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Series Code: TIJ
Program Code: TIJ007124S
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00:27 In 1580, a Portuguese Capuchin friar António da Madalena
00:33 left the famous Alco Baca Monastery in Central Portugal 00:37 and set out for Goa in India, little knowing the adventure 00:41 accidental discovery and misfortune that awaited him 00:46 on his journey. 00:48 The voyage took him down the west coast of Africa 00:51 and around the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa 00:55 and on to Goa in India, where he established a library 01:00 for his order. 01:01 Three years later, in 1853, he set out to travel over land 01:08 to what is today Cambodia, for the next three years 01:13 he and his party explored the monuments, people, cultures, 01:18 religions and dense jungles of southeast Asia 01:22 until one day in 1586, he and his party burst through 01:28 an opening in the jungle. 01:29 Before him lay one of the most stunning ancient stone 01:33 complexes in all the world. 01:38 Stretching out for as far as the eye could see, 01:42 was an extensive and far-flung expanse of mysterious ruins. 01:48 There were ancient terraces, pools, moted cities, walls, 01:53 towers, palaces, and a multitude of temples, all expertly 01:58 worked in stone. 02:00 António da Madalena had stumbled upon Angkor, a long-abandoned 02:06 metropolis of stone, it's spread over 400 square kilometers 02:11 or about 150 square miles at its heart lies Angkor Wat. 02:17 A city or temples, and the largest religious monument 02:21 in the world that covers 160 hectares or 400 acres 02:26 and is a testament to immense to a culture of immense wealth 02:31 and great architectural skill. 02:33 But who built this mysterious city, when was it built, and why? 02:39 As Antonio da Madalena wandered through the abandoned city 02:44 and examined the stone buildings he wondered if it could be 02:49 the work of Alexander the Great, or could it be a temple of 02:53 The Lost Tribes of Israel? 02:55 And then, judging by the architecture and design 02:59 he wondered if there could be an Indian or local 03:02 Camir origin to this magnificent complex. 03:06 Join me on an incredible journey into the heart of Cambodia 03:12 as we explore this amazing kingdom of stone 03:16 and discover its secrets and you may be surprised 03:20 at just what we discover because we will uncover the identity 03:24 of the true builders of these grand monuments 03:27 along with an ancient message in stone that is hidden here 03:32 that's relevant to us today. 03:35 It's a message that can change your peace and life forever. 03:56 António da Madalena was the first European visitor 04:01 to Angkor Wat, he was awestruck by its beauty and splendor 04:05 and said that... 04:15 Madalena made a detailed description of Angkor Wat 04:19 along with an account of his journey which he gave to 04:23 the historian Diealgo Di Ciato the main chronicler of the 04:28 Archives of Portuguese Exploration in Asia. 04:32 Following his detailed study and description of Angkor Wat 04:36 Madalena attributed the splendid complex not to 04:41 Alexander the Great or the Lost Tribes of Israel 04:44 but rather to local Khmer Hindu Kings 04:48 but was he correct? 04:50 After spending nine years exploring and traveling through 04:55 India, Malacca, Siam, and Cambodia, 04:59 Madalena decided to return home to Europe aboard the 05:03 Caravel Sauertome, a small Portuguese sailing ship 05:08 but tragically, he never made it. 05:11 He perished when the vessel shipwrecked and sank 05:15 off the coast of Natelle in South Africa. 05:18 Although Madalena's description of Angkor Wats survived 05:23 along with his travel journal, European interest in the 05:27 Great Stone Monument dwindled and waned due to lack of 05:31 further information. 05:32 It was almost as if the magnificent site was lost again 05:37 for nearly 300 years. 05:39 Until in 1960 it was rediscovered by the 05:44 French Naturalist and explorer Henri Mouhot, 05:48 he set up a base in Bangkok and made four journeys 05:52 into the interior of Siam, Laos, and Cambodia 05:56 in search of butterflies and other exotic insects and new 06:01 zoological specimens for the Royal Geographical Society 06:05 and the Zoological Society of London. 06:08 In January 1860, at the end of his second and longest journey, 06:15 while chasing an elusive butterfly with his net, 06:18 he stumbled out of the jungle and into the grounds of 06:23 Angkor Wat. 06:26 And like Antonia Di Madalena 300 years earlier, 06:33 he was overwhelmed by its sheer size and beauty, 06:37 the ancient stone terraces, pools, moted cities, palaces 06:42 and temples, especially Angkor Wat left him awestruck. 06:47 He recorded his visit in his travel journal and spent 06:51 the best part of a month making detailed observations 06:55 and drawings of the site, which were forwarded to 06:58 the Royal Geographical Society and the Zoological Society 07:03 in London. Mouhot ascerted that these grand buildings 07:08 were built on such a grand and majestic scale 07:11 that they must be the work or a much earlier and much more 07:15 advanced civilization, a long lost race, dating back 07:19 thousands of years to the time of the Romans. 07:22 Sadly, Henri Mauhot died of a malarial fever on his 07:30 4th expedition in the jungles of Laos. 07:32 but not before he had popularized and opened Angkor 07:37 to Europe and the west. 07:38 Soon, pioneers, archeologist, and researchers, poured in 07:44 to study and examine the site. 07:47 Their excavations and research revealed that 07:51 Antonio Di Madalena was correct, the vast Angkor complex 07:56 was constructed between the 9th and 15th century's 08:00 by successive kings of the local Khmer Empire, who ruled from 08:06 802 to 1431 AD. 08:10 From Angkor, these powerful Khmer Kings ruled one of the largest 08:17 most prosperous and most sophisticated kingdom 08:20 in the history of Southeast Asia that ruled over a territory 08:24 that covered modern-day Cambodia, Laos, and 08:28 much of Thailand and Vietnam. 08:30 Now, the sheer size of Angkor is breathtaking 08:35 It's spread over 1,000 square kilometers or about 08:39 400 square miles, and is filled with over one thousand temples. 08:43 At its height in the late medieval era around the 08:48 13th century AD the city of Angkor was the largest city 08:53 in the world supporting many monuments, temples, hospitals, 08:57 housing, markets and a population of about one million 09:02 people, about ten times more than London at the time. 09:07 Tens of millions of sandstone blocks were used to construct 09:12 the temples and buildings of Angkor, some of them weighed 09:16 as much as one and a half tons. 09:18 The entire city of Angkor used far greater amounts of stone 09:23 than all the Egyptian Pyramids combined. 09:27 The stones were quarried from the sacred mountain of 09:31 Phnom Kulen is over 40 kilometers or 25 miles away. 09:36 Many of these stones were used to build Angkor Thom, 09:41 the last and most enduring capital city of the Khmer Empire. 09:46 It was built in the late 12th century by the famous 09:50 King Jayavarman the 7th, who was one of the most 09:54 important figures in the Khmer Empire, he was a Buddhist 09:59 and during the time of his reign oversaw a wholesale 10:03 conversion of the Khmer people from Hinduism to Buddhism. 10:07 He was a great believer in public works and his new capital 10:11 contained palaces, temples, army barracks, viewing platforms, 10:16 schools, hospitals, reservoirs, shops and houses. 10:21 Jayavarman was a powerful warrior king and 10:28 attached to his palace, he built a 350-meter or 1,150-foot 10:34 long terrace or platform from which he viewed his 10:38 victorious returning army. 10:40 The stairs are decorated with Lions and Garuda's and 10:44 life-size images of Elephants and Mammoths 10:47 which are displayed on the platform walls from which 10:50 the terrace gets its name, Terrace of the Elephants. 10:54 Jayavarman was both a warrior and a worshiper, he was a devout 11:00 Buddhist and built exquisite temples like Bayon Temple, 11:05 with its mysterious smiling faces, it's one of the 11:08 most impressive Buddhist Temples in Angkor. 11:11 It's great, mountain-like structure is topped by 11:15 64 towers, each tower has four giant serene smiling faces 11:22 so there's over 200 of them and each of these smiling faces 11:27 is slightly different with so many smiles around 11:32 it's no surprise that it's called Asia's happiest temple. 11:36 Then a short distance outside the city walls and northeast of 11:41 Bayon Temple, there's Preah Khan Temple. 11:44 Its name means Royal Sword, the temple was also built 11:49 by King Jayavarman the 7th in honor of his father. 11:53 Today, Preah Khan has been left largely unrestored 11:58 with numerous trees and other vegetation growing 12:02 among the ruins. 12:03 But in its heyday, it was a veritable treasure trove 12:08 filled with 60 tons of gold, silver, precious gems, 12:13 over 100,000 pearls, and a cow with golden horns. 12:18 The complex combined the roles of city temple, treasury, 12:24 and a Buddhist University, there were over 100,000 12:28 attendants, officials, and servants, including 1,000 12:32 dancers and 1,000 teachers. 12:35 King Jayavarman the 7th also built Ta Prohm Buddhist Temple 12:41 in 1186 AD, which he dedicated to his mother. 12:45 It's one of the few temples at Angkor, where an inscription 12:50 provides information about the temple's function and operation. 12:54 Over 80,000 people were required to maintain and service 13:00 the temple, this included more than 12,500 people 13:05 who lived here as well as 18 high priests, and 615 dancers. 13:11 Like Preah Khan, this temple was also home to a bounty 13:17 of treasures that took in gold, pills and silks. 13:21 Ta Prohm is a temple of towers, closed court yards, 13:26 and narrow corridors, but like Preah Khan, the jungle 13:31 has encroached on the temple and many of the corridors are 13:34 impossible, and the court yards clogged with tree roots and 13:38 other jungle debris. 13:40 In fact, for hundreds of years Ta Prohm was swallowed up 13:45 by the Cambodian jungle, trees began to grow from the 13:49 tops of the walls, and as they got bigger, they began to 13:53 topple the stone walls, these ancient trees with their 13:57 invasive gigantic tree roots are what add to the beauty 14:01 and mystery of Ta Prohm today 14:04 And this provided the perfect backdrop for the Hollywood 14:09 blockbuster movie Tomb Raider starring Angelina Jolie. 14:14 Today, it's still dubbed the Tomb Raider Temple 14:18 and mystical root riddled Ta Prohm continues to capture 14:23 the imagination of millions of tourists. 14:26 But that's not all, Ta Prom's famous for, 14:30 it's also associated with dinosaurs, yes, you heard right. 14:36 Dinosaurs. Ta Prohm is home to a mysterious stone carving 14:42 of what appears to be a stegosaurus, the carving 14:48 has triggered a flurry of debate over whether it's a 14:52 genuine dinosaur depiction, or hoax, or something else. 14:57 I mean, what would Angkor Artisans are doing drawing 15:02 dinosaurs in the 12th century. 15:05 Right, well, many people come here looking for answers 15:10 despite their fascination, these temples of Angkor Thom have 15:15 the center stage of Angkor is found a short distance 15:20 further south at Angkor Wat. 15:22 It's a masterpiece of Kamihr. architecture with a shimmering 15:27 reflective pool at its feet and five lotus-shaped towers 15:32 etching and imposing silhouette against the sky. 15:35 Angkor Wat, which literally means city of temples was built 15:41 one hundred years earlier than Angkor Thom 15:44 by King Suryavarman II, another of the great kings of the 15:49 Kamhir Empire. It was his state temple in Capital City 15:54 it's been called one of mankind's most impressive and enduring 15:59 architectural achievements. 16:01 Its constructions took around ten million tons of sandstone 16:06 and it's thought to have taken 35 years to build with 300,000 16:11 laborers and 6,000 elephants. 16:14 It was all built by hand without the aid of any machinery, 16:19 it comprises more than 1,000 buildings and is one of the 16:24 great cultural and architectural wonders of the world. 16:27 Angkor Wat is the world's largest religious complex 16:32 covering some 160 hectares or 400 acres, 16:36 it's four times the size of Vatican City. 16:40 The temple was shared by two religions, it was originally 16:45 dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu, before coming a 16:49 Buddhist Temple at the end of the 12th century. 16:52 All of the temple walls, surfaces, columns, and lintels 16:56 and even the roof is decorated with thousands of storytelling 17:01 Bas Reliefs or stone carvings that represent important gods, 17:06 deities, and figures in the Hindu and Buddhist religions 17:10 and key events from their sacred texts. 17:14 The gallery walls alone are all decorated with almost 17:18 1,000 square meters or 11,000 square feet of 17:23 religious carvings. Hindu's worship many gods and 17:27 goddesses, in some traditions there are 33 called gods 17:32 in others, there's a vast number of deities in the Hindu Pantheon 17:38 as many as 330 million gods and goddesses. 17:42 Angkor Wat is a reminder that almost all ancient civilizations 17:49 and religions were polytheistic, that is, they worshipped 17:53 many different gods, the Sumerians, Babylonians 17:57 and Assyrians all worshipped many different gods and 18:01 goddesses. Across in South America's, the Incas, 18:05 along with the Mayans and the Aztecs were all polytheists 18:09 and worshiped many gods. 18:11 In India and Asia, it's the same, Hinduism, Buddhism, 18:16 Confucianism and Japanese Shintoism, as well as the 18:20 Tribal religions is Africa all worship many gods, 18:24 the same is true of ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome. 18:29 All at the ancient civilizations and religions were polytheists 18:34 they worshipped many gods with one exception, 18:38 the Jews, the children of Israel, they in contrast 18:44 to all the nations around them, were monotheists. 18:48 They worshipped only one God and all-supreme being 18:54 Yahweh, Jehovah, the creator of heaven and earth. 18:59 Judaism traces its heritage and faith back to Abraham, 19:04 Abraham became the father of the faith, the foundation 19:09 and link to the three great monotheistic religions, Judaism, 19:14 Christianity and Islam. 19:17 Christianity birthed from Judaism, Christian scriptures 19:23 include the Jewish scriptures whose promises and prophecies 19:27 are fulfilled in Jesus the messiah who fully reveals 19:31 the true God. And so this belief only one God an all 19:37 an all-supreme being who is the creator, who rules the 19:41 universe, who loves, judges, punishes, and also forgives, 19:46 is the heart of Christianity. 19:48 And it was this God and belief system that the early Christians 19:53 proclaimed to the world, and the person who led out in 19:57 spreading this message to the first-century world was Paul 20:02 the apostle, he was the major figure who turned Christianity 20:08 into a worldwide religion. 20:10 He traveled from city to city, from region to region, 20:14 from province to province, and from country to country. 20:18 He traveled over 30,000 kilometers or 20,000 miles, 20:23 he was shipwrecked three times, he was beaten, imprisoned, 20:28 exiled, stoned, starved, slandered and robbed, but 20:33 nothing could stop him from fulfilling his mission. 20:40 Paul knew that he was particularly called to share 20:44 the Christian message with Gentiles, that is to polytheists 20:49 who worship many gods. Here is what he said... 20:58 And he continues and says... 21:11 Paul wanted to reach as many people as possible and 21:16 tell them about the one true God and the good news of Jesus 21:19 and he had a particular burden to share this message 21:23 with Greeks, so he makes his way to Athens, 21:26 the very heart of Greece, where the people worship many gods. 21:31 The first thing Paul notices in Athens is a number of gods 21:36 their statues, altars, and carvings line the streets 21:41 they were everywhere, there were literally thousands 21:44 of different gods, there was even an altar to the unknown god 21:49 just in case they left any out. 21:51 Well, Paul didn't waste any time, he immediately 21:56 started telling people about Jesus and the one true God 22:00 he went to the local synagogue and told the Jews and God-fearing 22:04 Gentiles, and then he went to the marketplace and told the 22:08 general-public. Now there were some philosophers there 22:13 who were fascinated by what Paul was saying about Jesus 22:17 and so they invited him to come to the area of Pagus 22:21 and tell them all about these strange new ideas 22:24 he was proclaiming, the area of Pagus was prominent 22:28 rock outcrop on the Acropolis where the city counselors 22:32 and philosophers met. 22:34 So, standing in the midst of the area of Pagus, surrounded by 22:39 leading counselors and philosophers Paul starts 22:43 by complementing them for being very religious, having seen 22:47 all the many gods and objects of worship in their city. 22:50 He tells them that one altar in particular had caught 22:55 his attention, the altar to the unknown god. 22:59 Paul masterly uses this altar as an opportunity 23:05 to introduce them to the one true God, Paul explains that 23:10 this unknown God that they worshipped, was actually 23:14 the Biblical God, the creator God of heaven and earth 23:18 that one true God of whom they knew nothing, 23:21 Paul knew personally. He presented Him as the creator 23:27 of heaven and earth. Here's what he said... 24:03 Now the Greeks taught that the many gods they worshipped 24:07 were far away and is interested in what happened to people 24:11 here on earth and didn't really care about them, 24:14 but Paul contrasts this with the one true God 24:18 who is very near and cares deeply about people. 24:22 We are His children who are made in His image, 24:26 we don't make god in our image out of stone, gold, or silver, 24:31 Paul then quotes one of their poets... 24:39 Paul goes on to say that there was a time when God overlooked 24:43 people's ignorance about Him, but not anymore, 24:47 now He wants everyone, everywhere to repent, 24:50 turn from our ignorance, turn from our sin, 24:54 because there is a judgment day coming, this judgment 24:58 will be conducted by Jesus who was raised from the dead. 25:03 The great Greek philosophers, and polytheists listened 25:07 intently to Paul's message about the One true God, 25:10 there were three main reactions, 1st, Some mocked and sneered 25:17 outright, particularly at the idea of a resurrection. 25:21 2nd, Some put off making a decision, they wanted more time 25:26 to think about what Paul had said, but it's always dangerous 25:31 to delay. 3rd, Some believed, the wise recognized that 25:36 accepting Jesus and believing in the true God brings 25:41 lasting peace and happiness. 25:44 Most of us today still fall into one of these three categories 25:49 when we hear the message of the one true God. 25:52 1. We mock and reject, or 2. We delay and put off making 25:57 a decision, or 3. We accept Jesus and worship the true God. 26:02 You see, the unknown God desires to be known, that's why 26:07 He's spoken to us through His word is the Bible, 26:10 that's why He sent His Son into the world. 26:13 We don't need to go through life searching for an unknown 26:18 God, because the one true God has already revealed himself 26:23 to us through His Son Jesus, that's why Jesus came, 26:27 to show us what God is like. 26:30 The moment we accept Jesus as our personal savior, 26:34 we come to know the Creator Himself. 26:38 If you'd like to know more about the one true God, 26:44 and the lasting peace and happiness He can provide, 26:47 then, I'd like to recommend the gift we have for all our 26:51 Incredible Journey viewers today. 26:54 It's the booklet What is God Like? 26:58 This booklet is our gift to you and is absolutely free, 27:01 I guarantee, there are no costs or obligations whatsoever, 27:07 so, make the most of this wonderful opportunity 27:10 to receive your free gift today. 27:12 Phone or text 0436.333.555 in Australia 27:19 or 020.422.2042 in New Zealand, or 27:25 770.800.0266 in the Unites States. 27:30 Or, visit our website tij.tv, or simply scan the QR Code 27:36 on your screen and we will send you today's free offer, 27:39 totally Free of charge and with no obligation, 27:43 you can also write to us at the addresses on your screen 27:46 or email us at info@tij.tv, don't delay, call or text now. 27:54 Dear Heavenly Father, We thank you for the privilege 28:00 of being able to know you and have a relationship with you. 28:04 We pray that you'll continue to lead and guide our lives 28:08 and we ask that you'll bless us and our families. 28:12 And we ask these thing in Jesus' name. 28:15 Amen! |
Revised 2025-11-18