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Religious Beliefs and Spirituality in Cambodia

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Cambodia is one of the bastions of Buddhism, particularly Theravada Buddhism. Buddhism has been ingrained in Cambodian culture that missionaries from other religions would have a hard time penetrating into as Buddhism has been practiced since, at the very least, 5 B.C. and was the decreed as the standard faith from the 13th Century onwards. Currently, 95% of Cambodian nationals adhere strictly to the doctrines of Theravada Buddhism. That alone gives an indication how strong the roots of Buddhism are in this former French protectorate as there is no curtailment of religious freedom enforced.

Theravada Buddhism is considered to be the oldest school of thought in Buddhism. Proponents of this branch of Buddhism claims that Theravada Buddhism is the closest in terms of teachings and ideals from the original as it is the oldest form of Buddhism dating back to 250 B.C.

The word Theravada literally means “Teaching of Analysis”.  As early as 250 B.C., Buddhism has been teaching followers to do critical thinking and use reasoning more instead of blind faith. Adherents are also taught to heed the advice of the elders and of the wise. Another famous teaching of this branch of Buddhism is that human suffering is caused by the “tanha” (cravings) which with it are carried are the “kilesas” (defilements). Theravada Buddhists believe that these defilements are the forces that drive inhumanities. Perhaps, the teaching that will be most remembered about Theravada is the doctrine of the “Four Noble Truths.”

The remaining 5% of the population are either followers of Islam, Animism, Hinduism or Christianity.  These other religious sects use to have higher numbers but due to Pol Pot’s purging, the members of these sects who are known disciples were summarily executed during the reign of the Khmer Rouge.