Buddhism as the State Religion and the Path of Vipassana

Based on a paper presented at the National Seminar on "The Current Situation of Religions in Cambodia," July 31, 2002.

The Essence of the State Religion

To understand why the Cambodian Constitution officially recognizes Buddhism as the state religion, we must first look to its core philosophy. The word Phuttha-sasana simply means "the teachings of the Buddha." While these teachings are vast—comprising 84,000 Dhamma-khandhas across the Vinaya, Sutta, and Abhidhamma Pitakas—they can be distilled into three fundamental principles (Ovadapatimokkha):

1. Avoiding Evil (Sabba-pāpassa akaranam)

In Khmer, the word bāp refers to destructive actions that cause societal breakdown. The Buddha specifically warned against the Ten Evil Deeds (Dasa Akusala Kamma). These include physical harms such as killing, theft, and sexual misconduct. They also encompass harmful speech: lying, harsh insults, frivolous gossip, and slander that divides communities along racial or class lines. Finally, they include mental evils: coveting the wealth of others, harboring ill-will, and clinging to wrong views, such as the belief that corruption or violence can yield true happiness. Abandoning these behaviors is the absolute foundation of a peaceful society.

2. Cultivating Good (Kusalassūpasampadā)

Good deeds (Kusala Dhamma) bring development and merit to a nation. This includes generosity (Dāna)—which ranges from sharing personal wealth to building schools and hospitals—and moral restraint (Sīla). Cultivating good also requires mental development (Bhāvanā) to foster a gentle, honest character free from greed and anger. Vital societal virtues include respecting elders, offering service to the vulnerable, teaching and listening to the Dhamma, and maintaining a clear understanding that good actions naturally yield happiness while evil actions yield suffering.

3. Purifying the Mind (Sa-cittapariyodapanam)

The human mind (Citta) is naturally flickering, easily agitated, and prone to defilements like greed, hatred, and delusion. Yet, as the Buddha taught, "The world experiences suffering or happiness solely because of the mind." If people universally learned to tame and cleanse their thoughts, the world would experience lasting peace.

Buddhism as the Foundation of the Nation

Because Buddhism is a deeply rational doctrine rooted in cause and effect, the Cambodian people have embraced it for nearly two millennia, making it the bedrock of Khmer culture, language, and literature. Most importantly, Buddhism has been Cambodia's ultimate formula for peace. Following more than two decades of tragic civil war, it was the Buddhist principles of reconciliation and non-violence that finally helped the nation heal and unite.

The Practice of Vipassanadhura

Buddhist practice is traditionally divided into two main duties: Ganthadhura (the study of the scriptures) and Vipassanadhura (insight meditation to train the mind). Historically, Cambodians practiced meditation individually in pagodas and forests. However, in 1996, the Supreme Patriarch of the Mahā Nikāya, Samdech Tep Vong, established a formalized "Vipassanadhura Buddhist Study System" to standardize this vital mental training. Under the leadership of Venerable Sam Bunthoeun, this initiative grew into the Vipassanadhura Buddhist Center, guiding thousands of practitioners across the country.

Vipassana is essential because the human mind is highly reactive. When untrained, it is easily overpowered by craving (taṇhā), constantly chasing pleasant sensory experiences and rejecting unpleasant ones, leading to endless cycles of joy and sorrow. Vipassana offers a path out of this suffering. Through meditation, practitioners develop moral restraint, deep concentration, and ultimately, the wisdom to see the impermanence of all things. This realization fosters a profound detachment, freeing individuals from the anxieties of ego, caste, and race, allowing them to live in true harmony with society.

This practice is especially relevant to modern social struggles. When human desires are left unchecked, they become insatiable—such as the limitless cravings of an unfaithful spouse, which can tear families apart and drive partners to profound despair or even physical illness. Yet, through the practice of Vipassana, many women and men have found the wisdom to navigate these deep emotional pains, freeing themselves by seeing the true, impermanent nature of their suffering.

A Medicine for the Mind and Society

Vipassana serves not only as a tool for spiritual awakening but also as a powerful medicine for treating psychological anguish and the lingering effects of past karma. This was profoundly illustrated by the story of a Khmer-Australian family who suffered from severe, inexplicable panic attacks—a terrifying condition rooted in old karma that left them so paralyzed by fear they could no longer live in their own home.

After traveling the world in search of medical and spiritual cures to no avail, they visited the Vipassanadhura Center at Phnom Odtharoas just before returning to Australia. Under the guidance of Venerable Sam Bunthoeun, the family practiced kammaṭṭhāna (meditation) for a short period of ten days. The results were life-changing; the crippling fear vanished. The husband, in particular, developed a resilient mindfulness that allowed him to protect his family and inspire others to practice.

Just as doctors develop medicines to cure bodily ailments, the Buddha’s teachings offer the Dhamma as the ultimate cure for afflictions of the mind. Furthermore, when practiced widely, Vipassana breaks down the superficial barriers of race, nationality, and ego. When we realize that a person is ultimately just a collection of natural elements and mental phenomena, prejudice dissolves, allowing diverse communities to live together in genuine harmony without clinging to worldly divisions.

The Buddhist View on Rebirth

One of the most profound philosophical questions is what happens after death. While some believe in a permanent, eternal soul, and others believe in utter annihilation, Buddhism offers a uniquely nuanced perspective based on the law of cause and effect.

In the Buddhist framework, a "being" is simply an entity attached to worldly desires. Depending on their past actions, beings cycle through three main realms of existence: the Sensual Realm (which includes the human world, heavenly realms, and lower realms of suffering), the Form Realm, and the Formless Realm (inhabited by highly developed spiritual beings).

The driving force behind this continuous cycle of birth and death is Karma (action) and the consciousness it produces. A person is not reborn randomly. Their new existence—including their physical appearance, intelligence, wealth, and life circumstances—is a direct reflection of their past wholesome or unwholesome deeds. For instance, generosity leads to future prosperity, while a life of cruelty leads to suffering.

The Inescapable Law of Karma

The scriptures and historical parables are filled with testaments to this truth. Consider the classic story of Cunda the pig-slayer, whose decades of cruelty toward animals culminated in agonizing physical and mental torment at the end of his life, followed by rebirth in a realm of immense suffering. Conversely, acts of profound merit can alleviate suffering across lifetimes, as seen when King Bimbisara made offerings to the Sangha to free his relatives, who had been trapped as hungry ghosts for eons due to their past greed.

Karma operates continuously, binding individuals together across multiple lifetimes. Traditional accounts—such as a murdered brother reincarnating as a household animal to remain near the wife he was desperately attached to, or a child in Roka Kong village who possessed the clear memories of his past life as his own grandfather—illustrate how strong attachments, whether born of love or hatred, anchor us to the cycle of Saṃsāra.

As the Buddha taught: "Beings are owners of their karma, heirs to their karma, born of their karma, related through their karma, and have their karma as their refuge. Whatever karma they perform, for good or for ill, to that will they fall heir."

Breaking the Cycle: Nibbāna

This continuous loop of existence is governed by the law of Dependent Origination (Paṭiccasamuppāda). Ignorance leads to craving, craving leads to attachment, and attachment leads to rebirth, which inevitably brings aging, sickness, and death.

To escape this endless cycle of suffering, one must cultivate "Supramundane Karma" (Lokuttara Karma) through deep spiritual practice. By destroying ignorance and craving, a practitioner can elevate their spiritual state—progressing from a Stream-Enterer to an Arahant—and eventually attain Nibbāna (Nirvana).

Nibbāna is the ultimate cessation of suffering. It is not a physical place, but the absolute quieting of the mental aggregates. When an fully enlightened being passes away, the karmic fuel that drives rebirth is entirely spent. Without that fuel, the cycle of birth and death finally stops.

Conclusion

Ultimately, Buddhism rejects both Eternalism (the belief in a permanent, unchanging soul) and Annihilationism (the belief that death is the absolute end with no karmic consequences). Instead, it teaches the middle path: as long as the causes for rebirth remain in the mind, the cycle of existence continues. Once those causes are uprooted through moral discipline and insight meditation, rebirth ceases.

By understanding that we are the architects of our own destiny, individuals are empowered to cultivate good deeds. If everyone recognized this profound truth—that we alone are responsible for our happiness or suffering—the entire world would naturally incline toward goodness, bringing about lasting and universal peace.

 

Authored by Venerable Preah Dhamma Vipassana Sam Bunthoeun, Ketadhammo
Late President of the Vipassanadhura Buddhist Center of the Kingdom of Cambodia