History, for some, is spelt out in temples. Far more than just 'stones and bones', a great temple lingers like the spirit of a civilization whose earthly powers have waned. Sites such as Borobudur in Java, the Cham temples of Vietnam and the massive Spanish basilicas of Luzon, the Philippines, all tell of Asia's shifting spheres of faith and power.
Ajanta and Ellora temples, Maharashtra, India
Imagine a rock carving so huge that it took 7,000 labourers working in continuous shifts 150 years to complete. Such is the awesome engineering of the Kailas temple at Ellora in Maharashtra, western India. Understandably, Ellora (commenced about 1,500 years ago) and its even older sister temple at Ajanta are both World Heritage sites. Located not far from Aurangabad, these ancient Buddhist, Hindu and Jain religious complexes aren't natural caves but are defined as 'rock-cut monumental sculptures', consisting of massive temples, intricate bas reliefs and capacious monasteries (of up to three storeys), all hewn by hand. www. ajanta-ellora.indianvisit.com
Angkor Wat complex, Siem Reap, Cambodia
Hollywood made Cambodia famous for all the wrong reasons. Having barely recovered from its Killing Fields reputation, Cambodia's ancient Angkor monuments then became props for the film Tomb Raider. Angkor Wat, a huge complex of temples 300km north of Phnom Penh, was once the heart of Khmer civilisation and home to more than a million people. Flourishing from the eighth to the 13th centuries, the Khmer metropolis rapidly disintegrated and was forgotten. Its Angkor masterpieces were only rediscovered in 1860. www.angkorwat.orgAyutthaya historical park, Thailand
Follow the muddy Chao Phraya river 86km north of Bangkok and you come upon sprawling ruins where scores of Buddhist temples stand silently at the confluence of three rivers. Magnificent Ayutthaya, capital from 1350 to 1767 of Thailand (when the country was known as Siam), was destroyed by an invading Burmese army in 1767 but its plain remains dotted with tall prang (reliquary towers) and the remnants of some of the 400 Buddhist monasteries that once flourished here. The size and scale of the temples are a reminder of how Ayutthaya was one of Asia's great metropolises that rivalled European cities of that time. whc.unesco.org/sites/cultural.htm
Wat Xieng Thong, Luang Prabang, Laos
This city of exquisite temples - there are more than 30 of them - was the retreat of the Lao royal family until its demise in 1975. Enthroned on the banks of the Mekong river some 200km north of Vientiane, World Heritage-listed Luang Prabang bristles with the gilded, red-tiled roofs of Buddhist wats. The most elaborate is the royal Wat Xieng Thong (Golden City Temple), which is about 440 years old; look for its huge imperial funeral carriage and a magnificent Tree of Life mosaic on the wall of one chapel. whc.unesco.org/sites/cultural.htm
Bulguksa Pagoda, Gyeongju, South Korea
As the capital of the Shilla Kingdom (57BC -935AD), Gyeongju was the centre of a golden age of Korean culture and today is designated by Unesco as a major historical site. Among its well-preserved archaeological treasures is Bulguksa (the Temple of Two Pagodas), Korea's most venerated building. This long, complex structure with upswept eaves, symbolising harmony with Heaven, was commenced in 528 AD, enlarged in 751 AD, razed by invaders in 1593 then left to languish. In 1973 it was restored to its intended glory. whc.unesco.org/sites/cultural.htm
Shwedagon Pagoda, Yangon, Myanmar
'It is the fairest place, as I suppose, that is in the world,' wrote English traveller Ralph Fitch in 1586 when he first saw the golden needle of the Shwedagon. The origins of the Shwedagon pagoda in Yangon, capital of Myanmar, may be lost in antiquity but the structure remains stunning. Seventy-two shrines surround the base of this cone- shaped, gold-covered Buddhist stupa, which soars to a 99-metre, diamond-encrusted tip. www.shwedagon.8m.comncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tK%2FMqWWcp51krrPAyJyjnmdkaIV5hZdomKyhkaN6tbHMqaOeqw%3D%3D