Temple of the Forbidden Eye

Temple of the Forbidden Eye
attractions	Adventure Trading Company Club 33 (referenced; Tiki Takeover) Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye Indiana Jones and the Secret of the Stone Tiger (referenced) Jock Lindsey's Hangar Bar (referenced) Jungle Cruise (attraction) Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar (pictured & referenced)
Type	Ruined temple
Location	Lost Delta, India
Inhabitants	Mara
Visitors	Indiana Jones Sallah Mohammed Faisel el-Kahir Dr. Albert Falls Trader Sam

This article is about the fictional location, for the attraction of a similar name see Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye.

The Temple of the Forbidden Eye sometimes referred to as the Temple of Mara or Mara Temple is the setting of Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye in Disneyland.

Background

The Temple of the Forbidden Eye is a temple on the Lost Delta in India. The temple served to house and worship the deity Mara who promised their worshipers a gift of either Earthly Riches, Eternal Youth, or Future Knowledge. Following a flood, the temple was abandoned until it was excavated in the 20th century. The temple is filled with, "Maraglyphs", a language spoken by Mara's ancient worshipers. The temple was home to many animals including rats, bats, insects, and giant king cobras.

Points of interest

• Bug Room: The bug room was a dark chamber filled with bugs that attacked enemies of Mara.
• Cavern of Bubbling Death: This was a large cavern in the temple which connected to many of the other chambers in the temple. There was a bridge in the centre of the cavern overlooking an ancient sculpture of Mara which could shoot blasts of energy from their eyes.
• Chamber of Destiny: The Chamber of Destiny was a large room connecting the main entrance to the temple to the Hall of Promise.
• Dart Corridor: The Dart Corridor was decorated with sculptures of skeletons in guard uniforms. The ground had weighted plates that caused them to shoot poisoned darts at those passing through the chamber.
• Gates of Doom: The Gates of Doom were a massive pair of doors decorated with art of cobras. Beyond the doors was the Jewel of Power, an artifact which served as the source of Mara's power. When would-be worshipers gazed into the eyes of Mara, they were dragged past the Gates of Doom.
• Chamber of Earthly Riches: This was one of the three chambers used for Mara's temptations. This chamber was filled with gold and treasures.
• Fountain of Eternal Youth: One of the three chambers used for Mara's temptations contained the Fountain of Eternal Youth. The waters poured from the walls of this chamber could supposedly bless those who drank from its waters with eternal youth.
• Hall of Promise: The Hall of Promise was used to connect to the Observatory of the Future, Chamber of Earthly Riches and Fountain of Eternal Youth.
• Mummy Chamber: This was a chamber filled with mummies and skeletons of unknown origin.
• Observatory of the Future: This was one of the three chambers used for Mara's temptations. The observatory had a supernatural view of the stars which could give those within a view of the future.
• Rat Cave: This cave was used to kill those who wronged Mara by feeding them to swarms of rats.
• Snake Temple: The Snake Temple was a miniature structure within the temple which was home to several massive cobras.
• Spike Chamber: The Spike Chamber was a booby-trapped hallway used to enter the temple.
• Tunnel of Torment: The Tunnel of Torment was a passage used to drag enemies of Mara past the Gates of Doom.

History

Background

Origins and expeditions

The Temple of the Forbidden Eye was constructed prior to 65 BC in tribute to the deity Mara. Mara would give their followers gifts of fortune, immortal youth or visions of the future however if they gazed into Mara's eyes, they'd be killed. According to legends, Mara would lure pilgrims to the temple only for them to disappear and never be seen again. Mara's source of power was a mysterious artifact known as the Jewel of Power. Around 65 BC, a massive flood hit the Lost Delta which made the temple lost to time.

Around the late July/early August of 1891, the temple was happened upon by Dr. Albert Falls. Falls found these ruins while on the second day of a 13-day expedition through the mystical, "Jungle Rivers of Adventureland". By the next day, he left the Lost Delta to access the Irrawaddy River in Burma where he uncovered more ruins. Falls applied for university funding to uncover these ruins though this presumably did not go through as the temple was still considered to be lost.

By the 1930s, archaeologist and egyptologist Abner Ravenwood was the foremost known expert on the Temple of the Forbidden Eye. In the 1930s, Abner reignited contact with his estranged protégée Indiana Jones who sought after the temple. While exploring the Temple of Sherdil in Bengal, he came upon a portion of a map to the temple. In the June of 1935, Jones' friend and frequent affiliate Sallah Mohammed Faisel el-Kahir sent Jones the missing portion of the map after his brother-in-law found it on the black-market. In the October of that year, Jones' rival archaeologist René Belloq learned of the excavation by manipulating Jones' contact Prof. Kauffman at the Universitatis Sigillium.

Lost Delta Archaeological Expedition

In the June of 1935, Indiana Jones and Sallah discovered the Temple of the Forbidden Eye and collaborated with British Colonial Affairs and the Jungle Navigation Company to excavate the ruins via the, "Lost Delta Archaeological Expedition". To earn additional revenue, Sallah established the company, "Sallah Tours" which lead tourists through the temple. Sallah also contacted Jones' friend and frequent affiliate Trader Sam to bring patrons of his bar to the temple. Jones objected to the high number of tourists travelling to the temple for Mara's gifts, however British Colonial Affairs forced the expedition to continue this business for proift, resulting in a missing group of tourists which sparked global controversy and outrage.

Indiana Jones returned to the temple by 1936 and had learned of the Jewel of Power from his former mentor Abner Ravenwood. On the July 6 of 1936, Indiana Jones disappeared in the temple while seeking after the lost tourists and Jewel of Power past the Gates of Doom. After a week of Jones' absence, Sallah amplified the number of tours brought in as a means of getting more eyes in the temple to find Jones. One of these tours happened upon Jones after gazing into the eyes of Mara and being doomed to be dragged past the Gates of Doom.

Indiana Jones forced the gates of doom shut, saving the guests. The guests then navigated the temple in their jeep while pursued by Mara's forces. Ultimately, Jones and the guests were able to escape the temple with their lives. The further fate of the temple is unknown but it stayed standing by the year 1938.

Jungle Cruise appearances

Indiana Jones appeared live in Adventureland for a limited time to tie in with Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny(2023). In these appearances he had a journal and etching of artwork of the Temple of the Forbidden Eye.

Adventure Trading Company

The Eye of Mara Juju was modelled after the Eye of Mara and represented knowledge. Players earned it via deciphering maraglyphs from the temple. The Daily Gnus newspaper has a community posting for an, "Unclaimed baggage sale" at the temple. Additionally, there are advertisements for tours of the temple on the newspaper's next page.

Club 33

The, "Guards of Mara" drink served at the Tiki Takeover event was modelled after the snake statues of Mara's temple. The menu paired the drink with a ticket belonging to Sneh Falls for a trip to India in 1937.

Indiana Jones Summer of Hidden Mysteries‏‎

One mission had guests finding hieroglyphs throughout Adventureland which when assembled translated to, "To survive the Temple of the Forbidden Eye, beware the eyes of Mara".

Indiana Jones and the Secret of the Stone Tiger

At the end of this show, Indiana Jones left the Temple of Sherdil with the fragmented map to the temple.

Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye

The temple is the setting for this attraction.

Jungle Cruise

The Temple appears along the route of Disneyland's Jungle Cruise. Nigel Greenwater brings up the excavations on the temple twice during his queue audio-loop. Greenwater mentions Marcus Brody claiming that the temple is the discovery of the century to the anthropological society and later states the governor's men have been sent to the temple due to paranormal occurrences. There are also tablets from the temple within the Jungle Navigation Company's boathouse translating to, "Gates of Doom". A map of the rivers of Adventure states that Jungle Navigation Company founder Dr. Albert Falls visited the temple in 1891.

Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar

Sam has a photograph of himself outside of the temple. There is a map of the temple in Trader Sam's possession, sent to him by Sallah. There is also a newspaper speaking on the subject of tourists who disappeared in the temple. Letters to Sam from characters such as Marcus Brody and Sallah also reference the temple. Another photograph of the temple appears with a note from Sam which reads, "This is my favourite mosquito infested spot to get water for all green drinks ordered at my bar".

Other connections

Jungle Cruise (film)

Nigel Greenwater brings up Marcus Brody speaking on the Temple of the Forbidden Eye the Royal Anthropological Society which has a name strikingly similar to the Royal Anthropological and Diverse Adventures Society from the Jungle Cruise film. The film characters of Frank Wolff, Lily Houghton and Lope de Aguirre are all also referenced in the Jungle Navigation Company's boathouse within the Lost Delta.

Other appearances

Jock Lindsey's Hangar Bar

A map of the temple appears in the lost & found of this bar. On a map in the bar is the Eye of Mara overtop of a region of India, implying Jock visited the Delta. To promote the Jungle Cruise film, this bar served a meal-item called“Forbidden Eye’ Brazilian-style Skins.

Trivia

• Mara is likely based on the demon Mara of Buddhist myth. The mythological Mara was a male demon who attempted to destroy the spiritualism of Gautama Buddha through the use of temptation.
• One of the skeletons in the temple wears Mickey Mouse ears with the name, "Bones" on it.
• Crates during Jones' excavation were addressed to Club Obi Wan, a location from the films. There was also a crate with the ID used for the Ark of the Covenant from Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) however as Temple of the Forbidden Eye is set prior to the events of Raiders of the Lost Ark, this is likely just an easter-egg. The sign, "Real rewards await for those who choose wisely" mirrors the words of the Grail Knight from Indiana Jones: The Last Crusade, once again set after the events of the ride.
• The Eye of Providence popular in conspiracy-theories is often used to represent the Eye of Mara.
• In the queue is a sign of Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh. This references how the attraction is built on what was formerly the, "Eeyore" section of Disneyland's Parking Lot.
• There is a minor discrepancy in continuity between the Indiana Jones Encyclopedia and Indiana Jones Adventure as in the encyclopedia it states Indy happened upon the temple by chance directly after the events of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom while in the ride, messages reveal he located it via a black-market map. There is a further discrepancy with Indiana Jones stating he doesn't believe in the supernatural in Raiders of the Lost Ark (set after the ride) though this continuity error is shared with countless Indiana Jones materials, including Temple of Doom.

Gallery

On a map of Adventureland

External links

• Temple of the Forbidden Eye on the Indiana Jones Wiki.