The Dhammayietra (, "pilgrimage"; ) is an annual peace walk in

Cambodia Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...

that originated during the historic repatriation of refugees along the Thai border camps during the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

monitored transition to democracy in 1992. The Khmer word "dhammayietra", derived from the

Pāli Pāli (, IAST: pāl̤i) is a classical Middle Indo-Aryan language of the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Therav� ...

''dhamma'' (, "

dharma Dharma (; , ) is a key concept in various Indian religions. The term ''dharma'' does not have a single, clear Untranslatability, translation and conveys a multifaceted idea. Etymologically, it comes from the Sanskrit ''dhr-'', meaning ''to hold ...

") and ''yātrā'' (, "walk" or "procession"), means "pilgrimage" but is often translated as "pilgrimage of truth". The peace walk takes place in early May and usually involves an assemblage of

Buddhist monks A ''bhikkhu'' (, ) is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male, and female monastics (''bhikkhunī''), are members of the Sangha (Buddhist community). The lives of all Buddhist monastics are governed by a set of rules called the prātimo ...

and

laity In religious organizations, the laity () — individually a layperson, layman or laywoman — consists of all Church membership, members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-Ordination, ordained members of religious orders, e ...

who travel various routes in Cambodia. The assemblage is often greeted by villagers along the route who expect a blessing (''teuk mon'' or blessing with lustral water). The founder of the Dhammayietra was Maha Ghosananda (), a Buddhist monk who ranked among the higher echelons of the Cambodian

sangha Sangha or saṃgha () is a term meaning "association", "assembly", "company" or "community". In a political context, it was historically used to denote a governing assembly in a republic or a kingdom, and for a long time, it has been used b ...

; he led the first Dhammayietra as he returned from exile following the war. In 1995, the Dhammayietra consisted of almost 500 Cambodian Buddhist monks, nuns and precept-taking lay people. They were joined by The Interfaith Pilgrimage for Peace and Life. Together the two groups crossed Cambodia from the Thai border all the way to Vietnam, spending several days walking through Khmer Rouge controlled territory along the way. The 1997 Dhammayietra marched from

Battambang Battambang (, Romanization of Khmer#UNGEGN, UNGEGN: ) is the capital of Battambang province and the List of cities and towns in Cambodia, third largest city in Cambodia. The city is situated on the Sangkae River, which winds its way through t ...

to Pailin, which was at the time controlled by the

Khmer Rouge The Khmer Rouge is the name that was popularly given to members of the Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK), and by extension to Democratic Kampuchea, which ruled Cambodia between 1975 and 1979. The name was coined in the 1960s by Norodom Sihano ...

, and on to

Banteay Chhmar Banteay Chhmar ( , ) is a commune (khum) in Thma Puok District in Banteay Meanchey Province, Banteay Meanchey province in far northwest Cambodia. It is located 63 km north of provincial capital Serei Saophoan (city), Sisophon and about 20&nbs ...

Banteay Meanchey Province Banteay Meanchey (, , ) is a Provinces of Cambodia, province of Cambodia located in the far northwest. It borders the provinces of Oddar Meanchey province, Oddar Meanchey to the north, Siem Reap province, Siem Reap to the east, Battambang provi ...

. The Khmer Rouge banned monks from their territory in Pailin and prohibited the open practice of religion until 1996 when the majority of Khmer Rouge distanced themselves from

Pol Pot Pol Pot (born Saloth Sâr; 19 May 1925 – 15 April 1998) was a Cambodian politician, revolutionary, and dictator who ruled the communist state of Democratic Kampuchea from 1976 until Cambodian–Vietnamese War, his overthrow in 1979. During ...

and declared

Ieng Sary Ieng Sary (; born Kim Trang; 24 October 1925 – 14 March 2013) was the co-founder and senior member of the Khmer Rouge and one of the main architects of the Cambodian genocide. He was a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Par ...

their new leader. After this mass defection, monks were tolerated in the area. The 1994 Dhammayietra, which also aimed to march through Pailin failed to reach its destination due to heavy fighting in the province. In Pailin, Ghosananda briefly met with Ieng Sary who respectfully received a blessing but did not attend the official ceremonies. The march, which took place just months before the 1997 Cambodian Coup, was unexpectedly joined in Pailin, for 15 kilometers, by

Sam Rainsy Sam Rainsy (, Romanization of Khmer#UNGEGN, UNGEGN: , Romanization of Khmer#ALA-LC Romanization Tables, ALA-LC: ; born 10 March 1949) is a Cambodian activism, activist, economist and former politician who most recently served as the Leader of t ...

and his numerous bodyguards. Rainsy used the opportunity to criticize the absence of the two

Prime Ministers A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but rat ...

Hun Sen Samdech Hun Sen (; , Romanization of Khmer#UNGEGN, UNGEGN: ; born 5 August 1952) is a Cambodian politician and former military officer who currently serves as the List of presidents of the Senate (Cambodia), president of the Senate. He previous ...

and Prince

Norodom Ranariddh Norodom Ranariddh (; 2 January 1944 – 28 November 2021, Romanization of Khmer#UNGEGN, UNGEGN: , Romanization of Khmer#ALA-LC Romanization Tables, ALA-LC: ) was a Cambodian politician and law academic. He was the second son of King Norodom S ...

, who unbeknownst at the time, were embroiled in tensions that would soon erupt into armed fighting between the two and their supporters for control of the government.

References

Organized events in Cambodia Religion in Cambodia {{Cambodia-stub