The important Phra Narai Lintel depicts the Hindu God Vishnu reclining on the Ananta serpent on the Ocean of Milk. His consort Lakshmi is seated at his feet and the God Brahma springs from his navel. Vishnu is the god of preservation. This scene occurs at the end of the cosmic era, and Vishnu is resting in meditative sleep waiting for Brahma to recreate the cosmos. At that moment a lotus springs forth from his navel, with Brahma seated on it.

During the Vietnam War era, the lintel was stolen. In 1976 it was found in the Art Institute of Chicago. As the restoration of Prasat Phanom Rung neared completion, Thailand launched a massive diplomatic and media campaign to have the lintel returned. It became an international incident and by 1989 it was back in place here...looking east, towards Angkor in Cambodia.