Hem Chieu (Khmer: ហែម ចៀវ; 1898 - 1943) was a Buddhist monk and a prominent figure in the development of Cambodian nationalism.
Chieu was a professor at the Higher School of Pali in Phnom Penh, and strongly objected to attempts by the French colonial authorities, beginning in the late 1930s, to romanize the Khmer writing system. Although the reforms were not intended to be applied to religious texts, he began to make vocal criticisms of the French administration. He became associated with two nationalist activists, Son Ngoc Thanh and Pach Chheoun, editor and founder of a pro-independence Khmer-language newspaper, Nagaravatta. The French authorities believed that Thanh, Chieu and Chheoun, with Japanese backing, were attempting to recruit followers for a bid for independence from the French.[1]
Arrest
On July 18, 1942, the French authorities moved to arrest Chieu and an associate, Nuon Dong. Chieu was alleged to have preached anti-French sermons to Khmer troops in the colonial militia in preparation of the revolt; the manner of his arrest deeply offended many other members of the sangha.
Reaction to Arrest
A large demonstration against the arrests, in which many monks took part, was organised two days later in Phnom Penh by Thanh and Chheoun. Pach Chheoun marched at the head of the demonstrators, and several monks who would later take an active role in Cambodian politics, such as later Communist activists Achar Mean (Son Ngoc Minh) and Achar Sok (Tou Samouth) were present. The demonstration was broken up violently by the French, and Chheoun was arrested and sentenced to death (later commuted to life imprisonment).[2]
Death
Hem Chieu, "still preaching" according to an observer, was also sentenced to death by a military tribunal, later commuted to life imprisonment with hard labour.[3] He died in the notorious Côn Sơn Island prison in October 1943. While there he met several leaders of the Viet Minh, such as Phạm Văn Đồng and Tôn Đức Thắng, who afterwards related that Hem Chieu's heroic conduct in the prison led to sanctions which directly contributed to his illness and death.[4]
Chieu soon came to be regarded as a martyr by leftist Cambodian nationalists and insurgents of the United Issarak Front. In 1950, a political school named after Hem Chieu was established in the south-west of the county and an armed guerrilla unit named itself after him.[5] He was also, however, honoured as a national hero by the anticommunist Khmer Republic.
References
Jump up ^ Kiernan, B. How Pol Pot Came to Power, Yale UP, 2004, p.42
Jump up ^ Harris, I. Buddhism and politics in twentieth-century Asia, CIPG, 2001, p.60
Jump up ^ Kiernan, B. How Pol Pot Came to Power, Yale UP, 2004, p.45
Jump up ^ Kiernan, p.47
Jump up ^ Harris, I. Cambodian Buddhism: History and Practice, University of Hawaii, 2008, p.158
I believe this video just shows a short biography of grandfather Krom Ngoy because I could not write in detail on the video like in the book. For more info about him
Som Dech Nath was the head of a reformist movement in the Khmer Buddhist Sangha which developed a rationalist-scholastic model of Buddhism, rooted in linguistic studies of the Pali Canon. This new movement, known as Dhammayuttika Nikaya, influenced young Khmer monks in the early 20th century. The new movment also cultivated Khmer-language identity and culture, giving rise to the notion of Cambodian nationalism.
Nath pushed for a series of innovations in the Khmer Sangha beginning in the early twentieth century: the use of print for sacred texts (rather than traditional methods of hand-inscribing palm-leaf manuscripts); a higher degree of expertise in Pali and Sanskrit studies among monks; a vision of orthodoxy based on teaching of Vinaya texts for both monks and lay-people; and modernization of teaching methods for Buddhist studies.
He also oversaw the translation of the entire Buddhist Pali canon into Khmer language; and the creation of the Khmer language dictionary.
The French set up its protectorate over Cambodia and intended to replace the Khmer language with its own through the so-called "pseudo-French intellectuals." This intention rallied many Cambodian scholars to the course of conserving the Khmer language; one such scholar was Nath. A son of farmers who later became a monk, Nath dedicated his life to upholding Buddhism and the conservation of Khmer language in the country that was highly influenced by French colonialism. He had an extensive knowledge of the Khmer language. He was probably the most famous and most knowledgeable monk Cambodia had ever had. A master in Buddha’s teaching, he was very well known around the Buddhism circle as well as very adept at languages. Throughout his life he encouraged the use of "Khmerization" in both public education and religions. What Nath meant by "Khmerization" was he wanted to derive new Khmer words from its ancestral roots, the Pali and Sanskrit languages. For example, when the train arrived first in Cambodia, there was no Khmer word for the train. Nath thus derived the word for train from Sanskrit and Pali word of Ayomoyo which means something that is made of metal. Together with the word Yana which means vehicle, came the Khmer word for train which we know today as Ayaksmeyana, pronounced Ayak-smey-yean.
However, Nath’s Khmerization was not overall accepted by all Khmers. Scholars such as Keng Vannsak who were pro-French did not find the kind of Khmer words derived from Pali and Sanskrit to be convenient. They revolutionized another kind of derivation which they want to adopt normalized French word into Khmer vocabulary. The only major change was to use Khmer alphabet to write the word rather than using the Roman alphabets used by the French. But despite opposition, Nath’s Khmerization succeeded. He was a member of the original committee granted royal order to compile a Khmer dictionary in 1915 and was credited as the founder of the dictionary as he pushed for and finally succeeded in printing the first edition of the current Khmer dictionary in 1938. In 1967, he was elevated to the rank of doctor.
Nath’s other contribution to Cambodia include the current national anthem, Nokor Reach. Nokor Reach was written to correspond to the motto of the nation, "Nation, Religion, King" as well as demonstrate the grandeur and the mighty past of the Khmer nation.
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