The story is narrated in the VII book of the Ramayana (Uttara Kanda), chapter 16.
1) One day, the ten-faced rakshasa Dashanana (Ravana), Lord of Lanka, is riding on his magic cart, the Pushpaka, over the SJfaravana forest of reeds surrounding Mt. Kailasa. Suddenly, his cart comes to a stop at the base of the mountain where Shiva is frolicking with Parvati. Nandi (Shiva’s guardian) appears to inform mountain as in a game and crushes the arms of rakshasa, who emits a terrible cry causing the Three Worlds to tremble. Having heard this in the skies, the gods supplicate Shiva to release him. Shiva obeys and lets him go, but declares his name to be Ravana, “the one who causes the worlds to cry out”. Ravana then preys Shiva to grant him the boon that no gods, anti-gods or monsters will ever kill him; he would not consider men because they are insignificant11. Shiva condescends. Ravana leaves on the Pushpaka after paying obeisance to him, and returns to the worlds where he will spread misery and death.
2) A totally different interpretation is provided by C.M. Bhandari12, which may originate from Southern Indian local traditions. Ravana, although king of the rakshasas, was a great scholar and devotee of Shiva. He desired Shiva to live in his kingdom in the isle of Lanka instead of on Mt. Kailasa. Since Shiva would not move, Ravana tried to lift the entire mountain to transfer it to Lanka.
2 . THE VIEWING
In this relief the story is displayed in two main pseudo-registers on a rectangular wall area; a small part of the wall to the right below Shiva has crumbled away, unfortunately affecting Shiva’s image. In the top pseudo-register Shiva is placed
11 Ravana’s boon excluded the possibility of being killed by men. In fact, only Vishnu’s human incarnation, Rama, will be able to kill him.
12 Bhandari C.M., Saving Angkor, White Orchid Books, Bangkok, 1995
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S.5 - Ravana shaking Mt. Kailasa
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at the centre, seated in a yoga position on a low plinth, under a large tree. His right hand is on his chest, the left resting on his lap. He does not appear holding a rosary, and is wearing the customary jewellery; a tiara surmounted by a peculiar lobate mukuta from which 2 thin plaits. He is meditating in the forest at the top of the mountain, which is surrounded by flying apsaras. The degradation of the reliefs stone does not allow a reading of the position of Shiva’s legs, i.e. if his toe is pushing down the mountain to squash Ravana.
To the right side of the God, one can barely see the image of a female figure, possibly his wife Parvati, holding a lotus by the stalk, while to his left is a male figure holding a trident ([trisula). This arrangement is closely reminiscent of the one in the relief of Kama attempting to disturb Shiva. Therefore, also in here, this latter personage is either another form of Shiva himself, the Shulandhara Shiva, or a human form of his door guardian Salaidi.
The middle pseudo-register is the largest of the relief, where the representation of Ravana is overwhelming. He is sculpted with many arms, 10 on each side, and with multiple heads: 4 very large, attached to the neck, then 4 of medium size, then 2 smaller at the top, for a total of 10, as described in the text. His face has bulging eyes, continuous eyebrows, large grimacing mouth, and the stylish moustaches that are common to Khmer sculpture of the time. His legs are spread apart in a weight-lifting attitude. Because of his large size - much bigger than Shiva - the details of his dress are clear: heavy earrings, necklace, armlets, anklets and belt finely chiselled; a floating sampot with extended floral flaps, and two decorated cloth bands crossing his chest, ending, at his back, with flagging points.
The set o f 5 arms at each side closer to his head, are clearly supporting the rock (indicated by imbricated lozenges) of Mt. Mandara, while the others seem to grasp the vegetation of the forest. Closely surrounding his body, in the empty space between him and the forest, are strange round objects, with a flower sculpted at the centre, with a single small tail in the shape of a flame or leaf13. For Henri Marchal14 this is a flying flower symbolic o f the magic power emanating from gods and heroes. It may be one of the flowers that the gods are showering on earth to bless some actions, as we are told in the Puranas. In same cases, it may also
13 These fire’s sparks appear in several other reliefs like the one of Krishna killing Kamsa in the central tower, and of Krishna on Garuda of the Northern Gopura of the 4th enclosure.
represent a flying flame, symbolic of concentrated energy, or sparks of the fire of tapas; we know that Ravana had accumulated so much tapas energy from prolonged acts of penance that he dared challenge the gods. All around Ravana is a dense forest with a great number of wild animals, all frightened, including snakes (nagas) and small mammals. Also present are some terrified running ascetics, a few holding a javelin in defence from the wild animals. At the sides, are ascetics in the act of praying (2 to Ravana’s left and 3 to his right), squatting under trees.
In the lower pseudo-register is represented a long thin band of forest is depicted below Ravana; however it can be considered part of the overlying pseudo-register because some of the trees extend into it, as are the figures of rishis in almond-
shaped frames, sitting at both ends.
In the topmost part of the relief the usual storm of apsaras is represented. Some occur as low as the sides of the mountain where Ravana is, contributing thus to the pyramidal layout of the relief.
On the pillar to the left of the window 4 superimposed register are sculpted with rows of seated male personages in royal attire, all wearing crowns and the customary jewellery. They do not seem to be concerned with what is going on above them.