Jayavarman VIII's Anti-Buddhist Purge and the Fall of Mahayana at Angkor

The Khmer Empire: The Lost Civilization Behind Angkor Wat — Fexingo History · Jul 16, 2026 · 11m · transcript

In the late 13th century, the Khmer Empire underwent a violent religious upheaval. King Jayavarman VIII, a fervent Hindu, launched a systematic campaign to erase Mahayana Buddhism from Angkor, smashing Buddha images, converting temples back to Hindu shrines, and persecuting monks. This episode explores the motives behind the purge, the archaeological evidence of mutilated statues, and the political context: a backlash against the Buddhist kings who preceded him, especially Jayavarman VII. We also examine how this religious shift weakened the state, alienating allies and paving the way for the…