The similarity of the Khmer alphabet to the Oriya alphabet fascinated me. The Oriya alphabet has not been easy to be classified because of its lack of similarity to Devanagari driven scripts in the north and also lack of similarity to Tamil driven scripts in the south. Unlike the Devanagari it makes a rounded top and unlike Tamil the pen stroke is written upward than downward. Telugu has some similarity. I have no way to figure out why Khmer people chose similar way of writing. One could possibly speculate that the Brahmi script did arrive in Cambodia through the traders and developed into the local script purely through aesthetic engraving. Such script was probably brought back to Orissa and helped influence the development of Oriya script. The estimated date for the currently used Oriya script is around 1000 AD, while the Khmer inscriptions that we were seeing date several centuries before. As we come to later inscriptions, we see variations, most importantly in the direction of the engraving. This had possibly to do with the Pallava influence from South India, the traders from there settled first in modern Malaysia and then moved to Thailand and Cambodia over land. I have been concerned with the French interpretation of the text, which appeared to me incomplete and cursory. I was not sure if such interpretation was done for political purposes or out of improper scholarship. South Asian culture is richer and older than the European culture. The European scholars do get into difficulty while assigning dates. I am told some Biblical statements guide such dating. This is unfortunate. We returned to Ms Kunthea's office and looked into a few books. She was the first person who was looking into the Sanskrit connection of the Khmer words. I encouraged her and committed my support for her work. We came out from the Museum and spent some time on the grounds. We went near the massive Buddha statue that was positioned outdoors to symbolize the thrust of the collection in the Museum.
Dr. Darith left and I came back to the city to look for the book stores that might have a Cambodian dictionary. Mr. Kushal was enthusiastic but he took me to a supermarket with an attached book stall that sold children's story books and coloring books. There were some young adult mystery books and a shelf of "make easy" books. I could not talk to anyone about my need and had to abandon my search. I came back to the hotel and thought to rest a bit. I checked on my emails and responded as I could. I repacked my luggage. I went out for my evening walk. There was a lady right in front who sold street food. They had an open pan and they would cook various items and display in a glass case. The prices were listed on a board by the side of the case. I marked the letters, they were somewhat different than what I had seen in the Museum. Letter faces of many languages have changed after the book printing was introduced. To make typefaces with lead was not always easy. These letters appeared to have more lines than the curves I had seen earlier.
I visited my laundry aunt. Seeing me she went on searching if I had laundry. I just did greetings with folded hands. She smiled and returned my greeting. There was a man sitting at a desk nearby. I also greeted him with folded hands. He just nodded his head. Women retain the culture more than men do. Culture possibly has a motherly instinct.
I did visit my Korean friends. They were busy drinking beer and laughing loud. Possibly there was monotony and stress in foreign business. I stopped by at their table and thanked them for their hospitality to me. They did not ask me of my impressions of the town or of the monuments. I was viewing them as new traders in the old country. There could be loneliness as one settled in a new land with uncertain prospects. These could be the markings of the new form of colonization to explore cheaper markets.
As I walked on the road, I reflected how does anyone operate in a new land. The pilgrims were welcomed by the natives in America until the the newly arrived occupied the natives' land. We provide hospitality to a guest, rarely do we know that the "guest" might have the intention of evicting the owner from the house. India is known in history for her hospitality to the migrants, but the Indian people did eventually paid a price for their good manners. Did the Cambodians pay a price or did they benefit through the settlers who eventually built massive monuments? The natives certainly had resources, but lacked the technology. So is the story of occupation in the world. Buddhism helped integrate the settlers to the Khmer culture. A synthetic society developed until totally strange colonizers from Europe showed up with advanced weapons.
The United States is going through a major experiment. First displacing the natives into small territories, the enormous country is now built up through the labor and talents of the immigrants. Integration becomes a political process. Some group could outmaneuver other groups through size or power. Internal rivalry and competition could be useful to establish diversity as long as the resources are not depleted. Like India or Cambodia, a country may have to reconstruct itself periodically. Reconstruction is a function of recalling the country's heritage, locating its strength and building its potential. Intellectual freedom and social dignity must follow the political freedom. It may take a long time to reestablish the glory of a resource-depleted nation.
I went for supper in a close-by restaurant. It looked more formal. I wanted to understand how the moneyed people lived. People dined in private rooms and the main hall was sparsely seated. I took my seat and had a light supper. Waves of people in robes passed by. I did not know where did they live or who they were. It seemed that there was a remnant of royal class still operating in the country.
This was my last evening at Siem Reap. I would take the morning flight out.
