In the brief overview of Cambodia history, we
mentioned that King Jayavarman II first instituted Devarája cult in Phnom
Kulen. This cult is an expression of the absolute respect granted to the god
and the king.
Kamaleswar Bhattacharya explains the meaning of the
word Devará as ‘god-king’, i.e. a single word to refer to a character that is
both a god and a king. But in no way does it refer to ‘the king of the gods’ or
‘the god of the kings’.
