Learn about the religious life of Lao people
(Baonghean.vn) - The Lao People's Democratic Republic is located in Southeast Asia, with a population of nearly 6 million people and an area of 236,800 km2, of which more than 3/4 are mountains and forests. It is the only country in Southeast Asia without a sea. The Lao Lum ethnic group accounts for 60%, Lao Thoong 30%, Lao Xung 10%, with 90% of the population voluntarily becoming followers of Theravada Buddhism (Southern Buddhism) introduced from China through the South, through Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and then to our country.
A popular pose of a Buddha statue in Laos
Laos’ 1991 constitution guarantees freedom of religion to all citizens. There are about 18,000 Catholics in Laos, most of them from the French-educated class who remained after 1975, along with some converted animist hill tribes. Islam, with about 200 adherents, has little influence on the lives of the people here.
Animism in the Laotian mountains is the dominant form of religion after Buddhism. Belief in gods is combined with ancestor worship.
Lao people pay attention to two types of gods: Evil Gods and Good Gods. People spend a lot of time on worshipping, asking for the blessings of the Good Gods, as well as to appease the Evil Gods. Most villages have two main guardian gods, Phi wat, who protects temples and Phi muang, who protects villages. According to legend, fragments of Buddha statues found in the Vientiane area date back to the 8th century, when the Khmer occupied Laos. Buddhism was introduced to the area in the 11th and 12th centuries.
Buddhism in Laos dates back to Fa Ngum, who brought the Phra Bang, a small golden Buddha statue cast in Sri Lanka, from the Khmer court. The Lao consider it a symbol of Buddhism in their country. In the 16th century, King Sethathirat led the spread of Buddhism by building many temples and monasteries.
Vientiane became an important Buddhist center in Southeast Asia. In the early 19th century, after Thailand invaded and sacked the city, destroying many temples, Buddhism lost its important position. After the 1975 revolution, Buddhism declined even more. People were forbidden to give alms to monks, and the teaching of Buddhism in primary schools was suspended!
Laotian monk of Vietnamese origin
In recent decades, thanks to the policies of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party and Government, which are to build national consciousness, independence, autonomy, unity, respect and service to the people of all ethnic groups; to promote the spirit of solidarity, love and mutual support among ethnic groups and communities... Buddhism is being revived. Pagodas have been rebuilt and strengthened. Many pagodas have become prestigious Buddhist centers. Monks and nuns rely on the alms of local people. Pagodas are often built near densely populated areas so that people have the opportunity to come to the pagoda every morning and offer alms to monks who go begging along the streets at dawn.
Regarding the role of the pagoda in the spiritual, ideological, emotional and intellectual life of the Lao people, two authors Duc Ninh - Tran Thuc Viet wrote in the book The Face of Modern Lao Literature (2007): The Lao pagoda with its special position, is both a large school, a library storing documents, and a large theater open all year round, a place to preserve and conserve the national culture and literature.
Studying the religious life of our brotherly country of Laos, there is one point to note: For most people in this country, there is no contradiction between Buddhism, which advocates the philosophy of Love - Compassion - Joy - Equanimity, and other religions and beliefs. People who follow different religions and people who do not follow any religion are willing to unite and work together to build a new life, thanks to which the great solidarity of the Lao people is increasingly expanding, with many new humanistic values.
The Geneva Agreement on Laos was signed on July 23, 1962, recognizing the independence, neutrality, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Laos. And on September 5, 1962, the Democratic Republic of Vietnam officially established diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial level with the Kingdom of Laos. Sharing borders and relations with neighboring countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, and China, learning more about the similarities and differences in Religion in general, and Buddhism in particular in Laos, will certainly bring each of us useful and interesting results.
Kim Hung
