This country is still little known to most, and almost no one even imagines what religion is prevalent in Cambodia at present. About 95 percent of the population of Cambodia are Buddhists. Theravada Buddhism is the main form of this religion in Thailand, Laos, Myanmar and Sri Lanka. Khmer Rouge destroyed many religious buildings and tried to eradicate religion itself. Buddhism and other religions that exist in this country have not yet recovered from this period. The national minority, the Cham, are mostly Muslims. Many of the hill tribes are animists. Among the Chinese, Taoism and Confucianism are widespread. Cambodians have traditionally been faithful Buddhists, their beliefs included elements of animism, Hinduism and Chinese religions, as well as beliefs in paradise, hell, ghosts and spirits.
Religion and Khmer Rouge
Khmer Rouge tried to destroy religion in Cambodia. Religious ceremonies and prayers were prohibited. Buddhist monks were killed, shot, or sent to the fields to work as slaves, temples were destroyed, desecrated, or even used as death camps. Almost all Muslims who lived in Cambodia were killed.
Section 20 of the 1976 Constitution of Democratic Kampuchea guaranteed freedom of religion, but it also stated that "all reactionary religions that are harmful to Democratic Kampuchea and the Kampuchean people are strictly prohibited." Until 1975, the Khmer Rouge tolerated the activities of a community of Buddhist monks, or sangha, in liberated areas in order to enlist the support of the population.
The situation changed dramatically after the fall of Phnom Penh. From 40 to 60 thousand Buddhist monks, whom the regime considered social parasites, were sent to labor brigades. Many of them were executed; Temples and pagodas were destroyed or turned into vaults or prisons. People seen manifesting religious feelings were killed. Representatives of Christian and Muslim communities were also persecuted. Phnom Penh Roman Catholic Cathedral was completely destroyed. Khmer Rouge forced Muslims to eat pork; those who refused were killed. Representatives of the Christian clergy and Muslim leaders were sent to be shot. After the fall of the regime, the situation with the religion of Cambodia began to change.
Theravada Buddhism
This is the official and main religion of Cambodia, which is professed by 95 percent of the population, mainly ethnic Khmers. Buddhist monks are very disciplined and must follow the 227 rules in addition to the ten basic principles of being a good Buddhist. Monks cannot take part in entertainment. They lead a simple life dedicated to faith and the temple.
Theravada Buddhism is a religion of tolerance that does not require faith in higher beings.
Before Buddhism appeared in this country as the religion of Cambodia, Hinduism was the most common. He was one of the official religions of the Khmer empire. Angkor Wat is the largest Hindu temple in the world and one of the few dedicated to Brahma. Although Hinduism is no longer practiced in Cambodia, it has an impact on Khmer Buddhist rites such as weddings and funerals.
Religions of China and Mahayana Buddhism in Cambodia
Mahayana Buddhism is the religion of most Chinese and Vietnamese in Cambodia. Elements of other religious practices, such as veneration of folk heroes and ancestors, Confucianism and Taoism, are mixed with Chinese and Vietnamese Buddhism.
Taoism teaches meditation and the use of magic to gain happiness, wealth, health and immortality. Confucianism, partly social philosophy and partly religion, emphasizes religious ritual and pays great attention to the veneration of ancestors and great figures of the past.
Mahayana Chinese Buddhism is intertwined with Taoist and Confucian beliefs. Adherents worship many Buddhas, including Gautam Buddha, and believe in paradise after death. They also believe in bodhisattvas - people who have almost reached nirvana but remain to help save others.
Animism in Cambodia
Animism as a religion of Cambodians is especially alive among hill tribes in northeast Cambodia and to a lesser extent among ordinary Cambodians. People protect themselves from ghosts by placing images on doors and on fences. It is believed that sometimes barking dogs and strange sounds from animals warn people about the presence of ghosts.
Animism manifests itself in faith in supernatural beings. These include spirits that inhabit mountains, forests, rivers and other natural objects; perfumes - keepers of houses, animals and fields; ancestral spirits; and evil creatures, masters and demons. Some are considered helpful, but most can cause illness or misfortune, especially for those who behave inappropriately.
Muslims in Cambodia
Islam is the religion of Cambodia, professed by the Cham and Malay minorities. All Cham Muslims are Sunnis of the Shafi school. Po Dharma divides Muslim cham in Cambodia into traditionalist and orthodox branches. Chams have their own mosques. At the end of the nineteenth century, Muslims in Cambodia formed a single community under the rule of four religious dignitaries - Mupti, Tuk Kalikh, Raja Kalik and Twan Pak.
The council of nobility in the Cham villages consisted of one hackem and several katipy, bilal and labi. When Cambodia became independent, the Islamic community was transferred to the control of a council of five members who represented the community in official organizations and in communication with other Islamic communities. In every Muslim community, there is a hackem who rules the community and the mosque, an imam who directs the prayers, and a bill, which calls the faithful to daily prayers.
The Chrui Changvar Peninsula near Phnom Penh is considered the spiritual center of the Chams. Every year, some cham go to study the Qur'an in Kelantan in Malaysia, and also make a pilgrimage to Mecca. They preserve many ancient Muslim or pre-Islamic traditions and rites.
Orthodox chams represent a more conformist religion, in large part because of their close contact with the Malay community and their intermarriage. In fact, Orthodox chamas have adopted Malay customs and family organization, and many speak Malay. They send pilgrims to Mecca and attend international Islamic conferences.
Christians in Cambodia
About 2 percent of Cambodians are Christians, but their number is growing, and there are currently about 2,400 churches in the country. Catholics make up 0.1 percent of the population.
Christianity as a religion in Cambodia was introduced by Roman Catholic missionaries in 1660, could not spread, at least among Buddhists. In 1972, there were about 20,000 Christians in Cambodia, most of whom were Catholics. Before the repatriation of the Vietnamese in 1970 and 1971, up to 62,000 Christians lived in Cambodia.
After the creation of the Khmer Republic, American Protestants tried to spread their influence among some hill tribes and among the Chams. Thousands of Christian missionaries have flooded Cambodia since the early 1990s. Many of the converts were introduced to religion by missionaries from evangelical Protestant groups.
Some Cambodian Buddhists have complained that Christian missionary groups are too aggressive. In January 2003, the Cambodian government banned Christian groups from engaging in religious propaganda. In June 2007, government officials issued a reminder prohibiting door-to-door preaching, and they could offer food and other help only to those who joined their churches.