Comments

Whatever the abstract meaning of the lingam in classical Indian texts, this is largely irrelevant here, where the salient issues are: 1) what the object meant to the people of the culture in question; and 2) how scholars of that culture interpret the meaning. Almost all of the ancient Khmer would have been utterly unaware of the formal meanings of things in the Indian tradition, 'cosmic eggs' or otherwise. In the Khmer traditon, linga are frequently carved with decorations showing, in elaborate and unmistakable detail, the physical characteristics of the male penis. They do indeed have a shaft, and are never even remotely egg-shaped. The Khmer-language name for the Shaivite temples that house them is 'prasat leung', which literally means 'penis temple'. I could go on (or you could just google it). It is perfectly reasonable therefore for scholars to interpret them, on one level, as phallic symbols. The article is therefore bang on correct, and the original poster, shancre, has demonstrated for us irrefutably the moronism of which he incorrectly and hilariously accuses the article's author and subject. Nice work!