A new book sets out to give outsiders a basic understanding of Cambodian religion and spirits

[geovalin]

Spirit Worlds

Will Jackson

Both religion and spiritualism permeate Cambodian society. Every house and workplace has at least one shrine, every suburb and village a pagoda. Monks are everywhere, but so are kru khmer.

For outsiders, this important aspect of the culture can be intriguing but hard to come to grips with.

Who are all these shrines for? And why do these Buddhists also worship spirits? Why are Cambodians so obsessed with gaining “merit”? And what do those squiggly spires on the pagodas represent?

It was questions like these that prompted former Australian diplomat and UN worker turned freelance journalist Philip Coggan to write Spirit Worlds: Cambodia, The Buddha and the Naga, which is being launched at the Kampot Writers and Readers Festival, which kicks off this week.

The book provides a readable history and overview of Cambodia’s particular brand of Buddhism, before touching on topics ranging from the diversity of spirits and ghosts to the nature of kamm (karma or luck), the role of the King, bong thom (big brother) culture, and how it came to pass that the Khmer Rouge genocide took place in a culture that values non-violence and abhors killing.

read more: http://www.phnompenhpost.com/post-weekend/spirit-worlds