The role of the Preah Neang Deví as guardian of the
house is almost identical to the role of the Preah Neang Deví protector of the
country. But the role of the former does not extend beyond the scope of
inhabited places.
We know that the god and the goddess have no
physical from, no ‘rúpa’. In some instances, they are represented by deified
object.
Ang Choulean wrote that, “the guardian of the house,
in Khmer ‘mnán phdah’, is a supernatural being that plays a rather minor role.
It is associated with purity, cleanliness and domestic tidiness”.
Present-day Khmers honors two deities, ‘Preah Phúm’,
the guardian of the land, and ‘Mneang Phteah’ or ‘Neak Chumneang Phteah’, the
guardian of the house, who grants prosperity and worldly possessions. In both
cases, the deities are not symbolized by any objects.
We know that Visnu’s wife has two names, Bhúdeví –
from the Sanskrit word ‘Bhú’, which means land – symbolizes the guardian of the
land (of the house), and Laksmí the goddess of fortyne and prosperity.
Thus we can conclude that the ‘Preah Phúm’ and ‘Neak
Chumneang Phteah’ honored by the Khmers are merely incarnations of Visnu’s wife
and they played a similar role. At the same time, there are the female
equivalents of Visnu, the god of conservation.
In therefore possible to say that:
-
- Preah Phúm is Bhúdeví, who is
also Laksmí, the latter being Neak Chumneang Phteah
-
- Bhúdeví and Laksmí are the same
goddess and Visnu’s wife, but they also are the goddesses that embody the
women’s ancestors.
Conclusions
Given the way the role of the Preah Neang Deví as
representations of the gods’ or the kings’ wives is interpreted the statues
have three key meanings.
1-
They are works of art representing
the gods’ or the Bodhisattvas’ saktí, used to illustrate religion and
literature. They are simply the embodiment of the goddesses.
2-
They represent the ancestors’,
queens’ or other female characters’ souls. The respect paid to the statues of
the gods is not respect for the gods themselves, but rather shows respect
expressed towards the ancestors, who are considered to be gods.
The kings’ architectural legacy explains
this further. They built magnificent temples; some decorated with precious
metals and considered to be archaeological treasures, which they dedicated to
their ancestors’ spirit to express their gratitude for their heroic feats.
Khmer people pursue this tradition until today, by building ‘caitya’ where they
place their parents’, grandparents’ or masters’ relics.
3- The
Preah Neang Deví represents our ancestors’ spirits who are also, in the
invisible world, the guardians of the Cambodian land and the providers of
prosperity. As such, the Preah Neang Deví may e represented by any object, as
well as by the absence of objects. The way each Deví is represented is left to
the decision of the worshipper.
