Buddhism is the state religion of Cambodia. Approximately 97% of Cambodia's population follows Theravada Buddhism, with Islam, Christianity, and tribal animism as well as Baha’i faith making up the bulk of the small remainder.[1][2] The wat (Buddhist monastery) and sangha (monkhood), together with essential Buddhist doctrines such as reincarnation and the accumulation of merit, are at the centre of religious life.
The predominant religion in Cambodia is Buddhism (97%), followed by Muslim (2%), other religions (0.8%), and Christianity (0.2%). The category of "Others" mainly refers to the local religious system of the highland tribal groups and a few minority religious groups from other countries. The distribution of the population by religion was more or less the same in 2008 and 2019:[4]
Buddhism in Cambodia or Khmer Buddhism (Khmer: ព្រះពុទ្ធសាសនាបែបខ្មែរ) has existed since at least the 3rd century. In its earliest form it was a type of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Theravada Buddhism has existed in Cambodia since at least the 5th century AD, with some sources placing its origin as early as the 3rd century BC.[citation needed] Theravada Buddhism has been the Cambodian state religion since the 13th century AD (excepting the Khmer Rouge period), and is currently estimated to be the religion of 97.1% of the total population.[5]
The history of Buddhism in Cambodia spans nearly two thousand years, across a number of successive kingdoms and empires. Buddhism entered Cambodia through two different streams. In later history, a second stream of Buddhism entered Khmer culture during the Angkor empire when Cambodia absorbed the various Buddhist traditions of the Mon kingdoms of Dvaravati and Haripunchai.
For the thousand years of Khmer history, Cambodia was ruled by a series of Mahayana with an occasional Theravada Buddhist king, such as Jayavarman I of Funan, and Suryvarman I. A variety of Buddhist traditions co-existed throughout Cambodian lands, under the Mahayana Buddhist kings and the neighboring Mon-Theravada kingdoms. Angkor Wat, the largest Hindu temple in Siem Reap, was converted into a Mahayana Buddhist temple during the reign of King Jayavarman VII in the 12th century and again into a thereveda Buddhist temple during the reign of King Ang Chan I in the 16th century (Longvek Era).
Muslim traders along the main trade-route between Western Asia through Āryāvarta were responsible for the introduction of Islam to Cambodia around 12th to 17th centuries CE.[6] The religion was then further spread by the Chams and finally consolidated by the expansion of the territories of converted rulers and their communities. The Chams have their own mosques. In 1962, there were about 100 mosques in the country. Nur ul-Ihsan Mosque in Phnom Penh is the oldest mosque in Cambodia, it was built in 1813, and is a relic of the history of Islam in Cambodia.[7]
Islam also flourished among Khmer people, in Kwan village, Kampong Speu, Muslims thrived with most of the converts from Buddhism. The propagator of Islam in the village is Abdul Amit, a Cham farmer.[8]
The first known Christian mission in Cambodia was undertaken by Gaspar da Cruz, a Portuguese member of the Dominican Order, in 1555-1556. According to his own account, the enterprise was a complete failure; he found the country run by a "Bramene" king and "Bramene" officials, and discovered that "the Bramenes are the most difficult people to convert". He felt that no one would dare to convert without the King's permission, and left the country in disappointment, not having "baptized more than one gentile whom I left in the grave".[9]
Despite the French colonization in the 19th century, Christianity made little impact in the country. In 1972 there were probably about 20,000 Christians in Cambodia, most of whom were Catholics. Before the repatriation of the Vietnamese in 1970 and 1971, possibly as many as 62,000 Christians lived in Cambodia. According to Vatican statistics, in 1953, members of the Catholic Church in Cambodia numbered 120,000, making it at the time, the second largest religion. Estimates indicate that about 50,000 Catholics were Vietnamese.
Many of the Catholics remaining in Cambodia in 1972 were Europeans – chiefly French; and still, among Catholic Cambodians are whites and Eurasians of French descent. Steinberg reported, also in 1953, that an American Unitarian mission maintained a teacher-training school in Phnom Penh, and Baptist missions functioned in Battambang and Siem Reap provinces.
Until the late 19th century, there were no Protestant missions to Cambodia.[10] A Christian and Missionary Alliance mission was founded in Cambodia in 1923; by 1962 the mission had converted about 2,000 people.
American Protestant missionary activity increased in Cambodia, especially among some of the hill tribes and among the Cham, after the establishment of the Khmer Republic. The 1962 census, which reported 2,000 Protestants in Cambodia, remains the most recent statistic for the group. In 1982 French geographer Jean Delvert reported that three Christian villages existed in Cambodia, but he gave no indication of the size, location, or type of any of them. Observers reported that in 1980 there were more registered Khmer Christians among the refugees in camps in Thailand than in all of Cambodia before 1970. Kiernan notes that, until June 1980, five weekly Protestant services were held in Phnom Penh by a Khmer pastor, but that they had been reduced to a weekly service after police harassment. His estimates suggest that in 1987 the Christian community in Cambodia had shrunk to only a few thousand members.[11]
Various Protestant denominations have reported marked growth since the 1990s, and by some current estimates Christians make up 2-3% of Cambodia's population.[12][13]
The introduction of the Baháʼí Faith in Cambodia first occurred in 1920, with the arrival of Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney in Phnom Penh at the behest of 'Abdu'l-Bahá.[17] After sporadic visits from travelling teachers throughout the first half of the 20th century, the first Baháʼí group in Cambodia was established in that city in 1956.[18][19] By 1963, Baháʼís were known to reside in Phnom Penh, Battambang, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville, with a functioning Spiritual Assembly present in Phnom Penh.[20]
During the rule of the Khmer Rouge in the late 1970s, the Baháʼís of Cambodia became isolated from the outside world.[21] Many of them joined with the flood of refugees that dispersed around the world following the fall of the Khmer Rouge, resettling in places such as Canada and the United States, where special efforts were made to contact them and incorporate them into local Baháʼí community life.[22] Baháʼís in Thailand and other countries reached out to the Cambodian refugees living in camps on the Thai-Cambodian border; this eventually led to the growth of Baháʼí communities there, including the establishment of Spiritual Assemblies.[23][24]
The Baháʼí community has recently seen a return to growth, especially in the city of Battambang. The city hosted one of 41 Baháʼí regional conferences worldwide in 2009, which attracted over 2,000 participants.[25] Two regional youth conferences occurred in Cambodia in 2013, including one in Battambang and one in Kampong Thom.[26][27]
In 2012, the Universal House of Justice announced plans to establish a local Baháʼí House of Worship in Battambang.[28] Its design was unveiled in July 2015,[29] with the groundbreaking following in November.[30] The House of Worship—the first Bahá'í House of Worship to serve a single locality—was dedicated in a ceremony in September 2017, attended by 2,500 people.[31]
According to a 2010 estimate, Cambodia is home to approximately 16,700 Baháʼís.[32]
Indigenous beliefs
Highland tribal groups, most with their own local religious systems. These were arguably the earliest religious people in Cambodia. Hinduism came to Cambodia mainly during the reign of the Raja Chola in the 10th century. Even before that, Buddhism had arrived in Cambodia. Now tribes include approximately 150,000 people only.[33] The Khmer Loeu have been loosely described as animists, but most indigenous ethnic groups have their own pantheon of local spirits. In general they see their world filled with various invisible spirits (often called yang), some benevolent, others malevolent. They associate spirits with rice, soil, water, fire, stones, paths, and so forth. Shamans, sorcerers or specialists in each village contact these spirits and prescribe ways to appease them.[11]
In times of crisis or change, animal sacrifices may be made to placate the anger of the spirits. Illness is often believed to be caused by evil spirits or sorcerers. Some tribes have special medicine men or shamans who treat the sick. In addition to belief in spirits, villagers believe in taboos on many objects or practices. Among the Khmer Loeu, the Austronesian groups (Rhade and Jarai) have a well-developed hierarchy of spirits with a supreme ruler at its head.[11]
Banteay Meanchey is a province of Cambodia located in the far northwest. It borders the provinces of Oddar Meanchey to the north, Siem Reap to the east, Battambang to the south, and shares an international border with Thailand to the west. Its capital and largest city is Serei Saophoan.
Kampong Chhnang is one of the central provinces (khaet) of Cambodia. Neighboring provinces are Kampong Thom, Kampong Cham, Kandal, Kampong Speu, and Pursat. The provincial capital is the city of Kampong Chhnang.
Kampong Speu is a province of Cambodia. It borders the provinces of Pursat and Kampong Chhnang to the north, Kandal to the east, Takéo to the southeast, Kampot to the south and Koh Kong to the west. Its capital is the town of Chbar Mon.
Kandal is a province of Cambodia located in the southeast portion of the country. It completely surrounds the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh and borders the provinces of Kampong Speu and Takéo to the west, Kampong Chhnang and Kampong Cham to the north, Prey Veng to the east, and shares an international border with Vietnam to the south. It is the second most populous province in Cambodia after the capital Phnom Penh. Its capital and largest city is Ta Khmau, which is approximately eight kilometres (5.0 mi) south of central Phnom Penh. Kandal is one of the wealthier provinces in the country.
Pursat is a province of Cambodia. It is in the western part of the country and borders clockwise from the north: Battambang province, the Tonlé Sap, Kampong Chhnang province, Kampong Speu province, Koh Kong province, and East Thailand. It lies between the Tonle Sap and the northern end of the Cardamom Mountains. The Pursat River bisects the province, running from the Cardamoms in the west to the Tonle Sap in the east.
Prey Veng is a province (khaet) of Cambodia. The capital is Prey Veng. With a population of 1.1 million people, it is the third most populous province.
Islam is the religion of a majority of the Cham and Malay minorities in Cambodia. According to activist Po Dharma, there were 150,000 to 200,000 Muslims in Cambodia as late as 1975, although this may have been an exaggeration. Persecution under the Khmer Rouge eroded their numbers, however, and by the late 1980s they probably had not regained their former strength. In 2009, the Pew Research Center estimated that 1.6% of the population, or 236,000 people were Muslims. In 2021, the State Department estimated the Islamic population at less than 1%. Like other Muslim Cham people, those in Cambodia are Sunni Muslims of the Shafi'i denomination and following the Maturidi doctrine. Po Dharma divides the Muslim Cham in Cambodia into a traditionalist branch and an orthodox branch.
Buddhism in Cambodia or Khmer Buddhism has existed since at least the 5th century. In its earliest form it was a type of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Today, the predominant form of Buddhism in Cambodia is Theravada Buddhism. It is enshrined in the Cambodian constitution as the official religion of the country. Theravada Buddhism has been the Cambodian state religion since the 13th century. As of 2019 it was estimated that 97.1 percent of the population are Buddhists.
The majority of Vietnamese do not follow any organized religion, instead participating in one or more practices of folk religions, such as venerating ancestors, or praying to deities, especially during Tết and other festivals. Folk religions were founded on endemic cultural beliefs that were historically affected by Confucianism and Taoism from ancient China, as well as by various strands of Buddhism. These three teachings or tam giáo were later joined by Christianity which has become a significant presence. Vietnam is also home of two indigenous religions: syncretic Caodaism and quasi-Buddhist Hoahaoism.
Sri Lanka is officially a Buddhist country, while Sri Lankans practice a variety of religions. As of the 2012 census, 70.2% of Sri Lankans were Buddhists, 12.6% were Hindus, 9.7% were Muslims, 7.4% were Christians. Buddhism is declared as the State religion of Sri Lanka and has been given special privileges in the Sri Lankan constitution such as the government is bound for protection and fostering of Buddhist Dharma throughout the nation. However, the constitution also provides for freedom of religion and right to equality among all its citizens. In 2008 Sri Lanka was the third most religious country in the world according to a Gallup poll, with 99% of Sri Lankans saying religion is an important part of their daily life.
The Catholic Church in Cambodia is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome. Throughout the Church's history in Cambodia, Catholics made up a small percentage of the country's population, and a majority of adherents have been ethnically Vietnamese; in 2005, around two-thirds of the total number of Catholics in Cambodia were Vietnamese.
Buddhism in Southeast Asia includes a variety of traditions of Buddhism including two main traditions: Mahāyāna Buddhism and Theravāda Buddhism. Historically, Mahāyāna had a prominent position in the region, but in modern times, most countries follow the Theravāda tradition. Southeast Asian countries with a Theravāda Buddhist majority are Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, all of them mainland countries.
Theravada Buddhism is the state religion of Cambodia, which has been present since at least the 5th century.
Theravada Buddhism is the largest and dominant religion in Laos. Theravada Buddhism is central to Lao cultural identity. The national symbol of Laos is the That Luang stupa, a stupa with a pyramidal base capped by the representation of a closed lotus blossom which was built to protect relics of the Buddha. It is practiced by 66% of the population. Almost all ethnic or "lowland" Lao people are followers of Theravada Buddhism; however, they constitute more than 50% of the population. The remainder of the population belongs to at least 48 distinct ethnic minority groups. Most of these ethnic groups are practitioners of Tai folk religions, with beliefs that vary greatly among groups.
The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the government has generally respected this right in practice. Buddhism is the state religion.
A wat is a type of Buddhist and Hindu temple in Cambodia, Laos, East Shan State, Yunnan, the Southern Province of Sri Lanka, and Thailand.
Database (WCD) 2010 and International Religious Freedom Report for 2012 of the U.S. Department of State. The article Religions by country has a sortable table from the Pew Forum report.
Preah Sihanouk Raja Buddhist University is a non-profit public higher-education institution located in the metropolis of Phnom Penh in the Kingdom of Cambodia.
Venerable Pang Khat also known as Bhikkhu Viriyapandito was a Cambodian Theravada bikkhu monk who was notorious from 1940 to 1975 and who is most famous for his translations from Sanskrit language to Khmer.
Samdech Preah Moha Sangkha Reach Nil Teang or Nil Tieng as it was written during the French protectorate of Cambodia, was the first Supreme Patriarch of Cambodia in the Mahanikaya. He held that position during the reign of three consecutive kings: King Preah Ang Duong, King Norodom, King Sisowath.
References
1 2 3 "Cambodia", The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 2022-02-04, retrieved 2022-02-13
↑ Leland D. and Joyce B. White, [www.lds.org/liahona/1997/10/the-gospel-takes-hold-in-cambodia "The Gospel Takes Hold in Cambodia"], Liahona, October 1997, p. 41.
↑ "Teaching and Assembly Development Conference for Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Thailand". Baháʼí News Letter (85). National Spiritual Assembly of the Baháʼís of India, Pakistan & Burma. 1956.
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