The influence of Theravada Buddhism on spiritual and social reforms in Cambodia

My personal memory of losing 30 family members to the "Killing Fields" of the Pol Pot regime in Cambodia, collective memory of a country devastated by holocaust, and the decline of moral and ethical conduct during Cambodia's civil war prompt me to demonstrate that Buddha's teaching can assist a people in recovery from the sphere of revenge and corrupted mind. This study re-examines early Buddhist texts to demonstrate the adaptability of ancient prescriptives to modern times, because moral and ethical values are necessary to lead a good life in general and to control the compulsive passion to dominate and possess in particular. This research project is a form of pragmatic inquiry, shining the light of knowledge on a very dark chapter in Cambodia's history with the intention of discovering means to move the country toward a positive future.;The dissertation highlights specific Buddhist values from the Pali Canon of Theravada Buddhism (Tipit˙&dotbelow;aka ) and recommends social movement and reforms. The Tipit˙&dotbelow;aka is the primary source used for discussion, emphasizing spiritual cultivation, positive ways people can establish peace from within, and a medium to extend peace beyond. In particular, the disciplines and code of conducts (Patimokkha) and the Vinaya-Samukkhamsa or Innate Principles of the disciplines of the Vinaya Pit˙˙&dotbelow;aka are essential in the disciplinary of monks and nuns; discourses from the five Nikayas of the Sutta Pit&dotbelow;aka are very useful for the improvement of moral and ethical conduct and for insights into living the calm life necessary for good leaders and societies; and the seven books of the Abhidhamma Pit&dotbelow;aka offer teaching on a psycho-ethical system of truth and the reality of life to reach liberation from dissatisfactoriness or suffering.;The dissertation also presents an approach to balancing problems, psychological and social, present in today's world with particular attention to the writer's native Cambodia, proposing proper understanding, specific practice, and principles derived from Theravada Buddhism to enhance current spiritual and social reforms in Cambodia. Buddhism requires humankind to develop an insightful attitude toward the world at large, and to appreciate the sacredness of life itself hidden within the complexity.