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The Theravada Revolution That Abandoned Angkor
Description
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the religious transformation that reshaped Angkor's final century. As Theravada Buddhism spread from Sri Lanka through Mon and Tai kingdoms, it offered a radically different model of kingship — one that didn't need a god-king or a vast temple complex. Lucas traces how the rise of the monastic saṅgha, the veneration of relics like the Buddha's tooth, and the shift from Sanskrit to Pali eroded the devaraja cult from within. He explains why Ayutthaya's rulers adopted Theravada as a state religion while Angkor's elites clung to Mahayana and Hindu traditions, and how Ponhea Yat's move to Phnom Penh was as much a spiritual migration as a political one. The episode also touches on the role of forest-dwelling monks (araññavāsī) and the decline of the baray system as a metaphor for fading cosmic order. No rehashed collapse narrative — this is about belief systems, not battles.