Phlōv Preah Dhammalaṅkāra
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Phlōv Preah Dhammalaṅkāra (Khmer: ផ្លូវព្រះធម្មលង្ការ, meaning "Road of the Venerable Dhammalankāra") (French: Le Chemin de Lanka) is a Khmer Buddhist text translated and studied by the French scholar François Bizot. It belongs to a group of esoteric Theravāda writings preserved in Cambodia and mixes traditional Buddhist teachings with ritual and symbolic practices often linked to tantric traditions.[1]
Content and themes
The text sets out a path of practice tied to the mythical land of Laṅkā. It brings together standard Theravāda ideas—such as meditation on impermanence and insight—with symbolic rituals, visionary imagery, and mythic stories. Laṅkā is described not just as a real island but as a spiritual realm of purity and transcendence.[2]
Manuscript transmission
Bizot found the work in the early 1970s while doing field research in Cambodia. Forest monks had preserved it through careful hand-copying and ritual recitation.[1] Palm-leaf manuscripts were once kept in monasteries around Angkor and Battambang, but many were lost or destroyed during the Cambodian Civil War and the Khmer Rouge era. Bizot’s records are among the few reliable sources that remain.[2]
Link to "Tantric Theravāda"
The Phlōv Preah Dhammalaṅkāra is central to Bizot’s idea of a "Tantric Theravāda." This Khmer tradition mixes Theravāda meditation with ritual initiation, esoteric diagrams (yantra), and protective formulas (Khatha).[3] Bizot suggested that this blend challenges the usual boundaries between Theravāda and Tantric Buddhism, showing how Cambodian monks drew on both canonical teachings and esoteric practices.[2]
Legacy
Bizot’s study of this text and related Khmer works changed how scholars view Cambodian Theravāda. His research highlighted the ritual and esoteric sides of the forest tradition. Some scholars accept the idea of a "Tantric Theravāda," while others see these practices as local variations within a wider Southeast Asian Buddhist context.[4]
See also
External links
References
- ^ a b Bizot, François (1997). Le Chemin de Laṅkā. Paris: École française d’Extrême-Orient. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ a b c Bizot, François (1981). Le Bouddhisme des moines forestiers d'Angkor. École Française d’Extrême-Orient.
- ^ Skilling, Peter (2002). Buddhism and the Tantric Tradition. Silkworm Books.
- ^ Harris, Ian (2003). "The Problem of "Tantric Theravāda"". Contemporary Buddhism. 4 (1): 93–114.