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Bas-reliefs of Preah Neang Deví


Bodhisattva – before he became Buddha – and Ráma are incarnations of Visnu. Thus, Bodhisattva’s and Ráma’s sakti are incarnations of Visnu’s wife. Before he reached the state of enlightenment, when he was still Bodhisattva, Buddha had accomplished the ten perfections, the Dasá játaka, symbolized by the ten previous lives of the Blessed:
  1.   Relinquishment of passion and progression to a religious state, in the Temiya játaka
  2. Diligence, in the Mahájanaka játaka
  3. Charity, in the Suvannasáma játaka
  4. Determination, in the Nemirája játaka
  5. Intelligence, in the Mahosatha jáaka
  6. Moral standards, in the Bhúrdatta játaka
  7. Patience, in the Canda Kumára játaka
  8. Impartiality, in the Nárada Brahma játaka
  9. Truth, in the Vidhúrapandita játaka
  10. Self-sacrifice, in the Vessabtara játaka
The museum owns a frieze (Ka. 1701) that depicts Vessantara and his wife Madrí (Metri in Khmer) giving alms. A lintel (Ka.1832) tells the story of Ráma and his brother Laksmana chasing Sitá and Hanumán carrying Sitá.


Frieze, Vessantara játaka (Ka. 1701) 

  Lintel (Ka. 1832) 

  Detail of the secondary medallions on Lintel (Ka. 1832) 
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