'The primary form of Buddhism practiced in Cambodia during Angkor
times was Mahayana Buddhism, strongly influenced with Tantric
tendencies.
The prevalence of Tantrayana in Java, Sumatra and Kamboja [Cambodia],
a fact now definitely established by modern researches into the
character of Mahayana Buddhism and Sivaism in these parts of the Indian
Orient. Already in Kamboja inscription of the 9th century there is
definite evidence of the teaching of Tantric texts at the court of
Jayavarman II. In a Kamboja record of the 11th century there is a
reference to the 'Tantras of the Paramis'; and images of Hevajra,
definitely a tantric divinity, have been recovered from amidst the ruins
of Angkor Thom. A number of Kamboja inscriptions refer to several kings
who were initiated into the Great Secret (Vrah Guhya) by their
Brahmanical gurus; the Saiva records make obvious records to Tantric
doctrines that had crept into Sivaism.[8]'
also
'The work in question is an ornate, 18-inch-high,
late 12th-century
Cambodian bronze sculpture of the dancing Hevajra, a Buddhist
enlightened being associated with tantric practices. With eight heads
and 16 arms, the gracefully swaying Hevajra promises powerful aid to
acolytes in pursuit of enlightenment through meditation or ritual.
Originating in India between the fourth and seventh centuries, tantric
Buddhism evolved alongside tantric practices in Hinduism and Jainism. It
later spread to Cambodia, China, Tibet, Nepal and Japan.
Examples of Buddhist tantric works from all of those countries are on
view. These include the museum’s “Naga-enthroned Buddha,” a Cambodian
transcendent being enthroned atop the coiled body of a snake with the
shield-like form of a seven-headed cobra rising behind him like a
protective canopy.
Also outstanding is a gleaming, highly
ornamented 15th century Chinese gilded bronze sculpture of Virupa, a
founding master of tantra. The work depicts him in the act stopping the
sun’s movement in the heavens by raising his left hand...'
http://www.cleveland.com/arts/index.ssf/2013/09/the_cleveland_museum_of_arts_t.html
They may have lost their intellectuals in the 1970s and found Buddhism suppressed then but even so I was astonished at the
suspicious definition of sacred at an Angkor Tantric Temple!.
Even the modern Temple Girl, based on the reliefs was supposedly controversial, as if it could be.
In a mosque yes, but Cambodia has not yet been annexed by the Islamic State?
So long then Tara?
OMG she is topless, why is she not wearing Hijab?
Quick before they notice:
Guide to Islamic Salat...ahem...
http://www.diamondway-buddhism.org/
It can be said however that some Moslems consider Buddha to be the lost Prophet of the Quran.
This makes sense in the context of higher-jihad self mastery.
'...The mid-twentieth century scholar, Hamid Abdul Qadir, in his
Buddha the Great: His Life and Philosophy (Arabic:
Budha al-Akbar Hayatoh wa Falsaftoh), postulates that the
Prophet
Dhu’l-Kifl, meaning “the one from Kifl,” mentioned twice in the Quran (Al-Anbiya 85 and
Sad 48) as patient and good, refers to Shakyamuni Buddha. Although most scholars identify
Dhu'l-Kifl with the Prophet Ezekiel,
Qadir explains that “Kifl” is the Arabicized form of Kapila,
short for Kapilavastu. He also proposes that the Qur’anic mention of the fig tree (
At-Tin 1-5) refers to Buddha as well, since he attained to enlightenment at the foot of
one. Some scholars accept this theory and, as
support for this position, point out that the
eleventh-century Persian Muslim scholar of Indian history, al-Biruni, referred to Buddha as a
Prophet. Others dismiss this last piece of evidence and explain that al-Biruni was merely
describing that people in India regarded Buddha as a prophet. ..'
http://www.berzinarchives.com/web/en/archives/study/islam/general/buddhist_islamic_view.html#n70109a5a106875d72
With no P in Arabic, F is used instead so
Kifl also means KiPL or Kapila' a reference to the birth place of Buddha.
And not to Ezekiel. This has perplexed islamic scholars.
