Wat Ounalom is a huge pagoda complex in the Cambodian capital that functions as the country’s religious administrative center: it is home to Cambodia’s highest ranking monk and is considered the center of Cambodian Buddhism.
The wat itself was originally constructed in 1443 in order to house a Buddha relic (a hair from his eyebrow) and was once occupied by more than 500 monks. The main viharn at Wat Ounalom was built in 1952 and features three floors, with paintings of Buddha on the top.
The main feature of the Wat Ounalom complex is the large stupa that contains the Buddha relic and is believed to date back to the Angkor era. During the reign of the Khmer Rouge, Samdech Huot Tat, the residing abbot, and a large number of monks were massacred while the temple was looted; a marble Buddha from Burma was destroyed and a cement Buddha statue was stripped of its silver covering, yet thankfully the relic was left undisturbed.
As if his death wasn’t enough, the Khmer Rough also thew a statue of Huot Tat into the river, though it was later recovered and reinstalled on the second floor of the main temple building near a statue of a patriarch of the Thummayuth Buddhist sect. There are also niche rooms with rare bronze Buddha images.
Getting There
If you are in downtown Phnom Penh, near the Royal Palace or riverfront, it is easy to walk to Wat Ounalom, which is located at the large intersection several blocks north of the palace. Any tuk tuk or motodop driver will know of and be able to take you to the temple.
Need to Know
- What is It?: One of the most important Buddhist temples in Cambodia, featuring a Buddha relic and many buildings and statues of interest.
- When to Go: During daylight hours, or nights during which there are Buddhist ceremonies.
- Nearest Town: In the middle of Phnom Penh, opposite the riverfront, a few minutes’ walk north of the Royal Palace and National Museum.
- Don’t Miss: A half-millennia-old stupa containing a relic of the Buddha.
- Trivia: The complex once housed 30,000 titles in the religious library of the Buddhist Institute, which was also destroyed by the Khmer Rouge. The library has been revived on nearby Sihanouk Boulevard.
- Opening hours: 07:00 to 17:00, daily.
- Entrance fees: free