Top 10 Most Impressive Temples in Asia

1. Angkor Wat, Cambodia

The Angkor Wat complex is the most famous tourist destination in Cambodia. It is also one of the seven wonders of the world recognized by UNESCO. It can be said that this is the greatest heritage that the Khmer people have left for posterity. Located about 6 km north of Siem Reap, Angkor Wat was built by King Suryavarman II in the first half of the 12th century. The entire complex covers more than 248 square miles (400 km2), surrounded by a deep and wide moat. Originally designed for Hindu worship, Angkor Wat later transitioned to Buddhism due to the strong influence and development of Buddhism.

The entire architectural complex features outstanding and unique ancient carvings. The towers, temples, bas-reliefs, and extensive corridors are all made of sandstone blocks, stacked on top of each other to look very natural, even on the vaults. The stone carvings depicting Buddha statues, apsaras, warriors, and lotus flowers illustrating the epics Ramayana and Mahabharata are vivid and delicate. The temple architecture mimics the shape of the great Indian Mount Meru, with the central tower reaching up to 65m symbolizing the mythical Mount Meru, and the surrounding five towers corresponding to the five peaks of the mountain. The entire architecture is built of sandstone and laterite stone. All of these large stone blocks are stacked on top of each other without any binding material or steel-reinforced concrete.

The Angkor archaeological site is the pride of the Cambodian people, especially important for Cambodian tourism. The Angkor archaeological site, which is particularly important for Cambodian tourism, is divided into 5 main areas with unique architecture creating magnificent scenery that attracts tourists: Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom, Little Circuit, Big Circuit, Roluos group, and peripheral temples. Angkor Wat Temple is the main reason for over 50% of international tourists visiting Cambodia. The Cambodian people are very proud of their architectural work, which has been placed on the country's flag since 1850.

2. Shwe Maw Daw Temple, Bago, Myanmar

Shwemawdaw Temple, also known as the Golden God Temple, located in Bago, Myanmar, holds the record as the tallest temple in Myanmar to date. Every year, the people of Myanmar typically organize a festival that lasts for 10 days right at this temple. The temple is a masterpiece of architecture created by two brothers, Mahasala and Kullasala. They together designed and participated in building this structure after returning from studying abroad in India. At that time, they only intended to build a small pagoda to house two hairs of the Buddha that they were fortunate enough to obtain. Later on, the government and people of Myanmar together built additional architectural structures within the temple complex, giving Shwemawdaw Temple the appearance it has today.

Not only is it a place to preserve invaluable treasures like the hair relics and tooth of the Buddha, but Shwemawdaw Temple also possesses an ancient bell, extremely rare, cast during the reign of King Dhammazedi, a crown from the time of King Bayinpauung, an umbrella, and a water filter from the time of King Bodawpaya. Like in many other temples in Myanmar, Myanmar tourists when visiting the temple, offer prayers at the temple, have to remove their shoes outside the temple gate to show respect for the Buddha. Visitors to the temple are sure to be impressed by the timeless red paint of the walls surrounding the temple. It seems that the paint layer has never been obscured by the dust of time even though the temple has been thousands of years old. From the base to the top of Shwemawdaw, everything is gilded with brilliant gold. Under the sun, the spire becomes even more dazzling and enchanting than ever.

3. Prambanan, Java, Indonesia

Prambanan is a Hindu temple complex located in Yogyakarta province, Indonesia. This is the temple dedicated to Trimurti, the three supreme gods of Hinduism including the creator god Brahma, the preserver god Vishnu, and the destroyer god Shiva. The temple is located about 17 km northeast of the city of Yogyakarta, on the border between the two provinces of Central Java and Yogyakarta. The temple is recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site as the largest Hindu temple in Indonesia and the second largest in Southeast Asia. It is characterized by tall and pointed tower architecture with the central tower reaching up to 47 meters high within a large complex of temples. This temple is one of the tourist attractions in Indonesia that attracts visitors from all over the world.

The temple complex was actively built under many kings of Medang, especially kings Daksa and Tulodong. Surrounding the main tower are hundreds of smaller tower temples, called perwara. Prambanan is considered the royal temple of the Hindu kingdom of Medang, where many religious rituals and sacrifices were held. Scholars believe that during the golden age of the kingdom, there were thousands of Buddhist monks and their disciples living around this temple complex. The city center and palace of Medang were located nearby, in the Prambanan plain.

4. Sri Ranganathaswamy, Srirangam, India

This temple is dedicated to the deity Ranganatha, a reclining form of the god Vishnu. The temple is built in the Dravidian architectural style, a style that flourished in southern India. This architectural style reached its peak in the 16th century. We can find this architectural style in Hindu temples not only in India but also in Angkor, Cambodia. Hindu temple gates are often intricately decorated with vibrant colors. The main gate, also known as Rajagopuram (royal tower), stands at 72 meters tall and consists of 11 tiers tapering smaller towards the top.

Impressively tall, the temple sprawls over an area of more than 6 hectares, with a perimeter of over 4 kilometers, making it the largest temple in India and one of the largest religious architectural complexes in the world. Structurally, the temple comprises 7 concentric walled enclosures, including 21 towered gateways (gopurams), 39 smaller shrines, 50 pavilions, 953 pillars, and numerous water tanks inside. The outer precinct of the temple has food stalls, flower shops, and various items for sale.

Notably, nearly a thousand pillars mentioned are concentrated in a large hall. Each pillar is made of granite and intricately carved. Some pillars depict warriors riding war horses, with the horses' feet stepping on the heads of ferocious tigers, and the spears piercing into their mouths. This is a religious symbol rather than just a decorative motif for the temple.

5. Fushimi Inari Taisha, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan

Fushimi Inari-taisha is the main shrine in a network of 32,000 Inari shrines across Japan, located in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto. This shrine sits at the base of Mount Inari, standing at an elevation of 233 meters above sea level. The path leading to the shrine is a system of numerous trails extending about 4 km and takes about 2 hours to ascend. Along these trails are small shrines and many torii gates scattered throughout. Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine is one of the shrines that received the patronage of the Japanese imperial family in the early Heian period. In 965, Emperor Murakami issued a decree ordering a record of significant events in the country to be written and sent to the shrine for the deities.

The entire precinct of Fushimi Inari-taisha covers an area of 870,000m2, hidden under a canopy of cedar trees, creating a solemn and reverent sacred space. Like all other Inari shrines, the overall architecture of Fushimi Inari-taisha includes main structures such as shrine gates, approach paths, purification fountains, theater houses - Kagura, offering halls, each with its own distinctive features, using two dominant colors, red and white. Below the main hill are the main gate and the main hall. The entire roof of the shrine is adorned with subdued tones such as black, moss, and bronze, scattered throughout the courtyard are countless meticulously carved stone fox statues, various shapes and sizes. This Fushimi Inari-taisha is managed by the Hata family through many generations. Today, many families of the Hata lineage still live near the shrine according to tradition.

The reason why the Japanese choose these red gates as offerings is because according to the beliefs of Shintoism, the Torii gate is seen as the entrance to the world of the deities, a spatial landmark that helps transition between the secular world and the sacred realm. Additionally, red is the color of the sun, symbolizing absolute power, eternity, and goodness. Therefore, these characteristic red gates continue to rise, becoming a distinctive feature of the legendary Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine, where the imprint of the harmony between Shintoism and Buddhism has persisted for millennia.

6. Gawdawpalin Temple, Bagan, Myanmar

In the land of Bagan, there's also an ancient temple, built from the late 12th to early 13th centuries. This ancient structure is also a great destination for tourists wanting to explore the cultural history of Myanmar. Gawdawpalin Temple sits atop high hills, and when viewed from the base, its unique architecture becomes a prominent feature in the landscape of Bagan, Myanmar. Gawdawpalin Temple is the second tallest temple in Bagan. Similar to the layout of Thatbyinnyu Temple, a two-story tall temple, it has three lower terraces and four upper terraces. The temple suffered severe damage over time. The earthquake in 1975 caused significant damage and was reconstructed in the following years.

Gawdawpalin Temple belongs to the gu-style temple, contrasting with the stupa. The gu-style temple is a structure used for meditation, worship of Buddha, and other Buddhist rituals. Gu temples come in two basic types, the 'one-sided' design and the 'four-sided' design, fundamentally having one main entrance and four main entrances. Other styles like five-sided and hybrid also exist. The one-sided style evolved from the 2nd-century Beikthano and the four-sided from the 7th-century Sri Ksetra. These temples, with their distinctive pointed arches and vaulted chambers, grew larger and grander in the Bagan period.

7. Temple of Heaven, Beijing, China

Located within the urban complex, the Temple of Heaven stands as a magnificent architectural ensemble, enticing tourists visiting Beijing. The Temple of Heaven, also known as the Altar of Heaven, is regarded as the holiest shrine of the Beijing emperors. This temple is considered a masterpiece of breakthrough architecture and landscape design. The Temple of Heaven is also listed as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site.

The Temple of Heaven is a complex of sacrificial buildings located in the southeastern part of urban Beijing, corresponding to present-day Tiantan District. The construction of the Temple of Heaven began in 1420 during the reign of Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty. As the imperial center for worship, it was where the Ming and Qing emperors conducted the annual ceremonial rites to honor the Heavenly God - one of the most important rituals across dynasties. The temple is built in the style of Daoism, although the practice of worshipping heaven in China dates back much further. It is a highly culturally significant architectural complex.

The design of the Temple of Heaven aims to convey the idea of reaching out into the void, opening up to the high sky. The main layout of the sacrificial area faces eastward, both the Circular Mound Altar and the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests are oriented towards the east-west axis, completely leaving the western side open and spacious. Thus, when the group of worshippers advances into the sacrificial area from the west, there is a very broad view of the altar, giving a sense of a very high sky. The Imperial Vault of Heaven and the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests are both in circular shape, with the roofs structured in soaring pointed arches, giving the impression of the entire architecture soaring into the sky.

The Lotus Temple, also known as the Lotus Temple (or the Temple of the Lotus), is located in Kalkaji in southern New Delhi, the abode of the Mother (Bahui faith) of the Indian subcontinent. The temple is designed based on the image of a lotus flower. The stylized petals embracing the bud form the vaults surrounding the temple, sometimes the lotus petals turn into water ponds. It is due to these novelties that the Lotus Temple is considered a marvel of creativity in Indian architecture specifically and the world in general. It welcomes over 150 thousand visitors every day.

This unique structure was designed by Canadian-Iranian architect Fariborz Sahba, who spent 10 years conceptualizing, forming, and constructing it. The temple stands 35 meters tall, covering an area of about 105,000 square meters with a maximum capacity of 2500 people. Immediately after its appearance in 1987, the Lotus Temple was classified as one of the world's three largest unique architectural categories. The construction of the Lotus Temple required the involvement of over 800 engineers, technicians, artisans, and workers, spanning from 1976 to 1987. The structure is primarily built with marble, cement, sand, and dolomite. 27 enormous marble blocks are interlocked with each other. With its intricate structure, three interconnected rows, each row of 9 lotus petals forming lifelike 9 entrances to the temple. The walls and ceiling columns of the lotus petals are intricately carved with detailed white lotus flower images throughout the temple.

The system of 9 surrounding water ponds is designed in the shape of green leaves enveloping the lotus, so when viewing the entire structure, visitors will be dazzled by the image of a lotus flower blooming on the pond surface. At night when the Lotus lighting system is turned on, the entire lotus is reflected on the pond, creating a cluster of shimmering mystical lotuses. The temple grounds are also landscaped with lush greenery, making it an extremely attractive tourist destination in India, where people come to seek tranquility, away from the hustle and bustle usually found in the capital New Delhi.

With its 'unparalleled' architecture featuring the dominant white color, Wat Rong Khun, commonly known as the White Temple, is the most famous temple in Thailand. Stepping into the temple, you will be mesmerized by the beauty of pure white as if snow is present everywhere. Regardless of the time of year, the entrance gate of the temple is always bustling with tourists from all over the world.

In contrast to the predominant gold color of temples in Thailand, known as the 'Land of the Golden Temples,' Wat Rong Khun is covered in a bright white color symbolizing the purity, radiance of Buddhism. Surrounding the temple is a park with a lake and many bizarre handmade sculptures, which may be demons, dragon heads, or mythical creatures in Thai folklore. To enter the temple, visitors must pass through the 'Bridge of Rebirth' over a small pond. On both sides of the bridge are hundreds of raised arms symbolizing 'greed, desire, and lust.' Upon crossing this bridge and entering the main hall, it is considered that you have reached 'the realm of happiness,' and you cannot return to the old path, hence the building is designed with another exit.

Right from the entrance area, the temple impresses visitors with exquisite sculptural shapes on the rows of pillars of the welcome gate. Taking a few more steps, you will be overwhelmed by the grandeur of the main hall. Not only stopping at the eerie, rare blue color, the entire temple is covered with meticulously crafted, intricate gold-plated decorations, unbelievably exquisite.