Bokator World: Buddhism

History of the Mekha Bucha Festival
Cambodia has long been a Buddhist country, with over 95% of the population practicing Buddhism, and the constitution recognizes Buddhism as the state religion. Among them, the number of monks and monasteries has been increasing steadily. According to statistics from 2013, there are more than 4,500 monasteries and more than 54,000 monks, which is a great source of pride. According to history, Buddhism first originated in India. After the Buddha passed away about 218 years ago, a king named King Dhammasoka Maharaja ascended the throne in the capital of Bataliputta of the Magadha kingdom. He had great power and authority. He converted to Buddhism and became the king of the Third Sangha in 234 B.E. After the Third Sangha, King Dhammasok Maharaja sent envoys to various countries in the world with the aim of spreading Buddhism. He is said to have opened the doors of the world and enlightened the people to know Buddhism since then.
Fortunately, Cambodia also received the influence of spreading Buddhism from the sending of two envoys, named Sonatthera and Uttaraththera, who brought Buddhism to the land of Suvarnabhumi in the third century (234 B.E.).
Cambodia is not only influenced by Buddhism alone, but also by Brahmanism and other cultures from India. However, because of some of its culture, traditions, and customs, it is similar to Khmer culture, traditions, and customs, and combined with the Khmer ancestors who are good at adapting foreign cultures to make them their own, it is difficult to distinguish between one being Indian and the other Khmer. Buddhism is a religion that is a synthesis of Khmer culture, traditions, and customs, and together with the Buddha's teachings, there is a clear reason why the Khmer people have always respected and loved it.
Temples and monks play a very important role in Khmer society. Temples are not only places for religious ceremonies, but also a place to spread culture, civilization, and a place to show solidarity in Khmer society. In short, they are the center of Khmer culture. Monks represent the disciples of the Blessed One and play an important role as teachers of ethics, medicine, literature, and mental health, and they also serve as arbitrators in resolving disputes, ensuring the well-being of all citizens in society.
Speaking of Buddhist practices in Cambodia, many festivals are celebrated, including major festivals related to Buddhism:
Phambin Festival, Cho Preah Vassa Festival, Kham Preah Vassa Festival, Kathin Festival, Mekha Bucha Festival, and Visakha Bucha Festival, etc. However, in this article, I would like to mention only Mekha Bucha Festival to explain the history of Mekha Bucha Festival, what its meaning is, and why all Buddhists must celebrate this festival, whether it is Cambodian Buddhists or Buddhists from other countries in the world. As long as they are Buddhists, they must celebrate this festival forever.
According to the Book of Royal Ceremonies, Part 2, the history of Visakha Bucha only mentions the history of Visakha Bucha, which occurred during the reign of King Hirarakramathipdei, King Ang Duong, who reigned during the Udtung era in 1397.
From this, we can conclude that the Mekha Bucha was likely started in this Buddhist era as well, because both festivals commemorate the anniversaries of the great Mahaphilakthi of the ascetic Gotama, the teacher of humans and deities.
In 1999, the members of the United Nations unanimously approved and recognized Visakha Bucha, as well as the Buddhist Mekha Bucha, as international holidays, allowing all Buddhist countries to celebrate Visakha Bucha at the United Nations Headquarters. Although not universally recognized, Mekha Bucha is celebrated by Buddhists around the world and is considered a national holiday.
As is the custom of most Cambodian Buddhists, every time the Makha Bucha festival arrives, they always prepare, arrange, and clean temples throughout the Kingdom of Cambodia by hoisting the national flag, the Buddhist flag, the Buddha image, the Sakyamuni chedi, the relics of the Buddha, including the sacred utensils, playing the music of the sacred instruments, the offerings of offerings, including the offerings of incense, flowers, and fragrant incense, all carefully selected according to the Khmer culture, civilization, and customs, in preparation for the celebration of the Makha Bucha festival.
The celebration of the Makha Bucha festival is to celebrate three major events:
1/ To celebrate the fourfold assembly
2/ To celebrate the day on which the Blessed One delivered the Patimokkha sermon
3/ To celebrate the day on which the Blessed One established the Sangha.
Once upon a time, the Blessed One was living in

In the cave (cave) named Sokarkhata on Mount Kichchakod (a mountain with a peak like a smart animal) near the city of Rajagaha, to recite the Tikānkha Sutta, the Tikānkha Paripvājaka, which describes the four great phenomena that do not occur regularly.
At that time, the Dharmasenapadī Kunsiyadhamma, who was sitting on the side of the seat (behind the back) that had offered the Blessed One, pondered over the essence of the Dhamma and attained the highest arahantship of the disciples of Paramināṇa and Pāṇa16.
The Paripuvajaka monastery also completed its journey. When the sun was about to set, the Buddha descended from the peak of Kichchakod and went to the Veluvana monastery, where he held a council of four disciples.
A/ The first event, the Chaturanga Sannibhata, has four parts, namely the assembly with four parts:
1/ The day of the full moon, the day when His Holiness performed the Visuddha Pooja
2/ On that day, the 1250 monks and nuns gathered without prior appointment and came to the Buddha's house on the same day at the same time
3/ All of those monks and nuns were arahants who had achieved the six precepts
4/ All of those monks and nuns were lay monks (having not been ordained, had not shaved their heads, (Just by going to the Blessed One and hearing the Dhamma, he became a monk like them.) This Chaturanga Sannibha or assembly of disciples only happened once during the Buddha’s lifetime, not many times.
B/Event 2: The day he gave the Patimokkha Precepts The Patimokkha Precepts are a series of precepts that the Buddha gave to guide all beings to be free from suffering. The Buddha himself preached the Patimokkha teachings, which consist of three and a half verses of the Buddha’s words, which are translated into Khmer as follows:
Adivasanakhanti is patience, which is the highest virtue. The Buddhas have always taught that Nirvana is the highest virtue. A monk who kills other animals or oppresses other animals is not a monk.
Not committing any sin, completing merit, and cultivating one’s mind to overflowing are the three teachings of the Buddhas.
Not speaking abusively, not harassing, concentrating on the path of enlightenment, being a guide in the quiet state of sitting, lying, and standing, and striving in the six mindfulness practices: these are the teachings of the Buddhas.
After he had preached the Patimokkha sermon, our venerable master Gotama proclaimed the appointment of two monks as the chief disciples of all the monks, appointing Sariputta as the right-hand chief disciple, the chief disciple of all the monks, the disciple of the side of great wisdom, and appointing Mahamoggalla as the left-hand chief disciple, the chief disciple of all the monks, the disciple of the side of great power. C/ The third event, the day of the Buddha's death, was the day when the evil demon approached the Blessed One and pleaded with him, saying, "Venerable sir, now may the Blessed One enter into Nibbana. May the Blessed One enter into Nibbana. Venerable sir, now is the time for the Blessed One's passing away." The Buddha replied to the evil demon's words, "O evil demon, be less anxious. The Tathagata's passing away is not long now. Three months have passed from today, and the Tathagata will enter into Nibbana." Our great teacher, the Buddha, set the date of his birth and death, that is, he set the date on which he would pass away and enter into Mahaparinibbana, which is the departure from this world without returning, the departure from the cycle of life without any regrets, because the path he walked was the path of peace and tranquility, free from all suffering.
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History of the Mekha Bucha Festival

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Meditation is the firm determination of the mind in a single feeling or the clear knowledge of that feeling with truth. There are two types of meditation: concentration and insight. Concentration is the concentration of the mind, binding the mind to a single feeling, not allowing the mind to wander to other feelings. There are three levels of concentration meditation according to the strength of practice, namely:
1- Kānikā samādhi is meditation in which the mind has a single feeling or the mind is calm for a while but does not last long.
2- Upacara Samadhi is a meditation in which the mind is calm and free from the five aggregates, but not from the feelings of the first and middle aggregates, but the feelings of this upacara Samadhi are the feelings of the mind in a state of near-perfection.
3- Appana Samadhi is a meditation in which the mind is absorbed in the feelings of the first and middle aggregates, in which the mind is experiencing the feelings that are the aggregates of the first and middle aggregates, namely, perception, thought, happiness, and mental defilements, all of which are the five aggregates.
What is the feeling of Samatha Samadhi?
The word samadhi, which means calm mind, is not entirely correct as sammadhi. Micchasamadhi is samadhi that deviates from the path of dharma or samadhi of the mind, which adheres to vipassanā as the ultimate cause, the path, the fruit, and nibbāna, and abandons practice and cultivation of thought. Therefore, samadhi of the mind is sammadhi to achieve. The Kechi teachers or the Atthakatha teachers say that one should focus the mind on any of the 40 types of kammadhi, according to the tolerance or individual characteristics of each individual.