This lesson was talked about Literary and Cult Traditions which presented by venerable Sarith Loch and venerable Chanthan Khon. They both were students at Preah Sihanouk Raja Budhhist University Battambang Campus.

1. ពុទ្ធិកសាកលវ ិទ្ាល័យព្ពះសីហនុរាជសសាា
ខេត្ដបាត្់ដំបង
Cambodian Buddhism
Presentation by
Ven. Loch sarith and Ven. Khon chanthan
Lesson 4 Literary and Cult Traditions

2. Lesson 4 Literary and Cult Traditions
 Cambodian Literary Tradition
Cambodian Literary is Customarily divided into two
major categories.
 The first encompasses all explicit works of
religious instruction (gambhir), including canonical,
cosmological, and ritual Buddhist texts.
 The second (lpaeng) is qually large and diverse. It
includes legends,fable,epic stories,poems,and novels.
 Traditional manuscripts exits in a number of
forms. The largest and most imposing of these are the
satra, which comprise large bundles of prepared and dried
palm leaves (sloek) that have been inscribed by a stylus
and washed with ink before being between wooden boards.

3.  By and large, no extant Cambodian manuscripts
are especially old. Occasionally, one may find something
dating back to the end of the eighteenth century, but most
are somewhat later.
 The arrival of the French and the gradual
imposition of the conditions of modernity on the Buddhist
sangha had a profound impact on all aspects of
Cambodian culture, particularly in the field of writing.
 Pali Literature
Finot’s detailed investigation (1917) into the
condition of the libraries of Loatian Buddhist monasteries
revealed that none contained a full set of writings from the
Pali canon or the Tripitaka, although many held a
complete Abhidhamma.

4.  Despite Cambodia’s history of upheaval and social
disruption since the fall of Angkor, the country did
possess some significant Buddhist libraries.
 Coedes believe that most of the scattered Pali
manuscripts in these collections had their origin in
Thailand. This idea reinforces the notion that the
Tripitaka was hardly known in its entirety in Cambodia
until modern times.
 A Mon monk, Phra Sumet (aka Buddhavarisa), had
convinced King Mongkut (Rama IV,r.1851-1868) that
the Thai monastic order was in need of reform in line
with King Dhammaceti’s fifteenth-century campaign of
purification in Burma.

5.  We have already had cause to observe that the royal
chronicles talk of editions of the Tripitaka in Cambodia at
quite an early date.
 Insofar as Pali texts were known, it was their their
apotropaic and symbolic significance, rather than any
explicitly didactic content, that seemed most relevant.
Indeed, many of these works appear quite heterodox from
the modernist standpoint.
 What we do know is that in 1854 Ang Duang petitioned
Bangkok to send a complete version of the Tripitaka in
the pure form of Pali recently championed by the
monastic reformers of that country, on the grounds that
nothing of the sort existed in Cambodia at the time.

6.  Khmer Literature----The Cpap’
Buddhist works of moral instruction are well
attested throughout the Asian region. In Cambodia the
genre began to emerge possibly as early as the fourteenth
century and continued as a vigorous mode of writing well
into the modern period.
 Cpap’ maybe grouped into two categories: those
designed for general consumption, and those specailly
oriented toward a political or aristocratic elite.
 Cpap’s kram appears to be the most widely known
and well circulated text in the genre. The text takes the
form of a monk-teacher’s address to an audience of young
novice monks.

7.  Cpap’Kerti kal has a rather more specific focus. It
recommends that well-born person should utilize slaves
(knum) and clients (kamtar) of both sexes for various
agricultural tasks.
 Cpap’ Prus is a text directed toward young boys, and,
unusually, its author, Mai, is mentioned in the colophon.
Mai also wrote a better-known and more widely taught
companion work for girls, Cpap’s Sri.
 Cpap’Rajaneti, or Cpap’s Brah Rajasambhar, is used to
designate chief monks of important monasteries in both
Laos and Thailand, it may have originated with a high
ecclesiastical dignitary.

8.  Reamker
The Indian epic poem Ramayan has exercised an
influence in Cambodia for more than a millennium. A
seventh-century Sanskrit inscription [K.359] from Veal
Kantal, Stung Treng, mentions daily recitations of a clutch
of Indic writings donated to the sanctuary, including the
Ramayana.
The cambodian Ramayana has persisted into modern
times and exists in a number or forms.

9. 5. Traditional Literature And Esotericism
• Pali focuses on more heavily ritual and
experiential than doctrinal and didactic.
• Bizot revealed the existence of nonorthodox
Buddhist meditation practices that have been
largely secret.
• Both Brahamical and Buddhist tantrism
esoteric religious practices for create of internal
power and both effected in Angkor era.

10. 6. Esotericism and Exotericism
• Both the practice seem happed earlest phase of
Buddha history.
• Among the traditional Buddhist, teaching and
practice based on translate Pali, replacement
external way, to become neakvibassna.
• And for internal way practices is to become
neak mulkamathan.
• Two Mulkammathan are:
a. right-handed path( to Nivana).
b. left handed path.(to gian power over
others).

11. 7. Initiation
• The practitioner study Buddha`s teaching(Archa Trek
Din, right handed path).
• Archar Heng told Bizot, he have ability to leave his
spirit from body.
8. Asceticism and Death.
• Pilgrim from china, Yijing, noted the existence of
Buddha asceticism practice at South Asia end of 7
century.
• Burned corps ceremony.
• Chak Mahapansukul.

12. 9. The Fig Tree And Crystal Globe.
• The tree have five braches; representing about
human body.
• Crystal, representing about prenant. and all this is
compared to Dhama.
Finally, Cambodian country is to a lot of traditional
literature, most of which have been directly inspired
from the Buddhist tradition.

13. Thank for your
listening our
presentation
group!