13 - Court Buddhism in Thai-khmer Relations During the Reign of King Rama Iv (king Mongkut)

Summary

ABSTRACT

This paper studies Khmer Buddhism from the perspective of the relations between the Thai and Khmer courts during the reign of King Rama IV of Siam (contemporary Thailand). After a period of civil war and war with Cambodia's neighbours Thailand and Vietnam, many Buddhist temples had been destroyed. Therefore, when King Ang Duong came to the throne, he undertook to restore Khmer Buddhism, drawing on Thai court Buddhism.

In the field of Khmer Buddhist literature, he had Thai Buddhist literature translated into Khmer, for example the Paṭhamasambodhikathā (the Pali- Thai account of the life of the Buddha) and the Trailokavinicchayakathā (Buddhist cosmology). King Ang Duong also requested King Rama IV to send Dhammayutika Nikāya monks to ordain Khmer monks and to disseminate Buddhism in Cambodia.

INTRODUCTION

Thailand and Cambodia have a long-standing relationship. Particularly language, literature and Buddhism have extensive connections, both in terms of cultural borrowing and of cultural exchange. This relationship has been there especially since the founding of Sukhothai in the eighteenth century of the Buddhist Era (BE), and the founding of Ayutthaya in the nineteenth century BE, and has continued through the Thonburi and Rattanakosin eras to the present day, without interruption, only changing according to the circumstances in each era.

Buddhism in Siam had a particularly close relationship with Cambodia in the early Rattanakosin period and Oudong period in Cambodia, and especially so when King Mongkut (Rama IV) reigned in Siam and King Ang Duong ruled Cambodia.

Since the reigns of King Ang Chan II and King Ang Mey, Cambodia endured civil war due to Vietnamese interference. At this time, Vietnam destroyed temples and burned numerous Buddhist scriptures in Cambodia, as evidenced by inscriptions at the Phnom Penh temple Wat Preah Putkosa about temple restoration by Chao Phraya Bodindecha (Sing Singhaseni), which states that

when Chao Phraya Bodindecha conducted warfare in Phnom Penh, many districts were devastated. A desire arose to donate funds for the salaries of soldiers who were hired to help restore monasteries, images of the Buddha, stupas and chedis to perpetuate Buddhism

After King Ang Duong ascended the Cambodian throne in Oudong in 1854, he issued a royal letter to request a copy of the Pali Tripiṭaka and other Buddhist scriptures, as well as for Dhammayutika Nikāya monks to spread the religion and convene a council for compiling a version of the Tripiṭaka in the city of Oudong.