“Artful Ambiguities in Angkor’s Literary and Visua Culture: Locating Śrī in Inscriptions and Art”

Soumya James (Independent Art Historian) - “Artful Ambiguities in Angkor’s Literary and Visua Culture: Locating Śrī in Inscriptions and Art”

The literary and material landscapes of Angkor abound in metaphors. In Sanskrit inscriptions, Śrī  (or Lakṣmī) has a persistent presence, typically to eulogize the king. Metaphorical language in  inscriptions is often ambiguous, enigmatically referring either to the goddess (Śrī), the abstract qualities she embodies (śrī), or both. Using examples from inscriptions and art, I explore the fluidity of Ś/śrī’s states-of-being that define or qualify the king, kingship, and the relationship between the ruler and his territory. Angkorian inscriptions describe Śrī as representing the earth and its generative qualities, political power, wealth, beauty, and fecundity. Inscriptions narrate that after the king earns his right to the throne by literally shedding blood on the battlefield, Śrī  chooses him as her suitor, even over the gods. Her presence with him ensures the prosperity of  the land. Indeed, the material landscape of Angkor with its stately monuments and verdant rice fields could be interpreted as the manifestation of Ś/śrī. Nonetheless, visual and textual references also convey a sense of ambiguity in her status with regards to the king. Hovering between form and formlessness, this ambiguity of Ś/śrī in turn projects an impermanence of kingly power and economic well-being. I suggest that Ś/śrī was a metaphor to communicate the understanding that sovereign power was neither guaranteed nor permanent, but that the land always held the potential for each king to make it so if only for a time.