Lingam or linga means symbol , symbol of Shiva.
Shiva was venerated in the form of a lingam. But probably in Cambodia the cult of the lingam is older than the cult of Shiva.
At the origin of the world, when Vishnu and Brahma are struggling, Shiva has his appearance coming out of an immense and expanding column of fire and hot energy, growing to the depths of the earh and increasing to the heights of the heaven. (Zimmermann.)
Conclusions:
- The lingam connects earth and heaven.
- The lingam is the vertical axis stabilizing the world.
- The lingam is a symbol of creation and fertility (and not only of sexuality).
The top of the lingam is circular, the middle is octagonal, and the base is square. We can assume that
- the square part means the earth,
- the cylindrical part means the heavens,
- the octagonal part in the middle means the universal power of the gods which connects earth and heavens.
In Angkor the lingam is supported by a yoni, a pedestal, covered by a square slab which is slightly hollowed out, and has a snânadronî, a gargoyle, running north. The yoni is not simply a symbol of the vagina but a symbol of the - female - earth.
When the hard and hot lingam and the moist and cool earth meet each other, they create life. The lingam is doused with water which becomes sacred.
NotesBy the traditional interpretation, the circular part means Shiva, the octagonal part means Vishnu, and the square part means Brahma.
Thus the lingam is a symbol of the trimurti.
Some Indian Hindus regard the parts of the lingam as glans, stem and scrotum. But so the 'yoni' would be located at the wrong end.
In Kapilapura, Preah Khan and Koh Ker the gargoyle of a yoni ends with what is shaped like lips of a vulva.
References
- Zimmer, Heinrich, Indische Mythen und Symbole, Düsseldorf, 1972, p. 143-145.
- Roveda, Vittorio, Images of the Gods, Khmer mythology in Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand , Bangkok, 2005, p. 146-150.