Wat
Wat Dhammaram (Verdun-sur-Garonne)
Wat Dhammaram is a Khmer Buddhist Wat at the lieu-dit Pouffets, between Verdun-sur-Garonne and Dieupentale in southwestern France.[1][2] Its community moved there from Toulouse in 2022.[1]
History
The Wat Dhammaram association was registered in Toulouse in June 2018. Its aims include promoting Buddhist culture, teaching the spoken and written Khmer language, teaching meditation, helping families hold funeral ceremonies in the Khmer tradition and creating a Buddhist pagoda.[3]
Early in 2022 the association settled on an old farm at Pouffets, beside the departmental road between Verdun-sur-Garonne and Dieupentale, and three monks came to live there.[1] Its registered address moved there in April 2022.[3] The first ceremony at the new site was the Cambodian New Year of 2022, the Year of the Tiger, held outdoors under a marquee while the association waited for permission to build a Wat. Venerable Bou Samgos of the Nice pagoda led the ceremonies with several monks, and representatives of the Cambodian consulate in Toulouse and of the Royal Embassy of Cambodia in Paris attended.[1]
Religious life
On September 29, 2024, families came from across the region to celebrate Pchum Ben, the festival of the ancestors, at the Wat. After greeting the monk at the entrance, they placed their gifts in a large golden bowl to support the renovation and growth of the site. Families prayed before the Buddha image in a former shed that now serves as the prayer hall, and a shared ceremony was followed by a meal prepared by the visitors.[2]
Associations
Association Wat Dhammaram
(associated organization).[4]
Legal name: ASSOCIATION WAT DHAMMARAM (A.W.D).
Registration identifiers: SIREN (France): 881 961 346; RNA (France): W313028024.
Registered in June 2018 at 15 rue du Professeur Rey, Toulouse; registered address moved to lieu-dit Pouffets, Verdun-sur-Garonne, in April 2022. Its stated aims include creating a Buddhist pagoda.
See also
- Wat Triratanaram (France), a Khmer Wat in Cugnaux, near Toulouse
- Wat Khmer Of Toulouse
- All organizations
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 La Dépêche du Midi, Récemment installés à Verdun-sur-Garonne, les moines bouddhistes ont fêté l'entrée dans l'année du Tigre (April 18, 2022)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 La Dépêche du Midi, Verdun-sur-Garonne. Les bouddhistes khmers ont fêté Pchum ben (October 5, 2024)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Net1901, Association Wat Dhammaram (A.W.D) (updated April 7, 2022)
- ↑ Net1901, Association Wat Dhammaram (A.W.D) (updated April 7, 2022)