Ancient Cambodia’s Indian cultural heritage does not
only comprise religious art; but also includes the art of writing.
The writings found on stones, which the Khmers call
inscriptions or ‘stone writing’, were written in Sanskrit or ancient Khmer and
are an undisputed source and undeniable source of information when studying
Cambodian religion and history.
Generally, Sanskrit inscriptions are verses
introduced by invocations to the gods and praises to the kings; the
inscriptions in ancient Khmer are written in prose and refer to social and
religious events.
Among these inscriptions, the one found at Phimean
Akas temple (K. 485) is of particular significance in the study of the Preah
Neang Deví.
The inscription is written in Sanskrit on a
four-sided boundary stone; fifty-two lines are written on three sides and forty-four
lines on the fourth side. It was broken into 70 pieces that Henri Marchal, the
then curator of Angkor Conservation, pieced back together to re-assenble before
presentin it to the Albert Sarraut Museum.
Geogre Coedes states that the inscription was written
under the reign of Jayavarman VII (1181-1218). The author is Indradeví (stanza
CII) whose name is identified, for the first time, in stanza XCV.
The inscription begins with invocations to the gods
and praises to King Jayavarman VII. It mentions the king leaving for Vijaya,
the former capital of Champa, present-day Binh Dinh in Vietnam, and relates
Champa’s acts of aggression towards Cambodia.
This important inscription on Cambodia history
provides additional insight into the Preah Neang Deví.
We learn that Jayavarman VII’s first wife was called
Jayarájadeví and that she was Indradeví’s younger sister. When her husband left
the country, she submitted to asceticism and practiced strict Brahmanist and
Buddhist rituals to bring the king success and protect him from danger (stanza
LXIV).
Stanza CXXIX tells how she takes in, and brings up
as her own daughters, destitute young girls abandoned by their mothers, in the
village of Dharmakíti that is yet ‘known for its moral principles and full of
happiness and prosperity’.
Young Queen Jayarájadeví dies before her husband’s
coronation. After her death, the king marries her older sister, Indradeví.
Stanza XCIX tells us that Queen Indradeví is
considered to be the incarnation of Sarasvatí, Indra’s sakti. Her grace, her
intelligence and her knowledge will lead her to become head professor and, at
the same time, master of the wives grouped together in several convents.
Indradeví is a generous practicing Buddhist. Like
her sister Jayarájadeví, she distributes property to the people and enhances
religious thinking.
Stanza XCVI also mentions Indradeví’s commissioning
and production of numerous sculptures of Jayarájadeví and the king, to honour
and display them throughout the empire.
