Buddhism in a Dark Age: Cambodian Monks under Pol Pot

Chapter Five: Buddhist Practice and Material Culture under the Khmer Rouge

90 ChApter FIVe Buddhist Practice and material Culture underthe khmerrouge Buddhist Rites The ordination of a monk is arguably the most significant of all Buddhist rituals. It is a two-stage process, starting with the “going forth” (pabbajjā) of the novice (sāmaṇera) and followed sometime later by a higher-level initiation (upasampadā) into the status of the fully ordained monk (bhikkhu). Under normal circumstances the novice should be between seven and nineteen years of age, and the bhikkhu twenty-one or over. There is reasonable evidence that in some parts of the liberated area the Khmer Rouge did not obstruct novice ordinations before 1975.1 One informant, for instance, was confident that many young boys in and around the town of Stung Treng continued to be ordained well after 1973 and that local cadres did not seem to mind.2 Novice ordinations in Svay Rieng were officially prohibited in some locales, but parents could circumvent opposition by having the ceremony conducted in a neighboring commune where things were allowed to proceed in a more relaxed manner.3 The major ordination of a bhikkhu, however, was another matter. These rarely occurred, even in areas where novices could freely enter the order.4 The discrepancy in treatment of the two groups had a certain logic. In the liberated areas schools were clearly no longer under government control, and in the absence of paid staff they were forced to close. This meant that the only education available for children was that supplied by the wats (Huy Vannak 2003, 16). By continuing to admit young boys to the novitiate, the Buddhist practice and Material Culture 91 Khmer Rouge could more effectively control the local population and ensure that the minds of the young were exposed to the communist propaganda now beginning to replace the traditional curriculum of pagoda schools. An August 1974 intelligence report from Pursat province confirms this. By opening schools in all the pagodas of the province, the communists controlled a setting where pupils could be urged to hate Buddhism.5 One of the best means of spiritual progress as a lay Buddhist is through the feeding of monks. But as we have seen, this practice was discouraged. Ponchaud (1978, 150) reports a particularly chilling order given toward the end of 1975: “If any worker secretly takes rice to the bonzes, we shall set him to planting cabbages. If the cabbages are not full-grown in three days, he will dig his own grave.” In this situation, customary links between the saṅgha and the wider community were difficult to sustain, and the economic support structure on which monasteries relied quickly disintegrated. The effect of all of this was to disorient and disaggregate villagers, for the monastery had traditionally functioned as the prime focus of communal life and shared meaning. The laity are also expected to supply monks with other essentials, most notably lodging, medicine, and clothing. It is established custom to conclude the monks’ three-month rainy season retreat (vassā) with a ceremony called kathin, in which the pious make gifts of robe to the saṅgha. Clearly the ceremony is built on the same conceptual foundations as the practice of alms giving, underlining as it does the otherworldly character of the saṅgha and its dependency on lay supporters. For this reason kathin was condemned by the communists. People were not permitted to bring cloth for robes into the liberated zones, and by the middle of 1974 it was rare to hear of a kathin ceremony beyond the areas still held by government forces.6 In January 1974 around forty Takeo-based monks were defrocked to serve in the army. In May another twenty-five were conscripted. But villagers were still allowed to practice the Buddhist precepts and to hold small donation festivals. In fact kathin was observed that year at both wats, but no robes were offered, just money, and half of the money went to Angkar.7 Although Angkar did not readily tolerate rites that acted merely to support the saṅgha, it is clear that rituals might continue, particularly when official permission had been granted in advance.8 An intelligence report from May 1974 mentions a pagoda holding a flower festival (puṇy phkā) in which monks received 100 riels each, while Angkar took the lion’s share of 20,000 riels.9 92 Chapter Five By early 1973 the only customary rites...