In the last post I mentioned that Theravada Buddhism was the dominate religion in Cambodia in 1296, however I didn't go on to point out that it is still the dominant religion today with 96.4% of the population clamming to be Buddhist.
Buddhism is primarily based on the teaching of Siddhartha Gautama who lived and taught in Nepal and India around 400 BCE and is regarded as the Buddha (The Awakened One). The central premise of his philosophy was to find a path to salvation by attaining insight into the ultimate nature of reality. There are two major branches of Buddhism. The first, and older, is Theravada ("The School of the Elders"). The second is Mahayana ("The Great Vehicle"). Both schools believe in the teachings of the Buddha, but there is disagreement on the expression and implementation. Unlike the Catholics and Protestants of Northern Ireland however, there is no animosity born out of this disagreement. Since Theravada is dominant in Cambodia and Southeast Asia, I'm focusing on that one.
Legend has it that King Asohka of India sent out a couple of monks to SE Asia in the 3rd century BCE where it spread, mingled and coexisted with Brahmanic religions that were introduced through trade with India. Sanskrit inscriptions and Chines reconds show that Buddhism was prominent in the Funan and Chenla Kingdoms, but around 600 CE the tide started shifting towards Hindu. While Hindu was the state religion of the Angkor Kingdom (except during Jayavarman VII), Mahahana Buddhist practices, strongly influenced with Tantric tendencies, were widely accepted.
Cambodia transitioned to Theravada Buddhism in the 13th Century after Tamilinda (Jayavarman VII's son) returned from Sri Lanka as an ordained Buddhist monk. This form of Buddhism was much more disciplined and orthodox being based only on the earliest teachings of the Buddha. One reason Theravada became so popular so fast was that it was inclusive of all members of society and not just the elites. This relatively sudden ground swell of ideological change may also have had a hand in overthrowing the "god-king" and bringing the Angkor Kingdom to an end.
Buddhism is primarily based on the teaching of Siddhartha Gautama who lived and taught in Nepal and India around 400 BCE and is regarded as the Buddha (The Awakened One). The central premise of his philosophy was to find a path to salvation by attaining insight into the ultimate nature of reality. There are two major branches of Buddhism. The first, and older, is Theravada ("The School of the Elders"). The second is Mahayana ("The Great Vehicle"). Both schools believe in the teachings of the Buddha, but there is disagreement on the expression and implementation. Unlike the Catholics and Protestants of Northern Ireland however, there is no animosity born out of this disagreement. Since Theravada is dominant in Cambodia and Southeast Asia, I'm focusing on that one.
Legend has it that King Asohka of India sent out a couple of monks to SE Asia in the 3rd century BCE where it spread, mingled and coexisted with Brahmanic religions that were introduced through trade with India. Sanskrit inscriptions and Chines reconds show that Buddhism was prominent in the Funan and Chenla Kingdoms, but around 600 CE the tide started shifting towards Hindu. While Hindu was the state religion of the Angkor Kingdom (except during Jayavarman VII), Mahahana Buddhist practices, strongly influenced with Tantric tendencies, were widely accepted.
Cambodia transitioned to Theravada Buddhism in the 13th Century after Tamilinda (Jayavarman VII's son) returned from Sri Lanka as an ordained Buddhist monk. This form of Buddhism was much more disciplined and orthodox being based only on the earliest teachings of the Buddha. One reason Theravada became so popular so fast was that it was inclusive of all members of society and not just the elites. This relatively sudden ground swell of ideological change may also have had a hand in overthrowing the "god-king" and bringing the Angkor Kingdom to an end.
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