ta-Kuan was privileged enough to see the city in full bloom:
"The wall of the city is some five miles in circumference. It has five gates, each with double portals. Two gates pierce the eastern side; the other sides have one gate only. Outside the wall stretches a great moat, across which access to the city is given by massive causeways. Flanking the causeways on each side are fifty-four divinities resembling war-lords in stone, huge and terrifying."
Golden Buddha statues and other auspicious items are positioned throughout the city, as evidence of both wealth and piety. The combined influences of Buddhism and Hinduism are clearly seen.
The king lives in a golden tower, occupied by a genie as well as his wives, concubines and other essential personnel. Each person lives in a house with decoration and size suitable to his or her status. This tradition (known as sumptuary laws) also extended to what people were permitted to wear:
"Every man or woman, from the sovereign down, knots the hair and leaves the shoulders bare. Round the waist they wear a small strip of cloth, over which a larger piece is drawn when they leave their houses. Many rules, based on rank, govern the choice of materials."
The main differences in rank are shown in the wearing of jewelry and personal decoration. Unfortunately for Chou Ta-Kuan, he found the people unattractive for they differed from the Chinese and, like all good Chinese, considered anything different to be inferior:
"The customs common to all the southern barbarians are found throughout Cambodia, whose inhabitants are coarse people, ugly and deeply sunburned."
Just like other Chinese visitors to Southeast Asia, Chou Ta-Kuan was equally fascinated and appalled at what he considered to be the sexual license of the people - why, even the slaves were permitted to have sexual relationships with each other!
Society and Culture
Cambodian society - although not Chinese of course - is still acknowledged to be technologically and socially advanced:
"In this country, as in our own, there are men who understand astronomy and can calculate the eclipses of the sun and of the moon. However, a system different from ours determines the length of each month. In certain years, they must needs resort to an intercalary month, but this can only be the ninth month - and this I am unable to understand."
Judicial and agricultural systems also receive grudging praise. There are fascinating glimpses of Chinese migration, even from such an early period. The most common motivation is to become a merchant:
"In Cambodia it is the women who take charge of trade. For this reason a Chinese, arriving in the country, loses no time in getting himself a mate, for he find her commercial instincts a great asset. Market is held every day from six o'clock till noon. There are no shops in which the merchants live; instead, they display their goods on a matting spread upon the ground. Each has his allotted place. I have heard it said that the authorities collect rental for each space."
Chinese brought manufactured goods to sell and bought jungle products. These merchants or, at least, their descendants, lived in Cambodia until their murder by the Khmer Rouge.
Still, at that time, the living in Angkor was considered to be very pleasant and attractive:
"Chinese sailors coming to the country note with pleasure that it is not necessary to wear clothes, and, since rice is easily had, women easily persuaded, houses easily run, furniture easily come by, and trade easily carried on, a great many sailors desert to take up permanent residence."
References and Further Reading
Chou Ta-Kuan, Customs of Cambodia (Bangkok: The Siam Society, 1993). The original - or the version of it that still survives - was translated into French by Paul Pelliot and then into English by J. Gilman d'Arcy Paul.
John Walsh, Shinawatra International University, December 2004
http://jcwalsh.bravejournal.com
http://www.geocities.com/jcwalsh
These days, we can see the majestic remains of the Angkor Wat complex and marvel at them. Chou Ta-Kuan was privileged enough to see the city in full bloom:
Golden Buddha statues and other auspicious items are positioned throughout the city, as evidence of both wealth and piety. The combined influences of Buddhism and Hinduism are clearly seen.
The king lives in a golden tower, occupied by a genie as well as his wives, concubines and other essential personnel. Each person lives in a house with decoration and size suitable to his or her status. This tradition (known as sumptuary laws) also extended to what people were permitted to wear:
The main differences in rank are shown in the wearing of jewelry and personal decoration. Unfortunately for Chou Ta-Kuan, he found the people unattractive for they differed from the Chinese and, like all good Chinese, considered anything different to be inferior:
Just like other Chinese visitors to Southeast Asia, Chou Ta-Kuan was equally fascinated and appalled at what he considered to be the sexual license of the people - why, even the slaves were permitted to have sexual relationships with each other!
Cambodian society - although not Chinese of course - is still acknowledged to be technologically and socially advanced:
Judicial and agricultural systems also receive grudging praise. There are fascinating glimpses of Chinese migration, even from such an early period. The most common motivation is to become a merchant:
"In Cambodia it is the women who take charge of trade. For this reason a Chinese, arriving in the country, loses no time in getting himself a mate, for he find her commercial instincts a great asset. Market is held every day from six o'clock till noon. There are no shops in which the merchants live; instead, they display their goods on a matting spread upon the ground. Each has his allotted place. I have heard it said that the authorities collect rental for each space."
Chinese brought manufactured goods to sell and bought jungle products. These merchants or, at least, their descendants, lived in Cambodia until their murder by the Khmer Rouge.
Still, at that time, the living in Angkor was considered to be very pleasant and attractive:
Chou Ta-Kuan, Customs of Cambodia (Bangkok: The Siam Society, 1993). The original - or the version of it that still survives - was translated into French by Paul Pelliot and then into English by J. Gilman d'Arcy Paul.
http://jcwalsh.bravejournal.com
http://www.geocities.com/jcwalsh
The copyright of the article Customs of Cambodia: Angkor in 1296 in East Asian History is owned by John Walsh. Permission to republish Customs of Cambodia: Angkor in 1296 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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