used a Buddhist idiom in the rhetoric surrounding commu-
nal violence between the Sinhala majority and the substantial
Tamil minority. In Burma the hopes for Buddhist nation-
hood also dimmed, and the military government that took
over in the early 1960s—despite its nominal support for
Buddhist socialism—sought to keep Buddhism isolated from
the mainstream of national life. But in the Burmese case it
should also be noted that in recent years the military govern-
ment has taken a significantly new tack by initiating a reform
of the monastic order that is intended to “purify” it, demon-
strate government interest in monastic affairs, and open
channels of communication between the government and
the sangha.
Further east, the interactions between Therava ̄da Bud-
dhism, politics, and ideology have been equally important
but quite different in character. In Thailand the affinity be-
tween the Therava ̄da tradition and nationalism has been as
strong as in Sri Lanka or Burma. But since Thailand was
never conquered by a Western nation, this affinity has result-
ed in a basically cooperative relationship between Buddhism
and the established government, and a rather stable continu-
ation of the traditional symbiotic relationship between the
sangha and state. In recent years Buddhism has become close-
ly associated with capitalist development, while socialism—
Buddhist or otherwise—has remained on the political and
ideological periphery.
In Cambodia and Laos an early continuity with the re-
ceived tradition was followed by a break that has been both
dramatic and devastating. The continuity that characterized
the religio-political situation during the colonial period was
made possible by the fact that the French—who were the co-
lonial overlords in the area—chose to rule at a distance and
to leave the established religious and political order largely
intact. The radical break was, of course, the result of the dis-
ruption caused by the war that racked the area in the late
1960s and early 1970s, and by the victory of the Commu-
nists in both countries. In Cambodia, the Communist devas-
tation of Buddhism during the Pol Pot regime (1975–1980)
was widespread and brutal. In Laos (and, since 1980, in
Cambodia), the approach of the Communist authorities has
been considerably more restrained; but even in these contexts
traditional Buddhist institutions have suffered serious dam-
age and traditional Buddhist values have been directly and
severely challenged.
THERAVA ̄DA TODAY. Therava ̄da Buddhism remains very
much alive in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, both as a monas-
tic tradition and as a civilizational force. The sangha, despite
its many problems, carries on its traditions of Pali scholarship
and meditational practice. It continues to produce persons
with intellectual substance and spiritual prowess. And it con-
tinues to generate movements (often conflicting movements)
aimed at monastic reform, spiritual development, and soci-
etal well-being.
In addition, Therava ̄da Buddhism continues to exert its
influence on the institutions and values of the societies in the
traditionally Therava ̄da areas. This influence takes quite dif-
ferent forms in Sri Lanka, where ethnic differences often in-
volve religious differences; in Burma, where the nation’s
leaders have sought to insulate the populace from many as-
pects of “modernity”; in Thailand, where the pace of “mod-
ernization” is rapid indeed; and in Cambodia and Laos,
where Therava ̄da Buddhism has been “disestablished” by re-
cently installed Communist governments. But in each in-
stance Therava ̄da Buddhism continues to provide meaning
in the everyday life of its adherents.SEE ALSO Arhat; A ́soka; Buddhaghosa; Buddhism, article on
Buddhism in Southeast Asia; Burmese Religion;
Dut:t:haga ̄man: ̄ı; Khmer Religion; Kingship, article on King-
ship in East Asia; Lao Religion; Moggaliputtatissa; Mong-
kut; Sam:gha; Sinhala Religion; Southeast Asian Religions,
article on Mainland Cultures; Thai Religion; Vinaya; Wor-
ship and Devotional Life, article on Buddhist Devotional
Life in Southeast Asia.BIBLIOGRAPHY
Unfortunately there is no one book that adequately covers
Therava ̄da Buddhism as a whole. Perhaps the most compre-
hensive single study for the premodern period is Kanai Lal
Hazra’s History of Therava ̄da Buddhism in South-East Asia
(New Delhi, 1982), which touches on Indian and Sri Lankan
developments as well. This book needs to be supplemented
by other works that deal with particular aspects of the tradi-
tion, such as Wilhelm Geiger’s Pali Literature and Language,
2d ed., translated by Batakrishna Ghosh (Delhi, 1968); John
C. Holt’s Discipline: The Canonical Buddhism of the
Vinayapitaka (Delhi, 1981); John Ross Carter’s Dhamma:
Western Academic and Sinhalese Buddhist Interpretations
(Tokyo, 1978); Stephen Collins’s Selfless Persons: Imagery and
Thought in Therava ̄da Buddhism (Cambridge, 1982); Wins-
ton L. King’s Therava ̄da Meditation (University Park, Pa.,
1980); and Bhikkhu Nyanatiloka’s Guide to the Abhidham-
ma-pitaka, 3d ed., revised and enlarged by Nya-naponika
Thera (Kandy, 1971). Many of the civilizational aspects are
covered in two related books edited by Bardwell L. Smith,
Religion and Legitimation of Power in Sri Lanka and Religion
and Legitimation of Power in Thailand, Laos, and Burma
(both, Chambersburg, Pa., 1978). Similar themes are ex-
plored in Heinz Bechert’s three-volume Buddhismus, Staat
und Gesellschaft in den Ländern Therava ̄da-Buddhismus
(Frankfurt, 1966–1973). Two other studies written for more
general audiences are Robert C. Lester’s Therava ̄da Buddhism
in Southeast Asia (Ann Arbor, 1973) and Donald K. Swear-
er’s Buddhism and Society in Southeast Asia (Chambersburg,
Pa., 1981).
Because of vast translation efforts, primarily by the Pali Text Soci-
ety, the nonspecialist has access to a large body of Therava ̄da
literature. Virtually the entire Tipit:aka has been translated
into English and is included in either the “Sacred Books of
the Buddhists” or the “Translation Series” of the Pali Text
Society. Among the most important postcanonical texts that
are available in English are Wilhelm Geiger’s translation of
The Maha ̄vam:sa, or The Great Chronicle of Ceylon (London,
1964); Bhikkhu Ñyanamoli’s translation of Buddhaghosa’s
fifth-century work, The Path of Purification, 2d ed. (Colom-THERAVA ̄DA 9153