Talk:Early history of Thailand

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[edit] Buddhism from Burma

I'd always heard that Buddhism got to Thailand after it moved south through India, across to what is now Sri Lankha and then across to Malaysia and finally north. I don't have a reference for this right now, but will try to find one. --KayEss 14:33, 29 Nov 2004 (UTC)

I found the following on a not-very-authoritative website [1], but it's pretty much what had been my understanding: Buddhism was first introduced into Thailand as Hinayana Buddhism in about 329 B.C., later in about 700 A.D., Mahayana Buddhism came. However, in 1000 A.D. Hinnayana was again re-introduced from Burma. In 1253 A.D., Thai Buddhist Monks went to Ceylon and brought back with them the Pali scripts. Mark¹ 01:54, 30 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Christian University of Thailand currently has a Nakhon Pathom District Cultural Center which has much information on the entrance of Buddhism into Thailand. Prior to providing full referencing for each issue and refinement of term, it is necessary to develop a flow of history in Central Thailand. It was in the Dhavaravati Civilization in the 9th C. based in the seaport city of Nakhon Chai Sri that this civilization flourished. At that time the Mon reigned supreme, with isolated and scattered local Red Karen villages and Indian traders. Since that time the silt deposits have filled in a whole section of land in the northwestern corner of the Gulf of Thailand, now creating several lowland provinces that are an agricultural breadbasket and causing the port of Nakhon Chai Sri to be now only a river port. In the reign of Rama 2 an influx of Lao Song (also Thai dam) as well as Cambodian groups were moved into the region between Nakhon Chai Sri (45 minutes west of Bangkok) in villages such as Don Yai Hom (from which the legend of Grandmother Hom comes) and into the region of Rachburi which is a plain between the coast and the mountainous area of Three Pagoda Pass. It was through this pass that later the Burmese army travelled to destroy the Kingdom of Ayutthaya in the 1700s. Serious scientific efforts are now underway, including sattelite and infrared imaging technology to help reconstruct the settlements and irrigation canal system introduced at that time by the Dhavaravati civilization. The import of this information helps understand the emergence of the modern nation of Thailand in terms of its system of monarchy and the adherence to Therravada Buddhism.

[edit] Comment

Shouldn't this article be merged with the History of Thailand?Devraj Singh 05:49, 26 July 2007 (UTC)