According the Malaysian constitution, the majority ethnic group, the Malays, are legally defined as Muslim. They constitute 60% of the population, with the remainder consisting mostly of Chinese, who are generally Buddhists or Christians, and to the lesser extent Indians, who are generally Hindus. There are also smaller numbers of other indigenous and immigrants; among the latter are Malaysians of Sinhalese, Thai, and Eurasian origin. Many of these immigrant peoples also profess the Christian faith, but there are also Buddhists among the Sinhalese and Thai. Nearly all of the Buddhists in Malaysia live in urban areas, since they are mostly engaged in business or employed in various professions.
The general climate of religious freedom in Malaysia indicates that Buddhism may have the opportunity to expand in the future.
Recently, a number of Malaysian Buddhist leaders have responded to the decline in religious participation by the children of Buddhist families, have attempted to reformulate their message to address modern life more directly. Groups involved in these education efforts include the Buddhist Missionary Society. Missionary Society leaders have argued that, while many educated youths seek an intellectual approach to Buddhism, an equally large number of people prefer to approach the religion through the tradition of ceremony and symbolism. In response to these needs, religious practices are carried out, but in a way that is simple and dignified, removing what can be seen as superstition. Efforts are made to explain why sutras are chanted, lamps lit, flowers offered, and so on.
As a religion without a supreme head to direct its development, Buddhism is practised in various forms, which, although rarely in open conflict, can sometimes lead to confusion among Buddhists. In Malaysia, some ecumenical moves have been made to coordinate the activities of different types of Buddhists. One example is the formation of the Joint Wesak Celebrations Committee of the temples in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, which coordinates the celebration of Wesak, a holiday commemorating the birth of the Buddha. An initiative has also begun to form a Malaysian Buddhist Council, representing the various sects of Buddhism in the country to extend the work of the development of Buddhism, especially in giving contemporary relevance to the practise of the religion, as well as to promote solidarity among Buddhists in general.
Specific Buddhist traditions
Specific Buddhist traditions
- Malaysian Mahayana
- Malaysian Theravada
- Malaysian Vajrayana
The Bujang Valley or Lembah Bujang is a sprawling historical complex and has an area of approximately 224 square km. Situated near Merbok, Kedah, between Gunung Jerai in the north and Muda River in the south, it is the richest archaeological area in Malaysia.
These archaeological remains indicate that there may have been a Hindu-Buddhist polity here. The name itself is roughly translated into "Dragon Valley". The area consists of ruins that may date more than 1,500 years old. More than fifty ancient tomb temples, called candi (pronounce "chandi"), have also been unearthed. The most impressive and well-preserved of these is located in Pengkalan Bujang, Merbok. The Bujang Valley Archaeological Museum is also located here. In the area of Bujang Valley known as Sungai Batu, excavation have revealed jetty remains, iron smelting sites, and a clay brick monument dating back to 110AD, making it the oldest man-made structure to be recorded in Southeast Asia.
Research also indicates that there may have been a Hindu-Buddhist kingdom here possibly as early as 110 CE. If that were true, this would mean that local rulers may have adopted Indian cultural and political models earlier than those of Kutai in eastern Borneo, in southern Celebes orTarumanegara in western Java, were remains showing Indian influence have been found dating from the early 5th century. Relics found in the Bujang Valley are now on display at the archaeological museum. Items include inscribed stone caskets and tablets, metal tools and ornaments, ceramics, pottery, and Hindu icons.
For the past two decades, students from universities around Malaysia have been invited for research and have done their graduate works at the Valley. Much of the historical links is still vague considering not many of the scriptures and writings survive. Even the temples did not survive the onslaught of age because their wooden roofing has rotted and withered over the past 1200 years. The museum itself is inadequate and not organized, much of the findings are elsewhere scattered from Museum Negara to Singapore. There are also accounts by the students that many of the religious findings are either hidden or destroyed by the authorities.[4] Folk stories and oral history also provide place for a magnificent kingdom of jewels and gold. Outside peninsular and insular Southeast Asia, there are some oral history in India that suggests the presence of golden chariots and jewels in hidden caves at what may be the Bujang Valley and Mount Jerai. Some visitors to the antiquity department at Muzium Negara has eye witness recollection of magnificent objects such as a 10 feet tall Raja Bersiung Throne and various idols and items from the Valley.
Austronesians were remarkable sailors. The forests of Indonesia were rich in products sought after such as resins, wood and spices. Clove for instance was known to ancient Egyptians while the only place where it would grow at that time were the Moluccas in the eastern part of the Indonesia archipelago. Benzoin (laban jawi in Arabic) and camphor (kapur Barus) came from northern Sumatra. Possibly as early as the 4th century BC, merchants from the Western part of the Indonesia archipelago sailed west in search of new markets for their products. They eventually developed trade with the coastal area of southeast India.
As early as the 1st century AD, Southeast Asia was the place of a network of coastal city-states, the centre of which was the ancient KhmerFunan kingdom in the south of what is now Vietnam. This network encompassed the southern part of the Indochinese peninsula and the western part of the Indonesian archipelago. These coastal cities traded with each other, and with China and India. They seem to have shared a common indigenous culture.
Gradually, the rulers of the western part of Indonesia adopted Indian cultural and political models. However, there are no proof of such Indian influence on Indonesian art until the 5th century, i. e. an Amaravati Buddha statue found in southern Sulawesi and a Sanskrit inscription found east of Jakarta.
Three inscriptions found in Palembang (South Sumatra) and on Bangka island, written in a form of Malay and in an alphabet derived from the Pallava script, are proof that "Indonesians" had definitely adopted Indian models. These inscriptions reveal the existence of a Dapunta Hyang(lord) of Sriwijaya who led an expedition against his enemies and who curses those who will not obey his law.
Being on the maritime route between western Indonesia and southern India, the Malay peninsula was involved in this trade. Contact between the peninsula and the Tamil kingdoms had been very close during the regimes of the Pallava Kings (from the 4th to the 9th Century C.E.) andChola kings (from the 9th to the 13th Century C.E.). This trade relations also led the rulers of the Malay peninsula to adopt Indian cultural and political models. Tamil sources mention the name of "Kadaram" i. e. Kedah and "Langkasugam" i. e. Langkasuka.
In the ancient city of Tanjore in Tamil Nadu in southern India are inscriptions dating from 1030 A.D. which mention the victory of Chola king Rajendra Chola I over what has been interpreted as designating Southeast Asian places. The name of "Kadaram" is amongst the places that Rajendra claims to have conquered. The Cholas had a powerful merchant and naval fleet in the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal. Three kinds of craft are distinguished by the author of the Periplus – light coasting boats for local traffic, larger vessels of a more complicated structure and greater carrying capacity, and lastly the big ocean-going vessels that made the voyages to Malaya,Sumatra, and the Ganges.
In Kedah there are remains showing Buddhist and Hindu influences which has been known for about a century now from the discoveries reported by Col. Low and has recently been subjected to a fairly exhaustive investigation by Dr. Quaritch Wales. Dr. Wales investigated no fewer than thirty sites round about Kedah. The results attained show that this site was the location of a Hindu-Buddhist polity similar to those found in western Indonesia.
An inscribed stone bar, rectangular in shape, bears the ye-dharmma formula in Pallava script of the fourth century A.D., thus proclaiming the Buddhist character of the shrine near the find-spot (site I) of which only the basement survives. It is inscribed on three faces in Pallava script of the sixth century CE, possibly earlier.
In Kedah an inscription in Sanskrit dated 1086 CE has been found. This was left by Kulothunga Chola I (of the Chola empire, Tamil country). This too shows the commercial contacts the Malay peninsula had with the Chola Empire
The True Aspect of All Phenomena, which was written by Nichiren Daishonin in 1273 when he was in exile on Sado Island. The recipient, Sairen-bo Nichijo was a former Tendai priest. This Gosho passage teaches us an important aspect of our Buddhist practice, that is we must make every effort to share the Daishonin's teaching with others. To do so, we have to persevere through all kinds of difficulties in the course of our practice. The Daishonin instructs his disciples to fulfil their mission to spread his teaching of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo of the Three Great Secret Laws in the Latter Day of the Law.
The practice of Buddhism is to achieve the state of life whereby we can manifest our inherent potential of enlightenment and creative value. Therefore, it is imperative that we maintain our faith throughout our life and practise the Buddhist fundamentals of faith, practice and study. We must strive for the attainment of kosen-rufu and build a life of total victory and eternal happiness.
It is only natural that we encounter difficulties along the way of spreading the Mystic Law. In order to achieve anything important in life, we are bound to face some obstacles. At times, we tend to blame the causes of these obstacles on other or the unfavourable circumstances. But from the standpoint of faith, the causes of these obstacles are due to our karma and we ourselves must change, both internally and spiritually. We must manifest the profound Buddha wisdom overcome those obstacles. We must make even greater effort so as to accumulate good fortune to change the circumstances for the better. We need to persevere in our practice till we see positive changes in our life. As the Gosho says, "winter never fails to turn into spring," so we must sometimes endure the 'cold winter' of our life. Having perseverance in our practice will definitely enable us to see the wonderful springtime of our life.
As the Daishonin's disciples, we must also teach Buddhism to others. Doing this is our greatest responsibility as propagation is the lifeblood of faith. Since the ultimate purpose of the Daishonin's Buddhism is to enable all humankind to attain eternal happiness, it is only natural that as disciples we should not forget this very important responsibility.
This spirit of compassion to 'teach others' has been the core of all Buddhist teachings. Propagation or shakubuku is no easy task. There is no aspect of Buddhist practice that is easy. But our sincerity in propagating Buddhism will allows us to change our karma and elevate our life-state.
It is important to constantly remind ourselves of our mission and responsibility in the arena of our kosen-rufu activities. We have to be careful not to fall into an inward directed type of practice, that is practicing only for oneself. This is not the true intent of the practice of Buddhism.
Our propagation of Buddhism enables us to fully develop our humanism and compassionate spirit. We cannot practice faith alone lest we become entrapped in our own egoistic 'lesser self and ultimately leads us to misery. By expanding our practice to others, we are expanding the boundary of our lives and happiness. We begin to develop our greater self — one that has the capacity to include and embrace others.
With the help of Indian missionaries such as the monk Gunavarman, Buddhism had gained a firm foothold on Java well before the 5th century AD. Buddhism was also introduced at about this time in Sumatra, and, by the 7th century, the king of Shrivijaya on the island of Sumatra was a Buddhist, whose kingdom included much of the Malay Peninsular. When the Chinese traveler I-ching visited this kingdom in the 7th century, he noted that Hinayana was dominant in the area but that there were also a few Mahayanists. It was also in the 7th century that the great scholar Dharmapala from Srilanka visited Indonesia.
The Shailendra dynasty, which ruled over the Malay Peninsula and a large section of Indonesia from the 7th to the 9th century, promoted the Mahayana and Tantric forms of Buddhism. During this period major Buddhist monuments were erected in Java, among them the marvelous Borobudur, which is perhaps the most magnificent of all Buddhist stupas. From the 7th century onward, Vajrayana Buddhism spread rapidly throughout the area. King Kertanagara of Java (reigned 1268-92) was especially devoted to Tantric practice.
In the Malay Peninsula, as in India, Buddhism gradually lost its hold during the first half of the 2nd millennium AD. In many areas Buddhism was assimilated to Hinduism, forming a Hindu-oriented amalgam that in some places (for example in Bali) has persisted to the present. In most of Malaysia (and Indonesia), however, both Hinduism and Buddhism were replaced by Islam, which remains the dominant religion in the area.
Today, about 19% of the Malaysian population claim themselves to be Buddhists. A large denomination of the local Buddhists are however, of Chinese descent, followed by the Sinhalese, Thais and Burmese. There is not one tradition which can be said to be dominant, although the Mahayana school claims to have the largest following. This is followed by the Theravada and Vajrayana. Buddhists tend to be located in the main urban centres, with the main concentration largely in Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Malacca and Johor Bahru. In the states of the northern regions bordering Thailand, Siamese influenced Wats dot the landscape.
An unique feature about Buddhism in Malaysia is that the various schools tend to be aligned to a spoken language. Mahayana adherents tend to be chinese speaking, while those in the Theravada and Vajrayana tradition are mainly English educated.
Another interesting endemic development is that much of the Buddhist activities are organized and carried out by lay people. As there are only about 1,000 officially recognised monks and nuns in the whole country, the lay followers - many of whom are from the younger generation - have taken the initiative to administer programs such as sutra studies, Dharma talks, Sunday schools for children, fellowship networking units, youth clubs and other socially engaged actitivities such as non-profit businesses, web based initiatives, social welfare homes and humanitarian charities.
The "democratization" of Buddhist propagation is an interesting phenomena which even youth organization from established Buddhist countries like Thailand and Sri Lanka are trying to emulate. Since Buddhism in Malaysia is multi-faceted, a Malaysian Buddhist Council was formed to represent the various sects in the country to extend the work of the development of the Buddha Dharma, especially in giving contemporary relevance to the practise of the religion, as well as to promote solidarity among Buddhists in general.
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