It is still dark. The sun, groggy-eyed as it squints through the heavens punctuated by a sole star.

I am on my way from Hoi An to My Son Sanctuary—the temple ruins of an ancient Hindu kingdom which called this part of Vietnam home for 1,600 years. You may ask, but why so early? Because some places are best seen at sunrise. When it is just them, you, and the centuries of silence in-between. This silence then starts talking, regaling stories. Some voraciously. Some hinted at with a smile. Don’t you agree? 😊

An hour later, walking through the site’s lush green meadows, I pass scores of my country-folks. Perplexed, I am about to stop one of them and ask the reason, when a large placard explains their presence. They are archaeologists from the Archaeological Survey of India carrying out restoration work in association with the Vietnamese government. It makes sense. Who else could understand the remnants of a millennia-old Hindu kingdom better, even if it wore a different mantle on a foreign ground.

My Son Sanctuary, a UNESCO-listed World Heritage Site, is one of the most important ancient religious sites in south-east Asia.

Scattered across the My Son Sanctuary are remnants of sculptures which once decorated the temples. A royal proclamation, Shiva, a yoni, an exquisite facade.

Distinct from the Vietnamese in both ethnicity and religion, the Champa maritime kingdom was established in the year 182 across coastal central and southern Vietnam. In 1471, the kingdom was conquered by the Vietnamese who lived to its north. It became a Vietnamese vassal state in 1697, and was completely dissolved in 1832.

Though Hinduism was its predominant religion from its inception until the end, for a brief period Champa tried its hand at Buddhism as well. An elaborate Buddhist complex dedicated to Avalokitesvara and housing a colossal Buddha was put up in Dong Duong in 875. The latter, scholars claim was perhaps because of King Indravarman II’s desire to align with the prevailing political powers’ faiths. China and India’s.

Most of Champa’s red brick cities and Hindu temple complexes, which once dotted the entire realm, have now crumbled to dust courtesy the American/ Vietnam War. Yet, a few have resolutely stood their ground. The most famous being the My Son Sanctuary, the UNESCO-listed Hindu temple complex near Hoi An.

Built between the 4th and 13th Centuries by the Champa rulers, the temples, with towers reminiscent of Mount Meru, served as their spiritual capital through most of the kingdom’s existence.

Eight groups of 71 monuments, surrounded with a ring of mountains and the Thu Bon river cutting through it, make up the site. The Cham believed the place was blessed by the gods whose likenesses they carved onto sandstone friezes on lintels, pedestals, and temple facades, and had their effigies placed in the inner sanctums.

Though the Champa kingdom is long gone, the descendants of the artisans who carved these vibrant sacred Hindu sculptures in the local style, and laid the fired bricks of their places of worship, continue to live on as one of Vietnam’s 54 ethnic tribes.

My Son Sanctuary’s most impressive ruins are in Temple Group B, C, and D.

Children on a school-trip posing for my camera.

Sacred ground—My Son’s ‘chosen’ location in the shadow of Mhadravata [Cat Tooth] Mountain.

Satiated, I am ready to leave after a few hours. The sun too is out by now, bathing the site in hot humid light, and crowds. Tourists taking selfies. School children on a field trip. The stories the ruins had whispered into my ears had made me greedy to know more. I knew I had to peel away a few more layers of My Son’s stories.

Next day, I make my way to the Da Nang Museum of Cham Sculpture established in 1919. It is the world’s largest exhibition of Champa cultural artifacts. Around 300 sculptures dated between the 7th and 15th Centuries from multiple Champa kingdom sites were brought here before the war. And, hence, survived.

I have hardly crossed the foyer that a bevy of sandstone gods, goddesses, fairies, and mortals rush out to envelop me. Almost as if they were waiting. Curly-haired, thick-lipped, wide-nosed, with oversized hands and feet. I quickly recognize the deities by their appurtenances.

There’s Shiva with his trident, Vishnu with his conch, Brahma with his three faces—one frontal and two profiles. Along with his fourth face [behind his head and, therefore, not visible] he is said to be able to see all four directions. There are also polo players astride galloping horses [a Persian cultural import via China’s Tang dynasty] and dancers swaying to musical notes only they can hear. An ascetic studies the Vedas huddled under a carved doorway, whilst Prince Siddhartha is seen escaping from his palace to start his journey as Buddha, the enlightened one.

Giddy with the visual onslaught, I wander through the museum’s two levels brimming with sculptures in the round and high relief, many of which possess ‘National Treasure’ status. In My Son Sanctuary, I saw their temples. In Da Nang’s Museum of Cham Sculpture, I get to meet the temple residents in person.

Come, let me introduce you to ancient Champa’s mute stone torchbearers. Some divine. Some mortal. And some betwixt. And the stories of a world they hold in their bosoms, and have etched across their brows. ❤

The Hindu trinity: Brahma the creator, Vishnu the preserver, Shiva the destroyer.

Father and son: Shiva and Ganesha.

The many appurtenances and forms of the gods.

The tryst with Buddhism.

And lastly, a celebration of the secular, fairies, and heroes.

With this, I reach the end of my post and search for Champa, Vietnam’s ancient Hindu kingdom. See you again, next week!

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[Note: This blog post is part of a series from my travels to Vietnam for three weeks in March 2025. To read more posts in my Vietnam series, click here.]