A combat scene in the Battle of Lanka
A combat scene in the Battle of Lanka
The image shows a section of the Battle of Lanka bas-relief depicting hand-to-hand combat between the Rama and Ravana’s warriors described in the Hindu epic Ramayana.
After the abduction of Rama’s wife Sita by Ravana, Rama gathered an army with the help of his ally Sugriva, the king of the vanara (monkey) kingdom of Kishkindha, and attacked Lanka to rescue her.
According to Ramayana, Lanka, where this epic battle took place, is an island located south of India. The present-day island nation of Sri Lanka closely fits the description of Lanka in Ramayana.
In this battle, Rama’s army consisted of mostly the vanaras from his ally Sugriva. Ravana being a rakshasa (demon), his army consisted of mostly the rakshasas.
As you can see from the image, a rakshasa warrior on a chariot driven by two horses is hurling a spear at a monkey warrior who is biting the face of a horse. Surrounding them are the monkey and rakshasa warriors engaged in hand-to-hand combat.
The entire Battle of Lanka bas-relief covers the western half of the north side gallery built on the perimeter of the lower level of the Angkor Wat Temple in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Check the Angkor Wat Temple Layout for the exact location of the Battle of Lanka bas-relief.
Read the Angkor Wat Bas-Reliefs page for a detailed description of this and other bas-reliefs.
Related Images
– Ravana in the Battle of Lanka
– A Monkey Warrior Straddled on the Heads of Two Lions
– A Monkey Warrior Subduing Two Lions
Related Pages
– Angkor Wat, Angkor Wat Bas-Reliefs, Angkor Thom, Bayon, Ta Prohm, Banteay Srei
– Phnom Kulen, Tonlé Sap, Cambodia
– Bali, Prambanan, Borobudur, Indonesia
Copyright © 2020 by Lawrence Rodrigues. All rights reserved.