Sacred Sites

Old Myths and New Approaches

Advances in the Interpretation of
Ancient Religious Sites in Southeast Asia

Conference hosted by the Centre of Southeast Asian Studies and Monash Asia Institute

13 – 15 July 2005, Ramada Hotel, Melbourne, Australia

This path-breaking two day conference will focus on the ancient religious sites of Southeast Asia, and their integration into and interaction with the surrounding cities and landscapes. These extraordinary sites have received considerable attention from the colonial period onward, and a substantial body of documentation has been accumulated over time. While this information has helped advance the understanding of issues ranging from water management to construction techniques, the question of how it affects our understanding of the links of the temples with their surroundings has received far less attention. The temples were socially lived sites, interconnected inseparably with the rhythms of everyday life of the surrounding community. The conference draws on the latest work by over twenty international experts, who will approach the sites from a range of perspectives and disciplines, and illuminate their incorporation into the lived environment – physically, socially, and metaphysically.

http://www.arts.monash.edu.au/mai/sacredsites/

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